I love Facebook. It has helped me launch a business, find old friends, document family memories, and engage with communities that otherwise I wouldn’t have connected with.
But a few days ago, Facebook decided to suspend my account without warning, without real appeal – permanently. I was on Facebook for 17 years without any infractions in those years. Being suspended on Facebook also gets you banned on Instagram (because Facebook owns Insta).
I have, in the past, taught writers how to use Facebook correctly to avoid Facebook jail or getting suspended. I’m typically a rule-follower. I’ve always warned people that Facebook is a game of roulette, and I guess I finally lost that game.
What Did I Do To Get Banned
I commented on a post shared by a writer friend. I didn’t post the photo. Many people commented on that near-viral post, or made a very similar comment. Here’s the photo in question:
I checked with Snopes – this is a legit label for One Night Cough Syrup from the 1800s. I made the joke that all they were really missing was cocaine – then they’d have had something really fantastic.
Now, keep in mind that Coca (the plant cocaine is made from) was a key ingredient in Coca-Cola in the 1800s and became popular because of its euphoric effects and boosted energy (source here). Sigmund Freud wrote the “Cocaine Papers” and prescribed it as a miracle drug.
I was joking, but the regular accepted legal use at the time this cough syrup was being marketed of Coca and cocaine is very well documented.
I was not promoting drug use. I was not trying to sell or make drugs, and (in my opinion) the sarcasm about the helpfulness of cocaine in this recipe was blatant. It wasn’t a positive endorsement of the drug. What I did was use a banned word: “cocaine.” That was the real infraction. Yes, technically I was allowed to appeal, but the appeal was denied within one minute.
There were no human eyes involved in that appeal. And what adds to the sting is when speaking with a friend who’s a cop and sharing this experience, they laughed. They personally know of several cocaine dealers who use Facebook to move their product and have multiple Facebook accounts. *sigh*
May the odds be ever in your favor!
The Problem With AI Censors
Censorship is a problem, generally IMHO, but Facebook’s punitive use of banned words has been a recognized reality for a long time. In fact, Mark Zuckerberg (founder of Facebook), announced just this week that the platform would no longer censor users and instead promote free speech and is backing away from the banned words filtering.
The problem in tasking a computer to simply catch words that are banned means false positives (as in my case), and that any personal bias on the part of the developer, “fact-checkers”, or high-level execs filters down and silences voices that hold differing opinions. The Zuck openly admits this in his announcement this week (Here’s the announcement the Zuck made on the very same day I lost my account: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSHpYHncNxw )
You Could Lose Your Facebook And Instagram Accounts Too
Here’s the stark reality (and this hasn’t changed in the 17yrs I’ve used Facebook): you don’t own any real estate on Facebook, or Instagram, or Tiktok or any other platform. That means you can be restricted, censored, and removed without any meaningful way to appeal or get human eyes or ears on your plight. There’s not really even any point in trying in my opinion.
Facebook has known for many years that their filters are punishing and suspending accounts wrongfully, and there was never any real mechanism put in place to deal with it. They don’t care:
how long you’ve been on Facebook.
that you’re losing access to a genuine community you’ve spent ten years building.
that you’ve lost precious photos and family memories.
how much money you spend on ads.
Tough luck.
Fooling The Filters
If you are using Facebook to promote your books or create a community, you’ve probably already been warned about the banned words filters. Many writers avoid the filters by asking for advice on how to “unalive” a character in a particular setting or historical time. Some replace characters with symbols to try and escape the AI: de@d for instance.
Posting book covers that reveal any amount of skin is problematic. I’m hearing of people having accounts restricted or suspended for posting a pic of a baby’s face for crying out loud. A friend got thrown in Facebook jail for using the word “fairy” in the context of talking about the Nutcracker Ballet’s Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. Posting book covers or book titles that show any kind of weapons can get you in trouble. I heard of another who landed in Facebook jail for mentioning they were “hanging” a photo.
Filter Sensitivity
The filters are so sensitive it’s ridiculous. (I’ve heard many many similar complaints about Amazon filters on book covers, titles, and descriptions as well.)
If you’re writing content that others may find objectionable (language, nudity, sexuality, violence), you’re playing Facebook roulette. If the AI filters don’t nab you, all it can take is one complaint. And don’t be naïve and think that complaint system isn’t used punitively by others because it absolutely is.
Don’t neglect building community on space you do own – like a website, or an email list. For years, writers have been told not to rely on social media and make sure they build an email list. And that’s really hard as a fiction author because:
What do you blog about?
Should you go to the time and expense of a website if you haven’t got a book out yet, but realize you need to build community if you’re going to sell the book once it’s out?
If you’re not publishing a new book every month, what do you include in a newsletter?
I get it. It’s a catch 22. Keep writing more books. It’s still true that the best way to sell the last book you wrote, is to publish another.
An email list may be the only way you have to communicate with people should the worst happen. Include links to an email list inside book matter for new releases and such. Try giving away free content in exchange for an email: extra chapters, prequel short stories, maps and other resources, etc.
Why Losing Facebook And Instagram Isn’t A Huge Problem
As someone who’s a news junkie, Facebook forced me over to X simply to stay on top of world events and to engage with local news. This move drastically reduced my Facebook usage. Perhaps for the better, given the events of this week. (As a Canadian, I’ve been barred from seeing any news links from anywhere around the world for a year and a half - see that announcement from Meta here.)
I have guest-posted here and in other places for many years, always leaving the same link to the same Facebook group. I’ve got a very good, organically-grown, audience there. And the reality is that the majority of those won’t sign up for my email list. And that sucks.
I have always relied on organic reach for my blog. I took a really fantastic course on organic growth a few years ago, and it has paid me back three times over. It doesn’t run anymore, but if you connect with Rachel Miller (www.rachelmiller.com) on her blog or other socials, she gives away a lot of free content.
Diversify!
