Monday, November 22, 2010

Some Book Recs

I'm up at my mom's doing Holiday Stuff, plus trying to write, and (kinda-sorta) keep up with online stuff only not really, so this is going to be short.

Judy Tarr has published a collection of her horse blogs in a book called Writing Horses -- The Fine Art of Getting it Right. This is a book about writing horse stuff the right way, by a writer who also breeds horses. I've been reading these blog posts all along over at the Book View Cafe, and I definitely want this book so I can have all the good stuff in one place. The info is presented in a way that particularly serves writers who are writing about horses. I've written a bit of horse stuff using horse reference books intended for people who have and/or ride horses, and Judy's method is definitely better if you're writing instead of riding. Highly recommended.

I know I've mentioned Kristine Kathryn Rusch's Freelancer's Survival Guide here before. She started posting chapters on her blog for free back in early 2009, believing that the economy made it imperative that the info get out to people immediately, rather than in the year or three it would've taken to shop a proposal around, write the book, then wait for the steady but slow gears of New York publishing to get it into bookstores. This is an awesome collection of info, experience, do-and-don't lists, things to think about, assorted resources, and things you never knew you absolutely needed to know. It's useful for freelancers of every kind, but examples pertaining to writers turn up fairly often. :) The link above goes to a page where you can buy the paperback version (580 pages!), but it's also available as an e-book, and it's still up on Kris's blog in chunks for free. Any writer who's making or hoping to make money on their fiction should read this, in whatever format. Me, I'm going for the paperback.

Angie

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Review of Chasing Fear

Dawn posted a great review up on Love Romances and More of Chasing Fear, my first Halloween short story. I've always liked this one and it's great to hear that someone's enjoyed it.

Thanks, Dawn!

==========

CHASING FEAR is a short story that will keep the reader intrigued till the very end. I don’t want to give too much away but have to admit, this was a perfect story to get my manlove fix one afternoon. Short, sweet and oh so sexy, CHASING FEAR is a delight to anyone who wants to experience this author’s writing style. Ms. Benedetti is a talented author who definitely knows how to make the reader get intrigued by having a unique character as a Greenman. I haven’t read a story that contained this type of character before and found myself wishing the story was a bit longer as it whetted my appetite to know more about Emilio and Martin. The writing was tight and the story was fast paced as it raced to the sexy ending.

Meet Emilio, a man who is in a relationship with a greenman, a man who can wield nature magic. Scared to show he is in a gay relationship, he finds himself forced to confront the issue when Martin finds him in the forest. Can Emilio let go of his hang-ups to enjoy the exquisite desire Martin inflames in him? Martin is a greenman and one who enjoys showing the world he is openly gay and in a great relationship. Knowing Emilio is holding back, he finds his lover dawdling in the forest on their annual date night-Halloween- and Martin takes measures into his own hands as he shows Emilio that pleasure can be just as enjoyable in the open as it is behind closed doors. These two are great characters to read about. Different and unique, they also step off the pages to captivate the reader till the very end. I was hoping Emilio would let go of all his fears and let Martin show him how pleasurable desire is out in the open. The sex scenes were tasteful and got your motor running. I was eager to see what exquisite delights Martin had in store for Emilio once he caught up with him.

CHASING FEAR is a wonderful story that will leave you hankering for more. I raced to the author’s website to see if there were some more stories set in the Hidden Magic world. If you want to try this author’s writing out, this is definitely a way to do it. This is a great paranormal tale that will leave you longing for more.

==========

If you've read and enjoyed "Chasing Fear," there's a free sequel up on my web site called Catching Courage.

Angie

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Anthology Markets

If you've just wandered in off the internet, hi and welcome. :) I do these posts every month, so if this post isn't dated in the same month you're in, click here to make sure you're seeing the most recent one.

Markets with specific deadlines are listed first, "Until Filled" markets are at the bottom. There are usually more details on the original site; always click through and read the full guidelines before submitting. Note that some publishers list multiple antho guildelines on one page, so after you click through you might have to scroll a bit.

