Category Archives: PHILOSOPHY

It’s a Brave New World–For Women Speculative Chick-Lit

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I want a new category on Amazon that more accurately reflects the changes afoot in our ideation of a woman’s place in the world. In order to do this, I feel I have to branch out in my writing and create stories in genres that are typically male-dominated. Women need in a voice in those, too. Thus, I will be adding this new tag to all my books. I call it #SpeculativeChickLit. It is distinguished by feminism. (“The radical notion that women are people.”) A classification free of the usual formulas that the less evolved members of society wishes us … Continue reading →

Rocking the Boat Authors must defend themselves

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Don’t say anything. Don’t make a comment. It will make you look bad. That’s the usual advice in the publishing industry when someone posts a caustic review of your book, under the assumption that this is about some type of insecurity on the part of a writer. This is not insecurity. It is frustration, and in this case, it’s also outrage. In fact, historically, authors are expected to keep their mouth shut about these things, but I am a proponent of the adage Silence equals Death. This advice to stay mum strikes me as the same mentality that got that Orange Nightmare in the Oval … Continue reading →

Is it Goodreads or Badreaders? Mean-spirited behavior is a learned behavior. It can be unlearned.

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I’ve always believed that every ill in our society falls under one or more of three categories: Greed, Ignorance or Zealotry. I was faced with an example of one or more of these while updating my author page on Goodreads. I came across a negative review, quite by accident, of one of my earlier books. Against my better judgment, I read it, and was horrified. The reviewer, obviously, did not like my book, and that’s fine, in and of itself, but this reviewer made statements that were patently false. She claimed the character in my book was “helping a pedophile.” … Continue reading →

Sex & menopause in Lesbian Fiction Facebook Livestream video

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… Continue reading →

Colonizing vs. Philosophizing Our planet, our priorities & our politics. It's time we connected the dots.

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From blog-idea archives…. On one of those insipid questions sites, someone asked,  “If something happened to Earth, would you move to another planet?” A few underlying fallacies here. First, if something happened to Earth, you wouldn’t have that choice, so the whole construct of that question falls apart at the beginning. Second, this reasoning is like driving your car until it runs out of gas or breaks down, and then shopping for another one, instead of just maintaining the vehicle properly. Third, not dependant on fossil fuels, we would not be in a battle against climate change, and by extension, fighting … Continue reading →

Why I changed my Pinterest boards to SECRET A lesson that cost me several thousand dollars

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Today I had a revelation. I had forgotten to address a very big problem that had recently applied elsewhere. One I had addressed already in the obvious places, but overlooked for a while. I switched almost all of my Pinterest boards to secret. At first, I was horrified to think I was going to have to delete them all and start over, or cancel my account to prevent a looming disaster. Only recently did Pinterest offer a solution to the legal quagmire they so blithely pied-piper’d us into. By now, you’ve probably guessed I’m referring to copyright infringement. Thankfully, Pinterest … Continue reading →

Nom Nom Nom de Plume (with a side of science and metaphor)

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How delicious. To be someone else. To reinvent oneself. I’m not talking about who you are at your core, but about characteristics that might not be serving you anymore. I’ve done it several times over, and not only with names. As long ago as my early twenties, I began referring to myself and introducing myself to others by another name. Eventually, it led me to legally change it. Psychologically, that was one of the best decisions I ever made for my health. I maintain that the name-change wasn’t running AWAY from something, but running TO. Seeking identity. I wanted to … Continue reading →

Thoughts on The Thief of Time by John Boyles I was intrigued by the idea of immortality, and the jaunt through history

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I have missed sitting down with a physical book and reading. My recent decision to take a sabbatical and just allow myself to be creative and deadline-free, had me standing in front of my fiction bookshelf, seeking something new. Something enjoyable. As most of you know by now, I have become quite finicky about my fiction reading. I read so much of my own work in pumping out work in the last ten years, that I have had little time to read for pleasure, and when I do, it’s inevitably just before I go to sleep, and by then, my … Continue reading →

That Whooshing Sound

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Message in a bottle… After almost two years of struggle with the vicissitudes of Indie writing and publishing, I have, I believe, come up with a solution to all that has been vexing me, and keeping me from reaching the goals I have been working so hard to achieve, and all that has annihilated the joy to be found in the journey. With the new lease on life I got after my return from New Zealand, I have been focused mostly on getting my health back, but also in increasing and maintaining the momentum in my career, which I didn’t … Continue reading →

Whole Brain Literary Food Novelwriting is a WHOLE BRAIN activity. So is the publishing business.

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Recently, I posted a inquiry to my readers, about a publishing aspect of my work. All the responses were encouraging and thought-provoking, but one in particular touched upon some deeper themes. Here it is. TO MY READERS–A QUESTION: As authors, we want to please everyone, but that’s just not possible. For instance, on my newest novella, Saturation Point, I have 4 and 5 star reviews and personal messages and emails that tell me how much they enjoyed the introspective nature of this book, and the characters, but on one review, the reviewer was bored because there wasn’t dialogue on every … Continue reading →

Policing the Police

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UPDATE: see end of this essay for my updated remarks after learning new information…. Few things are black and white, unless you’re talking about racism. In regard to gun violence and police shootings, there are solid arguments on either side of this contentious issue which tells me once again that the truth is most often found in the middle and that extremism of any kind is both dangerous and counterproductive. Right out of the chute, let me say that I know there are good cops out there. In fact, I believe that MOST cops are honorable, compassionate people who really … Continue reading →

Trumpocalypse People. Please educate yourselves. Please.

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Posted this last month on Facebook, and it’s still true, and bears posting again. I’m having trouble sleeping. Here’s why. I need to say this. And I need you all to hear it and share it. People. Please educate yourselves. Please. This election is no longer about politics. No longer about left and right or republican or democrat. It’s about the people. The people who are running for the highest office in the land and the people who will be voting for them. If Trump is elected, you will no longer have to worry about the economy or equality or … Continue reading →

A Toxic Person

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This is precisely the thing I am living right now. I needed this reminder to hold my head high, knowing that what any toxic person might say or do to impugn me, I can choose courage and integrity, that I have the truth on my side, and that thinking, discerning people will understand that. ‪#‎TruthWins‬ … Continue reading →

Don’t Make me Unfriend You

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When you blend your professional and personal life on Facebook, there will inevitably be instances where the two collide, and not in a good way. Some people might like your writing and be big fans who buy all your books, while they simultaneously make snarky comments to personal posts you make, regarding, say political issues–even when they are not, themselves, properly informed of the issues and the ramifications thereof. If they can’t see the forest for the trees, perhaps it’s time to stop venturing blindly into territory for which they have no map. The hateful rhetoric in our political milieu, … Continue reading →

Fiction as World View I'm a firm believer in Recycling--except not when it's a character or a plot.

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I have had some criticism from a few readers who were disappointed when I introduced new characters and locations and plots in my series fiction, and allowed the main characters to have a slightly smaller role to make room; apparently these readers wanted the same story again, the same characters, the same sex scenes, the same dynamics, the same formulaic challenges, the same everything. Essentially, they wanted to read about characters who lived in a vacuum, and never had any interaction with others, nor any natural progression. This mindset is not only elitist, fearful, and unrealistic, but within fiction, stale, … Continue reading →