Dave Freer's Tree

I just sent an e-mail to Sky News who have been covering the new rules about downloads of music... and Piracy. They been interviewing recording industry spokes-people who have told us all how wicked it is and how the 'pirates' are robbing struggling young musos and killing the industry. I am very boring in that I don't have any pirate music... but the result is I actually have fairly little music.
_________
Please ask your next recording industry spokesperson four questions --

1) how much to these new struggling artists ACTUALLY get from the recording industry. (answer - a few cents on each album) -- ie _they're_ robbing artists and actually wanting to keep up their extortion. It's not for the new struggling artists.
2) Is the 'piracy' issue not a self inflicted injury? -- after all no one steals salt - because it's cheap and easy to buy.
3)They claim vast losses -- but these are based on the incorrect assumption that those who download for free, will buy if they cannot download. Is there _any_ corrobating evidence that this is the case (answer: no. -- their losses are largely imaginary.)
4) Are their any benefits for the industry with tighter control? (answer yes. They have more monopolistic control of prices. Is this good for the industry? No. It's why it's in trouble in the first place.)

I am in no-mans's land wading through shellholes and barbed wire, hoping to get to the trench on the far side of SORCERESS OF KARRES before it gets me. So limited input for a few days :-)

Eef eet bites and you bleed that's.... a moray,
Eef you scream and you cry that's... a moray

just a quick test to see if this facebook linkup worked.

Mike just talked me into this....

A motorist escaped death after his car was smashed by a collapsing 2,5-mitre wall in Observatory, Cape Town.

I love other people's typos

Once more the leaders of these countries have shown their true colors by voting against and in the case of Russia and China (countries with wonderful human rights records and completley transparent and open democratic systems. China is also a major arms trader and mineral buyer from Zimbabwe) vetoing a UN resolution calling for an arms embargo and travel sanctions against Mugabe's and his top henchmen - all people implicated in mass murder. Given a known death toll of 113 and missing (presumed murdered) of about 5000, displaced of 200 000, and exiles of between 3-4 million with overwhelming evidence that this is state sponsored terrorism, by agents of the state, I guess they really showed how much they value the lives of black africans. (99.9% of the victims of this are black Zimbabweans.)

On the side of the Angels: Botswana, Zambia, Tanzania, Kenya, Nigeria, Liberia and iirc Ghana or/and Senegal.
On the side of Robert Mugabe's dictatorship and oppression, South Africa, Namibia, Angola.

I do hope, when the end finally comes, that the new government of Zimbabwe remembers China's generosity at this time, and which African countries stood by them, and which were silent and which helped the oppressor.

I was reading this about gender imbalance in sf/fantasy http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/006846.html

