Quick hit tonight, bunnies--hopefully I'll be back with something a little more substantial over the weekend.
For now...here are tonight's thoughts.
1. All submissions from June/July were held because I was in the process of moving. Boss dumped the slush on me to sort yesterday so after I reject a whole lot, I'll have to scare up the readers again and get everything caught up (and yes, including from the last open period--we had quit a few that were split down the middle decision-wise and slush got thrown to the side while I moved). Something I noticed this time around...
I'm not looking at the slush with glee, ready to find a few gems and get my snark on at the rest (I know it's bad of me, but I always got *such* a giggle over the truly atrocious books that I kinda looked forward to them). No, it's more...like the life has been sucked right out of me. It's dread, all heavy and hard in the bottom of my gut. Because I know how it'll go: I'll see the same mistakes and keep shaking my head, I'll get angry letters back when I reject... Until you've read hundreds and hundreds of cover letters and manuscripts, you can't fully appreciate how it really starts to mess with your head after awhile.
2. What I DID see among the slush were some in house submissions from authors I adore, so yay! They go on the top of the list.
3. I've been quiet all day (Wed) and probably will be Thurs/Fri too, keeping my head down and working but avoiding most people. Why? Crazy is in the air.
Crazy is always in the air somewhere, but sometimes you see it more than others. The normally fun, eclectic occult blogs and forums that I follow for research have exploded suddenly with this insane drama and clash of occultists. To clarify, it turns out one side is tres crazy--I was a little shocked at what happened. And then of course, yes, when "the death of publishing/every should start vanity publishing" conversation comes up somewhere, things go nuts and we all just mutter "Publishing is dying? Must be Tuesday" but people have gotten really heated the past couple of days. Normally nice, quiet peeps are revealing rather sharp tongues, and I watched a rather entertaining author/reviewer train wreck over the weekend.
It's not the normal crazy--it's kinda like the filter went away and people are either saying what they're thinking or getting really defensive about what others are saying.
Aside from my piracy meltdown, which isn't really out of the ordinary for me, I kinda just threw up my hands and said, "Okay, this would be a good coupla days to just NOT talk to anyone." I tend to breathe conflict without even meaning to so when everyone is going nuts, it's not a good time for me to join in.
4. Normally I love a good fight and would be all over the above, but I've just been kinda sitting here thinking... I'm tired. I'm tired of he said/she said, I'm tired of people arguing over publishing methods with their own agendas and not even listening to each other (or yelling at someone who is mostly fair and agenda-free), I'm tired of the high school social politics and shit among some authors and reviewers, I'm tired of writers and their attitude with my staff...
What I'd kinda love is to just go move to a tiny house out in the country, grow my own food, and keep to myself. Just wave bye-bye to the drama, unplug, and disappear for awhile. And that's not remotely feasible, but it remains my dream.
What I probably need to do is work on constructing a safe space I can retreat to (like I am with food on the advice of my nutritionist, who is now on Facebook so you should "like" her). But I'll continue having my little dream world where I don't have to deal with online...or offline...people for awhile.
5. I hit the This Book Will Not Die stage of writing Wounded--I have maybe 10K or so left to write and I'm actively cleaning the apartment and putting extra kms on the treadmill to avoid it. I'll just keep stabbing away though...I know eventually it'll end.
I also keep stabbing at Chapter Seventeen of CotA but I'm all jumbled around 'cause stuff is happening that I didn't plan for, and now I'm trying to rethink WTF I'm doing. I should have finished the chapter over the weekend but pirates derailed me and now I keep seeing readers on the CotA site looking for the chapter. I alternate between feeling bad and thinking, "WTF? Why does no one just scroll down on the main page where I said 'IT'S NOT DONE YET' rather than refresh the TOC a bunch of times?" Le sigh.
6. I was a little tipsy-while-tweeting a few days ago on Twitter and made a bet with the awesome Heather Petty, who is attempting to finish her WIP this week. Suffice to say, it looks like I'm going to have to go grocery shopping to prepare a meal for someone...
The moral of the story is wine + Twitter = WTF did I get myself into?