All my eggs aren't invested in one social basket. I invested a moderate amount of time into Pinterest. I get very little traffic on blog post links from Facebook (the algorithm changes from time to time, but blog links have had seasons of very dismal reach). A great majority of the social traffic to my blog comes from Pinterest. Now, my blog’s audience is mostly writers, but even if your blog audience are genre fiction readers there is a lot of opportunity on Pinterest to engage and drive traffic.
If there’s one type of content I’ve been asked for more than another other from readers, it’s video content. So, I’ll be launching my YouTube channel very very soon.
Does YouTube have similar maddening censorship? Absolutely. I’m exchanging one roulette gun for another – I’m aware of that. So, I’ll be building in whenever possible links to the blog which encourages people to sign up for the emails. Creating unique content on each channel helps people see the need to get email even if they follow on Pinterest or subscribe on YouTube.
I’m waiting to see what happens with TikTok in the United States. That may be a platform I dive into learning if there’s a positive outcome there.
Backup Everything
I’ll be doing videos of my blog posts, and posting the short tutorial videos I had been posting infrequently on my Facebook group. I have a lot of those short tutorial videos saved offline (you can download even the live-streamed videos). That’s another key. Save everything offline (or at least the popular content), so if you have to start over, you have the content your audience resonated with to get you started.
Make a point of saving your email list offline at regular intervals.
Don’t rely on website platforms to buy your URLs. Make sure you own them, and can take them with you should something happen to your website platform (I use WordPress, but there’s a learning curve with that).
Invest In Learning SEO
Search Engine Optimization is always a great investment of your time, in my opinion. If you’re not hiring out your social media posting or blogging, then learning SEO is going to deliver really great bang for your buck. There are a variety of free and paid resources out there to help you do this, but understanding SEO means you’ve got a better understanding of keywords as they’re used as hashtags, or search features on social media or Amazon.
Learn Google Analytics for your blog or book data on retailer platforms. Know where your traffic is coming from, and focus on those platforms.
Don’t try and do it all. Learning these features means you’re better positioned to take advantage of organic discovery and algorithm recommendations (which cost you nothing).
I may try and create a new profile in a bit. Afterall, Facebook was the primary way I kept in touch with family. My first attempt got shut down almost immediately. I had a new email, used a device I’ve never used for Facebook, but it didn’t matter. You need a new email and phone number (unless you’ve somehow been able to avoid giving your phone number to Facebook), and restrict posting any photos of yourself because those were all mapped and catalogued and will be flagged on future profiles.
How do you feel about using Facebook to build community or drive traffic?
* * * * * *
About Lisa
Lisa Hall-Wilson is a writing teacher and award-winning writer and author. She’s the author of Method Acting For Writers: Learn Deep Point Of View Using Emotional Layers. Her blog, Beyond Basics For Writers, explores all facets of the popular writing style deep point of view and offers practical tips for writers.
69 comments on “Facebook Banned Me And You Could Be Next”
I understand exactly how you feel, Lisa. I lost my Facebook and Instagram accounts the same way about two years ago. I had to start completely over. And a friend of mine is going through the exact same thing right now.
The thing that worries me is that publishers supposedly look at your social media numbers. When you don’t have the numbers you originally did because of something like this that isn’t your fault, it really sucks. I need to take screenshots of my friends list or something like that, in case it ever happens again. Thank you for the wonderful and very honest post.
It's my understanding that social numbers are more important for non-fiction proposals than fiction proposals, but I've not jumped through those hoops for a bit so that may have changed.
Starting over is hard. Sorry that happened.
Lisa,
Please advise. I enrolled in your master class and paid but I am unable to log into the course. I am blind and navigate with a screen reader. The link that says "Okay go to page" cannot be activated...can you send me another link or advice on how I can access the course?
Thank you,
Marcia Wick marciajwick@gmail.com
719-651-2221
Sorry to hear of your permanent Facebook ban. There is a real problem with algorithms. Personally, I think that appeals should go to a real person. If it goes through an algorithm, surely the same result will occur?
A perfectly innocent comment of mine was refused on MSN because it said it violated their rules. I checked, and could find nothing I could see as going against what they said.
But I've received pornographic images, unsolicited, on Facebook, and requests to receive others. I tried to report these, to no avail. I couldn't find any way to do something.
Seems to me that Facebook is not treating its 'customers' fairly if some people can get away with objectionable, or even criminal posts while others get banned for an innocent remark.
Zuckerberg's latest comments, including no longer checking facts, have made me anxious and angry in equal measure. If there were another, similar, platform I would move to it.
I didn't like where Twitter was going (even before Musk) so I moved to Blue sky. I would willingly move from Facebook if there were an alternative.
It was suggested I try Bluesky so I've created a profile there, but that's about it. I only lurk on X, I rarely post anything.
My daughter is an avid reader and huge fantasy fan, and she connects with authors mostly on Tiktok and Insta. Find out where you readers hang out and invest time there.
Excellent blog. I'm SO sorry this happened to you! Yeah, bots and sarcasm don't travel in the same circles. I've done time in fb jail many times, but a lifetime ban terrifies me.
I get it - their sandbox, their rules, and with 'free' you get what you get. It's an expense to have a human intervene, but a LIFETIME ban should have an appeal that involves an actual human.
Thanks. I've gone awry of the filters in the past in a writer's group, but there was an option to write an objection to the suspension and it worked. This was a few years ago, but no such mechanism seems to exist now.
Definitely frustrating. And heartbreaking. I've lost photos of my kids. Photos of the pup I lost to epilepsy. All of my photos - no. But some I have no way of getting back now. 🙁
Yup. I got banned over a year ago due to someone who hacked my account. After repeated attempts to get it back I simply gave up. Has if affected book sales. Not that I can see. Almost all my friends were writers or folks who don't read a lot. I could still be trying to get the account back but why? One less time suck...
Yes - this has definitely freed up some time for me lol It's going to greatly depend on where your readers are if FB is worth the time you're investing in it.
I'm sorry that happened to you. Meanwhile, my estranged cousin put up a photo of what looked like a dead woman with a caption "was, were" to imply it was a transperson. Several of us reported it months ago. It's still up.
