Status: Recovering from three days of kidney stones; severe pain and exhaustion
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: Football!
Listening to: Nothing at the moment.
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: COSTLY STRIKE
Studios: Writers' losses mount in strike
LOS ANGELES - Hollywood studios said Friday that striking writers have now lost more in salary and benefits than they had hoped to gain by walking off the job.
In the message posted on its Web site and YouTube, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers claimed losses by writers in the eight-week strike have exceeded $151 million.
That's the price tag the Writers Guild of America put on its proposed three-year deal with studios.
"The strike continues because the union's leaders are focused on jurisdictional issues that would expand their own power, at the expense of the new media issues that working writers care most about," the alliance said in a statement.
Compensation for work distributed via the Internet and other digital media has been central to the contract dispute. The guild also has called for unionization of writers working on reality shows and animation.
The union responded by saying the contract proposals by the big studios would cause writers even more economic harm in the future.
"To sidestep this fact, they erroneously claim we are focused on other issues," the guild said in a statement. "The conglomerates are responsible for creating the economic havoc. They should put their energies into making a fair deal with writers rather than issuing misleading statements."
The strike that began Nov. 5 has also been costly for other industry workers. Production has been shut down on dozens of TV shows, with losses for crew members exceeding $250 million, according to the alliance message.
The alliance Web site features a constantly updated ticker with the studios' estimate of writers' losses. The figure is based on West Coast guild data from 2006, the site said.
Talks broke down Dec. 7 after the union rejected an alliance demand that a half-dozen guild proposals be taken off the table, including jurisdiction over reality and animation writers.
While negotiations with the writers union are at a standstill, studios are preparing to begin contract talks with the Directors Guild of America, perhaps next month.
Digital compensation also is expected to be a key issue for directors.
Whether a deal by directors will affect the writers dispute is unclear. The guilds traditionally have followed a practice of pattern bargaining, with one contract considered a template for others.
But the writers guild has said previously that it wishes the directors well, but noted they "do not represent writers. Our strike will end when the companies return to negotiations and make a fair deal with the WGA."
The directors guild has gone on strike only once, for just five minutes in 1987.
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Sunday, December 16, 2007
SUNDAY CHAOS.
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 190.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Football!
Listening to: "Can't Stop the Rock" by Apollo 440
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: THE BEAT GOES ON
Writers' strike ends most U.S. scripted TV work
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Production on all but two of the last few scripted prime-time television shows shooting in Los Angeles ground to a halt on Friday as a crippling strike by Hollywood writers neared the end of its sixth week, an industry group said.
The dwindling production tally reported by the nonprofit FilmL.A. Inc, which handles location permits for the industry, was the latest sign of mounting damage caused by the worst labor confrontation to hit major studios in 20 years.
The cost of the strike in terms of lost TV production spending in Southern California alone has reached about $135 million a week, and idled some 10,000 crew members, according to FilmL.A. President Steve MacDonald.
With work stopped on nearly all the five dozen dramas and comedies normally produced this time of year in the Los Angeles area, and the supply of new episodes rapidly running out, the networks are bracing for a programming upheaval in January.
Viewers, who have seen little change since the strike began, will soon be treated to an onslaught of reality shows and reruns broadcasters plan to use in place of scripted shows halted by the walkout.
That could lead to further ratings woes for the major networks, three of which have already been forced to compensate advertisers with extra commercial time due to a shortfall in viewership at the outset of the current season.
Programming and ad sales for the next TV season are also likely to take a hit as development of "pilot" episodes for new series and networks' annual "upfront" presentations for those shows to advertisers get scaled back or scrapped.
LATE-NIGHT TV MAY RETURN
Even as the outlook for prime time grows more dire, late-night comedy may soon be back in business. Several show hosts, including NBC's Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien, are expected to return to work early next month, even if the strike is unsettled, after refusing for weeks to cross writers' picket lines, Daily Variety reported on Friday.
NBC declined to comment.
The Writers Guild of America launched its walkout on November 5 after months of contentious negotiations on a new contract covering 10,500 members collapsed. The main sticking point has been disagreement over how writers should be paid when their work is distributed over the Internet.
Talks resumed about two weeks later but broke off in acrimony again last Friday, with no further bargaining sessions scheduled.
While late-night TV took an immediate hit from the strike, work on prime-time series has slowed to a trickle.
By December, no more than 15 scripted shows remained in production, and just five were still being shot at the start of this week, according to FilmL.A., which has monitored the status of the shows through contacts with area production companies and studios, a spokesman said.
One of the last five, the CBS crime series "CSI: Miami," was shut down on Thursday, and two others, the new ABC ensemble drama "Dirty Sexy Money" and ABC's courtroom drama "Boston Legal," were set to wrap production on Friday.
That leaves two other series, both scheduled as midseason replacement shows for ABC, still in production -- "Eli Stone," which is slated to stop next Friday, and "October Road," due to close January 11, said FilmL.A.'s MacDonald.
So far, the movie business has been largely unhindered by the strike, though production on several high-profile films, including a sequel to "The Da Vinci Code," have been postponed.
MacDonald said that overall film production since the strike appears to have actually risen, as measured by the 129 location permits issued by FilmL.A. during the past six weeks, up from 89 issued during the same period a year ago.
He said the increase may be due to a speed-up in some film projects by studios in anticipation of additional labor strife next summer, when the actors' contract is due to expire.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Football!
Listening to: "Can't Stop the Rock" by Apollo 440
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: THE BEAT GOES ON
Writers' strike ends most U.S. scripted TV work
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Production on all but two of the last few scripted prime-time television shows shooting in Los Angeles ground to a halt on Friday as a crippling strike by Hollywood writers neared the end of its sixth week, an industry group said.
The dwindling production tally reported by the nonprofit FilmL.A. Inc, which handles location permits for the industry, was the latest sign of mounting damage caused by the worst labor confrontation to hit major studios in 20 years.
The cost of the strike in terms of lost TV production spending in Southern California alone has reached about $135 million a week, and idled some 10,000 crew members, according to FilmL.A. President Steve MacDonald.
With work stopped on nearly all the five dozen dramas and comedies normally produced this time of year in the Los Angeles area, and the supply of new episodes rapidly running out, the networks are bracing for a programming upheaval in January.
Viewers, who have seen little change since the strike began, will soon be treated to an onslaught of reality shows and reruns broadcasters plan to use in place of scripted shows halted by the walkout.
That could lead to further ratings woes for the major networks, three of which have already been forced to compensate advertisers with extra commercial time due to a shortfall in viewership at the outset of the current season.
Programming and ad sales for the next TV season are also likely to take a hit as development of "pilot" episodes for new series and networks' annual "upfront" presentations for those shows to advertisers get scaled back or scrapped.
LATE-NIGHT TV MAY RETURN
Even as the outlook for prime time grows more dire, late-night comedy may soon be back in business. Several show hosts, including NBC's Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien, are expected to return to work early next month, even if the strike is unsettled, after refusing for weeks to cross writers' picket lines, Daily Variety reported on Friday.
NBC declined to comment.
The Writers Guild of America launched its walkout on November 5 after months of contentious negotiations on a new contract covering 10,500 members collapsed. The main sticking point has been disagreement over how writers should be paid when their work is distributed over the Internet.
Talks resumed about two weeks later but broke off in acrimony again last Friday, with no further bargaining sessions scheduled.
While late-night TV took an immediate hit from the strike, work on prime-time series has slowed to a trickle.
By December, no more than 15 scripted shows remained in production, and just five were still being shot at the start of this week, according to FilmL.A., which has monitored the status of the shows through contacts with area production companies and studios, a spokesman said.
One of the last five, the CBS crime series "CSI: Miami," was shut down on Thursday, and two others, the new ABC ensemble drama "Dirty Sexy Money" and ABC's courtroom drama "Boston Legal," were set to wrap production on Friday.
That leaves two other series, both scheduled as midseason replacement shows for ABC, still in production -- "Eli Stone," which is slated to stop next Friday, and "October Road," due to close January 11, said FilmL.A.'s MacDonald.
So far, the movie business has been largely unhindered by the strike, though production on several high-profile films, including a sequel to "The Da Vinci Code," have been postponed.
MacDonald said that overall film production since the strike appears to have actually risen, as measured by the 129 location permits issued by FilmL.A. during the past six weeks, up from 89 issued during the same period a year ago.
He said the increase may be due to a speed-up in some film projects by studios in anticipation of additional labor strife next summer, when the actors' contract is due to expire.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
SUNDAY FOLLOW UP
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 188.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Football!
Listening to: Nothing at the moment.
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: WRITERS AFFECTED BY STRIKE
Even if it has to drag on, the WGA cannot capitulate to the industry--and expect to come out better in the long run! I know it hurts to be out of work! I should know: I haven't had a job since 2002. (And living on $520 a month on disability really does suck, but what more can I do?)
But you cannot give in! Suck it up and fight for what you believe in!
Idled Hollywood workers urge more talks (Part 2)
LOS ANGELES - The Hollywood strike is rewriting the holidays for idled workers.
With her income pinched, script supervisor Petra Jorgensen canceled an annual trip to Europe to see relatives. Set decorator Laura Richarz is bypassing pricey malls and fashioning gifts at home — framing photos, sewing a shirt for her niece.
With the holidays under way and the strike entering a sixth week, "It's going to be bleak for a lot of families," said Jorgensen, who's living off her savings.
The two were among hundreds of out-of-work employees and their supporters who marched down Hollywood Boulevard Sunday to call for a resumption of talks to settle the strike, which has sidelined many prime-time and late-night TV shows. Negotiations collapsed Friday between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, with the sides pointing fingers at each other.
The march Sunday was intended to draw attention to the financial plight of workaday Hollywood — those employees whose jobs depend on ongoing productions, from caterers to set builders to hair stylists. With shows silenced, they too are struggling.
Marchers expressed growing frustration with the on-again, off-again talks, and fingers were pointed at producers and union writers. A central issue has been compensation for new-media distribution of work by guild members.
Pam Elyea, whose Los Angeles company, History for Hire, provides props for TV and movies,
was forced to lay off six employees as expected work evaporated. If the walkout continues, she said, more could follow.
"I'm disappointed in both sides," Elyea said.
The writers guild represents 12,000 members, but not all are on strike. About 2,000 news writers and others are covered under a separate contract.
Studios believe they can hold out for months — a stalemate that could impact the regional economy along with the entertainment industry. Hollywood contributes an estimated $30 billion annually to the Los Angeles County economy.
Diana Valentine, a script supervisor for the FX drama "Nip/Tuck," said she has been off the job since Nov. 21 and her husband is an out-of-work actor. She said both sides need to be talking.
"You cannot come up with a deal if people are walking away from the table," she said. Without a paycheck soon, "I'm going to have to start renting out parts of my house."
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Football!
Listening to: Nothing at the moment.
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: WRITERS AFFECTED BY STRIKE
Even if it has to drag on, the WGA cannot capitulate to the industry--and expect to come out better in the long run! I know it hurts to be out of work! I should know: I haven't had a job since 2002. (And living on $520 a month on disability really does suck, but what more can I do?)
But you cannot give in! Suck it up and fight for what you believe in!
Idled Hollywood workers urge more talks (Part 2)
LOS ANGELES - The Hollywood strike is rewriting the holidays for idled workers.
With her income pinched, script supervisor Petra Jorgensen canceled an annual trip to Europe to see relatives. Set decorator Laura Richarz is bypassing pricey malls and fashioning gifts at home — framing photos, sewing a shirt for her niece.
With the holidays under way and the strike entering a sixth week, "It's going to be bleak for a lot of families," said Jorgensen, who's living off her savings.
The two were among hundreds of out-of-work employees and their supporters who marched down Hollywood Boulevard Sunday to call for a resumption of talks to settle the strike, which has sidelined many prime-time and late-night TV shows. Negotiations collapsed Friday between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, with the sides pointing fingers at each other.
The march Sunday was intended to draw attention to the financial plight of workaday Hollywood — those employees whose jobs depend on ongoing productions, from caterers to set builders to hair stylists. With shows silenced, they too are struggling.