Note there are a couple of spot shifts -- Jack-o'-Spec was previously under "Until Filled" but now has a (very close) deadline, Warrior Wisewoman has been pushed back six months, and Panverse Three has been filled. If Panverse follows their previous pattern, number four will open for submission within a couple of months. Also, note that I included In Situ because it sounds like a neat project, but I just found it and it's due in less than three weeks. [Edit: make that five weeks -- deadline moved.]

Non-erotica/romance writers: check out Jack-o'-Spec, In Situ, Bewere the Night, The Faery Taile Project, the Historical Lovecraft Anthology, Horror Library and Warrior Wisewoman 4.

***

15 November 2010 [Formerly UNTIL FILLED] -- Jack-o'-Spec: Tales of Halloween and Fantasy -- ed. Karen A. Romanko, Raven Electrick Ink

Submissions open 11 October 2010; closing date will be announced when the book is close to full.

Jack-o'-Spec: Tales of Halloween and Fantasy is a planned paperback anthology of speculative short stories, flash fiction, and poetry about Halloween and the traditions and legends surrounding it. All works must contain an element of science fiction, fantasy, or supernatural horror. If it's not speculative, I'm not interested. Also note that this will not be an all-horror anthology. I want to see science fiction and fantasy in a variety of sub-genres. In addition, please be mindful of the caveats about gore, as stated below.

EDITORIAL CAVEATS:
Nothing sexist, racist, or above a "PG" rating; no gore (i.e. no cannibalism, evisceration, "skinning," severed body parts, dead babies, etc.); no simultaneous submissions.

FICTION:
Length up to 2500 words (word processor count ) for new fiction. Length up to 3500 words for reprints. For reprints, include story's publication history.
Send one story. (It's okay to have one poem and one story under consideration at the same time, as long as each is sent in a separate e-mail.)
E-mail fiction submissions to: jackospec@ravenelectrick.com.
In the subject line, type "Fiction Sub" with your last name, e.g. "Fiction Sub: Asimov."
Send the story in an attached .rtf file.
Use black text only.
Include your biography in a brief cover letter.

TERMS: By submitting your work to Jack-o'-Spec, you agree that:
The submitted story or poem is an original work; you are the author of the submitted original work ("the work"); you own the copyright to the work; no other publisher holds exclusive license to the work at the time of submission to Jack-o'-Spec.

PAYMENT:
New fiction: 3 cents per word (rounded to the nearest 100 words) for stories to 800 words, $5 minimum and $24 maximum. Flat rate of $25 for stories 900 words to 2500 words.
Fiction reprints : 1 cent per word (rounded to the nearest 100 words) for stories to 2400 words, $3 minimum and $24 maximum. Flat rate of $25 for stories 2500 words to 3500 words.

Also looking for poetry; see submissions page for that and other details. Query address: comments@ravenelectrick.com.


***

1 December 2010 -- Male Model Anthology -- ed. Neil Plakcy, Cleis Press

Who hasn’t experienced a pang of lust or longing at a photo of a male model? Whether a hundred times life size on a billboard, or romping through the pages of a glossy magazine in his Calvins, Tommys or Ralphs, the male model is the gold standard for masculine beauty.

But what happens behind the scenes at those South Beach photo shoots or Manhattan runway shows? When the students put away their sketch pads, and the photographers shelve their lenses? Model Men will show these men at their handsomest and sexiest moments.

The editor of Hard Hats, Surfer Boys, Skater Boys and The Handsome Prince is looking for great stories focused on male models. Hand models, silver foxes, and locations around the world are fair game for Model Men. I’d love to see stories set in the traditional locales of New York, London, Milan and LA as well as other, unexpected places. Surprise me, romance me, get me hot and bothered!

Story length: 3,000 – 5,000 words

Publication Date: 2011

Payment: $60.00 per story, payable on publication, plus 1 copy of the book

You may forward this call to other erotica writers you know. Submit your story to Neil Plakcy at plax@bellsouth.net as a MS word attachment.