If you read Wolfe, you know there are a lot of loose ends. This is because I never saw either book as being remotely about plot--both are purely about the main character's arc. And I realize this bugged some people. But I did, ultimately, see where things were headed (her "destiny" as is alluded to repeatedly in both books), and figured I'd wrap this up in an anthology of shorts.
I called it Changed, for some obvious reasons and some not-so-obvious reasons.
(This paragraph is for River/Wolfe readers) The set up of the antho had one main, present day story, divided into multiple parts. In between were short stories from different character POVs in different points of time. I'd written two already: "Rebellion" was from Daryl's POV and took place the night he bit River, while "Doe, A Deer" followed Jewel Doe about two weeks prior to the start of Wolfe (if you've read it, you know what her condition was by the end of it and might guess what the story was about). Other shorts involved Kia and Noah from Wolfe, Danielle from Wolfe (as a possible love interest for Charlie), Gray and Rick Nacy from years before the start of River, as well as one short that followed the young hunter River runs into towards the end of Wolfe. I also wrote the opening for the main, present set storyline and plotted out where it was all going.
I'm putting the rest of this behind a cut because a) I'm posting an excerpt from Changed and there may be people who might not want to read it, and b) I'm tying this to a larger issue that you can probably guess about by looking at the tags for this entry. But if you do keep reading, please know that I deeply appreciate it. Read more
Back in May, I wrote about why I do my job and how one of my first acquisitions really changed the way I look at what I do. Today, the author mentioned in that post is visiting. She graciously agreed to answer some questions and at the end of this post, I'll be giving away a prize!
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1. In case people haven't read your other interviews, please tell us what Thief is about, either in writing or in a badly drawn stick-figure comic.
(Click to enlarge.)
This is why I’m not an artist.
(Skyla's Note: Sevy saying "I'm feeling stabby!" might be my favourite thing ever.)
2. I remember when this book first came across my virtual slush desk, I fell in love with the heroine Sevy immediately. She's not traditionally likable, however. Did you ever worry readers wouldn't connect with a self-described bitch like her?
To quote my dad, “Why does Sevy have to be so mean all the time?” I knew that there was a chance that some readers wouldn’t be able to look past all the awful things she does to see the lonely, wounded soul on the inside, which is why I felt it important to include the character of Revik. Even if people don’t connect with Sevy, I think they’ll be able to with Revik. He’s kind, charming, adventurous…a more traditional type of hero. And it doesn’t surprise me in the least that I’m hearing that he’s becoming a favourite among readers.
3. I love hearing about the music my favourite writers think of as their book's "theme song" or what they have on their unofficial soundtracks. What music do you play with Thief? What theme songs do you have for Sevy or the other characters?
I listened to a lot of depressing, alt rock while I was writing Thief. It helped me get into Sevy’s frame of mind. As for theme songs, I have a few:
#1 Crush by Garbage
Bonnie and Clyde II by Martina Sorbara
Creep by Radiohead
Full of Grace by Sarah McLaughlin
Demolition Lovers by My Chemical Romance
Empty by The Cranberries
You’re Beautiful by James Blunt
Who Knew by Pink
4. We both have a love of zombies and making zombie survival plans. Now I'm curious: what would Sevy's zombie survival plans include?
Sevy would be awesome in a zombie outbreak! Girl could use a good stress reliever, and what could be better than slashing through countless undead? I could see Sevy holing up in the Bloody Heart, getting hammered on Vipin’s piss poor ale until she needed to go out to get supplies. And then watch out, zombies! Eventually, I’m sure Revik would come for her and she’d go with him back to the Ullydrans where the zombie count would be lower and the chances of living a semi-normal life would improve. She could earn her keep by keeping the mountains zombie-free.
5. Eloria, where most of Thief takes place, is a very clear setting. Dark, urban, dangerous, where gangs rule and people--like Sevy--often slip through the cracks. How important do you feel setting is in fiction? Did you draw inspiration from real places for the settings in Thief?
Creating a realistic setting is just as important as creating realistic characters. A person’s environment is the driving force behind a lot of their decisions. Would Sevy have behaved the way she did if she had grown up in the quaint fishing village of her childhood? I doubt it. She would have still been a brat, but she never would have sunk to the level of depravity that she does thanks to her time spent on the streets of Eloria.