Marchers expressed growing frustration with the on-again, off-again talks, and fingers were pointed at producers and union writers. A central issue has been compensation for new-media distribution of work by guild members.
Pam Elyea, whose Los Angeles company, History for Hire, provides props for TV and movies,
was forced to lay off six employees as expected work evaporated. If the walkout continues, she said, more could follow.
"I'm disappointed in both sides," Elyea said.
The writers guild represents 12,000 members, but not all are on strike. About 2,000 news writers and others are covered under a separate contract.
Studios believe they can hold out for months — a stalemate that could impact the regional economy along with the entertainment industry. Hollywood contributes an estimated $30 billion annually to the Los Angeles County economy.
Diana Valentine, a script supervisor for the FX drama "Nip/Tuck," said she has been off the job since Nov. 21 and her husband is an out-of-work actor. She said both sides need to be talking.
"You cannot come up with a deal if people are walking away from the table," she said. Without a paycheck soon, "I'm going to have to start renting out parts of my house."
SUNDAY'S COLD!
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 188.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Football!
Listening to: Nothing at the moment.
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: TALKS COLLAPSE
Idled Hollywood workers urge end to writers' strike
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hundreds of film and television production workers, joined by florists, caterers and dry cleaners, marched through Hollywood on Sunday to urge both sides in the screenwriters strike to settle the 5-week-old stoppage that is crippling businesses linked to the industry.
The "Strike a Deal" march brought together about 500 people who are not on strike themselves but who have been laid off or are losing business because of the strike by about 10,500 members of the Writers Guild Of America (WGA).
"We're not here today to take the side of either party, but rather to make ourselves seen and make ourselves heard and call for both sides to return to the table immediately," said one of the organizers, Christopher Griffin, a line producer for the "Nip/Tuck" TV series.
Dozens of workers from shows where production has stopped including "Ugly Betty," "Desperate Housewives" and "The Office" were joined by representatives from floral, catering and cleaning small businesses that work closely with studios.
The rally and march was intended to "put a face on the thousands of us adversely affected by the current strike" and "to show a united front in calling for responsible and serious negotiations," the organizers said on their blog site.
Studio bosses and the WGA broke off contract talks again on Friday after four days of negotiations ended in acrimony, dashing hopes of a quick settlement of the worst Hollywood labor crisis in two decades.
The writers went on strike on November 5 in a dispute that hinges on how much they should be paid for work used on the Internet. It has halted production on dozens of TV shows as well as several movies and idled thousands of non-writing film and TV workers.
"They are negotiating the what-ifs while we're not even getting work, and while they're on strike the reruns are on and they're getting residuals," said Elizabeth Tompkins, a production controller for the summer 2008 movie "Get Smart."
Griffin called on both sides to try harder to reach an agreement. "Lock yourselves in a room, throw away the key. Stay there until a settlement is reached. All of our lives and our livelihoods hang in the balance," he said.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Football!
Listening to: Nothing at the moment.
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: TALKS COLLAPSE
Idled Hollywood workers urge end to writers' strike
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hundreds of film and television production workers, joined by florists, caterers and dry cleaners, marched through Hollywood on Sunday to urge both sides in the screenwriters strike to settle the 5-week-old stoppage that is crippling businesses linked to the industry.
The "Strike a Deal" march brought together about 500 people who are not on strike themselves but who have been laid off or are losing business because of the strike by about 10,500 members of the Writers Guild Of America (WGA).
"We're not here today to take the side of either party, but rather to make ourselves seen and make ourselves heard and call for both sides to return to the table immediately," said one of the organizers, Christopher Griffin, a line producer for the "Nip/Tuck" TV series.
Dozens of workers from shows where production has stopped including "Ugly Betty," "Desperate Housewives" and "The Office" were joined by representatives from floral, catering and cleaning small businesses that work closely with studios.
The rally and march was intended to "put a face on the thousands of us adversely affected by the current strike" and "to show a united front in calling for responsible and serious negotiations," the organizers said on their blog site.
Studio bosses and the WGA broke off contract talks again on Friday after four days of negotiations ended in acrimony, dashing hopes of a quick settlement of the worst Hollywood labor crisis in two decades.
The writers went on strike on November 5 in a dispute that hinges on how much they should be paid for work used on the Internet. It has halted production on dozens of TV shows as well as several movies and idled thousands of non-writing film and TV workers.
"They are negotiating the what-ifs while we're not even getting work, and while they're on strike the reruns are on and they're getting residuals," said Elizabeth Tompkins, a production controller for the summer 2008 movie "Get Smart."
Griffin called on both sides to try harder to reach an agreement. "Lock yourselves in a room, throw away the key. Stay there until a settlement is reached. All of our lives and our livelihoods hang in the balance," he said.
Friday, November 30, 2007
FRIDAY'S CHILL.
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 187.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Talk show re-runs
Listening to: "One Love" by Prodigy; "Head Like A Hole" by Devo
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: STRIKE CONTINUES
The writer's strike enters its fourth week; and temperatures here are in the low 30s.
Striking screenwriters disparage new studio offer
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Labor negotiators for the major Hollywood studios presented striking screenwriters on Thursday with a new set of proposed pay formulas for digital media, but the writers' union immediately rebuffed the offer as far too stingy.
Breaking their silence after a four-day round of talks conducted under a strict media blackout, the two sides resumed their public relations duel as the studios unveiled what they called a "new economic partnership" and the writers shot it down as a "massive rollback."
The latest offer was disclosed in a brief statement issued by the studios' bargaining entity, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), on the 25th day of a strike by 10,500 film and TV writers.
The Writers Guild of America launched its work stoppage on November 5 after months of rancorous on-and-off negotiations with the studios collapsed, triggering the worst labor crisis to hit Hollywood in nearly 20 years.
The talks have foundered largely on the failure to reach accord on writers' demands for a greater share of revenue for film and TV work distributed over the Internet and wireless devices, such as cell phones.
The new offer presented by the studios, according to the AMPTP, sought to address those issues with "groundbreaking moves in several areas of new media."
"The entire value of the New Economic Partnership will deliver more than $130 million in additional compensation above and beyond the more than $1.3 billion writers already receive each year," the statement said.
But the proposal met with a chilly reception from the union, which outlined its objections to the studios' offer in its own point-by-point critique.
For example, the union said the studios had offered a single, fixed payment of less than $250 for a year's reuse of an hourlong TV program when streamed over the Internet, which the WGA said compared with "over $20,000 payable for a network rerun."
The union also faulted the studios' offer for failing to establish a payment scheme for original content created especially for the Internet, and for refusing to go beyond management's initial proposal to pay the same rates for digital downloads as for DVDs.
The guild said its own proposals would cost the film and TV industry $151 million over three years, amounting to a 3 percent increase in writers' earnings annually, while "company revenues are projected to grow at a rate of 10 percent."
Both sides said they would resume bargaining next Tuesday, and the union said the studios have promised to present additional unspecified proposals at that time.
The latest four-day round of talks marked the first formal negotiations since the strike began.
The screenwriters' walkout has hit the television industry the hardest so far, throwing late-night talk shows into immediate reruns and bringing production to a halt on dozens of prime-time comedies and dramas.
The strike has also forced movie studios to postpone several high-profile big-screen projects, including a planned sequel to the box-office blockbuster "The Da Vinci Code."
The last Hollywood strike was a 1988 walkout by the WGA that lasted 22 weeks and cost the entertainment industry an estimated $500 million.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Talk show re-runs
Listening to: "One Love" by Prodigy; "Head Like A Hole" by Devo
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: STRIKE CONTINUES
The writer's strike enters its fourth week; and temperatures here are in the low 30s.
Striking screenwriters disparage new studio offer
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Labor negotiators for the major Hollywood studios presented striking screenwriters on Thursday with a new set of proposed pay formulas for digital media, but the writers' union immediately rebuffed the offer as far too stingy.
Breaking their silence after a four-day round of talks conducted under a strict media blackout, the two sides resumed their public relations duel as the studios unveiled what they called a "new economic partnership" and the writers shot it down as a "massive rollback."
The latest offer was disclosed in a brief statement issued by the studios' bargaining entity, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), on the 25th day of a strike by 10,500 film and TV writers.
The Writers Guild of America launched its work stoppage on November 5 after months of rancorous on-and-off negotiations with the studios collapsed, triggering the worst labor crisis to hit Hollywood in nearly 20 years.
The talks have foundered largely on the failure to reach accord on writers' demands for a greater share of revenue for film and TV work distributed over the Internet and wireless devices, such as cell phones.
The new offer presented by the studios, according to the AMPTP, sought to address those issues with "groundbreaking moves in several areas of new media."
"The entire value of the New Economic Partnership will deliver more than $130 million in additional compensation above and beyond the more than $1.3 billion writers already receive each year," the statement said.
But the proposal met with a chilly reception from the union, which outlined its objections to the studios' offer in its own point-by-point critique.
For example, the union said the studios had offered a single, fixed payment of less than $250 for a year's reuse of an hourlong TV program when streamed over the Internet, which the WGA said compared with "over $20,000 payable for a network rerun."
The union also faulted the studios' offer for failing to establish a payment scheme for original content created especially for the Internet, and for refusing to go beyond management's initial proposal to pay the same rates for digital downloads as for DVDs.
The guild said its own proposals would cost the film and TV industry $151 million over three years, amounting to a 3 percent increase in writers' earnings annually, while "company revenues are projected to grow at a rate of 10 percent."
Both sides said they would resume bargaining next Tuesday, and the union said the studios have promised to present additional unspecified proposals at that time.
The latest four-day round of talks marked the first formal negotiations since the strike began.
The screenwriters' walkout has hit the television industry the hardest so far, throwing late-night talk shows into immediate reruns and bringing production to a halt on dozens of prime-time comedies and dramas.
The strike has also forced movie studios to postpone several high-profile big-screen projects, including a planned sequel to the box-office blockbuster "The Da Vinci Code."
The last Hollywood strike was a 1988 walkout by the WGA that lasted 22 weeks and cost the entertainment industry an estimated $500 million.
Monday, November 19, 2007
MONDAY TREAT.
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 185.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening Magazine
Listening to: "Love Removal Machine"; "She Sells Sanctuary" by Rare Cult
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: A SECOND DRAWING OF EMILY ROSE JORDAN
This is another pic of Emily done by Mykia awhile back. I was meaning to post this last month, but things just got so fragging nuts with all my appointments and unscheduled doctor visits! (This is what happens when you have another bout of kidney stones.)
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening Magazine
Listening to: "Love Removal Machine"; "She Sells Sanctuary" by Rare Cult
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: A SECOND DRAWING OF EMILY ROSE JORDAN
This is another pic of Emily done by Mykia awhile back. I was meaning to post this last month, but things just got so fragging nuts with all my appointments and unscheduled doctor visits! (This is what happens when you have another bout of kidney stones.)
MONDAY TRIPPIN'.
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 185.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening News
Listening to: "Halcyon" by Chicane
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: READING LESS AND LESS?
Government study: Americans reading less
NEW YORK - The latest National Endowment for the Arts report draws on a variety of sources, public and private, and essentially reaches one conclusion: Americans are reading less.
The 99-page study, "To Read or Not to Read," is being released Monday as a follow-up to a 2004 NEA survey, "Reading at Risk," that found an increasing number of adult Americans were not even reading one book a year.
"To Read or Not to Read" gathers an array of government, academic and foundation data on everything from how many 9-year-olds read every day for "fun" (54 percent) to the percentage of high school graduates deemed by employers as "deficient" in writing in English (72 percent).
"I've done a lot of work in statistics in my career, and I've never seen a situation where so much data was pulled from so many places and absolutely everything is so consistent," NEA chairman Dana Gioia said.
Among the findings:
• In 2002, only 52 percent of Americans ages 18 to 24, the college years, read a book voluntarily, down from 59 percent in 1992.
• Money spent on books, adjusted for inflation, dropped 14 percent from 1985 to 2005 and has fallen dramatically since the mid-1990s.
• The number of adults with bachelor's degrees and "proficient in reading prose" dropped from 40 percent in 1992 to 31 percent in 2003.
Some news is good, notably among 9-year-olds, whose reading comprehension scores have soared since the early 1990s.