***

15 December 2010 -- Dancing -- Torquere Press

Three-story mini-anthology of short, sexy m/m stories on the theme, 3-7K words, 35%/25% of cover price from publisher's site/vendors, divided among the three authors. Send attached file to Submissions@torquerepress.com.

***

15 December 2010 [formerly 30 November] -- In Situ -- ed. Carrie Cuinn, Dagan Books

We will respond with acceptances after December 15, 2010, once all stories have been reviewed. Some rejections may be sent prior to the closing date. Payment will be 2 cents per word, up to $80 US, paid within 30 days of publication.

We're looking for stories of between 2,000 and 4,000 words. "In situ" is a Latin phrase meaning in the place. According to current archaeological usage, in situ refers to an artifact that has not been moved from its original place of deposition. In other words, it is still where it was left. An artifact being in situ is critical to the interpretation of that artifact and, consequently, to the culture which formed it. Once an artifact's 'find-site' has been recorded, the artifact can then be moved for conservation, further interpretation and display. An artifact that is not discovered in situ is considered out of context and will not provide an accurate picture of the associated culture.

But what if the artifact isn't from a human culture? Could we, as humans, possibly understand it? If not, what might we mistake it for? Whether it's 19th century scholars finding an alien artifact at an a dig site in the Mediterranean, or 25th century explorers uncovering ancient ruins on a recently discovered planet, far out in space, In Situ seeks to unearth something new.

SUBMISSIONS FORMAT:

Send all stories to submissions (at) daganbooks (dot) com in .doc or .rtf format. You must put the following in your email subject line:

[In Situ] "Name of your story" LastName

For example, our editor might submit a story with the following subject line:

[In Situ] "Alien Archeology" Cuinn

Use a common font in your submission, like Courier or Times New Roman, 12 pt, and if you need to note any funky formatting or spelling, please do so at the end of the document. Thank you.

***

31 December 2010 -- Fire and Ice: Short Gasps of Romantic Suspense -- ed. Jessy Marie Roberts, Pill Hill Press


Email submissions to: fireice@pillhillpress.com

Please put SUBMISSION, followed by the title of the story, in the subject line of your email. Thanks!

This anthology will feature SUSPENSEFUL short stories with a STRONG ROMANTIC THEME. We want interesting submissions where the protagonist(s) FALL IN LOVE through the course of the story, all the while facing incredibly SCARY situations. Love scenes are acceptable, as long as written tastefully and are integral to plot development (think romance novel sex, not Penthouse sex - we are not looking for erotica or pornography).

Most genres are acceptable as long as they contain strong elements of both suspense and romance. They can take place anywhere (Earth, outer space, other planets, etc.), at any time (past, present, future, alternate. Stories should be written in the third person.

We prefer short stories in the 4,000-6,000 word range, but will consider stories from 1,500-15,000 words.

Payment is 1 cent per word (up to 6,000 words or a $60.00 cap), plus 1 contributor's copy upon publication.

***

31 December 2010 -- Bewere the Night -- ed. Ekaterina Sedia, Prime

I'm looking for stories dealing with any were-creatures; werewolves are welcome, of course, and the stories should be in a general urban fantasy vein. I'll need the stories by the end of December 2010, and I'm looking for reprints as well as originals. Reprints pay 1c/word and originals 5c/word, and the length should be between 1,000 and 7,500 words. Also, please suggest reprints by other authors if you happen to think of any.

***

31 December 2010 -- The Faery Taile Project #2 -- CatsCurious Press

There are two sides to every story... And we here at CatsCurious Press think that our readers deserve to read BOTH! Again!

A Call for Submissions... of the Faery Taile Kynde! CatsCurious Press will re-open to submissions starting October 1, 2010 for all well-written, humorous fairy tale re-tellings (except red riding hood, but that's because we've been there, done that)! But there's a catch -- these stories must be written from ONE POV only... the protagonist's.

