We Gotta Think About This

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In the November Locus magazine, Corey Doctorow has an article entitled “It’s Time to Stop Talking About Copyright.” Now, I admit up front that I’m a bit old school and protective when it comes to copyright, and Corey Doctorow is about three jumps ahead of the cutting edge on the subject. Which is to say that I always find whatever he has to say on the topic of Intellectual Property (IP) thought-provoking and well worth reading, even when I don’t agree with him. Odd thing, though–on several occasions when I emphatically did not agree with him, I find myself, unprompted and over time, slowly coming around to something a little closer to his position. So when I saw the title of the new Locus article, my immediate reaction was “Ok, convince me.”

Took about two paragraphs. Continue reading →

Just a Brief Note Admitting I Was Wrong

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Carol and I had a minor disagreement at the Halloween party last night. The subject was a quote from Shakespeare. I was certain it was from Othello. She was certain that it was from Mac–oops, I mean “The Scottish Play.” She was right, of course.

And no, I didn’t lose a bet or anything. The point of this point is to pointedly (get the point?) remind me of a simple fact–when I am absolutely, positively, for darn sure that I’m right, that’s a good time to double check. In fact, it’s the best time. One can be racked with doubt. I do get that. Yet sometimes a little skosh of doubt keeps one from making a complete ass of oneself. Politicians and religious leaders fail that test all the time. I don’t want to be like them.

That is all.

The Company We Keep

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In the last several months I’ve heard more than one established pro say something along the lines of “I’m sure glad that I broke in when I did. It’s a lot harder now.”

Whether you accept that premise or not depends mostly on how you define your terms. If you’re working strictly at novel length, that’s one thing. If you consider “breaking in” the process of making your first few decent short fiction sales and going from wannabe to neopro, then the statement is absurd on the face of it. It’s not easy to sell to a top-notch market starting out, and the fact that some people manage doesn’t change that. It wasn’t easy 10-20 years ago and it’s not any easier now, and if it was much if any easier back in the true pulp era I’d be amazed.

If, otoh, you define “breaking in” as establishing yourself and becoming a recognized name in the sf/f field, that’s a different kettle of herring. Over the past twenty years or so that’s gotten quite a bit harder. There are a lot of reasons for that: competition from other media, a fragmented readership, et many ceteras. Whatever the reason(s), I think it’s quite arguable that establishing yourself in the sf/f field is harder now than it’s ever been.

So why do new writers insist on making it harder than it has to be? Continue reading →

A Brief “FYI” on the Lord Yamada Series

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I know some of you are familiar with the Lord Yamada series, my stories about a minor aristocrat in Heian Japan who makes his living as a “nobleman’s proxy,” basically a private investigator who handles situations, mostly of a paranormal nature, that his social betters either can’t handle or would be too embarrassed to try. (For anyone who isn’t familiar and wants to know what I’m talking about, The Mansion of Bones in Beneath Ceaseless Skies #19 wouldn’t be a bad place to start. It’s online and free). Now then–I’m bringing this up because of a misunderstanding that cropped up at this week’s writer’s group. Someone referred to Yamada as a samurai. Continue reading →

To Grump, or Not to Grump?

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I’m fighting the urge to be grumpy. It’s a cold rainy morning and–as usual–I didn’t get nearly enough sleep. Even without such usual provocation there’s plenty to be grumpy about on a daily basis. That’s part of the problem–being grumpy is easy. It’s practically the path of least resistance, the default setting. I remember a George Carlin routine when he wished that, just once, instead of a “nice day” someone would wish him a “crappy day.” “There’s no pressure at all. All you have to do is get up, some mornings.” Too easy, really, and it rapidly gets old. Both to the grumper and the grumpees.

There’s plenty to compain about. There always is. There always will be. Old news, and no point dwelling on it. So I’m thinking of things not so crappy. I’m not out on the street. My lady isn’t completely disgusted with me.  As for the writing, while there are a lot of things in my writing career I’m not satisfied with, things aren’t all bad. For instance, I can write whatever I want and follow whatever serial obsession I’ve fallen into and know there’s a better than decent chance that someone will want to publish it, sooner or later, and even if they don’t, I can do it myself. At this point in my development it’s easy to forget what a big deal that is. When I stop to think about it, that makes me happy.

So how’s by you? What are you happy about right now?

P.S. In some interpretations of the Mayan Calendar, the End of Time is actually today. In which case, maybe I should get my grumps in while I can!