Self-Published Payment

I recently got paid from some of the sales on my self-published novel.  For those curious how Smashwords does this, let me explain.

They pay once a quarter, 30 days after the quarter ends.  And sure enough early in February (should have been January) I got a mail that money was being sent to my PayPal account.  I moved it into my bank account days later.

What I find odd is that not all my sales to date are reflected in that payment.  For example, I got a sale from the Apple store through Smashwords in November, but that money has yet to reach me.

Likewise, I got a sale from Barnes and Noble in December but not payment.

Now we aren't talking large amounts of money here (maybe $6) but it is really the principle and it is really surprising because I thought payments would be a touch smoother.

Just one more wrinkle in the self-publishing game I guess.

Who knew?

You Can't Handle the Truth

When I started blogging I wasn't sure what I would blog about.  Oh sure, I knew it would be about writing and publishing and all that, but I didn't have a clear vision of individual blog entries.  I spent quite a while brainstorming ideas.  My first thoughts were to write about something of use to other writers.  So I focused on my experiences as a writer and software reviews and gave voice to ideas about writing, that sort of thing.

Never once did I question that the truth of my posts would be an issue.  I assumed that I could write factually and truthfully and all would be okay.  Wrong.  Social media and blogging have nothing to do  with the truth.  Nothing.

It is all about appearance.  And now that I've stumbled onto this minefield, I can't write truthfully any more.  Nor can I explain why that is.  Kiss the first amendment good-bye because freedom of speech has nothing to do with this.  This is about being able to live and function in my own life and with the people in it.

Apparently, in this brave new world, people aren't allowed to express negative thoughts about anything, truthful or not.  And to me this smacks of mind control, 1984, George Orwell, and all that.

It is a world of paranoia, conspiracy -- real or imagined -- and perceived persecution.  Frankly, I think this is very sad because it comprises what I can say and write about.  And that sorta makes writing a blog pointless.

So for anyone thinking of starting a blog, my advice is don't unless you have no relationships with anyone and don't want any.

Writing is Becoming a Lost Art

I saw a report on Frontline that looked at how all our computer technology is changing people.  Twenty-somethings and teens function in very different ways than the generations that preceded them.  This was not news to me.  It is well-known that the 15 to 25 set don't interact face-to-face as much as they do online.

The fact that struck me was how it has begun to affect the writing of this age young.  Apparently they can write well-structured individual paragraphs.  But they cannot hold a thought or develop an idea from one paragraph to the next to create an essay or support a thesis.  That got me thinking if they could even a story and I'm guessing the answer is no.

Kinda a shame.  What will ultimately happen to the written word if people cannot spend time to write a story or sit still to experience a three-act play?  Will poetry have a resurgence?  Or will all forms of writing suffer and die out?  Will the literature of the 21 century be all blogs and wall posts?

Worse still, these same people have no interest in reading books because they are so busy multi-tasking.  A long novel is an anathema to them; instead they prefer Cliff Notes.  How can any aspiring novelist even hope to make a dent in this age group if they aren't even willing to crack the book?

I don't have any answers here.  But it is something to think about.

Writing Advice

Every so often, people I know -- friends, family, co-workers -- give me suggestions for what I should write about.  This is usually hysterical because most of them have no idea what it takes to write -- or sell -- fiction.  These people suffer from the illusion that writing is easy.  That I snap my fingers and my stories appear well-written, edited, and formatted ready for the publisher.

Please.

The last idea I received was to write about the zany adventures of my dogs.  Now this isn't a bad idea and if I had nothing else to do I might even attempt something about them.  But the fact is I'm in the middle of writing my fantasy series.  By my estimate the entire series will be something like 2500 to 3000 pages and take years to write.  I really don't need additional work just now.

Of course, these people mean well and I know that.  I appreciate the fact that they shared their ideas with me.  But this is a case of 'thank you, but no thank you.'  I'll just keep doing what I'm doing until I'm done and then consider my next project.

That's pretty much all I can do.

Are you stressed? Take some time off.

A report in the news today notes that America is one of the most stressed countries in the world.  The reasons for this, they cite, are too much work, not enough down time, not enough travel.  Basically, all work and no play.

This resonated with me because right now I am extremely over-committed.  This happens when projects that I thought were complete turn out not to be or need revision for a second look.

And to that add all the blogging, browsing, and drifting on the web I need to do to keep up and I have very little time to read or relax.  So in an effect to review that trend I'm going to keep this entry short.

Maybe next time I'll do more.  It depends how far I get catching up or eliminating projects so I feel less stress.