But at the same time, the number of 17-year-olds who "never or hardly ever" read for pleasure has doubled, to 19 percent, and their comprehension scores have fallen.
"I think there's been an enormous investment in teaching kids to read in elementary school," Gioia said. "Kids are doing better at 9, and at 11. At 13, they're doing no worse, but then you see this catastrophic falloff. ... If kids are put into this electronic culture without any counterbalancing efforts, they will stop reading."
Publishers and booksellers have noted that teen fiction is a rapidly expanding category in an otherwise flat market, but the NEA's director of research, Sunil Iyengar, wondered how much of that growth has been caused by the "Harry Potter" books, the last of which came out in July.
"It's great that millions of kids are reading these long, intricate novels, but reading one such book every 18 months doesn't make up for daily reading," Gioia said.
Doug Whiteman, president of the Penguin Young Readers Group, a division of Penguin Group (USA), said sales of teen books were the strongest part of his business. But he added that a couple of factors could explain why scores were dropping: Adults are also buying the "Potter" books, thus making the teen market seem bigger on paper, and some sales are for non-English language books.
"There are so many nuances," Whiteman said. "Reading scores don't necessarily have any relevance to today's sales."
The head of Simon & Schuster's children's publishing division, Rick Richter, saw another reason why sales could rise even as scores go down: A growing gap between those who read and those who don't. Richter considers it "very possible" that the market is driven by a relatively small number of young people who buy large numbers of books. Test scores, meanwhile, are lowered by the larger population of teens who don't read.
"A divide like that is really a cause for concern," Richter said.
The report emphasizes the social benefits of reading: "Literary readers" are more likely to exercise, visit art museums, keep up with current events, vote in presidential elections and perform volunteer work.
"This should explode the notion that reading is somehow a passive activity," Gioia said. "Reading creates people who are more active by any measure. ... People who don't read, who spend more of their time watching TV or on the Internet, playing video games, seem to be significantly more passive."
Gioia called the decline in reading "perhaps the most important socio-economic issue in the United States," and called for changes "in the way we're educating kids, especially in high school and college. We need to reconnect reading with pleasure and enlightenment."
"'To Read or Not to Read' suggests we are losing the majority of the new generation," Gioia said. "The majority of young Americans will not realize their individual, economic or social potential."
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening News
Listening to: "Halcyon" by Chicane
Reading: Kushiel's Scion by Jacqueline Carey
TOPIC: READING LESS AND LESS?
Government study: Americans reading less
NEW YORK - The latest National Endowment for the Arts report draws on a variety of sources, public and private, and essentially reaches one conclusion: Americans are reading less.
The 99-page study, "To Read or Not to Read," is being released Monday as a follow-up to a 2004 NEA survey, "Reading at Risk," that found an increasing number of adult Americans were not even reading one book a year.
"To Read or Not to Read" gathers an array of government, academic and foundation data on everything from how many 9-year-olds read every day for "fun" (54 percent) to the percentage of high school graduates deemed by employers as "deficient" in writing in English (72 percent).
"I've done a lot of work in statistics in my career, and I've never seen a situation where so much data was pulled from so many places and absolutely everything is so consistent," NEA chairman Dana Gioia said.
Among the findings:
• In 2002, only 52 percent of Americans ages 18 to 24, the college years, read a book voluntarily, down from 59 percent in 1992.
• Money spent on books, adjusted for inflation, dropped 14 percent from 1985 to 2005 and has fallen dramatically since the mid-1990s.
• The number of adults with bachelor's degrees and "proficient in reading prose" dropped from 40 percent in 1992 to 31 percent in 2003.
Some news is good, notably among 9-year-olds, whose reading comprehension scores have soared since the early 1990s.
But at the same time, the number of 17-year-olds who "never or hardly ever" read for pleasure has doubled, to 19 percent, and their comprehension scores have fallen.
"I think there's been an enormous investment in teaching kids to read in elementary school," Gioia said. "Kids are doing better at 9, and at 11. At 13, they're doing no worse, but then you see this catastrophic falloff. ... If kids are put into this electronic culture without any counterbalancing efforts, they will stop reading."
Publishers and booksellers have noted that teen fiction is a rapidly expanding category in an otherwise flat market, but the NEA's director of research, Sunil Iyengar, wondered how much of that growth has been caused by the "Harry Potter" books, the last of which came out in July.
"It's great that millions of kids are reading these long, intricate novels, but reading one such book every 18 months doesn't make up for daily reading," Gioia said.
Doug Whiteman, president of the Penguin Young Readers Group, a division of Penguin Group (USA), said sales of teen books were the strongest part of his business. But he added that a couple of factors could explain why scores were dropping: Adults are also buying the "Potter" books, thus making the teen market seem bigger on paper, and some sales are for non-English language books.
"There are so many nuances," Whiteman said. "Reading scores don't necessarily have any relevance to today's sales."
The head of Simon & Schuster's children's publishing division, Rick Richter, saw another reason why sales could rise even as scores go down: A growing gap between those who read and those who don't. Richter considers it "very possible" that the market is driven by a relatively small number of young people who buy large numbers of books. Test scores, meanwhile, are lowered by the larger population of teens who don't read.
"A divide like that is really a cause for concern," Richter said.
The report emphasizes the social benefits of reading: "Literary readers" are more likely to exercise, visit art museums, keep up with current events, vote in presidential elections and perform volunteer work.
"This should explode the notion that reading is somehow a passive activity," Gioia said. "Reading creates people who are more active by any measure. ... People who don't read, who spend more of their time watching TV or on the Internet, playing video games, seem to be significantly more passive."
Gioia called the decline in reading "perhaps the most important socio-economic issue in the United States," and called for changes "in the way we're educating kids, especially in high school and college. We need to reconnect reading with pleasure and enlightenment."
"'To Read or Not to Read' suggests we are losing the majority of the new generation," Gioia said. "The majority of young Americans will not realize their individual, economic or social potential."
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
TUESDAY ACCOLADES
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 182.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening News
Listening to: "Halcyon" by Chicane
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: STORY TWISTS
Never thought that that this would pop up in The Price of Freedom.
For a time now, I've had to focus more on what was happening with Kayla Sorenson and her ongoing struggle to find her true identity and what her purpose in this long and ongoing war between humanity and the Neos.
Of course, I'm used to the fact that I like to drop a bombshell on my readers every now and then, but this one has me kind've stymied.
Three times or more--throughout the book--either Kenneth Sparks or Kayla Sorenson was visited by their future daughter; Felica Sorenson.
In many guises, she visited them in the year 2166--throughout the first 5 months of the year; each time either saving their bacon, giving Kayla a boost, or in this latest case...?
Stopping her from killing Kenneth Sparks.
But this latest visit also comes with a surprise: Felicia is pregnant with Kenneth's child!
How did this happen was explained in a later chapter--as Felicia "rescues" her estranged mother from her own insanity.
The reason behind the joining.
However, it hasn't been fully explained as to whether or not this is the same Felicia from the current timeline, or another version of her which alternated from another aspect of the timesteam.
Felicia isn't talking and neither Kayla nor Kenneth know much pass their past experiences with their wayward daughter.
So another mystery still has yet to be solved. And by the looks of things--it doesn't appear that it will be solved in this book. Possibly in The Catalyst of Freedom, but I can't be sure--as that storyline is still in bits and pieces. (In terms of an outline.)
And another twist in the current storyline is still unfolding. Because of what happened in Felicia's subspace domain, Kayla has been regressed back to a teenage girl.
16-years-old and no longer pregnant with Felicia.
What's going to happen when she returns to 2166?
I don't know. But count on a very interesting read from here on out. (Not that this book has ever been boring from minute one...?)
Sky
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening News
Listening to: "Halcyon" by Chicane
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: STORY TWISTS
Never thought that that this would pop up in The Price of Freedom.
For a time now, I've had to focus more on what was happening with Kayla Sorenson and her ongoing struggle to find her true identity and what her purpose in this long and ongoing war between humanity and the Neos.
Of course, I'm used to the fact that I like to drop a bombshell on my readers every now and then, but this one has me kind've stymied.
Three times or more--throughout the book--either Kenneth Sparks or Kayla Sorenson was visited by their future daughter; Felica Sorenson.
In many guises, she visited them in the year 2166--throughout the first 5 months of the year; each time either saving their bacon, giving Kayla a boost, or in this latest case...?
Stopping her from killing Kenneth Sparks.
But this latest visit also comes with a surprise: Felicia is pregnant with Kenneth's child!
How did this happen was explained in a later chapter--as Felicia "rescues" her estranged mother from her own insanity.
The reason behind the joining.
However, it hasn't been fully explained as to whether or not this is the same Felicia from the current timeline, or another version of her which alternated from another aspect of the timesteam.
Felicia isn't talking and neither Kayla nor Kenneth know much pass their past experiences with their wayward daughter.
So another mystery still has yet to be solved. And by the looks of things--it doesn't appear that it will be solved in this book. Possibly in The Catalyst of Freedom, but I can't be sure--as that storyline is still in bits and pieces. (In terms of an outline.)
And another twist in the current storyline is still unfolding. Because of what happened in Felicia's subspace domain, Kayla has been regressed back to a teenage girl.
16-years-old and no longer pregnant with Felicia.
What's going to happen when she returns to 2166?
I don't know. But count on a very interesting read from here on out. (Not that this book has ever been boring from minute one...?)
Sky
Sunday, November 11, 2007
SUNDAY RERUNS?
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 182.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening News
Listening to: "Animix-Full Project" (Anime music video)
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: SUPPORT THE WRITER STRIKE! (Week 1)
Use strike to realize what TV writers do
NEW YORK -- The writers strike only began Monday, and already you're falling behind.
Sure, the impact of the strike so far has been limited to late night, instantly banishing comedy-and-talk shows into rerun purgatory. But how are you supposed to know what's happening in the world without Jon Stewart and "The Daily Show" mocking current events?
The prospect of a strike was a wake-up call for viewers. Last Friday, "Late Night" host Conan O'Brien dispelled the popular belief "that I make the whole show up." Not true, viewers learned. "Believe it or not," he confided, "some of the show is scripted."
But that was then. On Monday, writers who once scripted "Late Night" and so many other shows were picketing outside NBC's Rockefeller Center headquarters.
"Hey, hey, ho, ho, management can't write the show," they chanted, demonstrating that their own writing skills don't include poetry.
The dispute between Writers Guild of America members and the networks and studios that employ them centers on issues like Internet royalties for TV shows. But it's you caught in the middle. As a pitch for "Jimmy Kimmel Live" put it so vividly, "The more I Jimmy, the better I feel." With the strike going on, you just can't Jimmy like you used to.
And things could get worse. If the strike drags on (and the last one, in 1988, went for 22 weeks), the reservoir of new scripted shows could run dry.
Of course, the networks have ways of finessing this problem.
The networks are expected to augment the inevitable reruns with brand-new fare that doesn't need a script from anybody (at least, not a WGA writer). News programs will likely swell in number. Look for new game shows.
Is there a silver lining?
Well, in the short term, you'll be grateful for the chance to get through all the shows you've stockpiled on your TiVo.
Another plus? You'll be freed up to sample other programming you never saw before.
However, if the strike lasts too long, it will be very costly to the networks and studios, as well as the writers. And that would serve them right, you may find yourself seething.
Strike back if you must. But the absence of writers from TV right now might be a good time to take measure of what writers bring to television.
Consider: At the heart of nearly every complaint you've ever lodged against TV is what the writer did. What you really notice about a TV show, especially when you object to it, mostly boils down to how it's written. That's how fundamental the writers are.
It doesn't mean you should automatically support them in a strike that, already, is making TV less fun for you to watch. But to give yourself a fresh perspective on their value, picture those writers dropped into a MasterCard commercial:
Bottled water, candy bars and pencils for the Writers' Room: $37.
Average WGA writer's annual income (according to the studios and networks): About $200,000.
The script for a top-notch TV show that makes you laugh or cry and talk about it afterward for days: Priceless.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening News
Listening to: "Animix-Full Project" (Anime music video)
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: SUPPORT THE WRITER STRIKE! (Week 1)
Use strike to realize what TV writers do
NEW YORK -- The writers strike only began Monday, and already you're falling behind.
