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“Fantastic Heroines of Sci-Fi and Fantasy”
On Saturday, October 27th, at 8 PM, the Baltimore Science Fiction Society (BSFS), located at 3310 East Baltimore Street, Baltimore, MD 21224, will host a roundtable discussion by four professional female authors on the topic of “Fantastic Heroines of Sci-Fi…
Judge Rules Against Authors Guild in HathiTrust Lawsuit
On the heels of several publishers’ secret settlement deal with Google in the long-running Google Books lawsuit, a judge has made a major ruling in another lawsuit over book scanning.
Guest Post: Your Secret Story
A secret story should be yours alone: about who you are, who you want to be. Who you believe yourself to be, under all the social conventions and expectations. Are you secretly a sorceress? A priestess?
Writers Slam Secrecy of Book Publishers’ Deal with Google
National writers’ organizations representing authors of books in a variety of genres believe a secret deal between Google and major book publishers may encourage Google to digitize, use, and sell copyrighted books illegally.
Define Me: The Role of Changelings in Folklore
It’s human nature to take the inexplicable things in life and try to make sense out of it. What are those eerie lights that dance around in the swamp at night?
Publishers Settle With Google–But What About Authors?
Seven years ago, the Authors Guild and several major publishers (including McGraw Hill, Penguin, and John Wiley) filed suit against Google for its unauthorized scanning of in-copyright books.
Guest Post: Enter the Dragon*Con
If you haven’t been to Dragon*Con before, here’s a little background. The convention takes place, technically, from Friday-Monday, over Labor Day weekend, in Atlanta. Most people come in on Thursday.
Guest Post: A Comet is Coming!
But there’s a promising new comet candidate that could rival the moon in brightness and be visible in the day time sky late in 2013.
Class Action Lawsuit Against PublishAmerica Dismissed
On June 11 of this year, a class action lawsuit was filed against PublishAmerica by a Baltimore, MD law firm, in association with high-profile litigators Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro.
Among other things, the complaint alleged that PA makes money off its…
One About One: Part 2
Don DeLillo wrote: “One truth is the swing of the sentence, the beat and poise, but down deeper it’s the integrity of the writer as he matches with the language.”
Can the same thing be said about a writer’s connection to…
One About One
In Silent Interviews, Samuel R. Delany said: “I begin, a sentence lover. I’m forever delighted, then delighted all over, at the things sentences can trip and trick you into saying, into seeing. I’m astonished—just plain tickled!—at the sharp turns…
Quick Updates for 2012-09-25
Member News for Beth Cato, Larry Niven, Edward M. Lerner, and Athena Andreadis.
Guest Post: The Habit of Starting
The biggest reason people fail at creating and sticking to new habits is that they don’t keep doing it.
That seems obvious: if you don’t keep doing a habit, it won’t really become a habit. So what’s the solution to this…
Cat Rambo: Near and Far
I’ve found that editing other writers’ work often forces me to articulate my philosophy of writing, which helps me then turn around and apply it to my own. When you’re telling people to avoid adverbs, for instance, it’s worthwhile to…
Guest Post: Does Online Writers Workshopping Slow a Writer’s Growth?
When I first decided to take up writing as a serious pursuit, I figured the best way to get started was to ask a writer for advice. My lucky break was that Connie Willis happened to be in town to…
SFWA Website Repaired
Sunday morning, Google Webmaster Tools detected a malicious iframe added to the SFWA.org website. Google flagged the site as insecure and displays a message warning visitors before allowing them to access the site.
Guest Post: Procrastination
I’ve been meaning to complete this piece for months but, well, you know how it goes: first there was that story that needed something I just couldn’t put my finger on, so I put it aside for a moment and…
Odyssey Writing Workshop Rocks WorldCon 2012
with the Tom Bombadil Rap
When I first heard that many nonprofit organizations were holding flashmobs to raise awareness of their activities, I realized this would be a great idea for Odyssey. I also had an idea of what we might do: the Tom Bombadil…
Quick Updates for 2012-09-12
Member News for Samantha Henderson and Jennifer Brozek.
WSFA Announces Finalists for the 2012 Small Press Awards
The Washington Science Fiction Association has announced the finalists for the 2012 WSFA Small Press Award for Short Fiction:
Writer Beware is on Vacation
Actually, I’m on staycation, but I’ll be cutting way back on the Web stuff for the next two weeks. I’ll be back the week of September 24.
Guest Blog Post Writers Be-Wary: Electronic Distribution and Control of Creative Material
Today: another guest blog post of relevance to freelance writers. This one covers content aggregators, and the pitfalls that may be lurking in their Terms of Use.
Guest Post: Advice on Writing Mentors
One of the things that sometimes comes up when talking to new writers is the question, “How do I acquire mentor?” There’s a glazed and desperate look in the eyes of each querier, and sometimes a bit of professional…
Guest Blog Post: 7 Freelance Writing Scams and How to Fight Them
If you’re a freelance writer, you’re probably under constant pressure to get the next paying gig and to keep the money flowing. This can override your caution and leave you vulnerable to scammers. I know, because I’ve been there myself.