Saturday, September 18, 2010

The wages of rudeness

Google analytics has started collecting site traffic data; I was amused to find that the two leading non-obvious searches (i.e., other than my name, the blog's name, or a specific poem) that lead here are for "malcolm gladwell is an idiot" (which leads here) and "ezra klein is a hack" (which leads to this STOATUSblog post). Not "asshole loser fame" by any means, but this suggests a more replicable approach to picking up readers. Look out for "Dan Brown is an imbecile," "David Foster Wallace is a moron," "David Brooks is a douchebag," and other bouts of biliousness.

4 comments:

Michael O'Brien said...

Hey,

Found your blog through your Amazon.com account. I was looking up books by Geoffrey Hill and came across a few of your reviews (after clicking your username). I enjoyed them. Nice blog as well. I'll keep reading.

Also, just for kicks, wondering what you really think about David Foster Wallace. I can't say I'm a fan of Gladwell, Brown, or Brooks (though the only one who really annoys me is Brown) but I'm definitely an apologist for Wallace. I'm honest enough to admit his faults, which are abundant and off-putting, but I think his work is ultimately rewarding.

Or maybe you just "moron" as a jest...

Zed said...

Oh I don't actually have an opinion about DFW. I've read a few essays and things of his -- in mags -- which I didn't care for -- and I.J. is on my list of things-to-read-when-I've-run-out-of-more-inviting-things. I didn't mean to claim that he's a moron, just that saying so might gain me readers!

Re Brown, you must read this if you haven't: http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/001628.html

Elisa said...

I get some traffic for "Seth Abramson is a douche"

Zed said...

Brilliant. Thanks to your comment I'll probably get some too -- a fact that pleases me.