I'm beginning to wonder if I am the only person in sf/fantasy that actually has any vague grasp of statistics. Sigh. Personally I'd be delighted if editors cropped the writer's name from the selection process (I suspect a lot of people doing the 'we are victims' would not love the results) but as names sell, this is not going to happen. You know, one thing about this field - as Tiptree proved: Your gender, orientation, skin color, disabilities, religion... are not labels you have to put on your work when you submit, if you believe this will disadvantage you. You CAN declare them at acceptance, or later. Or never. Shrug. I've written romance (and been rejected) under a pseudonym. It wasn't my sex, but they didn't like it. Fair enough.
Now on statistics:
I am willing to bet that 1)the writing of sf (hard sf especially) is strongly correlated to tertiary education - particularly in sciences. Likewise in fantasy tertiary education in arts is correlated although less strongly.
2)the reading public of sf and hard sf at a guess is also correlated (although less strongly for 'soft/accessible sf' and more so with say Robert Forward) with education and probably with field of employment. Fact: the gender distribution in science is shifting. But it is still a marketplace with more men than women in it, just as romance is a girlzone. A man can cut it there, but should expect to adapt to his audience - not the other way around. Give me something as good as Robert L Forward and I don't care who writes it.
3)The gender breakdown of bought stories - if subdivided in age-stratum of the authors, would show a steady shift from - for older authors, mostly male to increasingly female in the younger categories. In fantasy (where the correlation with science education is weak, but arts probably strong) I expect women to exceed men in the younger fantasy writer category. If you have a careful look at university enrollments for the age-groups in the different eras, I will give long odds that there is a statistically significant correlation, with a 5-10 year lag.
4)The proportion of male/female editors has shifted over time from male only (except in romance)to female, within the 20-30 age group females now exceeding males (a function of education too).
5)Editors -unless they are being sensitive, buy slightly more of authors that share common ground with. Their stories are more likely to appeal.
6)Based on the evidence produced Andrew Wheeler the top ten fantasy sellers 6 were by women. Nestvold's stats are a bit more dubious as they're unverifiable and apparently random but she gives the provable difference between male and female in fantasy as probably not significant, but male biased in sf. Rusch reaches the conclusion that there is no overall (sf/fantasy) bias of any significant order (no figures -but she's been around a while)Joanne Merriam points out that over the last 25 years Hugos and nebs have been won 11 times by women (graph over time would be interesting). Other than Nestvold there was no numerical evidence presented of substantial bias (I suspect this to be an artifact of education legacy, and age of writers).
ergo et summa:
Given the current trends in the UK (IIRC 45% girls enroll for university, 37% boys, with the lowest proportion entering universities coming from poor white males) and a similar situation in the US... given that tertiary education is a major driving factor in writing and reading... given the lag in qualification to writing or position of influence... there will be a gender imbalance by the time 20 years have passed. Women will occupy as much of the field as men did back in say 1960.
Is this a healthy situation? Personally I don't care. I'll compete against anyone, and sometimes lose. Societally I think an underclass defined by anything other than merit - be it sex, orientation, or skin color is always going to be damaging. Do we wait until after it has happened or do we see it coming? Can we fix it? Should we?

"not my daughter! It's the Dragons that need to be saved."

Mike has just sold the serial rights for this novel - probably the worst puns I have ever used my limited wheat to bake, to JBU. It'll appear over six issues.

Going to be interesting times as the book is an equal opportunity offender and makes barbeque of just about every sacred cow in existance.

The designer label has, over the years, become the symbol of those of models of sartorial elegance (or elephance:-)) who really have the same dress as your own monkey but reckon you can't be too uncool if you are wearing the right designer label... (I tried this. But those labels are so small! I looked like a surface mail parcel by the time I had glued on enough to cover my dignity*)

Seriously, in a vast sea of clothes choices - most of us need some form of label to tell it is fashionable (for those who care) or concientiously made or simply hard-wearing. The label on the outside is a way of telling other equally ignorant people what an icon you now are, I guess.

Still... it underlies part of the problem in publishing - there are so many books out there and publishers guessing what readers will like (and readers guessing what they will like) is quite 'name' dependent. Moreover, there is some 'type'(fashionable, concientious, or just plain hard-wearing reliable) recognition out there, both for readers and publishers. Baen for eg. have a reputation as a publisher (as far as I can work out readers consider 95% of publishers 'invisible' when buying books.) Readers however do actually recognise this one. As far as I can work out it's quite well thought of as providing books you might actually want to read (reliable and hardwearing - not fashionable), as well as being recognised as the leading purveyor of MilSF. The first part seems to have passed book-sellers by! I must admit that there is a grave danger that I may just go ape-sh*t if another spotty zombie# (part-time while I do my degree in pre-colonial Zulu electronic art and psychology) book clerk says "that right-wing military stuff? I don't think we have any." (I do NOT write 'military SF' To write it well for the audience that loves it, I'd have to like it myself. I admire Drake a lot. I don't find it comfortable reading. I battle to read most of the others at all. And I am closer to the utterly confused wing than either right or left - as I find both extremes intolerant, authoritarian and mindlessly doctrinaire. On Islamists I am further 'right' than most, and on health-care further 'left'...)

Thus... dislike it as I may (being a hardcore meritocrat) 'brand', 'label' or 'name' are realities - more so than quality (I've read - as I am sure we all have - books by names that you wonder how ever got published let alone did well, and a few efforts by wannabes who have not ever sold novels (Kate Paulk springs to mind) who have more talent in one finger than the average bestseller does.) There is an element of lottery in this. Quality is one aspect the author can try deal with. Being on the right trend at the right time is one we probably can't (trend spotting? - you're 6 months to 3 years too late). Issues like covers, publicity, distribution, spotty zombies, are issues you probably can't deal with either.
So: any ideas on how to become a designer label for readers, bookstores and publishers?