Since Zuckerberg's new plan is to stop checking for misinformation, I think Facebook is going to become worse. I might leave.
I'm sorry that upset you. The computer isn't good with sarcasm or implication, etc. It definitely has its limitations. If your readers are hanging out on FB, you may have to just scroll past content you don't like.
Facebook is frustrating. As a writer, I joined the platform 3 years ago to make use of its ads to promote my books. When I finally got around to opening my ads accounts, I received a message that I had been permanently banned from advertising, and trying to get any help proved to be time consuming and fruitless, so I eventually gave up.
My blog posts are automatically uploaded to my feed and some get blocked for reasons I don't understand, and trying to get any help...well, you know...
That sounds frustrating. I've spent a lot of time learning the ins and outs of the algorithm, so I can usually pinpoint the issue. If I had given it a second thought, I'd have either changed my comment or not posted it all, knowing how sensitive the filter is.
Lisa, I'm sorry this happened. Words can be interpreted in so many ways. It seems your "opinion" of injecting humor was taken the wrong way. Finding a platform to freely express oneself opens up doors leading to dark passages. Sadly, society has become so co-dependent on social media ....one's lost when the addiction is taken away. I hope you're able to find a alternative or better solution.
Was I addicted? At one point - probably. I was pretty isolated and Facebook created opportunities to connect with like-minded people I didn't have in real life.
But, not so much anymore. I'm frustrated, a few years ago I'd have been devastated. And partly my frustration is because I was following the rules.
The last few years have brought many great options, but if you're wanting to run ads, Facebook's framework is pretty comprehensive if you understand how it works and how to use it to reach new people. it's also very easy to spend a lot of money and get zero return.
Lisa, I'm sorry this happened. Words can be interpreted in so many ways. It seems your "opinion" of injecting humor was taken the wrong way. Finding a platform to freely express oneself opens up doors leading to dark passages. Sadly, society has become so co-dependent on social media ...
I can pinpoint the problem exactly. Cocaine is a banned word so was flagged by the system. The AI determined it was used in a "positive" way, which is true I suppose if you don't account for sarcasm (and I've not spoken to any human about this who hasn't immediately recognized the sarcasm). So, that's why it was taken down. But, to be banned from the platform was a little over the top, especially for a first infraction of this type.
The kicker is I've lost the unique URLS to my pen name. I won't ever get those back.
Hi Lisa. This sounds as if I have written it except that I have never mentioned a drug
Someone else did it and posted on the women's group saying "my doctor won't prescribe HRT, i feel like I am asking him for c*ack c*caoine. I responded explaining that she needs to find a new DR and that i feel much better since my GP prescribed HRT in April. I mever mentioned any drugs! Her post is still up, her FB is active and I am permanently banned just like you. Same process.
They never said this was the comment that got me in trouble but this is the only post that any type of drug was mentioned (never by me!)
I don't care about FB but I am still upset about my IG being gone. My friend list, pics,videos and all the recipes I have save omg!
I had no clue that HRT could trigger anything. Hundreds of women in that and other group are talking about it every day. No clue what have I done wrong.
It's just a big game of roulette unfortunately. I'm not sure why someone content gets flagged and others don't. The computer does search for what it feels is positive content about drugs and doesn't like it. If it felt your comment was "positive" that might have been what tipped the scales against you. Sorry that happened.
Could be. Well, at least i purged my FB and IG and now will accept and follow only what and who I care about. Hopefully less time spent on socials. Very tired of mindless scrolling 🤣
Lisa, your story is way too familiar, but thanks for sharing the pain of it.
I have been banned from Facebook for impersonating myself ... go figure. Facebook doesn't seem to care when they get it wrong, and there is no way to to make them get it right.
Sorry, this is a HUGE pet peeve of mine. Why we do we keep rewarding bad behavior? I think 'we' should ban Facebook. I have.
Hopefully, your audience is on other sites like mine is and you have options. I think particularly if you're writing to an older audience, Facebook is where they're hanging out primarily.
Oh - sure. I guess. I'm using Pinterest to reach writers, so it would take a bit of investigation to see how authors are using it reach readers, but I know it's a great way to reach people.
Hi Lisa: What a nightmare your story is. I use FB a lot to promote visibility of my novels and short stories and to drive traffic to my Reading Fiction Blog. I left X for Blue Sky and love the literature community there. So many writers and readers! Blue Sky is soaring these days. It might serve you well until other options arrive. Best wishes for a successful recovery.
OMG! Facebook suspended my account after a romance scammer posing as a US General in Syria but actually in Lagos, Nigeria, attempted to hack into my profile. He somehow managed to get in and I received a security alert that someone in Lagos has attempted to log in to my account. I clicked on 'this wasn't me' option and next thing I know, my account is suspended for fraud and deception. I lost over 1600 friends connections, and pictures from my vacations and baby pictures of my sons that I'll never get back again. Thanks "General".
Ugh - that super sucks. I've gotten those friend requests too.
I have all my groups linked to a Page (the Page owned the groups, not my profile) and I have a backup admin on the Page. So, I can still get access to the Page by having that backup admin give me access through another account.
What's more interesting is the Zuck abandoning his third party fact-checking, and instead moving towards X's style of user generated community notes. Of course those can be manipulated and used punitively, but on the whole it's worked pretty well on Twitter.
I'm sorry this happened to you but in this day and age I am not surprised. I walked away from Facebook a few years ago. The harassment was ridiculous. Instagram isn't as bad but I have been warned a few times over things as ridiculous as what happened to you. You brought up a great reminder: We do not own anything posted of these sites. Back up everything. Learn SEO. Speaking of, that was my New Year's resolution. Fingers crossed I keep it.
Oh wow! That really sucks that happened to you. I've stopped posting anything on Facebook at all. Not a comment, not a picture, nothing. I have an account so that I can run ads, and otherwise I lurk. I doomscroll there lol, but nothing more. Thanks for mentioning Pinterest as a way to connect to readers! I hadn't even considered it! Seriously frustrating to have artificial "intelligence" make calls like this. I think the whole idea of "AI" is mis-named. They aren't intelligent at all. They are artificial regurgitation of mediocrity. Mindless. Thoughtless. Soulless. There's nothing intelligent about them, though the artificial part is spot on.