Why would we be so strict, you ask? Because Anton Strout, author of Dead To Me, Deader Still, 'Dead Matter and Dead Waters has already gotten on board to write a counterpoint story! That's right -- once we have plowed our way through the slush, Anton will review our favorite stories and then choose ONE from among them to write a counterpoint to.

The end result will be a double-sided book with two covers (one featuring artwork for Anton's story, the other featuring artwork to coincide with the protagonist's point of view). Stories will be printed upside-down from one another -- flip the book over, and start fresh from the top! I can't wait to see the end result! Check out Faery Taile Project #1 to see what we have in mind.

Here are the requirements:

Story length must be between 7500 and 12,000 words
Stories must be humorous
Stories must appeal to a broad range of folks -- from twelve years old to adult (so no raunchy humor, please!)
Stories must be single POV, from the protagonist's point of view (this will take some finesse -- leaving enough details to the imagination that Anton can create a counterpoint, yet creating a rich-enough world that the reader won't be left wanting)
Submission period: October 1st, 2010 to 11:59:59pm December 31st, 2010

Any fairy tale is fair game (except red hood of course, for obvious reasons)!

The payment? $.06 per word and seeing your name next to Anton Strout's!

***

1 January 2011 -- Red Velvet and Absinthe: Gothic Tales of Erotic Romance -- ed. Mitzi Szereto, Cleis Press

A trade paperback to be published by Cleis Press, USA. Publication date: Autumn 2011. Deadline: January 1, 2011 (I’ll be selecting stories on a rolling basis, therefore earlier submissions are strongly encouraged, though I’ll still consider stories that make it in by the deadline).

Word count preferred: 3,000 to 6,500.

What I’m looking for: Well-developed story lines and well-crafted prose told in a unique voice and containing interesting characters and settings. Think atmosphere, passion, desire… imaginative stories that send a shiver up your spine and make your heart beat faster. Readers should be able to feel the red velvet beneath their fingertips and taste the absinthe on their tongue! Tales that contain supernatural beings such as ghosts, vampires, werewolves, witches, shapeshifters, demons, and other entities of a paranormal nature are welcome, as are those of the Wuthering Heights variety with tormented heroes and dark secrets. Stories may be set in the past, present, or future. Stories from female and male writers are welcome, as are those written from the POV of characters of any gender and containing characters of any sexual orientation (including those that haven’t yet been created!). Take your inspiration from the pens of the Brontë sisters, Mary Shelley, Daphne du Maurier, Bram Stoker, Anne Rice, Poppy Z. Brite, Stephenie Meyer, Laurell K. Hamilton…

Note that sexually explicit content is acceptable as well as a more subtle approach; however, no stock sex scenes or formulaic writing/terminology. Please refer to my previous anthologies to get an idea of the variety and style of content I look for. No excessive gore or violence. No reprints.

One-time payment in the range of USD $50-70 (payable on publication) and 2 copies of the anthology.

Submission requirements: Stories should be formatted as follows: double-spaced Arial 12-point black font Word or RTF document. Indent the first line of each paragraph by half an inch. Do not add extra lines between paragraphs or any other irregular spacing. American spelling and punctuation only (i.e. quote marks, etc). Include your legal name (and pseudonym if applicable), postal address, and a fifty-word maximum author bio written in the third person. Contract is for one-time, non-exclusive anthology rights with one year’s exclusivity from date of publication. (This may be waived if your story is selected for a “Best Of” collection). No simultaneous submissions please.

In the subject line of your email, please state: Red Velvet and Absinthe

Send to: submissions @ mitziszereto.com

***

3 January 2011 -- Historical Lovecraft Anthology -- ed. Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Paula R. Stiles, Innsmouth Free Press

What We Want: historical fiction with a Lovecraftian twist. Stories should be set in a variety of places, cultures and time periods. While we might buy one story set in 1920s New England, we want to stray far from the normal Lovecraft milieu. If you’re going to do 1920s, why not ship us off to China and tell the story from the point of view of a native of Shanghai? Please note that for our purposes we consider historical anything up to 1937 (the year of Lovecraft’s death).