*I bought one. It was on special. Made in Taiwan. The English in the instruction manual was a little confusing, so I may not be getting the very best out of the product.

#You can tell they're zombies. They have grave pallor and scent, they're so deep into decay they have to be pierced and held together with chains, and the intellect is a 'dead' give-away.

At the swearing in ceremony for Mugabe after his sick joke 'election' (won by a landslide - pity they didn't swear in the landslide - less destructive).

"We are grateful to SADC (Southern African Development Community) and the role of statesman played by President Mbeki," Mugabe said.

You should be. If it wasn't for them propping you up, il-Bob, you'd be enjoying your wealth in Malaysia.

I bet Thabo Mbeki really appreciated that vote of thanks!

The last red and yellow leaves still cling to the trees, oddly bright their misty shroud. It's bleak out -- as cold as a polar-bear's tit. A nasty insidious damp cold at that... It's when Nifelheim as the place of freezing mists really starts to mean something. A perfect day for a warm fire, gluwein and a good book... followed by a solid winter comfort-food stew and sticky pudding. With hot custard... well, I'm busy doing the proofs for SLOWTRAIN TO ARCTURUS (not by Dylan... Thomas either) so I have the book, if not really the time for the rest. Oh well... onwards.
It must be Scot in me. Bleak weather wakes me up.

Well, I am delighted to announce that South Africa's good government have continued with the trend they started with stopping Burma's human rights record being debated in the UN security council, by preventing the UN security council declaring the Zimbabwe vote illegitmate. They were ably backed up in this by those other two paragons of virtue, China and Russia. I am just so proud to be South African. I don't think I have been as proud since Aziz Pahad (our deputy minister of foreign affairs) came out and defended the Taliban after 9/11. I mean the human rights of dictators, torturers, murderers and 're-educational' rapists must tump mere common decent people.

A couple of quick quotes from the most accurate and free newspaper in the universe: The Zimbabwe Herald (owned and official mouthpiece of those other champions of human rights, free speech, democracy and the rule of law, ZANU PF, led by the divinely appointed Robert (only God can remove me) Mugabe.)-- On the finally-got-around-to-it recinding of the Knighthood awarded to il-Bob the magnificent, liberator of Zimabawe:
"No one has ever referred to our president as 'Sir' Robert Mugabe. He is known as 'Comrade' Robert Mugabe and that says it all," said the Herald.

Indeed. I should think he is to socialism what myxamitosis was to rabbits... yet their silence is still loud...

And on his plan to trot off the African Union next week as the leader of Zimababwe (where, having fixed the last election and turned Zim from bread-basket to basket-case he was greeted with rousing and rapturous applause by people who claim to be persuing good governance - reminding me of the contrast between the dancing in the streets of Gaza at the destruction of the twin towers... and the mealy-mouthed words of condemnation issued later by their leaders) where it is remotely possible a few may actually raise a gentle voice of censure...
"I would like some African leaders who are making these statements to point at me and we would see if those fingers would be cleaner than mine."

Odd. Truth from an unlikely source.

A brief look at South African politics will explain why it has fun flying... You see it has two authoritarian right wings... Oh yes the one calls itself 'socialist' and addresses people as 'comrade' but it is intrinsically Nationalist (or Nationalist-socialist? - now which party was that?) with much the same agenda and support base as any other hard-core 'nationalist' party - and like them it has a racial bias. And you take orders from those in authority and don't argue! Shrug. The other right wing (if you switched the race part) is relatively indistinguishable. Dragged along with the supposed left is a group of trade unionists (which, in a society where a lot of people were in work might be a different group. In this one local politics are as much about protecting the jobs of those who have them (middle class by local standards) rather than improving the quality of life of the largest group in society - a working class here is small) They do at least SOMETIMES question orders from the little tin Gods, and the communists (few of whom can discuss dialectical materialism, but like to follow loyally, it appears. Thinking is anethema. Very Stalinst.).

