A Very Good Point

I have a new object of desire, it's called a Randoseru. I can't decide if I want a blue one or a purple one. But that's beside the point....



Over on RFF, where this was inserted half-jokingly into a thread about camera bag, someone commented: "It is interesting that Japanese kids are started off with ~USD $300 backpacks that they use for 6 years, while in America, the kids use $30 Jansport lead-laden Chinese backpacks, and replace them every year ..."

Which is a very good point. Which culture learns more about concepts like quality, maintenance, and the good old "reduce, reuse, recycle"? Craftspeople who make things locally?

Hugo Recommend for Best Fan Artist

For you nominators out there. Still time to buy a supporting membership if you want to nominate.

It's clear to me that Randall Munroe is a fan even though his fan art is outside fanzines.

I offer these three examples from 2010 as proof.



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Best Fan Artist: Randall Munroe

It’s clear to me that Randall Munroe is a fan even though his fan art is outside fanzines.

I offer these three examples from 2010 as proof.

Link to original post on LiveJournal.

Originally published at deirdre.net. You can comment here or there.

Writers, Another Thing To Skip

If you are a writer I don't know, and you ask to be on programming, I will use the power of Google.

1) If you say your book is award-winning from an award I haven't heard of, I will assume it's self published. I do follow most of the major awards in the field. If you say your book was a winner from an award factory that has an entry fee, I will take my eyes out, give them a good roll, then pop them back in. Especially, as in this case, if you claim to be a winner but were only a finalist. That means that out of N suckers who paid in that category, you weren't the best sucker.

2) I will look your book up on Amazon. If there's a circle jerk of good reviews and the one two-star review has zero of N people who find it helpful, I'm going to assume you lobbied some of your friends. I have seen people I know do this and it's always painful to watch.

3) I will look your publisher up on Google. How many other authors do they publish? What are their submission policies? If there is no contact information for submissions and there's only one author, I'm going to come to the obvious conclusion: you're being coy about being self-published.

4) At this point, it's probably moot, but I will ask you point blank: "This appears to be a self-published book. Is it?" Then wait to see what happens.

This year, I'll let you know what the count is. So far, it stands at one.

Sleazing legitimacy doesn't impress me, though.