Length: from flash fiction (1,000 words or under) to novelette (10,000 words). Keep in mind we have a payment cap of $50 CAD, so your long novelette might be better served by finding another home.

Payment: one cent per word up to a maximum of $50 CAD. One physical copy of the anthology and one e-book copy. Payment made via PayPal or Canadian check upon acceptance. We are purchasing first English print and electronic rights for the anthology.

Reprints: considered, with a few caveats:
1. Indicate where and when the story was originally published in your cover letter.
2. Reprints offered should not be easily available in print or online.
3. Payment is a flat $25 CAD for reprints.

If you published it in a small collection in 1985 and it’s no longer on the market, that’s fine. If it was published in a German magazine and never translated to English, we’d like to see it. If it appeared in a now-defunct zine, that’s okay, too. If it was in a recent issue of an English-language zine that is currently online, no.

Submitting: e-mail us at innsmouthfp AT gmail.com. Subject line: Historical Antho, [Title of your Story, Author's Name]. The subject line is important; otherwise, the story might go into the wrong pile.

Do not send simultaneous submissions. Do not send more than one submission. If we reject one story, you can send another one.

Include a cover letter with the story word count, salient writing credits and any reprint information (if applicable). Yes, we do read cover letters, so please include the information (Paula gets cranky when stories arrive sans byline, title or cover letter).

Attach story as RTF (preferred) or Word (doc, not docx) document. Use standard manuscript format. Italics as italics, bold as bold. No fancy fonts.

Stories can be sent in English, French or Spanish.

Submissions are accepted from September 1, 2010 to January 3, 2011. Do not send anything before or after that date.

We will reject some stories as they come in and send others to the hold pile. Final story selection will take place in January 2011. Check back for updates.

***

15 January 2011 -- Canes -- Torquere Press

Three-story mini-anthology of short, sexy m/m stories on the theme, 3-7K words, 35%/25% of cover price from publisher's site/vendors, divided among the three authors. Send attached file to Submissions@torquerepress.com.

***

[UPDATED] 31 July 2011 -- Warrior Wisewoman 4 -- ed. Roby James, Norilana Books

Warrior Wisewoman is an annual anthology series of science fiction featuring powerful and remarkable women, edited by Roby James. The first volume was published by Norilana Books in June 2008, the second volume in June 2009, and the third volume in August 2010.

The anthology was conceived as a sister volume to the classic Sword and Sorceress fantasy series originally edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley, with the main difference being that the story themes will involve science fiction instead of fantasy, and they will be intended for a more mature audience, allowing a mixture of serious contemporary issues and reasonable sexual content (but no erotica) in addition to action and adventure. The stories will have a stronger focus on the interface between scientific exploration and our sense of wonder.

Editor Roby James says "I am looking for stories that shed light on the truth of what it means to be female, that illuminate the wisdom and the strength of a woman, but not in cliche 'goddess' stories. I love action and adventure, grand space opera, thrilling discovery, and intelligent protagonists. Make the story thoughtful, wise, and surprising. In addition, the stories in the anthology should appeal to genuine emotions, suspense, fear, sorrow, delight, wonder. The science can be part of the background and the characters foremost, or the science can be central to the story, as long as the characters are realistic and appealing. It is strongly recommended you read the previous volumes to get an idea of what kind of material we're looking for.

"This is science fiction, but I also welcome stories of spiritual exploration, looking at the bond between the scientific and the divine. I want to see how a woman survives tragedy and disaster, overcomes impossible odds, achieves her true potential, or goes on to thrive in a marvelous universe of so many possibilities, using what is inside her, as well as what she finds in the laboratory, the alien planet, or space itself.

"The stories should contain the question of 'what if' on some level. And they should have a woman answer it."

