Being A Writer On the Internet (Complicated! Augh, So Complicated!)

[sarahtales]

Thanks to y'all for the very thoughtful response to yesterday's post! It got mentioned on the Publisher's Weekly blog, so I am currently feeling famous

Comments

[tommyrotter]

Would you happen to have a link to that query-letter post of yours? I'd enjoy reading it, especially if there are fires!

I don't want to ask too many questions about the business, as I'm sure once you get started it's relatively easy to find things/it's homework every aspiring something ought to do, but I'm curious about where you started as far as the publishing business, and also if there was anything you wish you had known prior to starting?

An unrelated question, but do you have any guilty ships in books? Characters you think you shouldn't want together for x/y/z reason, but can't help but root for? I'm also curious if there are any relationship ews (romantic, familial & friendship apply!) that turn you off in books/tv/etc? I don't know if that's what you were asking for, but there it is!

[sarahtales]

Can't find, alas! May be down since the Great Journal Deletion By Cruel Hackers

[mybluesunset]

Dudes being patronising to their partners is a surefire turnoff, though. Do not want!

I agree so hard with this sentiment.

[beth_shulman]

This reminds me of that old debated post from the Huffington Post about female bloggers here - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-mccarry/faking-nice-in-the-blogos_b_551217.html.

In which she says that it's an inherent weakness of women to be apologetic in bad reviews, or not to review anything badly (?!?!), and in which I am ashamed of her.

I know a lot of bloggers who want to foster a positive atmosphere, so they only review books they like. Where women come in, I'm not so sure. When I review books, I'm super critical and not always nice, but I don't think that's ideal. I'd love if everything I read was incredible; sometimes, though, reviewing is my way to vent. But a lot of blogger are nicer than me, obviously.

Anyway, all that meandering is just to say to each her own, whether or not you're a published writer. And don't click that link if you are avoiding high blood pressure.

[sarahtales]

If reviewing works for venting, awesome! My motto is if you wind up ultimately feeling better, you're probably doing something right.

I do think women are more socially conditioned to be nice (and more socially conditioned not to praise themselves too much, and to be more critical of other women than of men, and all manner of terrible things we absorb without being aware of, thanks society) but I will take your word on not clicking. ;)

[mybluesunset]

Slightly tangentially, but I love the way you are feminist without being extremely in people's faces about it. Not that being in people's faces about it isn't a wonderful thing, since after all it is the way I usually operate, but whenever I read your blog I feel like I've been magically transported into a world where much of our messed up gender conditioning doesn't exist and women are funny and confident and support each other. Which is so refreshing.

[sarahtales]

Thank you! That is lovely to hear.

[leecetheartist]

That Sarah, you know, awesome girl, you know.

[jade_sabre_301]

this is only marginally related to your last post, because I was reading about how you cannot stop yourself from reading reviews even as I was posting about how the first half of Demon's Lexicon was doing very little for me, so here I am to say that I started Demon's Covenant this morning and that somewhere in the past oh seven hours I think I managed to put my dishes in the dishwasher, but I've spent the rest of the time being hopelessly absorbed in the book and flailing too madly to actually wash my dishes the rest of the time. IT WAS BRILLIANT, THAT'S ALL I'M SAYING. :-)

[beth_shulman]

Hey Jadey :) Off to answer the comment...

[sarahtales]

Since this has a happy ending, I will admit freely I saw it in my relentless internet masochism, and muttered to a friend about how well no, Nick and Alan don't make out, mutter mutter mutter. (Note: I am very fond of Sarah Monette's Doctrine of Labyrinths series, and aware of its many charms! I was being childish, as I often am, see: not being able to take the medicine!)

And I am very glad you are liking Demon's Covenant! I see way more division of opinion between the books than is usual in a series, I think, and this is obviously because I am a narrator switching loonball. ;)

[jade_sabre_301]

AUGH NO I was squicked out enough by Felix and Mildmay making out (IT IS SUCH A BAD THING FOR YOUR RELATIONSHIP FELIX STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP) the thought of Alan and Nick making out is giving me hives ugh. (Also Felix and Mildmay have the opposite blood-type-relationship problem from Alan and Nick, but I kept seeing echoes of Mildmay's feelings towards Felix in Nick's behaviour--though Alan is not so cruel as our favorite tattooed ex-prostitute-turned-wizard.)

I think the thing with DL is that I would not love Nick so much in DC without having read a book from his perspective, and yet for the beginning of DL I was sitting there going "but I don't like tough guys with no emotion they are not fun to read about" because I was being a Silly Reader and Not Picking Up Clues. And then I did pick them up and was intrigued, and then I had to force myself to slow down while reading DC because it was SO GOOD and I HAD TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED NEXT and your writing (while good) definitely improved from one book to the other. I cannot wait to

[teenygozer]

All I know is that when a friend on my flist said she was looking for recs for good YA books for her kid, who was getting to the age to appreciate them, I was able to point her to your tags to find your review entries. I said you always go into fabulous detail about why you love a book, which made your reviews very useful. She didn't ask for "crit" or what not to buy, she wanted a list of recommendations. ::shrug:: So, there you go! Instantly useful journal entries, in addition to how much fun they are to read!

[sarahtales]

*beams* Thank you very much for telling me! This whole discussion has led me to start calling them recommendations instead of reviews, though, since even though I do try to go in-depth and to point out flaws if they were significant stumbling blocks for me, they are overall recommendations, and if people want a mixed assortment I should not entrap them. While if people want recommendations, I am here for them. ;) And I hope the kid found many excellent books.