Have you tried creating your new account with a VPN on?
I haven't tried a VPN, but I've read lots of Reddit threads that say it doesn't help. Not sure I'm willing to go to big extremes to get back on. I had to confirm my identity which required moving my head this way and that, up and down - so my face is well-mapped.
Lisa,
Good God. We are all effed when the AI takes over.
So sorry this happened to you! A less deserving target can hardly be found.
Thank you so much for sharing your experience, and ideas on how to keep it from happening to others.
Cathryn
Well, from what I've seen from Facebook, it appears the administration of said platform is trying to turn it into a trump adore-fest, just to please trump. Pleasing trump means more tax breaks for Zuck. I plan on ditching FB anyway, because I don't like the atmosphere any more.
I really loved the groups I was in - some for flower farming, some for writing, local community groups (found a wallet in x parking lot), family chats. I had a really engaged organic community for my blog there. As a Canadian, it's been hard to engage with any kind of politics there at all so haven't seen much of that lately.
I'm so sorry about the cancellation. I've been hit by FB warnings several times all for shared posts concerning Star Trek, a cat video, etc. Maddening. I've moved over to BlueSky and Threads, if you or the readers are interested in social media that's not insane. Of course, it's still someone else's platforms so your advice to have your own space is totally valid still. Good luck!
Sorry this happened to you. It's a very frustrating part of social media and what is banned and what is not seems to never be consistent. I have reported bigoted content and fake accounts only to receive a message back saying it didn't meet the threshold and so will not be taken down. I have tried to share URLs to blog posts with descriptions that have no banned words in them, and yet these are all taken down. One thing that FB really seems to hate is the entries to our blogged posts about the Character Secret Thesaurus. I have changed the title, keywords, meta, URL and nothing works. Whether the URL is in the post or comments, it is removed.
And then there's a post like yours where someone is permanently banned without recourse for doing nothing. It is so frustrating.
FB is not alone in being problematic. Finding a way to stay connected to people through methods owned by the individual is becoming increasingly necessary.
Yes, I remember you posting about those struggles. FB removed a whole bunch of links recently without much explanation. It hit my course platform. I had to stop posting links to my course on Facebook for a while - but then it started working again. The inconsistency has been an issue with FB from the very beginning.
I'm so sorry this happened to you, Lisa. I was listening to a podcast not long ago about this very thing. I think it was Thomas Umstadt Jr. who said the social media platforms are like land owners, and the users are sharecroppers. The land owners rule, and they can kick you off any time they want to. Sad, but true.
I joined Bluesky recently and just followed you there. Good luck!
First of all - how dreadful. Secondly, this strikes me as old-school censorship, the sort I'm familiar with from the last century. While I appreciate the misjudgement in this case, the Oppressor still cuts down the intellectual (book-burnings, etc). The irony being, Facebook reversed the protocol. It was the place where, for example, Pizzagate became a model for ridicule, and the Oppressor was the one pleading to be let in.
Yeah - I'm personally not a fan of the increased censorship on some platforms. Say what you want about X, but my feed is filled with posts and accounts from all the political spectrums. I prefer to hear everyone's opinion and then make my own, do my own research. The bias on both sides on different issues becomes easier to spot that way.
I don't really feel represented in politics (in Canada) much at all. I don't fall entirely into any one camp.
Not a fence-sitter - I have some pretty strong opinions. But, I'm a big believer in everyone being allowed to have their opinion.
Instagram suspended my account, accusing me of being a bot. Fortunately, when I appealed, I got it back immediately, but I was restricted for three days. It took me a bit to figure out they didn't like me using a particular hashtag. A popular one, but for whatever reason, I'm no longer allowed to use it.
They didn't suspend my Facebook account at any point, but they did restrict my Threads. I think that because my Primary Instagram account was made before Meta acquired it, Facebook wasn't impacted. My secondary Instagram account is linked to Facebook.
They also suppress some of my reels once in a while. TikTok does that, too.
Was suspended from Facebook with no appeal process or recourse for a personal essay about 4 year old me slicing open her shin trying to climb a fence to see the baby that drowned in my backyard neighbor's pool. After a few months, I was suddenly able to participate again. Too late. I'd moved my activities to other venues and am doing just fine. Great article!
They banned you, or just put you in FB jail for a determined amount of time? (restricted what you could post, where you could post, how often you could post, etc)? Facebook jail sucks, but at least you don't lose your account. There's a lot of hoops to jump through to get a new profile. And starting over just... sucks.
So sorry for your loss--of FaceBook. I personally despise the platform. I used it for a short period of time until they started "fact checking" everything I wrote from historical things to politics to people, etc. I stop posting on it over 4 years ago and it has saved me TONS of time.
I'll stick to my email subscribers, a few things on Pinterest, and I'm going to do a trail run on Substack. I'm not big on the social media stuff as I get sucked into wasting time ((and yes I got slapped for using that word of facebook.))
I will really miss the communities I was a part of there - from local neighbourhood groups to specialty flower growing, writers groups, gardening for zone 3... so many things.
Someone highjacked my FB. I ended up having to use another name (added Author to the beginning) and started from scratch building back my friends list. Luckily I never posted photos that I didn't keep elsewhere. You have offered up a valuable warning. Thank you.
You do not OWN your real estate on social media. It costs a lot of money to keep those servers running. If the product is free, YOU are the product they are tracking, surveilling, *nudging*, manipulating with propaganda, and controlling. If you only knew what they are DOING with your time online, you wouldn't touch their products with a 10-foot pole.
I 'get' that marketing books requires being accessible to your readers, but seriously. Get offline and do things in real life, or onto your own private chat accounts. Your "outreach" plan should ALWAYS originate with your own website, blog, or digital product that you OWN. Sure, propagate links out on the various social media platforms, but all roads must lead to Rome, so to speak. Or you will be a victim of technocratic manipulation and overreach.
