Have you ever been blindsided by something?
Like absolutely blindsided, no warning, did not even know to ask the question before it hit you in the face like a train. No? Well, I’m glad for you.
So, this is my story about how a simple Facebook post with my new company logo fell victim to Godwin’s law. If you don’t know what Goodwin’s law is, please let me take a short tangent. Goodwin’s law is an Internet adage asserting that as an online discussion grows longer (regardless of topic or scope), the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Adolf Hitler becomes more likely (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_law ).
Yes, that’s right – Nazis.
<<shakes head and rubs temples>>
Another short tangent I feel is necessary is to tell you that my actual maiden name is “Storm.” My father was a Storm, his father was a Storm, and so on for nearly 15 generations. On Ancestry.com I’ve been able to trace my Storm family back to Johann and Anna Sturm who came to Pennsylvania on the Ship Mortonhouse in 1728 from Schifferstadt, Germany (oh the irony). They changed their name to the English spelling of “Storm” when they landed in the “new world” and their son, John Peter Storm (my 12
-great-grandfather) was the first of my family to be born in what would become the US, in York, Pennsylvania in 1740. There’s an unbroken chain of Storms living mostly in the eastern and midwestern US until you get to me.
So now, back to Goodwin’s law and the Storm Haus Publishing Logo.
I had been thinking about what I wanted for my logo for ages. I knew I wanted something that incorporated a lightning bolt and an umbrella. The lightning bolt has always kind of been our family symbol for my sister and I. It’s associated with bad weather and looks kind of like a stylized “S” (I am not the first person to make this association …) so we’ve always like them. I worked with a professional logo designer and he came up with the idea to have the book be the top of the umbrella and the bolt be the handle. As a total plus, the symbol looked vaguely like a “T” and so we replaced the “T” in Storm with the symbol when the logo is written out horizontally. I knew instantaneously that this was the design I had been wanting.
I also knew that the name of the company would be Storm-something. I decided on “Storm House” because publishing labels are usually referred to as “houses.” However, that was already taken as a company name when I went to incorporate. So, I changed it to “Storm Haus.” Simple, easy to remember, and punchy.
There was a smallish group of my closest friends and family that I had used as a sounding board for the logo design process. About 15 people from all different educations, careers, backgrounds, ages, ethnicities and religions. I’m really lucky to have a diverse network of people willing to invest in me. They all were so encouraging. Everyone loved the concept and gave me really solid feedback on design choices. The end product was so much better for their input. I was so excited with my new logo!
The day I got the high quality files from my designer, I immediately put them up on my Instagram account. At the time I had fewer than a hundred followers, but I was working on that. Now I’m up to over 3,000. While I am happy with the way the logo looks on my IG page, it hasn’t garnered a lot of notice or comment. Absolutely no one on IG has said a single thing.
A few days later, I decided to start a Facebook page for the new company and I branded the page with my logo and some pictures I’d taken for this website and IG. Then, I used my personal Facebook account, where I have more than 800 friends (b/c I’m a geriatric millennial and have been on Facebook since 2005), to post about the new company and show my logo.
It was great! Everyone was so supportive!
Someone pointed out that Nazi’s, the SS, and WWI German special forces were associated
with “Storm” and lightning bolts!!
My first reaction was to throw up a little in my mouth. Then I started with a Google search for “storm lightning bolt nazis.” If you are interested in history and specifically WWI/II events, there’s a lot there. Apparently, there was an elite group of German soldiers who fought in WWI called Sturmabteilung – the “Storm Detachment.” They called themselves Sturmtruppen or “Stormtroopers” (I believe I’ve heard that somewhere before, but I can’t put my mouse ears on it …). This group and the name predates the Nazi party by more than five years, though they became part of the political machine in the years leading up to WWII. I’m not going to regurgitate Wikipedia here, but you get the idea.
So what do I do?
Should I undo all the work I’ve done so far because there’s a negative historical context, in general terms, to some of my chosen symbols? None of the individual elements I’ve chosen resemble their tainted ancestors. The lightning bolts are different shapes, I used the English spelling of Storm, no where in Nazi imagery did they use books. I feel like I’m justified that my personal branding is so far removed from the message and atrocities of WWII that I should be okay. As we’ve previously mentioned, one of the most well known, family orientated brands in the whole world proudly uses Stormtroopers. Disney, and Lucas Films before them, have been able to take something that was born from hate and turn it into a cherished childhood toy – for kids of all ages.
Now, I’m not saying I have the cultural power or influence of Star Wars, but I am saying that maybe how these symbols are used today and the messages behind them are at least equally important as the historical context. Taken as a whole, I believe that my logo and name do not specifically evoke hate or resemble the symbols and imagery used by people to promote hate.
