Monday, March 10, 2014

Generous or Stingy? Part I




While we've all heard about Scrooge in The Christmas Carol, stinginess can go way beyond money. I thought about the ways generosity and stinginess manifest in writers. Here are a couple of lists on the subject:

Stingy

1.  With compliments - The writer who never encourages someone else.

2.  With time - The writer who refuses to do anything that doesn't benefit them in some way.

3.  With guidance - The writer who sees a fellow traveler struggling with issues he/she has conquered, but doesn't share the solution.

Generous

1.  With gratitude  - A writer who expresses appreciation.

What does this look like? A)  Thanking people who "Like" their author page on Facebook, B) Writing acknowledgements in their books, C) Passing it on to the next writer in line.

2.  With thoughtfulness - A writer who thinks of others.

What does this look like? A) They do a review on Amazon, Goodreads, or their blog. B) If they're close, purchase their books and/or send a small congratulatory gift.

3.  Returns the favor - A writer who reaches out to those who've helped them and supports the other person's goals.

What does this look like? A) Following their blog. B) Tweeting about their successes, C) Liking their author pages. You get the idea.



In the next post, I’ll talk about stinginess and generosity with readers.

Writers and Readers: What are some of the ways authors can be generous with other writers?

Photo Credit: sciucaness

10 comments:

Linda O'Connell said...

Generosity is returned a thousand fold. I always try to PASS IT ON.

JD said...

Hi, Susan:

I try to be generous with my time and words. Like Linda, I believe that is returned a thousand fold.

Not to quote Joyce Meyer yet again (seems like I'm always doing that!) but Joyce once said that people who are stingy in one area of their life are likely stingy in other areas. I thought that was an interesting way of describing the pervasive effect of stinginess.

Be well, and wishing you much generosity in all of your walks of life.

quietspirit said...

Generosity can also be when me make ourselves available to listen to another person, whether they are having a problem or want to share a joy.

Karen Lange said...

You are one of the generous writers, that's for sure!:)

Blessings,
Karen

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Susan - what a great post and way of putting ideas forward .. I know I'm not perfect (never was), but I do try and be polite and do the right thing re blogging - yet I don't do social media - it's a weakness and one I must overcome ..

The thing that frustrates me is - when people come to your blog and don't let you know how they got there ... another way of acknowledging others ..

Cheers and a really interesting take on life and blogging .. thanks .. Hilary

Marja Verschoor-Meijers said...

You pinned it down quite well Susan, generosity is a flow, we should not stop it!

Diane Estrella said...

I know that you are very generous as a writer and as a friend. :)

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Everyone -

Please forgive my lack of interaction on this blog lately. In case you haven't heard, my Mom broke her hip two weeks ago.

She's home from the hospital now and doing well. I'm hoping I'll be able to pick up the stitches I've dropped in my life once again.

Hugs,
Susan

JD said...

Glad Mom is home.

Wishing Mom a speedy recovery.

Enjoy your weekend!

Jean Fischer said...

Susan, you are very generous as a writer and a friend. Thank you!