Yes - I tried to make those points clear.
I think it's a case of all things in moderation. Have a social connection has saved those who are isolated and home-bound for whatever reason - it's not ALL doom and gloom. It's important to have good balance.
Hi Lisa. I saw that cough syrup label recently on FB, but refrained from commenting. Lucky me. While many aspects of FB annoy me, like you, I rely on it to keep in touch with family and friends outside of my immediate circle, such as cousins and/or friends from school - connections made in ancient days, and kept alive through social media. However, I now have a BlueSky account which is where, courtesy of a post by Anne R Allen, I found the link to your website. Kindly sign me up to your email list! Thankyou, Rosemary
Hi Rosemary!
I can't just sign you up. 🙁 I'd have to prove you gave me permission, etc etc etc (spam laws). But if you go to my website, you can click the link at the top of the right hand margin and stay connected that way. 😀 https://lisahallwilson.com
Yup. I got banned over a year ago due to someone who hacked my account. After repeated attempts to get it back I simply gave up. Has if affected book sales. Not that I can see. Almost all my friends were writers or folks who don't read a lot. I could still be trying to get the account back but why? One less time suck...
Oh, wow! I'm so sorry for what you're going through, but respect your positive attitufe to keep moving forward. This definitely concerns me, since my NF book is ALL about drugs- mostly illicit and how they can be used in perilous plots or for dark character backstories. ALL my posts about the book involve specific names of drugs and could be questionable, when taken out of context as an AI bot might. LIke "need to poison your character reaslisitically with fentanyl...," so yeah, that might be a problem. So far, it hasn't, but this certainly makes me raise an eyebrow or two. Thankfully, my FB presence really doesn;t generate the buklk of my sales, but Insta has a bit of a reach. So far, otherwise, sales have correlated wiht the number of X posts I make. Crossing my fingers that I stay out of target range of the angry bots.
Thanks for this timely post.
It's definitely risky. Will be interesting to see if the Zuck is actually going to take away the banned words or not. I'm skeptical.
I've still got access to my groups because my author Page has a backup admin, and I created my groups with my author Page -- so when I get back on FB I can still have access to that content and those followers. Always have a backup admin, and use a Page as an admin always.
This is terrifying, Lisa, and I'm so sorry it happened to you.
Thank you for sharing your experience and some considerations.
You're not the first person to be banned for no real reason, including big businesses who lose everything on Facebook.
It's a real concern for me because my main business community is on Facebook. It hadn't occurred to me that I'd lose Instagram too.
Because FB is free to use, they don't have proper customer service and bots are inately fraught with issues, as you've mentioned. I think it really is a matter of keeping meticulous records and copies of information, so you can start again elsewhere if (when) you have to.
It is unfair, but it's a numbers game I'm afraid. I think I read that something like 2million accounts are deleted every day on Facebook (most are fraudulent or scammers). That's a lot of content to ask a human to look at. I get it - but it still sucks.
Crazy story but then we live in a crazy world. I got a "consider this your first warning" letter from Amazon for using underscores to replace a banned word in a book review. I no longer review non fiction for Amazon.
I'm @quineatal on X if you're interested in further conversation.
I've been checking in since it was published 🙂 I generally just lurk on X, but maybe I'll start engaging more there. Do you like the writer/book community there?
I recently left FB on my own because four people I personally know lost their accounts within a year of each other, but not for being suspended. They were hacked. Again, FB does zero to help you recover your account, photos, posts etc. I'm still on Insta but I've deactivated Threads and, like you, source information from X simply because the so-called fact-checkers aren't as punitive there.
I'm sorry you lost your accounts. You might try something like Substack. I've moved my newsletter there and have been happier. Less distractions and I own my work.
Yes - getting hacked was a huge concern. I had all the double authentication, backup admins, etc. Changed password regularly. I let down my guard about the banned words. It's always something it seems.
I understand exactly how you feel, Lisa. I lost my Facebook and Instagram accounts the same way about two years ago. I had to start completely over. And a friend of mine is going through the exact same thing right now.
The thing that worries me is that publishers supposedly look at your social media numbers. When you don’t have the numbers you originally did because of something like this that isn’t your fault, it really sucks. I need to take screenshots of my friends list or something like that, in case it ever happens again. Thank you for the wonderful and very honest post.
It's my understanding that social numbers are more important for non-fiction proposals than fiction proposals, but I've not jumped through those hoops for a bit so that may have changed.
Starting over is hard. Sorry that happened.
Lisa,
Please advise. I enrolled in your master class and paid but I am unable to log into the course. I am blind and navigate with a screen reader. The link that says "Okay go to page" cannot be activated...can you send me another link or advice on how I can access the course?
Thank you,
Marcia Wick
marciajwick@gmail.com
719-651-2221
Sorry to hear of your permanent Facebook ban. There is a real problem with algorithms. Personally, I think that appeals should go to a real person. If it goes through an algorithm, surely the same result will occur?
A perfectly innocent comment of mine was refused on MSN because it said it violated their rules. I checked, and could find nothing I could see as going against what they said.
But I've received pornographic images, unsolicited, on Facebook, and requests to receive others. I tried to report these, to no avail. I couldn't find any way to do something.
Seems to me that Facebook is not treating its 'customers' fairly if some people can get away with objectionable, or even criminal posts while others get banned for an innocent remark.
Zuckerberg's latest comments, including no longer checking facts, have made me anxious and angry in equal measure. If there were another, similar, platform I would move to it.
I didn't like where Twitter was going (even before Musk) so I moved to Blue sky. I would willingly move from Facebook if there were an alternative.
It was suggested I try Bluesky so I've created a profile there, but that's about it. I only lurk on X, I rarely post anything.
My daughter is an avid reader and huge fantasy fan, and she connects with authors mostly on Tiktok and Insta. Find out where you readers hang out and invest time there.
Excellent blog. I'm SO sorry this happened to you! Yeah, bots and sarcasm don't travel in the same circles. I've done time in fb jail many times, but a lifetime ban terrifies me.