I eventually concluded that what I really don't like about any of them is that they're all 'doctinaire'. Dunno about your politics (and that is your business) but the monkey likes to make his own decisions. I can take orders, but... well... I was a lousy soldier when it came to unquestioning obedience of some wet-behind-the-ears lieutenant who had no more knowledge than any wet-behind-the-ears idiot had. (give me a NCO with experience or even a experienced officer...) The concept of respecting the uniform (or rank), not the man - always struck me as the faintly ridiculous defense of weak and inneffectual men. After all - who needs that if you inspire loyalty and respect by your ability and deeds? Yes, yes. I know. It was all born out of mass conflict and large numbers and high turnover... And makes it right when those conditions don't pertain? Ok. So I'm insubordinate. Tell me something everyone didn't know already. But my point is when it comes to politics or even life I am intrinsically anti-authoritarian. My Scots ancestors had a long history of it and the Afrikaans side were as bad if not worse. Respect is earned. Merit, not birth or wealth or any other thing should dictate who leads. You _should_ question (not in moments of extremis, idiot) that leadership. I've met a fair number of other South Africans cut from this mold... that's why a handful of boers could battle th British Empire, and why the same Empire's generals found the colonials more effective soldiers but insubordinate and plain disrespectful...

If you could cope with the attitude and gain their respect, they were good soldiers those 'colonists' boer and brit, and Anzac too... and the Brits had found out that colonists could fight in America...

My curious question is this: how does this fit into other cultures? Are there still others that even permit anti-authoritariansim? Is it a disappearing philosophy? The UK appears to be evolving into a nanny-state - and pretty ineffectual at it. There are things that need nannies (babies, new boots, the sick, the elderly, the mentally unfit...) but I hear in Oz they'll tell me not to wire my own plugs... it's not rocket science. I'd probably _prefer_ to do my own rocket science anyway. One of the rocket scientists I've dealt with I wouldn't trust to speak my weight (he'd apply for permission in triplicate and then only use pre-tested parts...) I must admit I expected this to be intrinsically Australian, widespread American, common Canadian... and bad in Europe or the ME or Asia. (in crowded environments and under dictatorial regimes). And yet I hear Australia is petty rule central, Americans - on both left and right seem accept taking orders and that the doctrine of their party is right and not to be questioned, or that someone will look after them and tell them what to do... Canada seems worse if anything...

Am I reading this wrong?

What in hell happened to the frontier spirit?

Don't attempt to pour a spoon-full of cough-syrup into a fork.
If you cook sushi it tastes nearly as good as fish (ok I overheard that)
Get really angry and interferes with your writing and your sleep. Therefore the two are the same, no?
Whatever way the currency goes, the bank always makes more money for less effort than you do.
Gray is really a shade of pink (ask my printer)

Tsvangirai has just withdrawn from the run-off, saying the conditions made it impossible and that the outcome had been pre-decided and that as the Mugabe regime prevented monitoring, and had gone into widespread terrorism the poll was charade.

This gives the presidency to Mugabe by default.

(sigh) Lets see what Africa's wonderful leaders do about this mess - besides kiss their old friend and congratulate him.

Jockey returning home from training gallops, carrying his saddle, to trainer and owner... "He just dropped dead on me. He has never done that before."
I am watching the the slow train smash happening in Zimbabwe with increasing horror. It's like having Somalia developing there. The response of Africa kleptocrats - including ours(in fact, especially) has been their usual half-hearted vague flapping of hands. They're in a position to stop the crap overnight (just as 'Myanmar' would not survive a week without China as a conduit and with its tacit backing - the very food il-Bob eats comes from South Africa. Their electricity, fuel and damn near everything including toilet paper (or you can use Zim million dollar notes -cheaper) are supplied by SA. A lot of it 'free', courtesy of our complicit government... Who are also blissfully silent about the lack of access by foreign media, or even NGO's. Not a word of criticism... (however al Jazeera is welcome. And so are observers from places like Cuba, China, Myanmar, North Korea and South Africa.... Guess that says a lot about their credibility, eh?) It's getting very like Somalia - as I said - with widespread starvation - and the state denying aid agencies access and limiting who they give to etc, and a total breakdown of law and order - with the courts becoming mere terrfied mouthpieces and the police being the worst perps... Nearly everyone is unemployed. 1/3 of the population are refugees. The country survives on Aid, Anglo platinum royalties (guess where they go - and who is keeping very quiet about this) and remittances from the exiles to their families. In Europe, or the Americas it would be intolerable. But... well lives are cheap in Africa - at least to African leaders - and while they act as middlemen not much can be done by outsiders. With a week to go before 'elections' in Zimbabwe, the opposition is not allowed to campaign. Their elected leaders are murdered (70 known so far) tortured, arrested on no or trumped up ridiculous charges, denied any access to the state controlled media or airwaves. The ordinary voters who are suspected of supporting them are assulted, threatened, raped... and told they will be killed if Mugabe does not win. The police, army and state-sponsored militia are the principal perps...

