Snarkilicious (LynnK)

Snark has always been with us.

Not the word itself, which is first recorded in 1906. But if Adam and Eve weren’t snarking at each other on the way out of the garden, you can bet the snake had a few sharp words to say. What else is a forked tongue for?

Nowadays, the word seems to be everywhere. But it’s still too new for a definition to have stuck. In the original dialectical British, it meant "nag" or "find fault with." It’s associated with being "catty" or "bitchy." Nasty. Snide. Impertinent. Irreverent. But it can also refer to a witty amalgam of sarcasm and cynicism. For sure, with regard to all its shades of meaning, the "sound" of snark is just right.

And maybe snark is one of those things that we recognize when it’s in front of us. Or think we do, because individuals have decidedly different reactions to snark. That’s become clear to me as I lurk on lists where the subject is hotly disputed.

Some people find it arrogant, demeaning, and hurtful. It can certainly prowl that territory. Snark pops up without warning in book reviews, book discussions, and blogs. Other times, fair notice is offered in a title (like the agent "Miss Snark"), and some snarkers become known by reputation. An author who ventures into their realms can expect to feel the hair on her nape stand to attention.

Are we, being "public figures" (even if we are practically chained to our computers) fair game? Or are we being unfairly insulted? Picked on? Even slandered?

Certainly most of us are hurt by unfavorable comments about our books. But that comes with the territory. Yes, we think of our books as offspring and coddle them like babes. We’re naturally protective. Then again, our profession is no field of daisies. Most of us have been or will be rejected by agents, by editors, by readers, by booksellers, by reviewers, and sometimes (this is worst of all) sabotaged by authors we thought were friends.

But the Internet, populated by suddenly empowered people who often use pseudonyms (which I have no problem with, by the way), has unleashed millions of razored tongues, some of which are attached to small brains and shriveled hearts. Cyberbullying has become a blood sport. And the folks who take the cheap shots at us don’t even have to run for cover.

This all sounds as if I’m here to protest nastiness on the web. Nope.

It’s a jungle out there, to be sure. And I don’t like a lot of what I read. Or agree with it. As a political junkie, I’ve encountered plenty of vituperative attacks about and from people on every side of controversial issues. And as an author, I’ve ached over stuff said about me and my friends, and about writers I don’t know but do admire.

At the same time, I think that letting everyone with a computer spout off is absolutely terrific. There’s some great writing out there. Personal slants on all kinds of subjects that pry open my own mind and cause me to rethink my sometimes shallow convictions.

Mostly, though, I love the wit. The repartee. The puns. The analogies. The song parodies. Being on dial-up, I rarely see a YouTube video. But being confined to words is fine with me. And if I’m uncomfortable reading what’s being said about me, I don’t have to Google my name. Nor do I, actually. I’ve got me right here. I’d rather read about more interesting people!

As for snark, the more the merrier. If it carries a truth, all the better. And if it’s shiny with venom, well, one click will take me off the bully’s playground. This one thing is certain: The world would be a lot poorer without its snark-wielders:

"Wit is educated insolence." Aristotle

"Wit has truth in it; wisecracking is simply calisthenics with words." Dorothy Parker (pictured above)

"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former." Albert Einstein

"Moral indignation is jealousy with a halo." H.G. Wells

"You couldn't get a clue during the clue mating season in a field full of horny clues if you smeared your body with clue musk and did the clue mating dance." Edward Flaherty

"This is not a novel to be tossed aside lightly. It should be thrown with great force." Dorothy Parker

"Very noble gesture. My favorite kind - dramatic, yet completely empty." Dr. House

"The trouble with her is that she lacks the power of conversation but not the power of speech." George Bernard Shaw

"Some editors are failed writers, but so are most writers." T. S. Eliot

"If you haven't got anything nice to say about anybody, come sit next to me." Alice Roosevelt Longworth