I get it - their sandbox, their rules, and with 'free' you get what you get. It's an expense to have a human intervene, but a LIFETIME ban should have an appeal that involves an actual human.
UGH!
Yeah, lifetime? That's a bit harsh.
Thanks. I've gone awry of the filters in the past in a writer's group, but there was an option to write an objection to the suspension and it worked. This was a few years ago, but no such mechanism seems to exist now.
Definitely frustrating. And heartbreaking. I've lost photos of my kids. Photos of the pup I lost to epilepsy. All of my photos - no. But some I have no way of getting back now. 🙁
Yup. I got banned over a year ago due to someone who hacked my account. After repeated attempts to get it back I simply gave up. Has if affected book sales. Not that I can see. Almost all my friends were writers or folks who don't read a lot. I could still be trying to get the account back but why? One less time suck...
Yes - this has definitely freed up some time for me lol It's going to greatly depend on where your readers are if FB is worth the time you're investing in it.
I'm sorry that happened to you. Meanwhile, my estranged cousin put up a photo of what looked like a dead woman with a caption "was, were" to imply it was a transperson. Several of us reported it months ago. It's still up.
Since Zuckerberg's new plan is to stop checking for misinformation, I think Facebook is going to become worse. I might leave.
I'm sorry that upset you. The computer isn't good with sarcasm or implication, etc. It definitely has its limitations. If your readers are hanging out on FB, you may have to just scroll past content you don't like.
Facebook is frustrating. As a writer, I joined the platform 3 years ago to make use of its ads to promote my books. When I finally got around to opening my ads accounts, I received a message that I had been permanently banned from advertising, and trying to get any help proved to be time consuming and fruitless, so I eventually gave up.
My blog posts are automatically uploaded to my feed and some get blocked for reasons I don't understand, and trying to get any help...well, you know...
That sounds frustrating. I've spent a lot of time learning the ins and outs of the algorithm, so I can usually pinpoint the issue. If I had given it a second thought, I'd have either changed my comment or not posted it all, knowing how sensitive the filter is.
Lisa, I'm sorry this happened. Words can be interpreted in so many ways. It seems your "opinion" of injecting humor was taken the wrong way. Finding a platform to freely express oneself opens up doors leading to dark passages. Sadly, society has become so co-dependent on social media ....one's lost when the addiction is taken away. I hope you're able to find a alternative or better solution.
Was I addicted? At one point - probably. I was pretty isolated and Facebook created opportunities to connect with like-minded people I didn't have in real life.
But, not so much anymore. I'm frustrated, a few years ago I'd have been devastated. And partly my frustration is because I was following the rules.
The last few years have brought many great options, but if you're wanting to run ads, Facebook's framework is pretty comprehensive if you understand how it works and how to use it to reach new people. it's also very easy to spend a lot of money and get zero return.
Lisa, I'm sorry this happened. Words can be interpreted in so many ways. It seems your "opinion" of injecting humor was taken the wrong way. Finding a platform to freely express oneself opens up doors leading to dark passages. Sadly, society has become so co-dependent on social media ...
I can pinpoint the problem exactly. Cocaine is a banned word so was flagged by the system. The AI determined it was used in a "positive" way, which is true I suppose if you don't account for sarcasm (and I've not spoken to any human about this who hasn't immediately recognized the sarcasm). So, that's why it was taken down. But, to be banned from the platform was a little over the top, especially for a first infraction of this type.
The kicker is I've lost the unique URLS to my pen name. I won't ever get those back.
Hi Lisa. This sounds as if I have written it except that I have never mentioned a drug
Someone else did it and posted on the women's group saying "my doctor won't prescribe HRT, i feel like I am asking him for c*ack c*caoine. I responded explaining that she needs to find a new DR and that i feel much better since my GP prescribed HRT in April. I mever mentioned any drugs! Her post is still up, her FB is active and I am permanently banned just like you. Same process.
They never said this was the comment that got me in trouble but this is the only post that any type of drug was mentioned (never by me!)
I don't care about FB but I am still upset about my IG being gone. My friend list, pics,videos and all the recipes I have save omg!
I had no clue that HRT could trigger anything. Hundreds of women in that and other group are talking about it every day. No clue what have I done wrong.
It's just a big game of roulette unfortunately. I'm not sure why someone content gets flagged and others don't. The computer does search for what it feels is positive content about drugs and doesn't like it. If it felt your comment was "positive" that might have been what tipped the scales against you. Sorry that happened.
Could be. Well, at least i purged my FB and IG and now will accept and follow only what and who I care about. Hopefully less time spent on socials. Very tired of mindless scrolling 🤣
Lisa, your story is way too familiar, but thanks for sharing the pain of it.
I have been banned from Facebook for impersonating myself ... go figure. Facebook doesn't seem to care when they get it wrong, and there is no way to to make them get it right.
Sorry, this is a HUGE pet peeve of mine. Why we do we keep rewarding bad behavior? I think 'we' should ban Facebook. I have.
Hopefully, your audience is on other sites like mine is and you have options. I think particularly if you're writing to an older audience, Facebook is where they're hanging out primarily.
I'm sorry this happened to you, Lisa. I'd love to know more about how you Pinterest. Would you consider writing a post about that in the future?
Oh - sure. I guess. I'm using Pinterest to reach writers, so it would take a bit of investigation to see how authors are using it reach readers, but I know it's a great way to reach people.
Hi Lisa: What a nightmare your story is. I use FB a lot to promote visibility of my novels and short stories and to drive traffic to my Reading Fiction Blog. I left X for Blue Sky and love the literature community there. So many writers and readers! Blue Sky is soaring these days. It might serve you well until other options arrive. Best wishes for a successful recovery.
I've just this week created an account there. Haven't done much with it. I'll have to do some digging and see how to reach that community.
