Facebook

I've noticed many who posted here have migrated to Facebook.  I am surprised at that migration other than perhaps they believe it is more exposure and a better place to be noticed.

In reality, I've found Facebook to do nothing for my sales at all and while I like to keep up with people from other places at Facebook, I prefer to talk to the people I know here - here.

I never did master the friends business at Facebook.  When I started I friended everyone from PA and later discovered many were from the religious right and fanatic conservatives with hateful ways to express themselves, basically self-published authors that would never get a publisher because they wrote books similar to what they posted - hateful and fanatic points of view.

The conservatives who are willing to debate ideas instead of make personal attacks when they run out of ideas - and democrats of like persuasions - well, many are still posting as friends and we sometimes have some healthy exchanges that are good for the soul and good for the mind.

Many have left because I provided fact for their half-truth posters and it made them angry and they left.  Others posted graphic and ugly remarks to attack me personally as a means to stop me from commenting on what they posted that was not true.

I like it here better, but since Ann is gone, it is lonesome for me. We were longtime friends from the PA board.

i am glad to see E don back and wish he would stay. We don't always agree on everything, but I still like him. He, like Ann goes back

Yes, Alice, I miss those who have left not just this forum but this life as we know it.  Dick and Ann had strong opinions that they supported with facts.  I always like that even if I don't agree.

The forum was set up for Dick, and we have struggled on without him. Carol and Ann are both missed. We are a small group and it is hard to generate new and interesting conversations. That said, it is reassuring that the few who do post have remained friends despite all the different points of view. That's quite an achievement!

Agreement is not necessary among friends.

I miss LC too.  I'm glad Victor joined us.  And several others too.  I can't name all.  Carol added a spiritual quality.  Each member's contribution is actually unique in many ways.  LC and I had some heated debates, but mostly they were about ideas not personal attacks.  However, it's easy for ideas to slip to personal attacks, isn't it.

I agree with the comments posted.  FB has become political.  Personal attacks are increasing. 
In the past week I have been called "a moron" and an "idiot".  At first I ignored the cheap swipes, and then responded with "You obviously were looking in the mirror when you wrote that." 
I have "unfriended" some whose remarks were not to debate an issue, but to disparage.  Trying to provide a different point of view is a waste of time when minds are set.  I have provided more detailed information when the person making the post asked for more information.  I find that getting a friend request on FB is not intended to for friendship, but often part of a plan to expand an audience for propaganda purposes.  On the positive side, responses to posts provide more insight about the person and in many cases that person is not someone who I would like to develop a genuine friendship.  On this forum, our ties have been developed over a long period of time.  We have shared information concerning writing.  In addition, we have shared grief.  We have also received comfort in times of stress, hardship and sickness.  One cannot compare FB with this forum. 
I value the relationships developed here.  Although intended as a writer's forum to share writing ideas, it has evolved.

I learn a lot from this forum, if only to see things from another's perspective.  At least the people who post here seem aware of the world, the people around them, and the important values that make life worth living.  Thus, the conversations are often thought provoking.  Sometimes we comment from a place of knowledge and other times from a lack of knowledge, but it's all okay.

More people observe this forum than post.  I hope they appreciate the long-term sharing that has gone on here through life's ups and downs - almost nine years?  and counting PA and a couple other false starts - maybe ten?  As Shelagh said, that's pretty amazing.

Facebook seems rampant with people who post whose education and awareness levels provide them with no real substance.  Thus, they rely on the words of others and when faced with a challenge to their position, fight back with name-calling instead of information.  Since there are so many of those people on Facebook, I find it a frustrating place.

I have facebook groups that include people with whom I share common interests.  However, if I friend those people, they end up on my news feed and I am then shocked by the things they post and say.  Thus, I hesitate anymore to friend anybody.

What Abe, DK, Alice and Shelagh said!

I don't post here as often as I used to simply due to time constraints., Unlike other fora, I actually read most of what our friends have to say on threads of interest and don't always feel compelled to comment--but it takes time. I post a lot on Facebook and LinkedIn these days simply because it is easier for me to do so automatically, such as by forwarding interesting articles (with or without my snarky comments) without having to log in. Likewise the automatic postings that go to Facebook and (less often LinkedIn) from my various Blogger and Wordpress blogs and from my own personal web pages, and I sometimes post my comments here there as well, and vice-versa. It takes time to log on here, navigate to the threads of interest and comment knowing that much of what we write will not be read by more than a handful of people who already have a very good idea of what we think. I am loyal to this blog and genuinely like most who post here regularly. As to sales, none of these venues do much for sales for me. I seem to sell the same number of books a month, give or take, no matter what I do--including nothing.

There are just too many places to post our stuff. About.me is an other venue I've discovered that takes a little more of what little time I have. I've also abandoned a number of places I used to post regularly for a variety of reasons. But this is the only forum I visit because I care about the people in it. As to what people I've friended post on my Facebook page, I seldom read or respond. I suppose if I notice something really offensive on a repeat basis I'll unfriend the person, but I don't much worry about what people post. Life is too short and I have too much other stuff to keep me busy.

Victor, I am glad you are here and there.

Sometime back I shut my facebook to all but the friends on it. I am close to just getting off of fB.

Domenic, I have considered doing the same.  The only thing that keeps me there are a few people that I can consider friends.  I have also connected with people that I haven't had contact with for many years.  When the negatives outweigh the positive, I will abandon ship.

I just check one thing - posts since last visit. It seems quick to me. From my fone I don't always sign in. It is hard to post from fone anywhere.

My publisher communicates in our facebook group so I need to stay.