As a writer I like her, but not as an actress. She needs to write more and not always put herself as the lead. Her films would do so much better. She has creative ideas and her films always seem interesting, but the performances fall flat.

I got the same feeling. I just watched The Sound of My Voice, which I thought was alright, but not exactly worthy of a repeat viewing. But reading the quotes and whatnot here, I got the feeling she posted a lot of the information herself. Then I realized that she also wrote the Maggie character for herself. I don't know. Something about that is off putting, and I don't know why. I wish I had a solid reason, something I could articulate thoughtfully so this post doesn't come across as merely bashing. But I don't and I can't. It's just this gut feeling.

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If you want to continually write and act in independent films that aren't going to post huge box office numbers, self-promotion is part of the game. In fact, the whole industry is driven by self-promotion.

Check out Another Earth; I saw it in theaters when it was out and loved it. I wish her well. I understand where you are coming from though, OP.
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I hadn't heard of her, either. I watched "The East" on DVD solely because Ellen Page is in it and I like her work, but when the film was over, it was Marling's performance that stuck with me, and when I saw she also co-wrote the film, I was even more impressed, enough so to search out her other films. Watching those really solidified my admiration of her. As an actress, I think she elevates any film that she's in, but it's as a screenwriter that I find her most impressive.
After reading through the other posts on this board, it seems that I'm not alone in this feeling. She just seems to be one of those remarkable people who shine a little brighter than most of us, and I'm happy that she does. So I don't know that it's "self-promotion" you're seeing. I think that it could just be the genuine admiration of people who recognize talent and are happy to acknowledge it.