Posted in: Comics, Marvel Comics | Tagged: clickbait, Matthew Rosenberg, twitter

Matthew Rosenberg Takes to Twitter to Tell People to Get Off Twitter

Published Mon, 09 Mar 2020 15:30:58 -0500

Superstar comic book writer Matthew Rosenberg doesn't think Twitter is good for society, and he wanted to let people know, so he took to his Twitter account to say it Monday. Like all the best discussions, it started with a question about Hawkeye.

I'm actually supposed to try and sell the book, not just tell people what happens in it on this free website.

But yeah…

Whoa… Déjà vu. https://t.co/ybctMTQEfr

— Matthew Rosenberg (@AshcanPress) March 9, 2020

This prompted a question about the competency of Marvel's marketing department, which, let's face it, the less said about that the better.

So like, whats the deal with all the advertising? Like, I love it! Its THE most alien thing to happen to comics. Is it all you because you wont let marvel kill more books because they cant figure out advertising? Or is it because they are now forcing their writers to do two jobs?

— Fenrox (@Fenrox) March 9, 2020

Rosenberg answered:

I don't really understand what you're asking?

Why do I promote my work? It's literally the only reason I have social media accounts. Nobody is forcing me to promote my comics. But I want people to read them so I yell about them on here. https://t.co/qhVP6ohfWN

— Matthew Rosenberg (@AshcanPress) March 9, 2020

And that's when Rosenberg decided to explain his complex feelings on the impact of social media on modern society.

To clarify- when I say I only have social media accounts to promote my work, what I mean is I hate this site and think it's bad for everyone's mental health, social discourse, and society as a whole, and I loathe being complicit in that.

— Matthew Rosenberg (@AshcanPress) March 9, 2020

I genuinely like interacting with folks on here… Mostly. But more than not I am trying to sell you my comics.

I do my best to not make this feel gross and transactional by being honest (mostly), available, and hopefully sorta funny.

— Matthew Rosenberg (@AshcanPress) March 9, 2020

But every day I struggle with how much the good outweighs the bad of all these sites.

— Matthew Rosenberg (@AshcanPress) March 9, 2020

Don't get me wrong, I have met good friends on here. I have had genuine connections with people who read my work and that means so much to me. And I've laughed at a lot of cute dog videos.

— Matthew Rosenberg (@AshcanPress) March 9, 2020

But I'd probably be a happier person if I wasn't on here.

And I know I'd be happier person if I could know that the people who read my work were taking care of themselves emotionally and not suffering from the things twitter brings to our lives.

— Matthew Rosenberg (@AshcanPress) March 9, 2020

And it's hard to argue with that. We hate Twitter too, and we're faced with a similar dilemma as Rosenberg. We'd also be much happier if we quit Twitter, but if we did, we wouldn't be able to scan it for comic book creators like Matthew Rosenberg making threads we can turn into clickbait articles. It's a vicious cycle and will probably result in the complete collapse of human civilization as we know it… but hey, some of us gotta sell comics, and some of us gotta make clickbait articles, and until someone comes up with a better way to do both, Twitter is what we're stuck with.

Hawkeye Freefall #4, by Rosenberg and Otto Schmidt, is in stores on Wednesday. You can read a clickbait preview article about it here.

HAWKEYE FREE FALL #4
JAN200936
(W) Matthew Rosenberg (A) Otto Schmidt (CA) Kim Jacinto
Daredevil tips Hawkeye off to the formation of a new task force. They have one mission: to stop the dangerous new Ronin before he tears the city apart. Clint joins up, but he can't help but notice that Ronin gets results. Whose side is he really on? And as Hawkeye's own hunt for the Hood intensifies, he's about to find himself in the sights of one of his most dangerous foes of all time…
Rated T+
In Shops: Mar 11, 2020
SRP: $3.99