When I picture Eloria in my mind, I see an amalgam of 18th century Europe and the modern day slums of Rio de Janeiro. I wanted to create a setting where people were poor, uneducated, and had to resort to some pretty awful things in order to survive. Morality doesn’t really come into play when you are always at risk of being robbed, murdered, or starving or freezing to death. I wanted Sevy to feel isolated and vulnerable because I think that does a lot to explain why she becomes so obsessed with the first person to show her a bit of compassion.
I remember one of the members of my writing group speaking about Eloria, and asked me if there was anything good about the city. I’m sure there is, but because the story is told from Sevy’s point of view, readers don’t really get to see that side of it.
6. What has influenced your writing the most? Any particular books or movies?
I’ve always enjoyed books/movies with darker, depressing themes, most bordering on the macabre. I also enjoy stories which feature antiheros. Perfectly perfect people don’t appeal to me. I like stories that blur the lines between good and evil, and that really make you think about moral relativism. Growing up, I enjoyed reading the works of Edgar Allan Poe, Stephen King, and Anne Rice, and I think that these early influences can still be seen in my writing.
But what I think has influenced my writing the most is my university education in anthropology. Not only does it help me with world building, but it also provides me with a wealth of new ideas that helped me to move away from the traditional Lord of the Rings type of fantasy.
Which is cool, because I’m glad that considering I’m working in a field completely unrelated to anthropology (I’m a vet tech), it’s nice that my degree was good for something other than racking up massive amounts of student loans.
7. What's one piece of writing advice you heard before you were published that hasn't been true for you at all? Conversely, what advice turned out to be accurate and helpful?
I read that the only way to get published was to get an agent. Perhaps that would have been the case if I had wanted to get accepted by big publishing houses, but I was able to find a great publisher on my own. Now that’s not to say that I wouldn’t like to land an agent one day, but I found out that there is more than one way to accomplish my goals.
The advice that turned out to be the most helpful was an article I read about the importance of creating a website even if you didn’t have a single thing published. It helps to build your online presence (creating a brand like Skyla has blogged about) and to show prospective publishers/agents that you are professional and capable of attracting an audience.
8. So what question should I have asked you? And what would you have answered?
Hmmm, how about “If Thief were ever made into a movie, who would you want to play Sevy?”
Well, as it happens, there is this cool new site I was invited to join where users can create their ideal cast for their favourite books. You can check out my cast here
9. Finally, you love cats. I love cats. My readers--since they are awesome attractive people--also love cats. Please find the most ZOMG adorable picture you have of one of your cats and I'll post it.
Behold the cuteness!
(Skyla's note: Sarah-Jane sent me two photos and told me to pick one. But...HOW CAN YOU PICK JUST ONE?? So I give you both because I'm awesome like that.)
Thank you very much for dropping by, Sarah-Jane!
Thanks for having me!
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Now for the prize!
Want to win a paperback copy of Thief? I'll do a random draw Wednesday at noon. Ish. I might sleep in...but it'll likely be Wednesday, July 7, noon-ish EST. The more things you do, the more times you'll be added to the draw.
* Tell me in the comments why you want to win Thief. 1
* Retweet this post on Twitter. 1
* Post a link to this page on Facebook. 1
* Ask Sarah-Jane a question in the comments here. 2
* Post a cat picture in the comments. 3
* Blog about Sarah-Jane and Thief. 3
* Share with us your zombie survival plan in the comments. 3
Have you already bought Thief in eBook or paperback from Mundania Press? By golly, I think I might love you. If that's the case, either forward me your receipt (skyladawncameron[at]gmail[dot]com) or send me the name/email address you purchased it with so I can double check the order. You'll get your name tossed in the proverbial hat ten more times...and if you win, you can pick any book out of the Mundania store (or the coming soon page--in that case, you'll get it when it's out) as your paperback prize.
Okay, da rules: limited to US and Canada. I know, I know, that sucks, but paperback shipping can get costly. BUT if you're outside that area and want to participate anyways, I'll totally love you for it. Also, for retweeting and blogging, either leave links in the comments or email them to the email address in the paragraph above. And it's really helpful if you leave your name/email address when you comment so I know how to contact the winner. Don't want to win a prize? That's cool too--RT, facebook, blog, and comment just to show your support, if you like. :-)
Well, I’m settling back into work and am nearly caught up. Redid the schedule (kept it mostly the same, but cleaned everything up), am double checking all edit statuses, and other really boring sounding stuff. I have a whack of email to answer all over the place, and I might tackle that tonight before writing time.