Sure, the impact of the strike so far has been limited to late night, instantly banishing comedy-and-talk shows into rerun purgatory. But how are you supposed to know what's happening in the world without Jon Stewart and "The Daily Show" mocking current events?
The prospect of a strike was a wake-up call for viewers. Last Friday, "Late Night" host Conan O'Brien dispelled the popular belief "that I make the whole show up." Not true, viewers learned. "Believe it or not," he confided, "some of the show is scripted."
But that was then. On Monday, writers who once scripted "Late Night" and so many other shows were picketing outside NBC's Rockefeller Center headquarters.
"Hey, hey, ho, ho, management can't write the show," they chanted, demonstrating that their own writing skills don't include poetry.
The dispute between Writers Guild of America members and the networks and studios that employ them centers on issues like Internet royalties for TV shows. But it's you caught in the middle. As a pitch for "Jimmy Kimmel Live" put it so vividly, "The more I Jimmy, the better I feel." With the strike going on, you just can't Jimmy like you used to.
And things could get worse. If the strike drags on (and the last one, in 1988, went for 22 weeks), the reservoir of new scripted shows could run dry.
Of course, the networks have ways of finessing this problem.
The networks are expected to augment the inevitable reruns with brand-new fare that doesn't need a script from anybody (at least, not a WGA writer). News programs will likely swell in number. Look for new game shows.
Is there a silver lining?
Well, in the short term, you'll be grateful for the chance to get through all the shows you've stockpiled on your TiVo.
Another plus? You'll be freed up to sample other programming you never saw before.
However, if the strike lasts too long, it will be very costly to the networks and studios, as well as the writers. And that would serve them right, you may find yourself seething.
Strike back if you must. But the absence of writers from TV right now might be a good time to take measure of what writers bring to television.
Consider: At the heart of nearly every complaint you've ever lodged against TV is what the writer did. What you really notice about a TV show, especially when you object to it, mostly boils down to how it's written. That's how fundamental the writers are.
It doesn't mean you should automatically support them in a strike that, already, is making TV less fun for you to watch. But to give yourself a fresh perspective on their value, picture those writers dropped into a MasterCard commercial:
Bottled water, candy bars and pencils for the Writers' Room: $37.
Average WGA writer's annual income (according to the studios and networks): About $200,000.
The script for a top-notch TV show that makes you laugh or cry and talk about it afterward for days: Priceless.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
TUESDAY HOLDOUTS
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 181.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening News
Listening to: "C'mon N' Ride It (The Train) [Remix Edit]
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: STRIKE!
Of course, I am supporting the writers on the this one. They deserve everything they get and then some. The Hollywood elite has been screwing them long enough!
Writers strike sends shows into reruns
LOS ANGELES - Americans may be getting more sleep after Hollywood writers went on strike Monday and forced the nation's late-night talk shows to start airing reruns.
NBC said the "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" will immediately air repeats.
Still, Leno made an appearance at the Burbank studio, arriving on a motorcycle to visit strikers walking a picket line.
CBS said "The Late Show with David Letterman" will also offer repeats all week. The list of casualties included every other major late-night show.
The first strike by Hollywood writers in nearly 20 years got under way with noisy pickets on both coasts after last-minute negotiations on Sunday failed to produce a deal on payments to writers from shows offered on the Internet.
No new negotiations were scheduled, although the Writers Guild of America negotiating committee was set to meet Monday afternoon.
Nick Counter, chief negotiator for the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, said he expected a long standoff.
"We're hunkered down for a long one," he said. "From our standpoint, we made every good faith effort to negotiate a deal and they went on strike. At some point, conversations will take place. But not now."
The strike will not immediately impact production of movies or prime-time TV programs. Most studios have stockpiled dozens of movie scripts, and TV shows have enough scripts or completed shows in hand to last until early next year.
Disruptions by strikers ended filming at a Studio City cafe being used as a location for the CBS show "Cane."
Tom Hogan, a location manager for the show, said he had hired two off-duty Los Angeles police officers in addition to five private security guards to maintain order during the shoot.
He said the filming began hours before the 20 pickets arrived and involved a script that was finished several weeks ago.
No other major problems were reported at studios or filming locations.
At the CBS lot in Studio City, about 40 people hoisted signs and applauded when picketing began.
Robert Port, a writer for the TV show "Numb3rs," said he was as ready as possible for what could be a long walkout.
"We live in Los Angeles, your bank account can never really be ready for this," he said.
Only about half of the pickets wore their official red strike T-shirts.
"Writers aren't the easiest cats to corral," said Don McGill, another writer for "Numb3rs."
The first noisy strikers appeared outside the "Today" show set at Rockefeller Center in New York, where NBC is headquartered. The show is not directly affected by the strike because news writers are part of a different union.
A giant, inflated rat was displayed, as about 40 people shouted, "No contract, no shows!"
"They claim that the new media is still too new to structure a model for compensation," said Jose Arroyo, a writer for "Late Night with Conan O'Brien."
"We say give us a percentage so if they make money, we make money," Arroyo said.
Starting TV writers earn about $70,000 per season for full-time work on a show. Veteran writers who move up to a story-editor position make at least a low six-figure salary, with a "written by" credit on an hourlong script paying an additional $30,000 plus residuals.
Diana Son, a writer for "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," said she has three children and getting residuals was the only way she could take time off after giving birth.
"It's an extremely volatile industry," Son said. "There's no job security. Residuals are an important part of our income. There's no cushion."
Millie Kapzen of Memphis, Tenn., who watched the New York pickets from across the street, said she was "disgusted. ... I really think they should try harder to negotiate."
Kapzen said she sells advertising for radio stations. "We've already had cancellations of sweeps weeks ads" by the networks, she said.
Writers have not gone on strike since 1988, when the walkout lasted 22 weeks and cost the industry more than $500 million.
The battle has broad implications for the way Hollywood does business, since whatever deal is struck by writers will likely be used as a template for talks with actors and directors, whose contracts expire next June.
Talks began in July and continued after the writers contract expired last Wednesday.
Producers said writers were not willing to compromise on major issues.
Writers said they withdrew a proposal to increase their share of revenue from the sale of DVDs that had been a stumbling block for producers.
They also said proposals by producers in the area of Internet reuse of TV episodes and films were unacceptable.
In Los Angeles, writers planned to picket 14 studio locations in four-hour shifts from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day until a new deal is reached.
Networks said other late-night show bound for reruns included "The Daily Show," "Colbert Report," "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson," "Late Night with Conan O'Brien," "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and "Last Call with Carson Daly."
Ellen DeGeneres was a no-show Monday for filming of her daytime talk show on NBC.
"Ellen did not go to work today in support of her writers," said Kelly Bush, her publicist.
New episodes of "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" that were filmed before the strike were set to air Monday and Tuesday. But it was unclear what might happen with the show later in the week, Bush said.
"Dancing With the Stars," one of the country's highest-rated prime-time shows, would air as planned on Monday, ABC said.
One key factor that could determine the damage caused by the strike is whether members of a powerful Hollywood Teamsters local honor the picket lines.
Local 399, which represents truck drivers, casting directors and location managers, had told its members that as a union, it has a legal obligation to honor its contracts with producers.
But the clause does not apply to individuals.
Steve Dayan, business agent of the local, said Monday he had heard of no problems on the picket lines involving his members.
He did not know if members were honoring the lines or crossing them.
"Our members have a choice whether they want to honor it or not," Dayan said. "I'm sure there are people honoring and some that are crossing. It's their individual right."
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening News
Listening to: "C'mon N' Ride It (The Train) [Remix Edit]
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: STRIKE!
Of course, I am supporting the writers on the this one. They deserve everything they get and then some. The Hollywood elite has been screwing them long enough!
Writers strike sends shows into reruns
LOS ANGELES - Americans may be getting more sleep after Hollywood writers went on strike Monday and forced the nation's late-night talk shows to start airing reruns.
NBC said the "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" will immediately air repeats.
Still, Leno made an appearance at the Burbank studio, arriving on a motorcycle to visit strikers walking a picket line.
CBS said "The Late Show with David Letterman" will also offer repeats all week. The list of casualties included every other major late-night show.
The first strike by Hollywood writers in nearly 20 years got under way with noisy pickets on both coasts after last-minute negotiations on Sunday failed to produce a deal on payments to writers from shows offered on the Internet.
No new negotiations were scheduled, although the Writers Guild of America negotiating committee was set to meet Monday afternoon.
Nick Counter, chief negotiator for the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, said he expected a long standoff.
"We're hunkered down for a long one," he said. "From our standpoint, we made every good faith effort to negotiate a deal and they went on strike. At some point, conversations will take place. But not now."
The strike will not immediately impact production of movies or prime-time TV programs. Most studios have stockpiled dozens of movie scripts, and TV shows have enough scripts or completed shows in hand to last until early next year.
Disruptions by strikers ended filming at a Studio City cafe being used as a location for the CBS show "Cane."
Tom Hogan, a location manager for the show, said he had hired two off-duty Los Angeles police officers in addition to five private security guards to maintain order during the shoot.
He said the filming began hours before the 20 pickets arrived and involved a script that was finished several weeks ago.
No other major problems were reported at studios or filming locations.
At the CBS lot in Studio City, about 40 people hoisted signs and applauded when picketing began.
Robert Port, a writer for the TV show "Numb3rs," said he was as ready as possible for what could be a long walkout.
"We live in Los Angeles, your bank account can never really be ready for this," he said.
Only about half of the pickets wore their official red strike T-shirts.
"Writers aren't the easiest cats to corral," said Don McGill, another writer for "Numb3rs."
The first noisy strikers appeared outside the "Today" show set at Rockefeller Center in New York, where NBC is headquartered. The show is not directly affected by the strike because news writers are part of a different union.
A giant, inflated rat was displayed, as about 40 people shouted, "No contract, no shows!"
"They claim that the new media is still too new to structure a model for compensation," said Jose Arroyo, a writer for "Late Night with Conan O'Brien."
"We say give us a percentage so if they make money, we make money," Arroyo said.
Starting TV writers earn about $70,000 per season for full-time work on a show. Veteran writers who move up to a story-editor position make at least a low six-figure salary, with a "written by" credit on an hourlong script paying an additional $30,000 plus residuals.
Diana Son, a writer for "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," said she has three children and getting residuals was the only way she could take time off after giving birth.
"It's an extremely volatile industry," Son said. "There's no job security. Residuals are an important part of our income. There's no cushion."
Millie Kapzen of Memphis, Tenn., who watched the New York pickets from across the street, said she was "disgusted. ... I really think they should try harder to negotiate."
Kapzen said she sells advertising for radio stations. "We've already had cancellations of sweeps weeks ads" by the networks, she said.
Writers have not gone on strike since 1988, when the walkout lasted 22 weeks and cost the industry more than $500 million.
The battle has broad implications for the way Hollywood does business, since whatever deal is struck by writers will likely be used as a template for talks with actors and directors, whose contracts expire next June.
Talks began in July and continued after the writers contract expired last Wednesday.
Producers said writers were not willing to compromise on major issues.
Writers said they withdrew a proposal to increase their share of revenue from the sale of DVDs that had been a stumbling block for producers.
They also said proposals by producers in the area of Internet reuse of TV episodes and films were unacceptable.
In Los Angeles, writers planned to picket 14 studio locations in four-hour shifts from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day until a new deal is reached.
Networks said other late-night show bound for reruns included "The Daily Show," "Colbert Report," "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson," "Late Night with Conan O'Brien," "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and "Last Call with Carson Daly."
Ellen DeGeneres was a no-show Monday for filming of her daytime talk show on NBC.
"Ellen did not go to work today in support of her writers," said Kelly Bush, her publicist.
New episodes of "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" that were filmed before the strike were set to air Monday and Tuesday. But it was unclear what might happen with the show later in the week, Bush said.
"Dancing With the Stars," one of the country's highest-rated prime-time shows, would air as planned on Monday, ABC said.
One key factor that could determine the damage caused by the strike is whether members of a powerful Hollywood Teamsters local honor the picket lines.
