Little thread/news!

Hi! When I joined twitter, I knew no one really. I started using it properly about 15 months ago. I went from 10 followers to now quite rapidly. That is so great in many ways. It means I can talk to readers. As a lockdown author, that means the world.

BUT!
It also means a lot has hit me very quickly. A quick look at my direct messages, excluding the ones from peers and friends, here is the breakdown.

10% "I can cure you!"
30% "Would you visit our school" (love these ones)
50% Lovely things from readers
10% Abuse and hate.

So!
I& #39;ve been thinking a lot.

There are two reasons why I keep my DMs completely open. One, I& #39;m a new, lockdown author who has never done an in-person event. I need people to reach me speedily so I can link up with schools/bookshops. It& #39;s essential.

Two. ND people can reach me.
I& #39;ve let every piece of abuse slide, because these two things are too important. I don& #39;t want people to dm and feel rejected.

However. I have a website. With a contact form. And an agent. Both are listed in my twitter bio.

I think it& #39;s ok if I don& #39;t get back to every single DM.
Some people ask why I don& #39;t put the abuse on blast.

Because these people are not well. If you are sending vile hatred to someone you don& #39;t know, you are not well. I am supposed to be (not by choice, but it just happens) a role-model for young people.

I can& #39;t sink to that level
I& #39;m so tired of nastiness. But I& #39;m not going to fight back by shaming or adding to a creepy culture of "Look at this person! Now get & #39;em!" I don& #39;t know how else to describe it. I only know some people wrap mean girl tactics and cyberbullying up in a neat bow and call it advocacy.
From now on, I will not be accessing my requested DMs. Only those sent by people I follow. If you really need to talk to me about something, I have a website, as I said. I have an agent who passes on all things to me.

And if you really can& #39;t go through those channels, you can
tweet and ask if it& #39;s okay to DM. Once I& #39;ve seen your timeline is not full of hate, I will connect with you.

This decision has come after talking with other authors. It is now clear that I get far more direct messages than most with the same following as me. It is above average.
So, for the safety of everyone, this is how it& #39;s going to be.

I also want to state that people who refuse to email me when asked make me uncomfortable. If my team bearing witness to what you& #39;re asking of me makes you defensive, that& #39;s a red flag. Safeguarding is essential.
Thank you to everyone who is respectful and patient, i.e 99% of people.

Apologies for sounding dramatic.

But it& #39;s hard. It& #39;s hard to feel like you& #39;re the only one standing sometimes, getting messages telling you to die. It& #39;s really, really hard.

And I can& #39;t do it anymore.
This is my website, with a contact form. I& #39;m also hoping to start work with an organisation that assists with school visits & events. I& #39;ll post more about that later.

If you need me, just ask. And I& #39;ll be there. But not for everything. Not anymore. https://ellemcnicoll.com/ ">https://ellemcnicoll.com/">...
You can follow @BooksandChokers.
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