The swirling black hole of depression has been creeping up, mostly because—I believe—I feel so disconnected sometimes. I know three people in town, one of whom is my mother, and it’s kinda hard to get out and “do” stuff outside of the apartment when I don’t actually have any hobbies or things I want to do. I don’t even really dig shopping. Woe is me. But then this time, I didn’t really bother with the CBT...I think sometimes it’s good to be kinda depressed. To leap into the abyss and float for awhile. It’s useful. And I know I have resources available to me to pull myself out again—like CBT and strawberry daiquiris—so it’s a little less scary and feels just a little less permanent.
I will have some book related news to share with you perhaps in a few weeks. Or perhaps not. BUT I’m doing some other writing which is awesome, even if the words suck and there aren’t many of them. Baby steps, bunnies. Baby steps.
Also, today is my grandpa’s birthday. He’s 96 and lives on his own still. I think that’s pretty awesome.
I’ll share a whack of links with you now. Enjoy!
* A collection of the most recent Mundania Press releases.
* Speaking of, the AD was finishing up work on Louise’s book Sacrament of Night so I added it to the coming soon page. And then we both got teary eyed.
* Elaine Corvidae posted the final chapter of her serial Fire in the Void.
* Sarah-Jane Lehoux in the newspaper! Go SJ! BTW, Ms. Lehoux is visiting the blog tomorrow and there will be interview questions, cat pictures, and ZOMG PRIZES! So drop by tomorrow for more.
* Horror author Owl Goingback isn’t allowed on Facebook without showing proof of his identity because they think his real name (First Nations) is fake. I think Facebook fucking sucks. Here’s the group.
* Of course there have been lots of awesome Lili Saintcrow posts in my absence. I’m still catching up. Most recently, on how we need our alone time as writers. I always worry, though, that I have TOO much alone time and I’m too disconnected. But the people in my head are just so much preferable to real ones...
* via Lili, a post on sick systems (part one, part two, and part three that really spoke to me. The author’s blog might be hard to read because the articles were so popular, she exceeded her bandwidth for images. BUT...highly worth the read.
Okay, so yeah, I write a column here called How Not To Be a Douche Bag Author 101. And I participated in the second #queryfail (renamed #queryday). And I regale people with tales about diva authors, psycho writers who harass me, and the general frustrations of working this job. I mean, let's face it--all that stuff is wildly entertaining if you're not the subject of those discussions.
I seem cranky and frustrated 99% of the time, always threatening to run away from home and join the circus, and frequently tweeting about the staff mood being red for homicidal.
So why do this job? Not just me, but all of the publishing staff out there? Because let me tell you, a whole lot of the time, people would love to close up shop and go home. It's certainly not the pay and we don't get any health benefits.
Now I'd like to introduce you to Sarah-Jane Lehoux and a book called Thief...Read more
Well, it's been a busy month. I wasn't around for a chunk of it--physically, as in I wasn't home and away from my PC, and mentally/emotionally as in I retreated from everything.
Yesterday I watched Amelie. It would likely surprise no one that it's one of my favourite movies, however it probably would surprise people to know that of all the movie characters that ever were, I probably identify with her the most. Not that I do good deeds for people (eww, no--I'm evil), but her inability to relate to others and build relationships. My social circles consist of people who are friends with each other, and then there's me, off to the side, stuck in her own head and not really a part of things.
Which is probably why I'm okay with uprooting my life and moving in a few months to a place where waitresses stare at me funny when I request a meal that doesn't include meat. I'm going to be a distant hermit no matter where I go.
And you know, I don't really have a point in saying this; it was just on my mind and I've been silent for weeks, so I thought I'd ponder it 'aloud' on the blog. I feel Amelie-ish a lot of the time. Only with less awesome hair and sans the cute, quirky guy to borderline stalk.
