J. K. Rowling Calls Out False Quote Attributed To Her At Outdoor Retail Show
J. K. Rowling has been pretty active on Twitter lately, with her alter ego, Robert Galbraith, working on a new book. Thanks to all her online activity, she was available to catch a tweet bearing her image and a quote Rowling says didn’t come from her, before it was deleted. Rowling responded, denouncing the use of her image and calling it weird.
At the Outdoor Retailer show, keynote speaker Jeremy Gutsche reportedly used, in a slide show, an image of J.K. Rowling, and a quote.
“Obsess about your next customer, not only the ones you have.”
The quote got some attention — it was mentioned in tweets, and Outdoor Industry Association tweeted a photo of the slide. Rowling responded within minutes.
.@OIA @jeremygutsche I have never said that in my life. Never. I don’t have customers, I have readers. Why am I on that screen? #beyondweird
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) January 21, 2015
To their credit, OIA was listening, and when Rowling spoke up, they responded. First, they deleted the image from their twitter timeline, then they offered an apt apology to the Harry Potter author.
@jk_rowling Our sincere apologies, we were covering a keynote presentation — the mischief has been managed (aka quickly deleted)!
— Outdoor Industry (@OIA) January 21, 2015
For her part, Rowling graciously accepted the apology and moved on, only pausing to note that using her name to give business advice was bemusing to her.
.@OIA No problem. I was just amused to see myself giving business advice, when I wake up every day wondering exactly how it all happened…
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) January 21, 2015
Gutsche, an author and CEO, whose website bills him as “one of the most sought-after keynote speakers on the planet” was next to respond to the controversy, after being mentioned in dozens of tweets that called the use of Rowling’s name and image rude and a lie. He quickly explained that the words were not meant to be a quote — just a lesson he took from J.K. Rowling’s story.
@jk_rowling @OIA hey JG, not listed as a quote, but my lesson from your life story. DM me and I will send you the tale of how u inspired me
— Jeremy Gutsche (@jeremygutsche) January 21, 2015
Rowling disputed that this was a likely message to take from watching her, and Gutsche continued to defend.
.@jeremygutsche The meaning of my life is ‘focus on new customers’? Wow… that’s… not how it looks from the inside.
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) January 21, 2015
@jk_rowling @OIA I have a really charming story of ur triumphs of adversity and I apply many lessons to my own life and biz. No misquotes.:)
— Jeremy Gutsche (@jeremygutsche) January 21, 2015
Meanwhile, J.K. Rowling’s fans spoke in defense, arguing that the quote sounded nothing like her.
@jk_rowling @jeremygutsche Seems like a broad business cliche attributed to someone famous for exposure, not sincerity.
— Amy Leigh Strickland (@AmyLStrickland) January 21, 2015
Oh man, some trending media huckster named @jeremygutsche just pissed off like 100,000 @jk_rowling fans http://t.co/jMBM6cmeWX
— Chris Wilson (@chriswilsondc) January 21, 2015
@jk_rowling @OIA @jeremygutsche doesn’t even sound like her
— Feelin’ Myself (@KingMarkko) January 21, 2015
@jk_rowling @jeremygutsche To say nothing of the fact that ignoring loyal customers to try and woo new ones is horrible advice.
— Mishell Baker (@mishellbaker) January 21, 2015
.@jeremygutsche @jk_rowling @OIA Is this dude really trying to mansplain JKs life story back to her? Really?
— The DeeP (@DefaultProphet) January 21, 2015
Editor’s note: Jeremy Gutsche has reached out to the Inquisitr to offer greater clarification on the situation.
“I was giving a speech where I told 9 stories of facing adversity and change, including of 6 companies, a chef, a movie director and an author (JK Rowling). At the end of the examples, I gave my OWN conclusion, tailored to the audience, which was a quote of MY OWN in my book. “Obsess about your next customer, not only the ones you have.”
Note that I have never EVER attributed any quote about customers to JK Rowling, although someone from the conference took my own quote and may have attributed it to JK Rowling. That caused JK Rowling to think I quoted her, but in my upcoming book, it is my own quote, 100%.”
[Photo: Daniel Ogren]