RIGHTS PURCHASED: First English Language Rights and non-exclusive electronic rights. The anthology will be published by Norilana Books in a trade paperback edition in June 2011, to be followed by an electronic edition to be produced later.
PAYMENT: $0.02 a word on acceptance, and a pro rata share of royalties, plus a contributor copy.
WORD LENGTH: Up to 10,000 words, with longer stories having to be exceptional.
READING PERIOD begins on September 15, 2010. Please do not submit your stories before then.
DEADLINE: January 15, 2011 July 31, 2011.
HOW TO SUBMIT: Submissions are electronic only. Please submit your story as a Word (.doc or .rtf) attachment to your e-mail. The subject line of your e-mail should say "Submission: Story Title, last name of author." Also, include a brief cover letter. It should have your full name, address, e-mail address, title of story, number of words, and brief biographical information in case we don't know you, with most recent publishing credits, if applicable. We are open to new writers and seasoned veterans alike.

EDITORIAL ADDRESS: roby dot james at comcast dot net.

[EDIT: Note that Norilana is postponing most of its upcoming anthologies by six months, so the deadline is later, although the guidelines still say reading began on 15 September 2010. They're open, but it'll take a lot longer to get a response than originally indicated.]

***

UNTIL FILLED -- Horror Library, Vol. 5 -- Cutting Block Press

Cutting Block Press is pleased to announce an open submissions period for the 4th Volume of its Horror Anthology Series, +Horror Library+, to be published in trade paperback during 2011.

We're looking for the highest quality examples of all forms of Dark Fiction, running the gamut from traditional horror, supernatural, speculative, psychological thriller, dark satire, including every point between and especially beyond. No Fantasy or Sci-fi unless the horror elements are dominant. Read +Horror Library+ Volumes 1-3 to see what's already pleased us. Special consideration will be given those pieces that we find profoundly disturbing, though blood and violence on their own won't cut it. While we will consider tales of vampires, ghosts and zombies, we tend to roll our eyes at ordinary ones. They're just too plentiful. Your best bet is to surprise us with something that is different, while well conceived and tightly executed.

Guidelines: Stories will range between 1,000 and 6,000 words, though we'll look at longer works of exceptional merit. In that case, query before submission. Buying 1st worldwide anthology rights. No reprints. Paying 1.5 cents per word, plus one contributors copy. For established authors, rates may be negotiable. Response time: six months or sooner. Deadline: We will accept submissions until filled. All Queries to horrorlibrarysubs@yahoo.com.

Manuscript format: 12 point courier font, standard margins, left side of header: name, contact info, right side of header: word count, top of first page: title, author

Variances from traditional manuscript format: single space, NO INDENTS, ONE EXTRA space between paragraphs, use bold, italics and underline as they are to appear in story

Subject box: Short Story submission - title of story

Attach story in MS Word Document or RTF (only). Please paste your cover letter in the body of the e-mail. Send submissions to horrorlibrarysubs@yahoo.com.

[See the web page for a special offer on copies of Horror Library Vol. 1 for writers doing market research.]

Thursday, November 4, 2010

More Plagiarism, Because the Internet Is All Public Domain

Cooks Source managing editor Judith Griggs has just tanked her career with great energy and enthusiasm.

For folks who don't want to wade through the sea of links above, or the many more below, the basic story is this. A writer named Illadore on LJ (whose post is the first linked above, under "managing") wrote an article on the history of how apple pie has developed, which was posted on a web site for historical reenactors, back in '05. Recently, a friend pointed out that the magazine Cooks Source had the article, and asked her when she'd sold it. Illadore went, "Huh?" She figured she'd contact the Cooks Source folks and straighten this out:

So. I first phone the magazine then send a quick note to the "Contact Us" information page, asking them what happened and how they got my article. (I thought it could have been some sort of mix-up or that someone posted it to some sort of free article database.) Apparently, it was just copied straight off the Godecookery webpage. As you can see from the page, it is copyrighted and it is also on a Domain name that I own.

