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Abstract

tion and those taking potshots at the editors who had nothing to do with the said article.Hope they’ve got their pound of flesh.<h1 id="a26e">The downsides of a ‘grow fast or go home mentality’</h1>Being an editor of a rapidly growing publication such as Coffee times was challenging in more ways than one. There was a veritable deluge of submissions each day and it was getting more and more difficult to catch up with the workload. The editor-in-chief refused to listen to multiple requests from myself and other editors to bring on new editors in order to reduce the burden.It was supposed to be a labor of love at least on my part but this ‘grow fast or go home mentality’ had gotten to the point where it was impacting my mental health.<blockquote id="47dc">And I don’t take it lightly when someone tries to “insist’ I must do this or that. Listen, I don’t do sh*t if it doesn’t align with my principles or mental health.</blockquote>So, I informed the editor-in-chief that I would only publish ‘x’ articles on the day I had publishing duty or I’d step down as an editor (thank god, I don’t need the title of ‘editor’ to be seen or heard or for bragging rights).It was only a matter of time before the inevitable mistakes would occur but never did I imagine that something like this would slip past the editorial gateway and that too with 50 claps!WTF?I want to personally apologize to all those who have been hurt by the offensive article that was published, particularly the LGBTQ community. I do know how it feels to be attacked and I do know how it is like to be the recipient of hate and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.<h1 id="2b49">Unanswered questions</h1>For me, writing is a path toward healing and learning. On the latter, I would say I learned a lot about marketing from Coffee Times and I would be lying if I said it didn’t give me, along with many other writers, a wider reach. And yes, we did build a strong community, a vision I shared with Winston, which is what drew me to Coffee Times in the first place.However, it is an undeniable fact that the editor-in-chief chose to permanently shut down the pub with very little notice to us editors and with that, effectively threw us all under the bus.Yes, he made a mistake of catastrophic proportions and followed up with an apology. But what I can’t get over is why did he not apologize to the community that that hate-filled article was aimed at.Listen, Winston, it’s not only your mental heal

Options

th that took a hit with this one. What about the rest of us, huh?How about that?<ul><li>What do I tell the writers for Coffee Times — hey y’all there was a major fu*k up and it’s been permanently shut down?</li><li>What do I tell the writers who came to Coffee Times based on their trust in me?</li><li>What do I tell those writers who are feeling lost and without a home for their vulnerable articles?</li><li>What do I tell the loyal contributors to my Life column — that I am already invited to continue my column on CT Life Substack so see you there?</li><li>What do I tell those writers who I am currently interviewing and working on prompt collabs with and who are excited about the positive exposure they are likely to get from this promotion?</li><li>How do I feel about those who are deliberately hoping to benefit from this situation by riding on the coattails of controversy? They must feel sooo good to finally be getting a little more engagement than the usual zero to 2 comments left by their cronies. The better question probably would be — are they able to maintain this level of engagement solely based on their writing, or will they need fodder from future controversies to be able to do so?</li></ul>Do I sound bitter? Heck, yes I do! Because I am hurt and more than that I am stunned by how easily social media can bring you up high and throw you into a shark-feeding frenzy in a mere matter of minutes.<h1 id="c39b">Picking up the pieces</h1>Long story short, it is with a heavy heart that I have to say this is the end of my association and friendship with Winston. The trust is broken. I appreciate the coffee times we had together but no, the buck stops here.We can agree that all of us are shocked and saddened by this unfortunate incident. A lot of us have suffered and are suffering as a consequence of this mistake. What is the most heartbreaking of all are the comments from writers who are referring to themselves as orphaned because the pub they called home is no more.It is not easy, I know (because I am in the same boat), to find pubs that can provide the same level of comfort, support, and results as Coffee Times did.I ask that you please don’t lose hope. We will figure this out together and I guarantee you, there are many great pubs out there that will be more than happy to give our articles a wonderful new home.My hope and prayer are that we can learn from this, focus on healing, and move on to new beginnings.Sincerely,Yana BG</article></body>

You Were a Pub That I Used to Know

What I have to say about the Coffee Times debacle

Waking up to a bombshell

Dear reader,

Last Saturday, I woke up to a private message from a writer/editor asking me about an article that was published by a pub I write and am an editor for.

I had no clue about what was going on until I checked the editors' messages on Twitter and found out about a certain, despicable article that was published.

My first thought was “Who published this sh*t?”

It was offensive and appalling and I would have shot it down had I been the publishing editor on duty (some of you know I have been on a month-long vacation so hadn't come back to normal editorial duties).

That article should never have seen the light of day.

But unfortunately, it did and here we are.