OMG! Facebook suspended my account after a romance scammer posing as a US General in Syria but actually in Lagos, Nigeria, attempted to hack into my profile. He somehow managed to get in and I received a security alert that someone in Lagos has attempted to log in to my account. I clicked on 'this wasn't me' option and next thing I know, my account is suspended for fraud and deception. I lost over 1600 friends connections, and pictures from my vacations and baby pictures of my sons that I'll never get back again. Thanks "General".
Ugh - that super sucks. I've gotten those friend requests too.
I have all my groups linked to a Page (the Page owned the groups, not my profile) and I have a backup admin on the Page. So, I can still get access to the Page by having that backup admin give me access through another account.
Since the Facebook mediation department is being moved fromCalifornia to Texas, maybe things will be better.
What's more interesting is the Zuck abandoning his third party fact-checking, and instead moving towards X's style of user generated community notes. Of course those can be manipulated and used punitively, but on the whole it's worked pretty well on Twitter.
I'm sorry this happened to you but in this day and age I am not surprised. I walked away from Facebook a few years ago. The harassment was ridiculous. Instagram isn't as bad but I have been warned a few times over things as ridiculous as what happened to you. You brought up a great reminder: We do not own anything posted of these sites. Back up everything. Learn SEO. Speaking of, that was my New Year's resolution. Fingers crossed I keep it.
I've been doing some research on how to better my own skills since this has happened. Always good to brush up.
Oh wow! That really sucks that happened to you. I've stopped posting anything on Facebook at all. Not a comment, not a picture, nothing. I have an account so that I can run ads, and otherwise I lurk. I doomscroll there lol, but nothing more. Thanks for mentioning Pinterest as a way to connect to readers! I hadn't even considered it! Seriously frustrating to have artificial "intelligence" make calls like this. I think the whole idea of "AI" is mis-named. They aren't intelligent at all. They are artificial regurgitation of mediocrity. Mindless. Thoughtless. Soulless. There's nothing intelligent about them, though the artificial part is spot on.
Have you tried creating your new account with a VPN on?
I haven't tried a VPN, but I've read lots of Reddit threads that say it doesn't help. Not sure I'm willing to go to big extremes to get back on. I had to confirm my identity which required moving my head this way and that, up and down - so my face is well-mapped.
Lisa,
Good God. We are all effed when the AI takes over.
So sorry this happened to you! A less deserving target can hardly be found.
Thank you so much for sharing your experience, and ideas on how to keep it from happening to others.
Cathryn
I appreciate that!
I was so intent on "following the rules" that I was hoping it wouldn't happen to me. Guess it was my turn.
Well, from what I've seen from Facebook, it appears the administration of said platform is trying to turn it into a trump adore-fest, just to please trump. Pleasing trump means more tax breaks for Zuck. I plan on ditching FB anyway, because I don't like the atmosphere any more.
I really loved the groups I was in - some for flower farming, some for writing, local community groups (found a wallet in x parking lot), family chats. I had a really engaged organic community for my blog there. As a Canadian, it's been hard to engage with any kind of politics there at all so haven't seen much of that lately.
I'm so sorry about the cancellation. I've been hit by FB warnings several times all for shared posts concerning Star Trek, a cat video, etc. Maddening. I've moved over to BlueSky and Threads, if you or the readers are interested in social media that's not insane. Of course, it's still someone else's platforms so your advice to have your own space is totally valid still. Good luck!
Lots have recommended Bluesky to me. It's just not as big as Facebook.
What do you love about it?
Sorry this happened to you. It's a very frustrating part of social media and what is banned and what is not seems to never be consistent. I have reported bigoted content and fake accounts only to receive a message back saying it didn't meet the threshold and so will not be taken down. I have tried to share URLs to blog posts with descriptions that have no banned words in them, and yet these are all taken down. One thing that FB really seems to hate is the entries to our blogged posts about the Character Secret Thesaurus. I have changed the title, keywords, meta, URL and nothing works. Whether the URL is in the post or comments, it is removed.
And then there's a post like yours where someone is permanently banned without recourse for doing nothing. It is so frustrating.
FB is not alone in being problematic. Finding a way to stay connected to people through methods owned by the individual is becoming increasingly necessary.
Yes, I remember you posting about those struggles. FB removed a whole bunch of links recently without much explanation. It hit my course platform. I had to stop posting links to my course on Facebook for a while - but then it started working again. The inconsistency has been an issue with FB from the very beginning.
I'm so sorry this happened to you, Lisa. I was listening to a podcast not long ago about this very thing. I think it was Thomas Umstadt Jr. who said the social media platforms are like land owners, and the users are sharecroppers. The land owners rule, and they can kick you off any time they want to. Sad, but true.
I joined Bluesky recently and just followed you there. Good luck!
I look forward to connecting there!
First of all - how dreadful. Secondly, this strikes me as old-school censorship, the sort I'm familiar with from the last century. While I appreciate the misjudgement in this case, the Oppressor still cuts down the intellectual (book-burnings, etc). The irony being, Facebook reversed the protocol. It was the place where, for example, Pizzagate became a model for ridicule, and the Oppressor was the one pleading to be let in.
Now, of course they're in.
Yeah - I'm personally not a fan of the increased censorship on some platforms. Say what you want about X, but my feed is filled with posts and accounts from all the political spectrums. I prefer to hear everyone's opinion and then make my own, do my own research. The bias on both sides on different issues becomes easier to spot that way.
I don't really feel represented in politics (in Canada) much at all. I don't fall entirely into any one camp.
Not a fence-sitter - I have some pretty strong opinions. But, I'm a big believer in everyone being allowed to have their opinion.
Instagram suspended my account, accusing me of being a bot. Fortunately, when I appealed, I got it back immediately, but I was restricted for three days. It took me a bit to figure out they didn't like me using a particular hashtag. A popular one, but for whatever reason, I'm no longer allowed to use it.
They didn't suspend my Facebook account at any point, but they did restrict my Threads. I think that because my Primary Instagram account was made before Meta acquired it, Facebook wasn't impacted. My secondary Instagram account is linked to Facebook.
They also suppress some of my reels once in a while. TikTok does that, too.