* Facebook has changed their "Become a Fan of" button to "Like." So while initially I kind of ignored my FB page and never really invited anyone (as the number of invites I get to things often drives me batty) because I didn't want to force them to be a "fan" of me...now I'm kinda insulted that more of my friends' list doesn't "like" me. Is it because I'm distant and Amelie-ish? http://www.facebook.com/pages/Skyla-Dawn-Cameron/9912704791
This story did have a somewhat happy ending, which has gone to show that it IS possible for authors to reach the people illegally uploading their work and, in some cases, nip this problem in the bud. (Of course, a few months ago Jaime also spoke to one Sarah Sandford from Australia--specifically, from the Wangaratta area, I believe--who had requested illegal copies of her work...Sarah assured Jaime she wouldn't do it again, and then just last week tried to steal one of my books. She had no excuses or apologies for ME when I asked about it.)
Stuff I Tangentially Contributed To:
* Well, I acquired and edited the book, so...that's where my contribution begins and ends in this case. But I love the book so much that I want you to purchase it and love it too, so behold Sarah-Jane's fabulous trailer for Thief!
Stuff I In No Way Contributed To But Dig:
* Lili Saintcrow talks about how she's not the enemy in ebook pricing (and how neither is her publisher). Besides the fact that her post is AWESOME and very right, something interesting comes up in the comments that I think about a lot.
Sometimes it seems, as writers, that we can't say anything without readers perceiving us as insulting them. What I don't think people understand is that...you haven't seen an author's inbox. Most people wouldn't BELIEVE some of the stuff "fans" say to writers. I'm a nobody, and I get everything from backhanded compliments to hatemail. Saying "Please don't complain to me about something out of my control" isn't being disrespectful to readers; it's a request for respect and a showing of transparency about the business.
(Tangent: I'm also sympathetic because in my job I *constantly* get yelled at for Shit Out of My Control. And then I explain how and why it's out of my control and *still* get yelled at.)
* In a similar vein, Jaime pondered how to respond to negative reader letters. (My opinion? If it's angry/insulting/provoking, I don't answer it. Sometimes I try, but if an email ticks me off, it gets starred for a later reply and then I tend to forget about it. Moral of the story: expressing your displeasure with a book is fine, but try to be nice if you're writing to an author personally. We are actually people.)
A few weeks ago we hired a company minion...eer "Executive Assistant" (but her business cards say Professional Minion). She's the official assistant for me, my boss, and the art director, and her sole job is to answer questions and help get problems resolved.
She doesn't create policies. She doesn't run things. She filters hundreds of emails that come in and tracks replies to facilitate communication and expedite responses.
In short, she's everyone's friend. So why in the hell have many people been so rude to her?
(Isn't she sweet and adorable? Don't you just want to be super nice and friendly with her?)
I used to work at a convenience store as a clerk. And I had lots of people (customers and some delivery men) yell at me. They didn't like the prices, we didn't stock an item they wanted, my boss had a quarrel with a supplier and I got caught in the middle, the Bingo prize was a free ticket and not cash the winner wanted. All these problems and people flipped out on ME.
Well, I would shrug and say, "I just work here."
I don't know why anyone needs to get short with someone who is not a manager, who doesn't control anything, and who doesn't make policies. Look, I know I have the reputation as a bitch (which Jaime doesn't agree with, so clearly she is insanely awesome...or awesomely insane). I'm really not; only the stupid, rude, or incompetent incur my wrath. You know who I never yell at? Wait staff, secretaries, customer service people, etc. Awhile ago iTunes fucking pissed me off because I wanted ONE app for my iPod to help with work stuff and they wouldn't take PayPal or a gift card (and I don't have a credit card). When I wrote in to complain about their stupid policy, do you think I screamed at the poor girl who answered my complaint? Fuck no. She doesn't run iTunes Canada; she just works there. I was polite and thanked her for her help. Because that's how you treat another human being who is just doing her job.
And you know, my experience has been that pissy/demanding (and worse) emails don't get answered any faster than the nice ones. Why? For me, pissy ones take a long time to respond to because my first instinct is "Fight! Kill! Go for the throat!" when set off, so I usually have to set those emails aside for several hours until I calm down (else I wouldn't have the reputation as a bitch--I'd have the reputation as a psycho). And while the minion is nicer than I am, she won't be for long if she has to keep dealing with irate people who are far more short with her than they would *ever* be with me (and I'd deserve it more than her).