After the first couple of emails, the editor of Cooks Source asked me what I wanted -- I responded that I wanted an apology on Facebook, a printed apology in the magazine and $130 donation (which turns out to be about $0.10 per word of the original article) to be given to the Columbia School of Journalism.


Sounds reasonable to me, particularly since she wasn't asking for any kind of cash restitution for herself, but rather as a donation to a school which, presumably, teaches its students about copyright law. [cough]

Ms. Griggs responded (in part) thusly:

"Yes Monica, I have been doing this for 3 decades, having been an editor at The Voice, Housitonic Home and Connecticut Woman Magazine. I do know about copyright laws. It was "my bad" indeed, and, as the magazine is put together in long sessions, tired eyes and minds somethings forget to do these things.

But honestly Monica, the web is considered "public domain" and you should be happy we just didn't "lift" your whole article and put someone else's name on it! It happens a lot, clearly more than you are aware of, especially on college campuses, and the workplace. If you took offence and are unhappy, I am sorry, but you as a professional should know that the article we used written by you was in very bad need of editing, and is much better now than was originally. Now it will work well for your portfolio. For that reason, I have a bit of a difficult time with your requests for monetary gain, albeit for such a fine (and very wealthy!) institution. We put some time into rewrites, you should compensate me! I never charge young writers for advice or rewriting poorly written pieces, and have many who write for me... ALWAYS for free!"


So... right. Not only is anything posted to the internet automatically public domain (?!?) but Illadore should be paying Ms. Griggs for the editing! After all, Illadore now has a nice piece for her portfolio, so Illadore's come out ahead, right?

I think it says something about Ms. Griggs's knowledge of English and her editing skills (or research skills, since this is easy to look up if you can't tell from the context) that she was unable to recognize through a reading of the actual article she stole that the recipes were from 14th and 16th century cookbooks, and their language was perfectly appropriate for their time, and for the historical reenactor audience. Instead, it apparently just looked wrong to Ms. Griggs, bad writing that Illadore should've thanked her for fixing. Wow.

But seriously, this is a woman who is taking a paycheck for her work as a magazine editor, and she honestly -- really?? -- believes that anything posted to the internet is in the public domain? She's so sure she's right that she feels comfortable taking a patronizing tone with someone she's ripped off. Clearly it couldn't possibly be Ms. Griggs who's in the wrong here; that's completely outside the realm of possibility. Right? Right?!

This woman is in dire need a a few good smacks with the cluebat. Luckily, the internet is giving them to her.

Aside from the above links, on Making Light (in a nearly useless link because it's an open thread and only a few of the hundreds of comments are on this topic, and there's a sidelink but I can't link to that, but anyway) there are reports in comments of Ms. Griggs also having plagiarized Martha Stewart, Weight Watchers, The Food Network, CNN and WebMD (per James MacDonald, citing a Facebook page), Martha Stewart (again) and Cooks Illustrated (per Tom Whitmore, citing the Washington Post), and Disney (per Jon Meltzer).

Paula Dean (linked under "career" above) has been notified on her Facebook page of a recipe theft and has said that she's forwarded the matter to her legal department. You don't mess with Paula, folks, seriously.

I've also seen mention in several places that Neil Gaiman has Twittered about this, but I couldn't get his page to come up when I tried the link. Seems Mr. Gaiman's feed is even more popular than usual today for some reason.

Massive stupidity, seriously. This isn't some newbie webzine we're talking about here; Cooks Source is available online but it's also a paper magazine, supported by ad revenue, distributed on newsstands. How did someone this ignorant of copyright get to be the managing editor? And just how much do the people who hired her for that job regret it right now...? [Ahh, found out the answer to the second to last question at least -- Ms. Griggs owns the magazine. Well, there you go.]

