I do not need to promote your stuff (open letter)

Today, I recieved one of those emails that makes one firmly believe that some people do not understand the Bill of Rights. Basically, I had someone complain because earlier this year, I choose not to promote their stuff. They are now up to the scream that says that I am denying them their right to free speech.

Let's be clear. The only person who has the right of free speech on a blog is the blogger(s) themselves. Everyone else is free to set up their own blog, fanpage, or website, publish their own ebooks and printed material. You have the freedom of speech (provided that you are not advocating crime) to say wherever you want on your own platform.

And me refusing to advertise your stuff is not denying you free speech. Let's be clear--you and I are rivals (more or less). You would refuse to advertise my events on your platform because it is not in your best interests to do so. I am merely making the same decision. You have your own platform to get the word out--use it. Quit trying to subvert my platform for your own purposes.

Have a nice day.

(For the record, there are some things that I do have to advertise--my wife's pottery is one of them. But let's be clear about the difference--her success affects me...in a positive way. On that note, my wife has recently put up a brown [rust colored] mortar and pestle on her Etsy site.)

Brown mortar and pestle available on the Celtic Soul Etsy page.

Two repeated advertisements

Apologies to all who have already seen these two advertisements; but due to a hiccup with Facebook and Networked Blogs, those who follow this blog through Facebook did not see these two important advertisements.

One, my wife is now selling wheel thrown pottery in her Esty shop: Celtic Soul Jewelry and Pottery.

Royal Blue Mortar and Pestle.

She currently has one urn, four mortar and pestles, two herb jars, and a pair of candlestick holders available.

Two, I am giving away for free an ebook on Smashwords, Four Cornerstones, collecting the three best articles I wrote for the Hearthstone Community Church's Newsletter, as well as a reprint of the very first article that I wrote for the pagan/Wiccan/esoteric community. Did I mention that it is free? All I ask is that people give me some feedback on how horrible the meatgrinder conversion tool is treating the text.

Four Cornerstones available for free on Smashwords.

And now a word from our sponsor

The regular readers of my blogs will notice that I have changed the advertising layout. Adsense (AdChoices) is getting a lower space in the sidebar, and the prime plot of pixel space is being given to my primary sponsor---my wife. As most of my regular readers know she is currently branching out in making handmade ceramic jewelry pieces, which are being crafted into items for her Etsy shop---Celtic Soul Jewelry. This is also a secret advertisement for myself, for the photographs that she is using for her online shop (including this beautiful shot) are being taken by me. 

Advertising or News Suicide After Reading a Book

Today on one of the Golden Dawn message boards, I saw some bizzarre postings that were pretty much gibberish---much like the van down the street that says (written in masking tape) "Hope" and "Underwear" and "Wear clean underwear." Except that the van makes more sense than the replies that I was reading which seemed to be merely random words with a few links tossed in for good measure.
And I found myself wondering if anyone ever actually clicks on the links posted that way. (Heavens knows that Google ignores such links.)

This thought in turn made me wonder about a book inquiry I saw a few months ago---one that I suspect was a secret book advertising campaign.

The inquiry was about whether anyone had read a certain occult book. The person claimed that the book really freaked them out after they read it, and that they also heard that someone committed suicide after reading the book.

Given the fact that the inquiry appeared on several Golden Dawn forums at the same time, and was from a person that none of us had ever seen before, I think that most of us raked it up as an advertising campaign.

When someone pointed out that it seemed to be an advertising campaign, the person claimed not to be the writer. Of course, the proof of the pudding may be that none of us have seen this person post anything ever since. And so it goes.

Of course, it is possible that someone may have committed suicide after reading the book. But I would also like to point out that a lot of people who have committed suicide have also read the Bible. We hardly ever blame the Bible for causing suicides...so one has to consider why that is.

Whenever I have actually seen a book blamed for something, it is either a slow news day (complete with a journalist trying to spice up a story), someone trying to smear a group (ex. playing Dungeons and Dragons causes people to commit suicide and worship the Devil), or someone trying to assign blame to (or explain) some really wanked-out events. For instance, look at the number of video games and movies blamed for school shootings.

By the way, a lot of people do not see the approach of suicide (or mass violence) in others. Anyone who finds an occult book in the library of a loved one who committed suicide or did a violent crime will blame the occult. It is easier for the survivors to blame the occult than to admit that they did not see the long term mental problems that led to the suicide or mass violence.

(People also will blame the occult to explain why someone became the victim of violence. My own family has an example of that tendency.)

Anyways, as I already said, I suspect that the inquiry was merely a ruse to heighten the dark allure of an occult book.

And I wonder if it resulted in any book sales at all. Or did people in the community just ignore the book for the simple reason that it was such a clumsy advertising ploy. I ignored it, and I bet that you did too.

Pope tells the Priesthood to blog for God

Yesterday, I read a couple of articles about Pope Benedict XVI telling priests to use the new media of blogs and video podcasting to spread the word of God.

And I laughed. I know that it was wrong to laugh, but I am still not sure that the Pope understands the internet and how it works.

For instance, Pope Benedict XVI said that "Priests present in the world of digital communications should be less notable for their media savvy than for their priestly heart."

I can make a prediction here. Any Priest that succeeds at following that advice is only going to spread the word to those who already believe. I am sorry if I offend, but those in spiritual traditions need to be as media-saavy as the hucksters on the internet.

I understand what the Pope was trying to say. He wants the Priesthood to focus on being spiritual healers first and foremost; but if they want to make any headway against those they feel are in error, they need to be as media-saavy as the hucksters are, if not better.