I guess what it comes down to is that I don't understand the need for bullying behaviour in adults. I don't understand the lack of politeness. While I don't take bullshit from people, that isn't the same as not having common decency. I realize we believe that douche bag attitudes sprang up with the invention of the internet, but my mum worked in customer service for thirty years and people were fucking rude back then too.
Now, this isn't to say that everyone has been rude with the assistant. Many, many have been pleasant and polite, and I have no wish to paint everyone with the same brush stroke. But I'm noticing a trend of, "You're available and I'm mad about something, so I'm going to take it out on you and/or send you six emails a day complaining about something that's out of your control."
That's not cool. That's childish.
We all get frustrated and annoyed. But of the myriad of ways of dealing with it and expressing oneself, there's no need to take it out on one's children, pets, or people just doing their goddamn jobs. So no matter where you are or what you're doing, think twice before you go off on someone in a lower level position who has nothing to do with whatever is pissing you off. Because that person just works there and doesn't deserve the abuse.
Here's this week's wrap up, kids...wherein I go through my Twitter and Facebook feeds to see what the hell I linked to that was nifty.
* A letter to those writers who, upon rejection, say "You will regret this!" And this is totally true. Even if a book goes on to be a best seller, that doesn't mean the agent (or editor) who rejected it will regret their decision. If you're going to be spending hundreds of hours of your time to represent a book (or thousands of dollars, if you're a publisher), you must love it. Rejecting a book doesn't necessarily mean the book is bad or won't sell elsewhere--it often means that the people just didn't love it enough. But your goal as a writer is to find people who will love your work, and if you put the time and effort into honing your craft--and do your research--eventually you'll find someone who loves it.
* No link, but we hired my minion to be official company minion at Mundania Press. Well, okay, so she's the "Executive Assistant." But I still call her the minion. She'll be taking care of all correspondence. I trained her for a few hours Friday, got her email set up, boss made the announcement...and everyone promptly welcomed her by sending a few dozen questions within hours. Poor, poor minion.
* I have a confession to make: I have a weakness for hidden object games. I can't help myself--every so often, I must play them. But I don't like a plain HOG, I like ones with mini-games and logic. Which is why I really enjoyed Natalie Brooks: Mystery at Hillcrest High. Now, this isn't high art. It's a silly game. But it was fun, so I'm rec'ing it.
We've all been having a vampire issue
This one can cause some damage even if he doesn't bite you
But it appears that Bella, once again, needs to be rescued
'Cause Edward Cullen
Gives me the wiggins
So Buffy, can you please just slay him?
There's a pause button on life, right? Something I can press to just let me get caught up? How about "restart level"? That would be handy.
I think I play too many video games.
Last weekend was the slush pile survivor workshop, which I ran with a fellow editor. It was lots of fun and we got great feedback. Of course, that also meant we were busy prepping from mid last week straight until the day of the workshop. Then I got a headache Saturday night, which continued until yesterday (at which point I realized it was coffee withdrawal, and promptly pumped caffeine into my veins), so I spent Sunday in bed reading.
I had 330 emails to deal with Monday morning.
A bunch of them, as I scroll through, are from the same people asking the same questions because I haven't answered yet. I'm totally stuck with how to address this kind of thing. Am I supposed to have an auto-responder saying "I swear I got your email--just give me a few days to get you an answer"? Am I supposed to email everyone I know every time there's life stuff going on/illness/etc to say "If you send me something, I won't get back to you until next week"? Should I add a block to my blog that has a current Skyla update?
I have no answers, beyond "get a secretary" but that's not an option at this point. But stupid February was all sneaky again and ended without me finishing the stuff I had to get done for February. I don't even have the latest CotA chapter ready to go, so that'll likely have to wait until the end of the week. Ugh.
Now. Round up of links.
Publishing/Writing Stuff:
* Adrienne Jones talks about the inspiration behind her novel The Hoax. Mundania is re-releasing it shortly, revised and with a snazzy new cover. I'll tell you when it's available so that you can buy it because Adrienne is awesome.
