Andrew Smith
Know him? Know his books?
Until yesterday, all I knew was this that I’d seen his book,
The Marbury Lens, in my local
bookstore. But I hadn’t read it. We weren’t Facebook friends. I didn’t follow
him on Twitter.
Last night, my writer friend Matthew Macnish posted a series
of tweets by authors in favor of him on his Facebook page. Including a link to
a post written by another writer who accused Andrew Smith of being sexist. I’m
not going to link it, but I will pull the supposed proof of sexism pulled from
an interview:
Q: On the flip side, it
sometimes seems like there isn’t much of a way into your books for female
readers. Where are all the women in your work?
A: I was raised in a
family with four boys, and I absolutely did not know anything about girls at
all. I have a daughter now; she’s 17. When she was born, that was the first
girl I ever had in my life. I consider myself completely ignorant to all things
woman and female. I’m trying to be better though.
From that presumptive question and Andrew Smith’s response,
the writer concluded this:
The interpretation is that
women are less than human, or at the very least, inherently different from men.
That is one of the oldest sexist arguments in the entire world.
and this:
Women are so different
they defy his incredible imagination.
concluding this:
But shouldn’t it be harder
for someone to willingly participate in a culture of sexism than it is for us
to talk about it out loud, and publicly?
1)
It’s okay to acknowledge that we can feel a
little discomfort writing about someone who is a different gender, sexual
orientation, and ethnicity from us. What’s important is that we try. From the
outpouring of support for Andrew Smith and his characters, it seems that he
actually does write varied characters.
2)
If we are looking for people to out people who
have made sexist comments, surely we can find a more overtly sexist writer. I
know of a famous author who has made homophobic comments. Where’s the public
outcry? Instead, his book has been turned into a movie. What role model is he
for LGBT children and teens?
3)
If something someone says makes you feel
uncomfortable and you say you want dialogue, contact the person privately or make a personal comment on
a post.
As a result of the post and the link to it on Twitter, a
witch-hunt ensued.
It got so bad, the author deleted his Twitter and Facebook
accounts.
The author of the original post said:
FTR: nobody I follow
on twitter has been vilifying Andrew Smith. My corner of the internet is
discussing, sarcastic, angry, but not mean.
Does that make it okay? In response, I said this in
response:
You took a comment for a question
that probably threw him and made him a poster child for something he is not.
Shameful.
I posted my own tweet:
So #AndrewSmith has been the
target of a modern witch hunt based on flimsy evidence. We can do better,
writers. Have we become the trolls?
I do believe having an issue with the content in a book is
okay. But…
When did it become okay for writers to personally attack
each other on social media, especially without having much information?
When did it become okay to ruin people’s ratings on
Goodreads and Amazon because we wanted to punish the writer?
It’s collective
bullying.
But then outpouring of support came out from people who know
Andrew Smith a little better than the writer who started the attacks. They
painted a picture of a man who is funny and talented. They waxed poetic about
how his books saved them and made them better writers. Check the #AndrewSmith
Twitter feed to find out.
The ones who spoke about Andrew the person were the most
impressive.
Don't have time to write? Take a
look at this. Not only is Andrew Smith an amazing writer, he has a beast of a
work ethic. Get up at 3am to write BEFORE going for run which he does BEFORE he
goes to his full time job as a teacher? Holy wow. And I thought I worked hard.
Also, high five to Smith's wife, who must certainly pick up any slack at home.
Now THAT is a partnership.
But the best evidence of what kind of person Andrew Smith is
comes from Andrew Smith himself before this happened:
Here's Andrew Smith
defending a woman (Meghan Cox Gurdon from the YA is too dark piece)...
Did what Andrew Smith say in that interview deserve what followed?
No, it did not.
And so, today, I will support him the best way I know how.
I’m going to buy one
of his books.