Ya - keeping up on what's currently being suppressed or censored can be a fulltime job. It's enough to make your head hurt.
Was suspended from Facebook with no appeal process or recourse for a personal essay about 4 year old me slicing open her shin trying to climb a fence to see the baby that drowned in my backyard neighbor's pool. After a few months, I was suddenly able to participate again. Too late. I'd moved my activities to other venues and am doing just fine. Great article!
They banned you, or just put you in FB jail for a determined amount of time? (restricted what you could post, where you could post, how often you could post, etc)? Facebook jail sucks, but at least you don't lose your account. There's a lot of hoops to jump through to get a new profile. And starting over just... sucks.
So sorry for your loss--of FaceBook. I personally despise the platform. I used it for a short period of time until they started "fact checking" everything I wrote from historical things to politics to people, etc. I stop posting on it over 4 years ago and it has saved me TONS of time.
I'll stick to my email subscribers, a few things on Pinterest, and I'm going to do a trail run on Substack. I'm not big on the social media stuff as I get sucked into wasting time ((and yes I got slapped for using that word of facebook.))
I will really miss the communities I was a part of there - from local neighbourhood groups to specialty flower growing, writers groups, gardening for zone 3... so many things.
Someone highjacked my FB. I ended up having to use another name (added Author to the beginning) and started from scratch building back my friends list. Luckily I never posted photos that I didn't keep elsewhere. You have offered up a valuable warning. Thank you.
Well, if Facebook ever figures out that you're not using your real name you might lose this profile too. It's always a game of roulette. *sigh*
You do not OWN your real estate on social media. It costs a lot of money to keep those servers running. If the product is free, YOU are the product they are tracking, surveilling, *nudging*, manipulating with propaganda, and controlling. If you only knew what they are DOING with your time online, you wouldn't touch their products with a 10-foot pole.
I 'get' that marketing books requires being accessible to your readers, but seriously. Get offline and do things in real life, or onto your own private chat accounts. Your "outreach" plan should ALWAYS originate with your own website, blog, or digital product that you OWN. Sure, propagate links out on the various social media platforms, but all roads must lead to Rome, so to speak. Or you will be a victim of technocratic manipulation and overreach.
Yes - I tried to make those points clear.
I think it's a case of all things in moderation. Have a social connection has saved those who are isolated and home-bound for whatever reason - it's not ALL doom and gloom. It's important to have good balance.
Hi Lisa. I saw that cough syrup label recently on FB, but refrained from commenting. Lucky me. While many aspects of FB annoy me, like you, I rely on it to keep in touch with family and friends outside of my immediate circle, such as cousins and/or friends from school - connections made in ancient days, and kept alive through social media. However, I now have a BlueSky account which is where, courtesy of a post by Anne R Allen, I found the link to your website. Kindly sign me up to your email list! Thankyou, Rosemary
Hi Rosemary!
I can't just sign you up. 🙁 I'd have to prove you gave me permission, etc etc etc (spam laws). But if you go to my website, you can click the link at the top of the right hand margin and stay connected that way. 😀
https://lisahallwilson.com
Yup. I got banned over a year ago due to someone who hacked my account. After repeated attempts to get it back I simply gave up. Has if affected book sales. Not that I can see. Almost all my friends were writers or folks who don't read a lot. I could still be trying to get the account back but why? One less time suck...
Oh, wow! I'm so sorry for what you're going through, but respect your positive attitufe to keep moving forward. This definitely concerns me, since my NF book is ALL about drugs- mostly illicit and how they can be used in perilous plots or for dark character backstories. ALL my posts about the book involve specific names of drugs and could be questionable, when taken out of context as an AI bot might. LIke "need to poison your character reaslisitically with fentanyl...," so yeah, that might be a problem. So far, it hasn't, but this certainly makes me raise an eyebrow or two. Thankfully, my FB presence really doesn;t generate the buklk of my sales, but Insta has a bit of a reach. So far, otherwise, sales have correlated wiht the number of X posts I make. Crossing my fingers that I stay out of target range of the angry bots.
Thanks for this timely post.
It's definitely risky. Will be interesting to see if the Zuck is actually going to take away the banned words or not. I'm skeptical.
I've still got access to my groups because my author Page has a backup admin, and I created my groups with my author Page -- so when I get back on FB I can still have access to that content and those followers. Always have a backup admin, and use a Page as an admin always.
This is terrifying, Lisa, and I'm so sorry it happened to you.
Thank you for sharing your experience and some considerations.
You're not the first person to be banned for no real reason, including big businesses who lose everything on Facebook.
It's a real concern for me because my main business community is on Facebook. It hadn't occurred to me that I'd lose Instagram too.
Because FB is free to use, they don't have proper customer service and bots are inately fraught with issues, as you've mentioned. I think it really is a matter of keeping meticulous records and copies of information, so you can start again elsewhere if (when) you have to.
Heartbreakingly unfair!
It is unfair, but it's a numbers game I'm afraid. I think I read that something like 2million accounts are deleted every day on Facebook (most are fraudulent or scammers). That's a lot of content to ask a human to look at. I get it - but it still sucks.
Crazy story but then we live in a crazy world. I got a "consider this your first warning" letter from Amazon for using underscores to replace a banned word in a book review. I no longer review non fiction for Amazon.
I'm @quineatal on X if you're interested in further conversation.
Does anyone ever read these comments?
I've been checking in since it was published 🙂 I generally just lurk on X, but maybe I'll start engaging more there. Do you like the writer/book community there?
I recently left FB on my own because four people I personally know lost their accounts within a year of each other, but not for being suspended. They were hacked. Again, FB does zero to help you recover your account, photos, posts etc. I'm still on Insta but I've deactivated Threads and, like you, source information from X simply because the so-called fact-checkers aren't as punitive there.
I'm sorry you lost your accounts. You might try something like Substack. I've moved my newsletter there and have been happier. Less distractions and I own my work.
Yes - getting hacked was a huge concern. I had all the double authentication, backup admins, etc. Changed password regularly. I let down my guard about the banned words. It's always something it seems.