* Mundania is closed to submissions still. Normally we re-open in March, but there's just too much going on right now and it wouldn't be fair to hold subs for a few months before we have time to evaluate them. This time, we're waiting until June. And yet I'm still getting subs and questions from people about it. Writers, it should go without saying, but: when the info on the submissions page of a publisher's site contradicts sub info from another website, go with what the submissions page says.
Many authors feel differently than me and Jaime, and a host of others. Now, although I think writers should have a united front on this, I don't feel it's my place to tell others how to feel about their work being stolen.
Do you get that? It's not my place to tell others how to feel.
Some don't see piracy as a big deal. Maybe they don't have to rely on their writing income for bills (my royalties this month can cover groceries so I'm THRILLED) and they're happy just to be read. Maybe they see no problem with the work being shared around freely and they feel that a reader gained is a reader gained, even if it happens illegally.
Okay. Great. That's valid and fine for them. But that's the beauty of intellectual property rights: the creator can choose how and when the work is reproduced. The creator can say, "Sure--pirate away!" So while I won't tell others how *they* should feel about their work being freely shared, by the same token I'd prefer if they didn't tell Jaime and me how to feel either. You know what? If someone obtains my work via illegal mass downloads, I don't see the simple "oh well, I gained a reader--who cares if they didn't pay for my product?" view. Writing is part of my job. I'm well within my legal--and moral--rights to expect payment for the entertainment I provide. So if someone refuses to obtain my work legally, I don't *want* them as a reader. I don't want them as a fan. I'd rather not be read than have my work pirated. And I have every right to feel that way and express my opinion--without others trying to silence me--as the owner of the intellectual property rights of my work. So for those who would like to tell me and Jaime how to feel about piracy, you can go fuck yourself with a fucking loaf of bread.
Next.
* Ana Winson's new website is live. Ana has been my cover artist for Bloodlines, the award-winning Wolfe, and the re-release of River. Go visit!
* Depression kills. Suicide is not people being "selfish" and every time someone repeats that myth, it further distances people at risk from those they care about. Suicide is what happens when pain exceeds the resources for coping with pain. If you're worried about someone you know being suicidal, give them more resources to cope with pain, or help lessen their pain. Don't tell them they're being "selfish."
I had another week from hell. And it *really* sucks to not be able to explain why--I'm such a loudmouth and it's killing me to only be able to bitch privately. Le sigh.
I gave my mum the book I just wrote (YA paranormal called Abandoned) to read 'cause I was really proud of it (a month later and I DON'T want to burn it). She just finished it and said it made her cry at the end. This is good because my mother never cries with books and occasionally jokes that she has no feelings. So yeah, that's probably the best thing a writer can hear--we love to make people cry. Er, yes, we're a little twisted. So?
I'm spending Valentine's Day with Alistair from Dragon Age. He hasn't bought me chocolate or anything, but I'm sure I can get him to put out one of these days... I've also decided that the only reliable men exist in fiction, so if you have a y chromosome, tread very carefully around me right now...
Here are a few links for you today:
* You want to follow Ann Aguirre on Twitter. She'll give out some Hell Fire ARCs (WANT!) when she hits 2K followers, but more importantly, she's a lovely person who saved my sanity with Dragon Age.
* Slush Pile Survival Workshop - A fellow editor and I are giving this workshop locally in two weeks and it's going to be loads of fun. There are still spots available, so if you're in the Durham Region, sign up!
* Kevin Smith was kicked off of an airplane for being too fat. Kate Harding has more over at Shapely Prose.
* Bitch Magazine posted their explanation of why it's not anti-feminist to use "douche bag" as an insult. And I love it--that's what I've been saying for ages.
* Clients from Hell - Designers post snippets of discussions with some horrible clients. It's funny 'cause it's true.
* Last year on the blog, I wrote about former TV crushes as an excuse to post pictures of hawt men. Once again, fictional boys FTW!
* I'm blonde again. It's easier to keep up than the red. This time it's dark blonde with light streaks (I have no pictures of the light streaks, though). Of course, I'm using a black and white pic 'cause all my faveevilladies on Twitter have classy b/w pictures.
(look at that--I think I'm classy)
Beaker from The Muppets sings a ballad. Or tries. Beaker is my favourite.
(Isn't she sweet and adorable? Don't you just want to be super nice and friendly with her?)
