bigotry

Work in Progress: Bones of Earth. aka Why the Writing is So Slow.

Bones of Earth
Heir to the Firstborn, Book 3

55602 / 95000 (58.53%)
I’m not sure what writing week it is anymore. I lost track over the winter break. Which I really didn’t have much of. And frankly, I’m shocked that I got as many words in as the counter says I did. Over 5K words? Amazing!
So why am I so shocked? Well, if you follow me on Twitter, you know the reason. The Romance Writers of America has imploded, and… well, I kinda got involved.  And that involvement has eaten my brain.
It’s bad, folks. It’s REALLY bad.
How bad?

Well, in writing terms, it took three weeks to write one chapter. I literally have two chapters of Bones of Earth queued and ready to go, and I’m panicking a little. I haven’t missed a week in two and a half books! I don’t want to miss one NOW!

If you’ve missed the whole RWA mess, check out Claire Ryan’s blog — she’s keeping it current. However, if you don’t want to go check out Claire’s blog (which I do recommend), here’s the “in a nutshell” explanation.  A conman manipulated his way into the Presidency, and in doing so, he weaponized the RWA’s systemic racist, homophobic undercurrent. Then he picked exactly the WRONG target for his first salvo. And he completely underestimated just how ferocious Romancelandia can be when provoked.

He’s gone now. he resigned when it became clear that we were on to him — that we knew his credentials were a fraud (and just how that wasn’t discovered last year is  a question that still needs to be answered).

But that undercurrent has been exposed for the whole world to see, and the RWA is in a shambles. It’s hemorrhaging members,  the RITAS have been cancelled this year, and there’s a possibility the National conference might go that way. There are no sponsors left — they all bailed. A lot of the speakers are withdrawing, as are publishers and agents. There’s not much left.

We either need to rebuild it… or put it out of it’s misery.

I’d like to rebuild. Which is why it’s taken me three weeks to write one chapter! And why I didn’t have much of a winter break to speak of — that first salvo went out at COB on December 23rd.  (The resulting uproar brought the RWA Board back in to session on Christmas Eve to rescind their decision. )

Now I need to figure out how to find balance — working with the people who think the RWA can be saved to do just that, working with the chapter of which I just became President-Elect, and… well… WRITING. Oh, and being a full-time mom to a rising high schooler.

And to think, I thought this year was going to be easy!

Posted by EASchechter in 2020 plans, a-writers-life-is-never-dull, accountability, Adavar, bigotry, Bones of Earth, Heir to the Firstborn, Waiting-for-the-other-shoe, why-the-writing-is-slow, WIP, wordcount, Write Faster!, 0 comments

A certain movie…

There’s a certain movie coming out, written by a certain Bigot. And I know a lot of people are conflicted about wanting to see it, but not wanting to support said Bigot.

So… here’s a suggestion. Go. Go see the movie. Enjoy it. (Let me know how it is. I’m not interested in going. I’m waiting for Thor and the next Hobbit movie.)

Then… donate the cost of your ticket to FCKH8, or some other QUILTBAG organization.

AND do it in HIS name.

If enough people do it, then his head just might explode…

Edited because it has been pointed out to me that one of the organizations I originally suggested isn’t as positive as I’d previously thought.

 

Posted by EASchechter in annoyance, bigotry, deep thoughts, easily amused writer, 2 comments

Speechless…

Orson Scott Card is a fine writer. I used to be a big fan of his, one of the people in the “WHERE IS THE NEXT ALVIN MAKER BOOK???” camp (and then he wrote it, and I wish he’d waited a little longer. But that is neither here nor there…)

Used to be. That’s the operative phrase.

These days, I wouldn’t buy an Orson Scott Card book if you held a gun to my head. Because I won’t put my coin in the pocket of a rampant homophobic who has gone on the record as saying that homosexuals should not have equal rights, and that homosexual acts should be  criminalized. Not only that, he has advocated overthrowing the government  of any nation (including the US!) that grants homosexuals equal rights, or that does not criminalize homosexual acts.

So I suppose it should come as no surprise that Card’s latest work is violently homophobic. What is that work, I hear you ask? Why,  a retelling of Hamlet, of course.  No, I’m not linking to the book. I will, however, link to the review.

Now, Mr. Alexander (the reviewer), says everything I would want to say, and says it far better than I could. To be honest, right now, I’m more at the stage of sputter…sputter… whiskey  tango FOXTROT???

And my reaction isn’t because Card wrote this. Anyone who is following along and playing Homophobic Bingo: the Home Game just maxed out their score. This is no surprise.

The surprise is that Subterranean Press published it. Subterranean is a boutique press — usually, they publish collectables and limited editions. The only reason I can think of that they would publish a piece of hateful dreck like this is that they KNOW there is a cash cow here. Card’s followers in the Mormon Church and the National Organization of Marriage will buy this book. Die-hard fans who don’t care that the man is a homophobic ass will buy this book. And the shit-storm that is going to arise on the blog-o-sphere because of the message in this book is going to fuel those sales.

But really, Subterranean, is that how you want to make your money? Really?

Posted by EASchechter, 3 comments

>Silver Lining

>I suppose a good thing that comes out of Elizabeth Moon’s screed is that it saves me a boatload of money. Now I don’t have to buy any of her books.

Honestly, you’d expect one of the luminaries of SFF to not have her head so far up her ass she can count her own back teeth…

Posted by EASchechter in bigotry, someone-is-wrong-on-the-internet, 0 comments