Many are wondering why I have been quiet. Several have reached out to me about what happened to Coffee Times. A lot of kind-hearted folks have asked me if I am okay.

In answer to the first question — I am very upset by what’s happened and what’s been happening since. I do not and have never stood for hate. Believe me when I say I know what hate is — grow up in apartheid South Africa as neither black nor white and see how it’s like to get bashed on by both sides and you will get why the question of “Where are you from?” terrifies the crap out of me.

You’d understand my sentiments exactly if you, members of your family, and your community were run out of town by an angry mob just on account of your race.

Even after writing about how that question makes me feel, I still get asked about my ethnicity all the time and my response to them all is “I am American.”

Take it or leave it.

The point I’m trying to make here is that for the first time in many years, I experienced the same fear this past week as I did when the mob was at our door back in Africa — thanks to speculation and those taking potshots at the editors who had nothing to do with the said article.

Hope they’ve got their pound of flesh.

The downsides of a ‘grow fast or go home mentality’

Being an editor of a rapidly growing publication such as Coffee times was challenging in more ways than one. There was a veritable deluge of submissions each day and it was getting more and more difficult to catch up with the workload. The editor-in-chief refused to listen to multiple requests from myself and other editors to bring on new editors in order to reduce the burden.

It was supposed to be a labor of love at least on my part but this ‘grow fast or go home mentality’ had gotten to the point where it was impacting my mental health.

And I don’t take it lightly when someone tries to “insist’ I must do this or that. Listen, I don’t do sh*t if it doesn’t align with my principles or mental health.

So, I informed the editor-in-chief that I would only publish ‘x’ articles on the day I had publishing duty or I’d step down as an editor (thank god, I don’t need the title of ‘editor’ to be seen or heard or for bragging rights).

It was only a matter of time before the inevitable mistakes would occur but never did I imagine that something like this would slip past the editorial gateway and that too with 50 claps!

WTF?

I want to personally apologize to all those who have been hurt by the offensive article that was published, particularly the LGBTQ community. I do know how it feels to be attacked and I do know how it is like to be the recipient of hate and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.

Unanswered questions

For me, writing is a path toward healing and learning. On the latter, I would say I learned a lot about marketing from Coffee Times and I would be lying if I said it didn’t give me, along with many other writers, a wider reach. And yes, we did build a strong community, a vision I shared with Winston, which is what drew me to Coffee Times in the first place.

However, it is an undeniable fact that the editor-in-chief chose to permanently shut down the pub with very little notice to us editors and with that, effectively threw us all under the bus.

Yes, he made a mistake of catastrophic proportions and followed up with an apology. But what I can’t get over is why did he not apologize to the community that that hate-filled article was aimed at.

Listen, Winston, it’s not only your mental health that took a hit with this one. What about the rest of us, huh?

How about that?

What do I tell the writers for Coffee Times — hey y’all there was a major fu*k up and it’s been permanently shut down?
What do I tell the writers who came to Coffee Times based on their trust in me?
What do I tell those writers who are feeling lost and without a home for their vulnerable articles?
What do I tell the loyal contributors to my Life column — that I am already invited to continue my column on CT Life Substack so see you there?
What do I tell those writers who I am currently interviewing and working on prompt collabs with and who are excited about the positive exposure they are likely to get from this promotion?
How do I feel about those who are deliberately hoping to benefit from this situation by riding on the coattails of controversy? They must feel sooo good to finally be getting a little more engagement than the usual zero to 2 comments left by their cronies. The better question probably would be — are they able to maintain this level of engagement solely based on their writing, or will they need fodder from future controversies to be able to do so?

Do I sound bitter? Heck, yes I do! Because I am hurt and more than that I am stunned by how easily social media can bring you up high and throw you into a shark-feeding frenzy in a mere matter of minutes.

Picking up the pieces

Long story short, it is with a heavy heart that I have to say this is the end of my association and friendship with Winston. The trust is broken. I appreciate the coffee times we had together but no, the buck stops here.

We can agree that all of us are shocked and saddened by this unfortunate incident. A lot of us have suffered and are suffering as a consequence of this mistake. What is the most heartbreaking of all are the comments from writers who are referring to themselves as orphaned because the pub they called home is no more.

It is not easy, I know (because I am in the same boat), to find pubs that can provide the same level of comfort, support, and results as Coffee Times did.

I ask that you please don’t lose hope. We will figure this out together and I guarantee you, there are many great pubs out there that will be more than happy to give our articles a wonderful new home.

My hope and prayer are that we can learn from this, focus on healing, and move on to new beginnings.

Sincerely,

Yana BG