Recently, I have spent some time on trying to figure out the tricks of successful bloggers. It is something that I think all leaders of the younger esoteric groups are doing. Wicca and the newer Golden Dawn groups embraced the internet wholeheartedly years ago. We do not need to be told that this is were we need to reach people if we want our traditions to grow.

What the Pope said is an ideal, one that I wish would actually result in those groups that were working in the Light could use. But I know too much about history and how the new media works to believe that it is useful advice if a group wants to spread its message and increase its membership.

Why I moderate comments

Today, I was reminded of why I moderate the comments on my blogs (just like I would moderate posts on a public forum).

For some reason, when people realize that you are running a successful blog, they decide that posting advertisments and spam in your comment section is good business for them.

Now, I am not sure about any of my readers, but I do not need to see such nonsense in my comment section. It is bad enourgh that I have adsense on my blog according to some. I once had a person tell me that he, and his friends, would never read my blog ever again because I had adsense on it. Something about my credibility being questionable due to the fact that I had ads on my site.

It made no sense to me at the time; it still doesn't. I think that most of my readers know that I am a freelance writer. At least, I keep the ads subtle on my sites and blogs. Some people never ever notice them.

And I am open about what I am doing. I am not running around putting ads for my pages in someone else's comment section. If I leave a comment on your blog, it is because I read your entry, not because I am trying to get more business.

Books as advertisements

Today while reading the postings of the ongoing "We are being wronged by other people despite the fact that we are equally as guilty of doing the same to them" campaign, I had to smile.

We would all like to think that our leaders in the various esoteric Orders are geniuses. Hopefully, magical geniuses, spiritual geniuses, or even (if all else fails) geniuses at doing research. More often than not, they are not geniuses.

Or if they are geniuses, it is in marketing.

Not that there is anything wrong with being an advertising genius. I wish that I was a marketing genius. The pay would be much better than being a forty-two year old college junior. Or one would hope. Of course, I would not use my marketing genius to further than ends of an esoteric Order (I hope); I would rather market my way to the top of the New York Times best seller list after writing some cheesy sci-fi novel.

But despite not wanting to dirty my own hands in such a manner, I must admit that I admire those marketing geniuses that have decided that running an esoteric Order is a nice gig. I may not get along with any of them as my experiences have proven time and time again, mainly due to the fact that my desire for an esoteric lodge is more along the lines of the Freemasons and not the monolithic Orders that the marketing geniuses think I should be willing to join. Just because you don't approve of the goal does not mean that you can not admire the technique behind the madness.

The latest hubbub is about an out-of-print book. I will not mention the name of the book. Someday, I might review it. Or maybe not. What you need to know if you have not read the latest issue of "Why do people pick on us all the time after we pick on them" is that the book occasionally goes for a pretty penny in the used book market.

Owning a copy of the book, I do not understand why it goes for so much. I have a theory that involves suckers and how often they are born. Pretty much, any out-of-print occult book will fetch a nice sum on the used book market if you can find the right buyer (one with lots of cash and less wit).

This whole round of complaining started off with someone claiming that the book was being sold for an outrageous amount in some circles. Ok, personal opinion time: it is overpriced. The original price was maybe a little too high; but considering that was a vanity press item, it was in the ballpark for a book of that size. Yes, this book was vanity press; the publisher existed for this book, and this book only.

Of course, some of the vanity press authors I have tangled with will note that I always complain about the prices of PODs and vanity press books (POD: Print on Demand). There is a reason for this: my wallet is small and the small print runs make the prices high. It is nothing personal unless the book is unfit for anything other than toliet paper.

In the case of this particular book, it might have other uses. Unfortunately, I must admit that most of the information in the book is lifted from other sources. But let's be honest, that is normal in the occult book section. And yes, technically it is plagiarism if they do not mention their sources by name.

But that is not what I really want to talk about.

What I want to talk about is the marketing genius behind the book. Based on the book, he is not a genius in magic. But considering he runs an esoteric Order, he might reserve his better secrets for his membership. And based on his conduct, he is not a genius in the spiritual sense. I could be wrong on that account also. I did not detect any great genius in his ability to research, or cobble it together in writing (he could have done more with less pages).

But I had to admire the marketing genius. As a person who have ran a couple of businesses, I saw the real purpose of the book instantly. It was to advertise his Order. Plain and simple.

And his decision not to ever reprint the book. Definitely genius. I wish that I was as intelligent when it came to my own work. But then again, I am an elected officer, and pretty lazy when it comes to trying to grow the membership of my own local lodge. More members mean more work, and I would rather write science fiction than dusty old knowledge lectures. Heaven forbid that the Order that I belong to becomes a Big Name Order.

The genius of not reprinting the book boils down to if you want the information that is in the book, you have just two choices. One: buy the book for an outrageous amount on the used book market. Or two: join his Order.

Now he claims that you get the information for free inside his Order. I would like to call a reality check here. Correct me if I am wrong, but don't Order members have to pay dues? If you have to pay dues to access the information, then it is not free. (No, I don't get along with Union reps, or used-car salesmen either. Thanks for asking). And there do not mention how long you have to remain a member to get access to all the information; it could be years and years; again, there are dues to be paid.

Nevertheless, despite the small fib, you have to admire his moxie. He wrote a book, published it himself, as an advertisment for his Order. He managed to sell all the copies, or at least I hope he did; and now that it is out-of-print, he is still using it to advertise his Order.

Pure marketing genius. As I said, I wish that I was as smart with my own work.