After a lot of reflecting and discussing options with mentors, I have decided to stay the course. One off handed comment, though very well intentioned, isn’t enough to make me rethink my whole personal brand. Since I’m essentially branding myself as a new author, the logo and images are inextricably intertwined with me, as an individual.
Am I making a mistake? I don’t know. Maybe. Only time will tell.
My debut novel is on sale now, wherever e-books are sold! Get yours today.
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I like the logo! If anyone is so offended that they think you should change it, I hope they will volunteer to pay the cost to have it re-designed. I’m glad you didn’t take the criticism to heart. Keep on writing your stories and we will keep reading!!!
Oh my word! People can be so stupid! I agree that you should stay the course. It never occurred to me that a lightning bolt was associated with anything negative. I’m pretty sure any logical, thinking person would know the difference between Nazi symbols and your logo.
My jaw dropped while reading your post. I checked with my husband who is a historian whose specialty is WWII. He shook his head and said the thunderbolt has no affiliation with nazis. There’s a story behind the nazi stormtroopers. Germany was tired of having their butts kicked by the Canadian stormtroopers in WWI and early WWII so they created their own stormtroopers to defeat the Canadians.
I personally love your name and logo. I think it is eye-catching and you shouldn’t change a thing. I agree with the others that people are looking for an excuse to be offended by something.
Poor Zeus. LOL!
Your logo is fabulous!
Oh no, how frustrating to get that comment! I agree with you completely–you aren’t using any imagery that the average person could ever get “nazi” out of. Your logo looks great and is clearly Storm-related, which is a super cool last name!
I like your logo! I never thought of Nazis more like Harry Potter!lol I have your Reputation book and can’t wait to read it!
I love your name and logo and think a lightning bolt clearly goes with name Storm and not Nazis. I wouldn’t discard all your hard work for this comment.
I may not always agree with you but I would NEVER attack like that. I love your logo. Good grief! Stand your ground. No matter what you do… someone, somewhere, will find something to point the finger at. No… absolutely do nothing.
The book with the lightning bolt made an excellent letter T. It is uniquely yours. It never… NEVER crossed my mind to relate it to… WWI/II. Help us all.
I thought it was a lovely connection to your family name and the use of icons related to that. What else could you use… a storm cloud? Well, someone would have a problem with that. They might not like storms or relate your icon to hurricanes or typhoons. See? It will never end. Don’t give them your power. This is your work.
You cannot please everyone. So, please yourself. The rest of us, who agree completely with you that the design was a success, will stand with you. I’d even give your graphic designer a bonus for a job well done.
You can’t let the negative rule your decisions. Otherwise, you will question every step you take. Walk with your head held high and be proud of your name, your logo, and all the hard work you have put in this endeavor. Blessings.
I’m pretty sensitive to Nazi and fascist imagery, and this logo sets of no red flags at all. I think there are a lot of people out there desperately looking for something to be offended by.
Lightening bolts are also associated with Zeus and Thor and Flash, and if you’re going to use Storm (as you absolutely should), having a lightning bolt makes perfect sense.
To my eyes, it’s a striking (pardon the pun) design, and I wish you all the very best with it. And ooohhhh, your book looks so beautiful. Congrats!
I like it. It’s definitely eye catching and unique. I certainly didn’t think of Nazis when I looked at it even though my Dad flew in Lancaster Bombers during WW2.
I would definitely leave it as it is and good luck.
E.M.,
First of all, let me congratulate you on the completion of your new logo. I like it! And I suffer from no negative associations or connections between your logo and Nazi Germany. In fact had you just introduced your new logo, I would have just congratulated you and moved on.
George Lucas did use history for inspiration in his beloved stories of good versus evil. And this inspiration did include the Nazis as well as many others. But since he portrayed his Stormtroopers as the evil military arm of the Empire (the Dark Side, dontcha know?), there was no fuss to be made. My brother had those Stormtrooper action figures in the 70s. They were always the bad guys. He also had Luke, Han, Leia, and Chewy. They were the good guys.
But take heart, the Nazi’s most prominent association with books was to burn them, not publish them. Oh, they did publish propaganda, mainly newspapers and movies. But they don’t own the name Storm any more than the term haus. You know your audience and your audience knows you and can connect your logo with your name. Don’t let one virtue signaler who is probably right now congratulating himself on his cultural sensitivity undermine your hard work.
Best,
Shana
It has always fascinated me how much people, especially little kids, loved the Stormtroopers since they were supposed to be the bad guys. It became such a thing that now one of the biggest heros of the sequel franchise, Finn, was a Stormtrooper. That redemption arc is super powerful.
Thanks you for the support. I also feel like there’s a big fat line between being culturally sensitive and just performative in your social justice. Making esoteric comments and pretending that context isn’t important doesn’t help support people who are actually affected by anti-semitism today. The world is a hard place and hate still permeates every level of our society.