You just want to scream at the wrongness of it all.

I have just suffered from a staff-uprising! The peasants are revolting (well, they smell). I appeal to my fellow aristocats to come to my aid in my hour need. Send in troops (or at least tuna). I have been overthrown in my own kitchen. All I did to raise the flame of revolt was to topple a marble pestle - so inconveniently placed by the lowly minion - and send a stand of knives flying, in my quest to go fishing in the dog-biscuit box. I am sure none of you, my fellow aristocats, think that I would ever stoop to eating dog-biscuits. I just like catching and killing them messily on the counters.
I was rudely flung forth, with vile imprecations!
I know, give your staff an inch and they take a mile, assume that they're allowed to sleep in their own beds in positions of their choosing, be slow with serving breakfast, not warm the fresh milk precisely right... But I have done none of this. I kept on top of them. I have always kept them in their place, well repressed. And now... this!
send help
Send TUNA
Lord Legolas of Freer

http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_2342428,00.html

Thanks to the theives in SA postal service a book now costs an extra US$52.00.

Am I ever grateful (the truth is they steal CDs and DVDs not books. Theives can't sell books and don't read)

today's immortal comment "She eats like a bird - a lappet-faced vulture..."

trying to type around a cat is exhausting!

Amazon.uk is in dispute with Hachette Livre the UK's largest publisher. http://www.thebookseller.com/news/60365-hely-hutchinson-criticises-amazon.html
I am reminded of the description of th game of cricket... first one side defends the wicket, and the other side tries to knock it over. Then the other side defends the wicket and the previous defenders try to knock it over...
And whoever wins - it is going to be hard on the wicket.
The Publisher is saying that Amazon is pricing brick and mortar booksellers out of the market and being unfair to authors...
As a small midlist author from a not-the largest (and therefore not able to exert most marketing pressure) I have news for him. If I had to rely on bricks-and-mortar chains who also dominate the market... I'd be out of business. Amazon and the Indies has been a lifeline for the midlist and smaller publishers. Basically the large retail chains and distributors have done as much as possible to make us extinct, putting expensive barriers in the way. Yeah, they're big boys. Probably ARE throwing their weight around. One big boy throwing his weight at another big boy on behalf of a third big boy. Of course no one has much sympathy for the big boys. The public probably prefer Amazon as it offers better choice and better price. Authors earn precisely the same from Amazon or bricks and mortar - with - on a paperback NINETY-FOUR PERCENT of the cover price (for newbies) - or 92% (for midlist) going to anyone _but_ the writer. The one thing I can guarantee is despite the savings achieved by going to electronic type-setting, by the rationalization of distribution (which, without Amazon would have killed 95% of the midlist) and by brick-and-mortar chain-stores employing minimum wage movie-watching students instead of book-obsessed career book-shop workers, no extra percentage has ever passed back to the authors. If anything, we've been screwed by all of this. And while Hachette says they're 'doing it for the authors' I'll bet that, win or lose, the people who get screwed most are the newbies and midlist. Be honest about it, mister. You're doing it for you, and, if anything, the huge leverage you used to - as biggest boys on the block - be able to exert on bricks-and-mortar. Amazon cuts your opportunities (which DON'T help writers, or readers) and gives readers more choice and cheaper books. I love browsing bookshops... but it's been a long time since I've been in a chain that actually tried to provide what _I_ the reader and buyer wanted - especially in Fantasy or sf.