Local 399, which represents truck drivers, casting directors and location managers, had told its members that as a union, it has a legal obligation to honor its contracts with producers.
But the clause does not apply to individuals.
Steve Dayan, business agent of the local, said Monday he had heard of no problems on the picket lines involving his members.
He did not know if members were honoring the lines or crossing them.
"Our members have a choice whether they want to honor it or not," Dayan said. "I'm sure there are people honoring and some that are crossing. It's their individual right."
Sunday, November 4, 2007
SUNDAY EVENING.
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 181.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening News
Listening to: "The Winner" by The Crystal Method
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: MONDAY STRIKE
Writers deal could impact other unions
LOS ANGELES - Hollywood writers were back at the bargaining table Sunday in a last-minute push to avoid a strike against TV networks and movie studios over writers' share of profits from DVDs and(AP) — the Internet.
The battle has broad implications for the way Hollywood does business, since whatever deal is struck by the Writers Guild of America will likely be used as a template for talks with actors and directors, whose contracts expire next June.
"We'll get what they get," Screen Actors Guild President Alan Rosenberg told The Associated Press.
Negotiators were meeting with a federal mediator Sunday evening in hopes of avoiding a strike that writers had set to begin 12:01 a.m. Monday.
The guild announced sweeping plans to picket every major studio in Los Angeles starting at 9 a.m. Monday, along with Rockefeller Center in New York, where NBC is headquartered.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers previously called a writers' strike "precipitous and irresponsible."
Producers believe progress can be made on other issues but "it makes absolutely no sense to increase the burden of this additional compensation," said J. Nicholas Counter, the producer's chief negotiator.
The guilds have been preparing for these negotiations for years, hiring staff with extensive labor union experience, and developing joint strategies and a harder line than producers have seen in decades.
"We haven't shown particular resolve in past negotiations," said John Bowman, the WGA's chief negotiator. "The sea change is that this is an enormously galvanizing issue, and two, that the new regime at the guild actually has a plan, has an organization and a structure to respond to something."
The writers are the first union to bargain for a new deal this year. Their contract expired Wednesday.
In past years, actors have almost always gone first, although the Directors Guild of America, which is seen as the least aggressive of the three guilds, has sometimes taken the lead. Whatever deal was struck first was usually accepted by the others.
The guilds are aware that if writers fail to win concessions involving DVDs and the Internet, actors may have to take up the fight.
"This is an issue that touches every member of this guild and every member of the Screen Actors Guild as well," said Carlton Cuse, executive producer of the ABC drama "Lost."
Consumers are expected to spend $16.4 billion on DVDs this year, according to Adams Media Research. By contrast, studios could generate only $158 million from selling movies online and about $194 million from selling TV shows over the Web, although those numbers are expected to skyrocket in coming years.
Studios argue that it is too early to know how much money they can make from offering entertainment on the Internet, cell phones, iPods and other devices.
Hollywood unions have long regretted a decision made in 1984 to accept a small percentage of home video sales because studios said the technology was untested and that costs were high. Writers only get about 3 cents on a typical DVD retailing for $20.
The guilds have tried and failed for two decades to increase video payments, even as DVDs have become more profitable for studios than box office receipts.
Unions say they won't make the same mistake when it comes to the Internet.
"I think we all understand what a crucial time in history this is," Rosenberg said. "We really feel if we can't get a fair formula in new media, we'll dig ourselves into the same type of hole we've been in with DVDs."
The first casualty of the strike would be late-night talk shows, which are dependent on current events to fuel monologues and other entertainment. Daytime TV, including live talk shows such as "The View" and soap operas, which typically tape about a week's worth of shows in advance, would be next to feel the impact.
The strike would not immediately impact production of movies or prime-time TV programs. Most studios have stockpiled dozens of movie scripts, and TV shows have enough scripts or completed shows in hand to last until early next year.
The actors' union has urged its members to join the writers' picket lines during their off hours.
If a writers strike lingers and actors show support, producers could try and undermine the writers' position by seeking a more favorable deal with directors.
Writers and directors have clashed in the past, mostly over writers' feelings that directors take too much credit for a movie and neglect the contribution of writers.
In 2004, the directors' union settled its contract first and backed down from demands for a higher share of profit from the lucrative DVD marketplace. Writers and actors then had little choice but to accept a similar deal.
"This is a bare knuckle fight and a chess game," said Jonathan Handel, an entertainment lawyer at the Los Angeles law firm of TroyGould.
"If producers do reach a deal with the DGA, it would be to cut the legs right out from under the strike. Then the focus shifts to SAG."
The DGA said it has not yet scheduled contract talks but was closely monitoring developments.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Evening News
Listening to: "The Winner" by The Crystal Method
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: MONDAY STRIKE
Writers deal could impact other unions
LOS ANGELES - Hollywood writers were back at the bargaining table Sunday in a last-minute push to avoid a strike against TV networks and movie studios over writers' share of profits from DVDs and(AP) — the Internet.
The battle has broad implications for the way Hollywood does business, since whatever deal is struck by the Writers Guild of America will likely be used as a template for talks with actors and directors, whose contracts expire next June.
"We'll get what they get," Screen Actors Guild President Alan Rosenberg told The Associated Press.
Negotiators were meeting with a federal mediator Sunday evening in hopes of avoiding a strike that writers had set to begin 12:01 a.m. Monday.
The guild announced sweeping plans to picket every major studio in Los Angeles starting at 9 a.m. Monday, along with Rockefeller Center in New York, where NBC is headquartered.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers previously called a writers' strike "precipitous and irresponsible."
Producers believe progress can be made on other issues but "it makes absolutely no sense to increase the burden of this additional compensation," said J. Nicholas Counter, the producer's chief negotiator.
The guilds have been preparing for these negotiations for years, hiring staff with extensive labor union experience, and developing joint strategies and a harder line than producers have seen in decades.
"We haven't shown particular resolve in past negotiations," said John Bowman, the WGA's chief negotiator. "The sea change is that this is an enormously galvanizing issue, and two, that the new regime at the guild actually has a plan, has an organization and a structure to respond to something."
The writers are the first union to bargain for a new deal this year. Their contract expired Wednesday.
In past years, actors have almost always gone first, although the Directors Guild of America, which is seen as the least aggressive of the three guilds, has sometimes taken the lead. Whatever deal was struck first was usually accepted by the others.
The guilds are aware that if writers fail to win concessions involving DVDs and the Internet, actors may have to take up the fight.
"This is an issue that touches every member of this guild and every member of the Screen Actors Guild as well," said Carlton Cuse, executive producer of the ABC drama "Lost."
Consumers are expected to spend $16.4 billion on DVDs this year, according to Adams Media Research. By contrast, studios could generate only $158 million from selling movies online and about $194 million from selling TV shows over the Web, although those numbers are expected to skyrocket in coming years.
Studios argue that it is too early to know how much money they can make from offering entertainment on the Internet, cell phones, iPods and other devices.
Hollywood unions have long regretted a decision made in 1984 to accept a small percentage of home video sales because studios said the technology was untested and that costs were high. Writers only get about 3 cents on a typical DVD retailing for $20.
The guilds have tried and failed for two decades to increase video payments, even as DVDs have become more profitable for studios than box office receipts.
Unions say they won't make the same mistake when it comes to the Internet.
"I think we all understand what a crucial time in history this is," Rosenberg said. "We really feel if we can't get a fair formula in new media, we'll dig ourselves into the same type of hole we've been in with DVDs."
The first casualty of the strike would be late-night talk shows, which are dependent on current events to fuel monologues and other entertainment. Daytime TV, including live talk shows such as "The View" and soap operas, which typically tape about a week's worth of shows in advance, would be next to feel the impact.
The strike would not immediately impact production of movies or prime-time TV programs. Most studios have stockpiled dozens of movie scripts, and TV shows have enough scripts or completed shows in hand to last until early next year.
The actors' union has urged its members to join the writers' picket lines during their off hours.
If a writers strike lingers and actors show support, producers could try and undermine the writers' position by seeking a more favorable deal with directors.
Writers and directors have clashed in the past, mostly over writers' feelings that directors take too much credit for a movie and neglect the contribution of writers.
In 2004, the directors' union settled its contract first and backed down from demands for a higher share of profit from the lucrative DVD marketplace. Writers and actors then had little choice but to accept a similar deal.
"This is a bare knuckle fight and a chess game," said Jonathan Handel, an entertainment lawyer at the Los Angeles law firm of TroyGould.
"If producers do reach a deal with the DGA, it would be to cut the legs right out from under the strike. Then the focus shifts to SAG."
The DGA said it has not yet scheduled contract talks but was closely monitoring developments.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
THURSDAY DEADLINE
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 180.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Read or Die: The Movie
Listening to: "Autumn Tactics" by Chicane
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: STRIKE?
Hollywood studios and writers hit stalemate
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - With hours to go before their contract was set to expire, Hollywood screenwriters and studios deadlocked on Wednesday in talks aimed at averting the first major strike against the film and TV industry in 20 years.
It was unclear what would happen next, but leaders of the Writers Guild of America have ruled out declaring an immediate walkout when their contract covering 12,000 members expires at 12:01 a.m. (3:01 a.m. EDT) on Thursday.
Instead, the union said it would brief its rank and file at a meeting in Los Angeles on Thursday night. In the meantime, WGA members may continue to work under terms of the old three-year labor pact, though a spokesman said "they will technically be working without a contract."
No further talks were scheduled, but an industry spokesman said after Wednesday's eight-hour session that union negotiators had told studio officials they would contact them on Friday.
The latest round of talks ended with the studios issuing a statement saying writers' demands for an increased share of revenues earned from DVD sales and Internet downloads of their work was "a complete roadblock to any further progress."
"We want to make a deal," said Nick Counter, head of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. "But ... no further movement is possible to close the gap between us so long as your DVD proposal remains on the table.
"We call on you to take the necessary steps to break this impasse so that bargaining can continue."
Counter added that he was referring also to the writers' proposals for higher "residual" fees on other forms of "electronic sell-through -- i.e. permanent downloads."
UNION COUNTEROFFER
The union responded that it had presented a new counteroffer that "took nine proposals off the table" and included other concessions on DVD residuals.
"The companies returned six hours later and said they would not respond to our package until we capitulated to their Internet demand," the WGA said. "Every issue that matters to writers ... has been ignored. This is completely unacceptable."
Union leaders won approval two weeks ago from members to call a strike if deemed necessary once the existing contract expires, though the WGA has set no strike deadline.
Nevertheless, studios and TV networks have treated the end of the month as a de facto deadline as they scramble to stockpile scripts and fast-track various productions in anticipation of a work stoppage.
The last major film and television strike was a WGA walkout in 1988 that lasted 22 weeks, delayed the start of the fall TV season and cost the industry an estimated $500 million. The motion picture and TV industry generates $30 billion in annual economic activity for Los Angeles County alone.
Wednesday's bargaining session marked the second day of talks joined by a U.S. federal mediator.
Studios have said union demands for higher residuals on DVDs and Internet downloads would stifle growth at a time of rising production costs, tighter profit margins and piracy threats. They insist that digital distribution of movies and TV remains largely experimental or promotional and new-media business models are just developing.
The union accuses the studios of pleading poverty and argues that writers have never gotten a fair deal on the lucrative DVD industry. They also see more of film and TV migrating toward the Internet and wireless platforms and want a bigger piece of that revenue pie.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Read or Die: The Movie
Listening to: "Autumn Tactics" by Chicane
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: STRIKE?
Hollywood studios and writers hit stalemate
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - With hours to go before their contract was set to expire, Hollywood screenwriters and studios deadlocked on Wednesday in talks aimed at averting the first major strike against the film and TV industry in 20 years.
It was unclear what would happen next, but leaders of the Writers Guild of America have ruled out declaring an immediate walkout when their contract covering 12,000 members expires at 12:01 a.m. (3:01 a.m. EDT) on Thursday.
Instead, the union said it would brief its rank and file at a meeting in Los Angeles on Thursday night. In the meantime, WGA members may continue to work under terms of the old three-year labor pact, though a spokesman said "they will technically be working without a contract."
