Spoilers

Somebody's gotta go first; culture rarely consumes itself. Maybe this time you binge watched that series, or were first through a novel, or perhaps you're the early bird having listened to an audio drama. That took some doing and it's an act of passion to have run ahead of the pack. Why wouldn't you sing that joy?

The chief causes for consideration are those taking their leisure at a leisurely pace. We all value pastimes to varying degrees and life is a busy place. But it means the media can beome a minefield. To avoid spoilers in the run-up to something, avoiding places of discourse is probably best. But when marketing campaigns can last a year or more, staying offline is often not practical.

As to what a spoiler actually is, here's Wikipedia's mic drop: 'any piece of information regarding any part of a given media that a potential consumer would not want to know beforehand'.

The above definition offers comfort to the spoiler-averse but frustration to the spoiler-prone. Hard-won joy is the worst to sit on and it's difficult to get a straight answer to this simple question: when is Spoiler Amnesty Day? The answer ranges from 'after release date' to 'after a while' and beyond.

For new artwork brought to market, artists and studios have put in staggering amounts of work. They want their devoted fans to get as much love out as they put in – but we'll never be enough for them. They're playing to the whole house, not just us in the opera boxes. They love it when their promos and first looks go viral – it increases the chances they'll sway the undecided. And as fans, we're best placed to catch and spread the word. So why wouldn't we?

The measure of a man’s bravery is not archery; rather he who stands fast in his rank and gazes unflinchingly at the swift gash of the spear is the brave man. – Euripides

The pioneer dramatist above points out that it's easier to inflict harm from a distance than to do it face to face. It's not a moment's effort to drop things into the feeds of our followers and we do it constantly. But with a bit more bravery, we can manage how some of that sharing will land.

We can choose our moments – and our weapons. Bloggers and podcasters are my favourites in the vanguard; they don't abuse my attention cos they're happy to land on my schedule, Podcasts, reaction vids or even proper writing offer much greater scope to celebrate something seen – and marketing that media in the Social is a great way to engage in fresh conversation without dropping a clanger. What's more, everyone doing it seems to be growing their circle of friends in the process.

I won't save the world from spoilers with an essay. Premature scraps of someone else's shiny are always gonna pop up now and again. It's done me a world of good though, to take the issue to bits and maybe put it back together in better shape.