I have to include the title to John Scalzi's post (which is linked under "tanked" above): The Stupidest Thing an Editor With Three Decades of Experience Has Said About the Web Today." Also BoingBoing's (linked under "energy"): "Today's Web Justice Driveby." Incisive commentary right there. [wry smile]

How about a quote from Judith Griggs's Twitter feed: "I don't know why everyone is so angry." Umm, yeah. That's kind of the problem, hon. [EDIT: Cindy Potts has pointed out that this Twitter feed looks like a spoof account. All I can say is it sounded like her. [wry smile]]

And the Bitchery has declared a Googlebomb of their definition of the new verb "to griggs" -- Judith Griggs. I'm contributing a link, because when you've been in the business for thirty years you get zero sympathy from me for not having yet learned the most basic laws that govern your industry. When you take money for your work, you're declaring yourself to be a pro and it's your responsibility -- nobody else's -- to have all your ducks in a row. Especially when you get snotty at other people over their supposed ignorance. [eyeroll]

Any bets on how long before Cooks Source is going to be out of business? If it were owned by some conglomerate, they could just fire Ms. Griggs, replace her with someone who knows what copyright means, and move on after some groveling. Given that it's completely her enterprise, though, I don't see it surviving. Maybe if it were only a bunch of blogs griping, but with the LA Times and Washington Post and who knows what other mainstream news sources picking it up, they're doomed.

Not that I'm crying over it. This is an example of blatant ignorance and arrogant stupidity. Good riddance.

Angie

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Artist Wanted

For anyone with an artistic bent, Josh Lanyon is looking for a cover for a short story. He's getting the rights back to an anthology story soon and plans to self-publish it. Drawing/painting/photomanipping isn't his thing, though, so he's holding a contest -- if he chooses to use your cover, he'll pay $50 for it. (I know that's not a lot, but it's pretty much the going rate on this end of the industry.)

Luck to anyone who gives it a shot. :)

Angie

Monday, November 1, 2010

October Stuff and Cetera

I hope everyone had a great Halloween? This was our first Halloween in the new place, so we had no clue how many kids we'd get. There's a school right next to our little group of buildings, though, and an apartment complex on the other side, so we figured we'd probably get quite a few.

None. Nada. Zip. Not a single kid rang our doorbell, and we had good candy, which the husband and I will just have to eat ourselves. [heavy, theatrical sigh] Seriously, though, that's really sad. Trick-or-treating is one of the best rituals of childhood, and the idea that it might be dying out sucks massive quantities of swamp water. :(

Writing-wise, I actually did pretty well in October -- 9 points in McKoala's challenge, which is a great improvement over any of the last few months.

Writing 8250 -- 3 pts.
Editing 17,102 -- 3 pts
Synopsis -- 1 pt
Submissions -- 2 pts
TOTAL = 9 pts

Koala Challenge 9

One of the submissions was accepted, yay! And one of the stories accepted earlier was published on the 30th, also yay! :)

Most of the writing was in the last couple of days. I've been working on a fanfic novel that I started just over two years ago. I was originally thinking it'd be a long short story, or maybe a novelette, but it just kept growing. O_O Eventually, in early '09, I just had to set it aside to get back to work on my commercial writing. My readers have been saintly in their patience, but I've felt this hanging over my head, and sort of cringed inside whenever I thought about it. I finally broke through a difficult scene toward the end, though, and from there it just flowed. Gotta love when that happens. [beam] I don't usually mind half-done projects -- I have more partial stories than I want to think about on my hard drive -- but something I've started posting, that has readers waiting for the next chunk, is a different story. Finally getting it done feels like the classic huge weight fallen off my shoulders.

And... just in time for NaNo. :) I'm doing NaNoWriMo this year, after having skipped last year. If anyone else who's NaNoing wants to buddy with me, I'm at AngiePen on the NaNo site. (Which is currently not responding -- I'm sure Chris Baty is howling in pain over the demolition of his bandwidth, as happens every year at this time. [grin])

Speaking of which, I have an awesome NaNo icon I got from someone on LiveJournal. The credit was "Lesley." I have no idea who Lesley is, but the person who gave it to me assured me it was okay to share, so feel free to grab it if you like it. :D

Animated NaNo

Enjoy! And best of luck to everyone else NaNoing this month!

Angie