No further talks were scheduled, but an industry spokesman said after Wednesday's eight-hour session that union negotiators had told studio officials they would contact them on Friday.
The latest round of talks ended with the studios issuing a statement saying writers' demands for an increased share of revenues earned from DVD sales and Internet downloads of their work was "a complete roadblock to any further progress."
"We want to make a deal," said Nick Counter, head of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. "But ... no further movement is possible to close the gap between us so long as your DVD proposal remains on the table.
"We call on you to take the necessary steps to break this impasse so that bargaining can continue."
Counter added that he was referring also to the writers' proposals for higher "residual" fees on other forms of "electronic sell-through -- i.e. permanent downloads."
UNION COUNTEROFFER
The union responded that it had presented a new counteroffer that "took nine proposals off the table" and included other concessions on DVD residuals.
"The companies returned six hours later and said they would not respond to our package until we capitulated to their Internet demand," the WGA said. "Every issue that matters to writers ... has been ignored. This is completely unacceptable."
Union leaders won approval two weeks ago from members to call a strike if deemed necessary once the existing contract expires, though the WGA has set no strike deadline.
Nevertheless, studios and TV networks have treated the end of the month as a de facto deadline as they scramble to stockpile scripts and fast-track various productions in anticipation of a work stoppage.
The last major film and television strike was a WGA walkout in 1988 that lasted 22 weeks, delayed the start of the fall TV season and cost the industry an estimated $500 million. The motion picture and TV industry generates $30 billion in annual economic activity for Los Angeles County alone.
Wednesday's bargaining session marked the second day of talks joined by a U.S. federal mediator.
Studios have said union demands for higher residuals on DVDs and Internet downloads would stifle growth at a time of rising production costs, tighter profit margins and piracy threats. They insist that digital distribution of movies and TV remains largely experimental or promotional and new-media business models are just developing.
The union accuses the studios of pleading poverty and argues that writers have never gotten a fair deal on the lucrative DVD industry. They also see more of film and TV migrating toward the Internet and wireless platforms and want a bigger piece of that revenue pie.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
WEDNESDAY STRIKE?
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom--Chapter 180.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Nothing.
Listening to: "Autumn Tactics" by Chicane
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: RERUNS!!!
Hollywood bracing for writers' strike as deadline looms
LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Hollywood writers and producers were locked in negotiations Wednesday to head off a potentially damaging strike threatening to halt film and television production.
A mediator was sitting in on talks between the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers in an effort to hammer out an agreement before the current contract expires at midnight.
"Negotiations are ongoing. We are expecting another long day of talking," a spokeswoman for the union told AFP.
Writers are seeking a greater share of residual profits from television series sold on DVDs as well as pay schedules for programs shown on the Internet, cellular phones and other new media outlets.
The producers have rejected the demands as unworkable, raising the possibility of a walkout by writers when their current contract expires.
If the strike goes ahead it is expected to disrupt television programming, with late-night chat shows hosted by David Letterman and Jay Leno, which both lean heavily on teams of union writers, expected to go off the air.
Other nightly shows such as Jon Stewart's "Daily Show" and Stephen Colbert's "The Colbert Report" are also tipped to shutdown, according to Daily Variety.
The immediate impact on major Hollywood studios is expected to be limited as several have already drawn up contingency plans, according to industry reports.
Variety reported on Wednesday that most of the major studios had built a portfolio of five films with scripts and plots strong enough to overcome the possible lack of a union writer on board to execute re-writes.
On Tuesday, talks ended with "no significant progress made", according to a WGA official. As a result, the union was preparing to present a "comprehensive package proposal for review" at Wednesday's meeting.
However, Alliance president Nicholas Counter warned that producers would not buckle in the face of any "unreasonable" demands.
"We are committed to a fair, reasonable and sensible agreement that is beneficial for everyone," Counter said. "However, opportunities do not come without challenges.
"We will not agree to any proposals that impose unreasonable restrictions and unjustified costs. We will not ignore the challenges of today's economic realities, the shifts in audience taste and viewing habits and the unpredictability of still-evolving technology."
Although the WGA has authorized its leadership to call a strike if no new contract is agreed before the existing agreement expires, people familiar with the negotiations say talks could continue if progress is made.
A strike is also unlikely to be called before a WGA membership meeting on Thursday, reports said.
Industry analysts believe that mounting resentment from writers towards management has been building for years and could lead to a lengthy strike.
A WGA strike in 1988 lasted 22 weeks and cost the industry an estimated 500 million dollars. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has warned that a similar strike today could cost the industry almost double.
"If it (cost the industry) 500 million dollars in 1988, a slowdown of that length would have over a one billion dollar impact today," Villaraigosa told the Los Angeles Times. "I'm very concerned."
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: Nothing.
Listening to: "Autumn Tactics" by Chicane
Reading: Windows on a Lost World by V.E. Mitchell (ST-TOS)
TOPIC: RERUNS!!!
Hollywood bracing for writers' strike as deadline looms
LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Hollywood writers and producers were locked in negotiations Wednesday to head off a potentially damaging strike threatening to halt film and television production.
A mediator was sitting in on talks between the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers in an effort to hammer out an agreement before the current contract expires at midnight.
"Negotiations are ongoing. We are expecting another long day of talking," a spokeswoman for the union told AFP.
Writers are seeking a greater share of residual profits from television series sold on DVDs as well as pay schedules for programs shown on the Internet, cellular phones and other new media outlets.
The producers have rejected the demands as unworkable, raising the possibility of a walkout by writers when their current contract expires.
If the strike goes ahead it is expected to disrupt television programming, with late-night chat shows hosted by David Letterman and Jay Leno, which both lean heavily on teams of union writers, expected to go off the air.
Other nightly shows such as Jon Stewart's "Daily Show" and Stephen Colbert's "The Colbert Report" are also tipped to shutdown, according to Daily Variety.
The immediate impact on major Hollywood studios is expected to be limited as several have already drawn up contingency plans, according to industry reports.
Variety reported on Wednesday that most of the major studios had built a portfolio of five films with scripts and plots strong enough to overcome the possible lack of a union writer on board to execute re-writes.
On Tuesday, talks ended with "no significant progress made", according to a WGA official. As a result, the union was preparing to present a "comprehensive package proposal for review" at Wednesday's meeting.
However, Alliance president Nicholas Counter warned that producers would not buckle in the face of any "unreasonable" demands.
"We are committed to a fair, reasonable and sensible agreement that is beneficial for everyone," Counter said. "However, opportunities do not come without challenges.
"We will not agree to any proposals that impose unreasonable restrictions and unjustified costs. We will not ignore the challenges of today's economic realities, the shifts in audience taste and viewing habits and the unpredictability of still-evolving technology."
Although the WGA has authorized its leadership to call a strike if no new contract is agreed before the existing agreement expires, people familiar with the negotiations say talks could continue if progress is made.
A strike is also unlikely to be called before a WGA membership meeting on Thursday, reports said.
Industry analysts believe that mounting resentment from writers towards management has been building for years and could lead to a lengthy strike.
A WGA strike in 1988 lasted 22 weeks and cost the industry an estimated 500 million dollars. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has warned that a similar strike today could cost the industry almost double.
"If it (cost the industry) 500 million dollars in 1988, a slowdown of that length would have over a one billion dollar impact today," Villaraigosa told the Los Angeles Times. "I'm very concerned."
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
TUESDAY'S SILLINESS.
Status: Currently writing on The Vampiress Hunter--Chapter 8.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out.
Watching: NBC News
Listening to: "Nevermeant-V2"--by Razed in Black
Reading: Requiem by Michael Jan Friedman and Kevin Ryan
TOPIC: GARFIELD!
Whether you are a writer or not--this one made me laugh...
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
TUESDAY TIDBITS.
Status: Currently writing on The Vampiress Hunter--Chapter 4.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out. (Not to mention bleeding from passing of more kidney stones.)
Watching: Rick Steve's Europe on PBS.
Listening to: "Cowgirl" by Underworld; "Head Like A Hole" by Devo; "The Touch" by Stan Bush
Reading: Reunion by Michael Jan Friedman
TOPIC: GETTING BACK ON THE HORSE
Yeah. It sucks.
Being set back from your goals.
But I am not going to let these problems hinder me from delivering one kick-ass novel.
The Starchild will be published--whether I have something to say about it or not.
So, to get things going again, I have begun Chapter 5 of The Vampiress Hunter. (If I can only stop from hitting the G-key every time I try to spell the last part of the title...? Sigh...)
Anyway, some deviations from the norm about vampires so far:
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails; working out. (Not to mention bleeding from passing of more kidney stones.)
Watching: Rick Steve's Europe on PBS.
Listening to: "Cowgirl" by Underworld; "Head Like A Hole" by Devo; "The Touch" by Stan Bush
Reading: Reunion by Michael Jan Friedman
TOPIC: GETTING BACK ON THE HORSE
Yeah. It sucks.
Being set back from your goals.
But I am not going to let these problems hinder me from delivering one kick-ass novel.
The Starchild will be published--whether I have something to say about it or not.
So, to get things going again, I have begun Chapter 5 of The Vampiress Hunter. (If I can only stop from hitting the G-key every time I try to spell the last part of the title...? Sigh...)
Anyway, some deviations from the norm about vampires so far:
- Maria likes cats and has one of her own. His name is Sebastian. And he's a bug-eater extraordinaire
- She watches TV.
- She also eats. What, I'll have to invent. (If she likes chocolate--then she likes other things--right? Does this make her a true vampire? I dunno. Quite frankly, I enjoy bending the classic genres and breaking them a little. Gives people something new to look forward to.) But it's not moshing on blood packets--like they show in the movies, shows, and whatnot.
More in a bit.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR.
Status: Currently writing on Zombie Nation: Outbreak Zero--Chapter 11.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: SMALLVILLE; SUPERNATURAL
Listening to: "So Much For Salvation" by Mindless Faith
Reading: Reunion by Michael Jan Friedman
TOPIC: RELEASE DATE FOR THE STARCHILD DELAYED OR DEAD--TAKE YOUR PICK.
Like so many times in the past, I've had to deal with insurmountable obstacles in getting my books done, books being published, and so on.
So many times, I've had to halt my projects over the years because of times of personal crisis, transition, and even moving from one state to the next--only to resume; only to start again.
From scratch.
7 years ago, I was this close to publishing The Starchild. But 9/11 happened and my dreams of becoming a traditionally published author went up in smoke.
So I had to start over and start from scratch. Again.
This time, I thought for certain that I was going to overcome this...stigma, and finally be able to have a book under my belt.
Even if it's self-publishing.
Unfortunately, that's not to be the case.
Since I don't have a job--and things look to make it so that I can't trust myself to work again--my Social Security benefits have been used to partially fund my dreams.
I thought for sure that nothing would be able to interfere with that.
Sadly, this isn't one of those times.
In 2000, I was working 2 jobs to support myself--having lived with an ex-roomie of mine since 1997; off and on.
At this time, I wasn't receiving Social Security--but I was still getting my medical. Now whether or not this ties in with the debt I now owe Social Security--I don't know.
But the sudden $3,191 that I owe (7 years later) has now crushed any slim chances that I will be able to publish The Starchild until at least 2012.
It's going to take me 29 months to finish the payments instead of 10. (I still have $2200 to go.)
And I can't repeal this. Social Security is adamant that I pay back the amount that I owe. It's either that or face termination--and that includes my medical--until April of 2008.
But given the fact that I need my medical to stay alive, there is little I can do.
I don't know how I've been able to stay afloat on what little I have, but now, I am going to have less.
Starting in November, my new amount until 2011 will be $519.
And that's if housing will accept the fact that I have lost $115 in my income--rather than just having withheld it. Because all I will have is $262 left open. And I have $176 dollars in bills each month to pay.
I know, it's not much left on limited income. But there's nothing I can do. Finding work--now--is just going to kill me later with my benefits.
That's the hard lesson that I've learned about being disabled: You can't trust anything Social Security says anymore. It's just one big trap.
Apologies to anyone and everyone has been hoping to buy the book in a couple of years.
I know that this isn't what you wanted to hear. But my hands are tied again.
I just wish there was some other way I can do this quickly and efficiently. I really do.
But I am fresh out of miracles on this front. I played a good hand for the longest time and I lost.
Now, all I can do...
Is start over from scratch. Begin again.
Sky
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: SMALLVILLE; SUPERNATURAL
Listening to: "So Much For Salvation" by Mindless Faith
Reading: Reunion by Michael Jan Friedman
TOPIC: RELEASE DATE FOR THE STARCHILD DELAYED OR DEAD--TAKE YOUR PICK.
Like so many times in the past, I've had to deal with insurmountable obstacles in getting my books done, books being published, and so on.
So many times, I've had to halt my projects over the years because of times of personal crisis, transition, and even moving from one state to the next--only to resume; only to start again.
From scratch.
7 years ago, I was this close to publishing The Starchild. But 9/11 happened and my dreams of becoming a traditionally published author went up in smoke.
So I had to start over and start from scratch. Again.
This time, I thought for certain that I was going to overcome this...stigma, and finally be able to have a book under my belt.
Even if it's self-publishing.
Unfortunately, that's not to be the case.
Since I don't have a job--and things look to make it so that I can't trust myself to work again--my Social Security benefits have been used to partially fund my dreams.
I thought for sure that nothing would be able to interfere with that.
Sadly, this isn't one of those times.
In 2000, I was working 2 jobs to support myself--having lived with an ex-roomie of mine since 1997; off and on.
At this time, I wasn't receiving Social Security--but I was still getting my medical. Now whether or not this ties in with the debt I now owe Social Security--I don't know.
But the sudden $3,191 that I owe (7 years later) has now crushed any slim chances that I will be able to publish The Starchild until at least 2012.
Or 2019. I don't know. Depends on what happens next month.
As some people know, I've invested in the services of a professional editor, but this sudden drop in my income has put a serious question mark on my ability to keep the payments going every month.It's going to take me 29 months to finish the payments instead of 10. (I still have $2200 to go.)
And I can't repeal this. Social Security is adamant that I pay back the amount that I owe. It's either that or face termination--and that includes my medical--until April of 2008.
But given the fact that I need my medical to stay alive, there is little I can do.
I don't know how I've been able to stay afloat on what little I have, but now, I am going to have less.
Starting in November, my new amount until 2011 will be $519.
And that's if housing will accept the fact that I have lost $115 in my income--rather than just having withheld it. Because all I will have is $262 left open. And I have $176 dollars in bills each month to pay.
I know, it's not much left on limited income. But there's nothing I can do. Finding work--now--is just going to kill me later with my benefits.
That's the hard lesson that I've learned about being disabled: You can't trust anything Social Security says anymore. It's just one big trap.
Apologies to anyone and everyone has been hoping to buy the book in a couple of years.
I know that this isn't what you wanted to hear. But my hands are tied again.
I just wish there was some other way I can do this quickly and efficiently. I really do.
But I am fresh out of miracles on this front. I played a good hand for the longest time and I lost.
Now, all I can do...
Is start over from scratch. Begin again.
Sky
Sunday, October 7, 2007
EMILY ROSE JORDAN--DONE BY MYKIA TANISHA
Status: Currently writing on Zombie Nation: Outbreak Zero--Chapter 11.Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: STARGATE SG-1; STARGATE: ATLANTIS
Listening to: "Suicide Blonde" and "Disappear" by INXS; "Free Your Hate" by KMFDM
Reading: Finished Resistance by J.M. Dillard (ST-TNG)
Man what a great book!
TOPIC: CHECK IT OUT MY FELLOW BLOGGERS!
Thanks to the kind-heartedness of a fellow writer and artist, the world now gets to take a peek into what Emily Rose Jordan looks like--based on the physical descriptions I gave her; plus one anime pic which I helped give Mykia as a guide.
Emily Rose Jordan may not look it, but but she's really a kick-ass ninja girl whose about to go and save the world from--what else?
ZOMBIES.
This is--of course--in reference to my new novel, Zombie Nation: Outbreak Zero.
Emily is 15-years-old and a junior at a local high school in Forks. Her hobbies are writing, surfing the 'net, and has this crush on a boy at her school.--besides her ongoing martial arts training. (Which was the result of a traumatic childhood incident when she was only 7.)
So what do you think? Did Mykia did a good job or what?
Thursday, October 4, 2007
WAKING UP.
Status: Currently writing on Zombie Nation: Outbreak Zero--Chapter 10.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: KIRO 7 News; CBS Evening News
Listening to: "Singular" by Mindless Faith
Reading: Resistance by J.M. Dillard (ST-TNG) (On page 225 finally!)
TOPIC: WRITE HOW YOU WANT, PUBLISH HOWEVER YOU WANT TO
The current argument that I've been getting is: "You're not a real author until you're traditionally published."
And it's lame. What we (writers) are being told is that no one will take us seriously enough unless we're taken in by Random House, Bantam, or Tor Books.
And even then, people still don't take us seriously enough!
Getting traditionally published doesn't mean you gain instant respect and accolades from your peers.
In many respects, you're still an unknown author and your chances of making it are pretty small.
But these prideful writers who are pushing people like you and me to become traditionally published are still ignorant of the facts and the odds behind such an endeavor.
Personally, I would love to be traditionally published. Y'know?
To see my book on the shelves so prominently.
But things are tight right now in the marketplace and not many agents or publishers are taking on new authors. The reason behind it is simply this: Money and the bottom line.
The publishers are facing a problem with people not reading enough books these days. The internet and online reading has gained traction and is tearing many traditional readers away from the paperback variety.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: KIRO 7 News; CBS Evening News
Listening to: "Singular" by Mindless Faith
Reading: Resistance by J.M. Dillard (ST-TNG) (On page 225 finally!)
TOPIC: WRITE HOW YOU WANT, PUBLISH HOWEVER YOU WANT TO
The current argument that I've been getting is: "You're not a real author until you're traditionally published."
And it's lame. What we (writers) are being told is that no one will take us seriously enough unless we're taken in by Random House, Bantam, or Tor Books.
And even then, people still don't take us seriously enough!
Getting traditionally published doesn't mean you gain instant respect and accolades from your peers.
In many respects, you're still an unknown author and your chances of making it are pretty small.
But these prideful writers who are pushing people like you and me to become traditionally published are still ignorant of the facts and the odds behind such an endeavor.
Personally, I would love to be traditionally published. Y'know?
To see my book on the shelves so prominently.
But things are tight right now in the marketplace and not many agents or publishers are taking on new authors. The reason behind it is simply this: Money and the bottom line.
The publishers are facing a problem with people not reading enough books these days. The internet and online reading has gained traction and is tearing many traditional readers away from the paperback variety.
Then you have costumers shopping from their homes--on their computers (just as the Jetsons predicted would happen decades ago), and you have even less reason for people to go shopping at their once favorite reading haunts.
To top that off, the last Harry Potter novel did little to save Barnes and Noble, and Borders bottom line in the last quarter--as predicted. Adding severely limited shelf space, the rising costs of books, and you have a real nightmare for the publishers.
And even still, I am being told to traditionally publish. To keep going.
But I've already done that.
I spent 8 long years pushing myself to become traditionally published. I sent out dozens and dozens of query letters; all rejected out of hand.
The reason? None of the agents or publishers took fiction.
But not their brand of fiction. Just mine.
What I write isn't what they want.
So where does that leave me?
Well, ever since I announced my intentions that I was going to self-publish my books under my own imprint, there has been (naturally) some resistance to the idea. It isn't the imprint part that's got some people up in arms, but the self-publishing part.
Many people mistaken that for vanity-press, and so they think that's what I'm doing.
But the irritating part is, is that this isn't what I am doing.
Despite me telling them that this isn't vanity-press, I'm still getting hammered for my choices in publishing or even writing my books how I want.
They still want me to traditionally publish. How many times will I have to say, "No!"?--before they get it through their heads???
I am not interested in the maintream any longer! I have done my bit for king and country--and I am not the least bit inclined to continue spending the rest of my life trying to get into an establishment that is more based on chance than it is on reality.
Please do me the courtesy of allowing me to follow my dreams however I wish., okay? And support me because I am an author just looking to share his numerous works with fellow readers.
I don't need adulation, approval, a ton of money, or an overpowering fan base to know that what I write is good enough for the big guns.
I just want to write what I would like to see read.
Even if the mainstream industry doesn't.
If you like my books, then tell me. But don't ask me to hold back on my imagination.
That's not what an author should do in order to become successful in his or her endeavors.
THURSDAY DREARINESS
Status: Currently writing on Zombie Nation: Outbreak Zero--Chapter 10.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: Nothing at the moment
Listening to: "Pistolero" by Juno Reactor; "Caanan" by Mindless Faith
Reading: Resistance by J.M. Dillard (ST-TNG) (On page 225 finally!)
TOPIC: UPDATE
Last few days have been pretty busy. My sleeping patterns have gone askew--and I've been writing like crazy on Zombie Nation: Outbreak Zero.
I creamed an astonishing 4,255 words yesterday--never thinking that operating on 4-hours of sleep could do that to you. (I napped for another 4.5 hours today.)
But things have gone full steam ahead. The novel is presently sitting at 118 pages in less than a couple weeks worth of writing.
In the last chapter, Emily wanted to leave, but she ended up tangling with hospital guards instead. Then the police came and the SWAT-teams; and all hell broke loose.
The girl got arrested and she's looking at some jail time, but I don't know how things are going to play out.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: Nothing at the moment
Listening to: "Pistolero" by Juno Reactor; "Caanan" by Mindless Faith
Reading: Resistance by J.M. Dillard (ST-TNG) (On page 225 finally!)
TOPIC: UPDATE
Last few days have been pretty busy. My sleeping patterns have gone askew--and I've been writing like crazy on Zombie Nation: Outbreak Zero.
I creamed an astonishing 4,255 words yesterday--never thinking that operating on 4-hours of sleep could do that to you. (I napped for another 4.5 hours today.)
But things have gone full steam ahead. The novel is presently sitting at 118 pages in less than a couple weeks worth of writing.
In the last chapter, Emily wanted to leave, but she ended up tangling with hospital guards instead. Then the police came and the SWAT-teams; and all hell broke loose.
The girl got arrested and she's looking at some jail time, but I don't know how things are going to play out.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
WEEKEND CHAOS.
Status: Currently writing on Zombie Nation: Outbreak Zero; Chapter 179 of The Price of Freedom
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: Pink Floyd's "Live Pulse" concert on PBS. (From 1994)
Listening to: Nothing at the moment. Pink Floyd will do for the time being. :0)
Reading: Resistance by J.M. Dillard (ST-TNG) (On page 225 finally!)
TOPIC: MILESTONE OF MILESTONES
This one should've gone out a few days ago. But I was so backlogged on e-mails--I haven't had the time to post a new entry.
Oddly enough, ourecho.com doesn't seem to be functioning at the moment. (shrugs)
So I can't post my monthly chapter entries for this month.
Anyway, I am currently at 302,795 words on The Price of Freedom. Chapter 179.
Things have taken a turn for the interesting--to say the least. Kayla Sorenson transformed yet again and this time, she appears to be completely disconnected from reality and those around her.
Kenneth tries to reason with her, but he ends up getting smacked around again--like the last time in Union City; prior to the city's destruction.
But this is on the heels of an F5 tornado which came out of nowhere--and sucked everyone involved inside it.
Hence, Kayla's transformation.
So this time around, she's more light and energy--but she's also machine as well. An interesting angelic hybrid if I do say so myself. :0)
Unfortunately for Kenneth, he's weaponless. The twister sucked up their weapons when the old farmhouse was broadsided.
So I don't know what's going to happen as a result of this new encounter. I'll be finding out when the new month starts.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: Pink Floyd's "Live Pulse" concert on PBS. (From 1994)
Listening to: Nothing at the moment. Pink Floyd will do for the time being. :0)
Reading: Resistance by J.M. Dillard (ST-TNG) (On page 225 finally!)
TOPIC: MILESTONE OF MILESTONES
This one should've gone out a few days ago. But I was so backlogged on e-mails--I haven't had the time to post a new entry.
Oddly enough, ourecho.com doesn't seem to be functioning at the moment. (shrugs)
So I can't post my monthly chapter entries for this month.
Anyway, I am currently at 302,795 words on The Price of Freedom. Chapter 179.
Things have taken a turn for the interesting--to say the least. Kayla Sorenson transformed yet again and this time, she appears to be completely disconnected from reality and those around her.
Kenneth tries to reason with her, but he ends up getting smacked around again--like the last time in Union City; prior to the city's destruction.
But this is on the heels of an F5 tornado which came out of nowhere--and sucked everyone involved inside it.
Hence, Kayla's transformation.
So this time around, she's more light and energy--but she's also machine as well. An interesting angelic hybrid if I do say so myself. :0)
Unfortunately for Kenneth, he's weaponless. The twister sucked up their weapons when the old farmhouse was broadsided.
So I don't know what's going to happen as a result of this new encounter. I'll be finding out when the new month starts.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
SUNDAY, SUNDAY, SUNDAY.
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom; Zombie Nation: Outbreak Zero
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: Bears vs. Cowboys (10-10; 3rd quarter with 6:24 left to play.)
Listening to: "Sugar Steps" by Kama Sutra (Visions of Ibiza; Chicane--Disc 1); "Maniacal" by Frontline Assembly; "Chemical End" by Death Horror Incorporated (or DHI)
Reading: Resistance by J.M. Dillard (ST-TNG)
TOPIC: CAR INDUSTRY ANALOGY WITH THE PUBLISHING WORLD
I've found that the whole business model of publishing has some severe design limitations.
In order for them to be successful, you have to write what they want for their little co-op readership.
Secondly, not every book gets selected for representation or publishing--which further limits what they can and cannot publish. (They've set up a box for themselves. A box that they cannot escape from so easily.)
Furthermore, they limit themselves to an ever-changing publishing standard which further alienates even more writers from becoming successful. In order for them to be accepted, they have to lower themselves to the same level at which the publishing apparat operates.
Depending on how you look at it, it can be good for you. But then again, it may not be--since there are a lot of inherent pitfalls.
And on top of that, the whole enchillada is slow to adapt, slow to respond, and slow to evolve to anything which threatens their little domain of absolute supremacy.
So of course, you'll see a lot of vanity-press rackets pop up. Because they are catering to a wide audience of desperate and blind authors--who are ill-equipped to deal with the burdens of being published traditionally.
But at the same time--the publishing industry is ill-equipped to deal with the foreknowledge that their time is now limited by the very technologies which have made their cornerstone of the marketplace--obsolete. The same technologies which they had--at first--spurned out of hand.
And it's that same technology which has allowed each and every one of us to break out of the 'wait and see' mold.
Why wait to see if something good comes around? If it's not there, then invent it yourself. Give yourself a home. A platform from which to operate from.
Let the publishing industry wallow in blind obscurity and the vanity-presses die in blithe arrogance--into believing that they are 'traditional press ops'.
Waiting is for fools. No man (or woman) should have to put their dreams of success on hold because some corporate snog told them they "weren't good enough".
That's what pioneers are for. To blaze new trails.
At least, that's how I look at this whole thing.
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: Bears vs. Cowboys (10-10; 3rd quarter with 6:24 left to play.)
Listening to: "Sugar Steps" by Kama Sutra (Visions of Ibiza; Chicane--Disc 1); "Maniacal" by Frontline Assembly; "Chemical End" by Death Horror Incorporated (or DHI)
Reading: Resistance by J.M. Dillard (ST-TNG)
TOPIC: CAR INDUSTRY ANALOGY WITH THE PUBLISHING WORLD
I've found that the whole business model of publishing has some severe design limitations.
In order for them to be successful, you have to write what they want for their little co-op readership.
Secondly, not every book gets selected for representation or publishing--which further limits what they can and cannot publish. (They've set up a box for themselves. A box that they cannot escape from so easily.)
Furthermore, they limit themselves to an ever-changing publishing standard which further alienates even more writers from becoming successful. In order for them to be accepted, they have to lower themselves to the same level at which the publishing apparat operates.
Depending on how you look at it, it can be good for you. But then again, it may not be--since there are a lot of inherent pitfalls.
And on top of that, the whole enchillada is slow to adapt, slow to respond, and slow to evolve to anything which threatens their little domain of absolute supremacy.
So of course, you'll see a lot of vanity-press rackets pop up. Because they are catering to a wide audience of desperate and blind authors--who are ill-equipped to deal with the burdens of being published traditionally.
But at the same time--the publishing industry is ill-equipped to deal with the foreknowledge that their time is now limited by the very technologies which have made their cornerstone of the marketplace--obsolete. The same technologies which they had--at first--spurned out of hand.
And it's that same technology which has allowed each and every one of us to break out of the 'wait and see' mold.
Why wait to see if something good comes around? If it's not there, then invent it yourself. Give yourself a home. A platform from which to operate from.
Let the publishing industry wallow in blind obscurity and the vanity-presses die in blithe arrogance--into believing that they are 'traditional press ops'.
Waiting is for fools. No man (or woman) should have to put their dreams of success on hold because some corporate snog told them they "weren't good enough".
That's what pioneers are for. To blaze new trails.
At least, that's how I look at this whole thing.
Friday, September 21, 2007
FRIDAY NIGHT
Status: Currently writing on The Price of Freedom; Zombie Nation: Outbreak Zero
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: Q13 News
Listening to: "Hunger" by Spectre General; "Humans Being" by Van Halen; "Share This Poison" by Razed in Black
Reading: Resistance by J.M. Dillard (ST-TNG)
TOPIC: ZOMBIE NATION: OUTBREAK ZERO UPDATE
Chapter 1 has 14 pages done so far
Chapter 2 has 17 pages done so far
Chapter 3 has 12 pages done so far--and things are a real mess for Emily Rose Jordan.
Because she's trapped alone with her alcoholic mother--she had no recourse but to dump her mom's booze down the sink and toss the bulk of the cans in the recycling bin.
But when her mom found out about it, she went on the rampage--and pretty much bitchslapped her daughter out of a sound sleep. But Emily didn't stay dazed for long and managed to subdue her mother by accidentally spraining her wrist in the process.
After some choice words from her mother (okay--so there were more than a few choice words), Emily confronted her mother over who she was:
“You wanted me to train and become better able to defend myself–because of what happened with Tiffany. Remember? You held me in my arms after that serial rapist was caught by the police and sentenced to 47 years in jail for first-degree rape and other outstanding charges–including those from four warrants in five other states.
“You told me: ‘Never again, sweetie. I want you to know that. I wasn’t able to do anything to protect both you and your sister.’ ” I looked at her–seeing the shock registering on her face.
“I didn’t think you would’ve remembered that. I thought you were too traumatized by that incident. Even the state psychologists and school councilors said you wouldn’t remember much of that terrible day.” She said.
I looked away from her and then down at the floor.
It took me awhile to find my voice. And my strength of will.
“I remember mom, because I wanted something by which to keep me focused and determined when you and dad enrolled me in those defense classes over in Port Angeles. I didn’t want to forget.” I said with a shaky voice filled with rage and raw anger.
“Tiffany was badly affected by that and she never had the chance at romance, mother. Never had a chance for a normal life or a halfway decent relationship with any boy at school. Because that bastard stole something more precious than a teenage girl’s virginity: Her fucking innocence.”
I stood up then and smoothed out the wrinkles in my pants and dusted myself off. My face still stung like hell, but I wasn’t about to let a little annoyance like a bruise get the best of me.
Even if it was delivered by my own mother.
I looked at the clock and found that the digital hands had read 9:16 in the morning. I went to bed right after I finished with some business in the kitchen–right before I dumped a fresh bag of beer cans into the recycle bin for the trash guys to come and collect.
I couldn’t even remember falling asleep after my head hit the pillow. But I knew that my mom was going to be pissed off more than a mother hen when she woke up from her siesta and found that her cherished stash of booze was gone from the fridge’s cold caress.
“I became what you wanted me to be mom: A cold and distant fighter. Someone who wasn’t going to back down from a situation like the one last year in our own house. And I gave those jerks what they deserved. Every second of it. I didn’t shrink from my duties as the oldest member of the house–seeing how Chuck had gone over to his friend’s house for the night and Tiff was still away at Florida State.” I said tightly–my voice trembling a little. “I embraced them–as any good daughter would.”
But her mom still wasn't thrilled with what happened with her beer--but she didn't press her on the subject matter afterwards.
If you're still wondering when I'm going to get to the flesh-eating zombie part--be patient. This novel hasn't hit its full stride yet.
I still have a lot of work to do on the book.
Yesterday, I found some updated articles on the meteorite hit in Peru and found that the hole caused by the impact was of pretty good-size.
So more material for me to use. :0)
Doing: Writing this blog; surfing the net; answering e-mails
Watching: Q13 News
Listening to: "Hunger" by Spectre General; "Humans Being" by Van Halen; "Share This Poison" by Razed in Black
Reading: Resistance by J.M. Dillard (ST-TNG)
TOPIC: ZOMBIE NATION: OUTBREAK ZERO UPDATE
Chapter 1 has 14 pages done so far
Chapter 2 has 17 pages done so far
Chapter 3 has 12 pages done so far--and things are a real mess for Emily Rose Jordan.
Because she's trapped alone with her alcoholic mother--she had no recourse but to dump her mom's booze down the sink and toss the bulk of the cans in the recycling bin.
But when her mom found out about it, she went on the rampage--and pretty much bitchslapped her daughter out of a sound sleep. But Emily didn't stay dazed for long and managed to subdue her mother by accidentally spraining her wrist in the process.
After some choice words from her mother (okay--so there were more than a few choice words), Emily confronted her mother over who she was:
“You wanted me to train and become better able to defend myself–because of what happened with Tiffany. Remember? You held me in my arms after that serial rapist was caught by the police and sentenced to 47 years in jail for first-degree rape and other outstanding charges–including those from four warrants in five other states.
“You told me: ‘Never again, sweetie. I want you to know that. I wasn’t able to do anything to protect both you and your sister.’ ” I looked at her–seeing the shock registering on her face.
“I didn’t think you would’ve remembered that. I thought you were too traumatized by that incident. Even the state psychologists and school councilors said you wouldn’t remember much of that terrible day.” She said.
I looked away from her and then down at the floor.
It took me awhile to find my voice. And my strength of will.
“I remember mom, because I wanted something by which to keep me focused and determined when you and dad enrolled me in those defense classes over in Port Angeles. I didn’t want to forget.” I said with a shaky voice filled with rage and raw anger.
“Tiffany was badly affected by that and she never had the chance at romance, mother. Never had a chance for a normal life or a halfway decent relationship with any boy at school. Because that bastard stole something more precious than a teenage girl’s virginity: Her fucking innocence.”
I stood up then and smoothed out the wrinkles in my pants and dusted myself off. My face still stung like hell, but I wasn’t about to let a little annoyance like a bruise get the best of me.
Even if it was delivered by my own mother.
I looked at the clock and found that the digital hands had read 9:16 in the morning. I went to bed right after I finished with some business in the kitchen–right before I dumped a fresh bag of beer cans into the recycle bin for the trash guys to come and collect.
I couldn’t even remember falling asleep after my head hit the pillow. But I knew that my mom was going to be pissed off more than a mother hen when she woke up from her siesta and found that her cherished stash of booze was gone from the fridge’s cold caress.
“I became what you wanted me to be mom: A cold and distant fighter. Someone who wasn’t going to back down from a situation like the one last year in our own house. And I gave those jerks what they deserved. Every second of it. I didn’t shrink from my duties as the oldest member of the house–seeing how Chuck had gone over to his friend’s house for the night and Tiff was still away at Florida State.” I said tightly–my voice trembling a little. “I embraced them–as any good daughter would.”
But her mom still wasn't thrilled with what happened with her beer--but she didn't press her on the subject matter afterwards.
If you're still wondering when I'm going to get to the flesh-eating zombie part--be patient. This novel hasn't hit its full stride yet.
I still have a lot of work to do on the book.
Yesterday, I found some updated articles on the meteorite hit in Peru and found that the hole caused by the impact was of pretty good-size.
So more material for me to use. :0)
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