An Experimental Life

Disclaimer: I in no way wish to denigrate Ms. Fawcett, Mr. Jackson, nor the pain and anguish of their families, friends, and fans. I feel for them, and I wish them comfort. But let's get some perspective.

Michael Jackson's musical influence and pop icon status are undeniable, whether or not you believe any of the accusations against him as a man. Farrah Fawcett was not merely the quintessential pinup girl of at least two generations of men (I soooo wanted that bikini poster when I was a kid, but my parents wouldn't hear of it.) and, in many cases, women. Post-Charlie's Angels, she used her celebrity to bring attention to victims of domestic abuse, even while fighting her battle with terminal cancer. These things are significant. Did they, and do they continue to, affect our collective consciousness? Is it right and proper to mourn them? Should their deaths be reported upon and discussed? Absolutely, and I criticize no one for doing so.

I strongly suspect, though, that were they were to rise from their graves like the dancers in Michael's Thriller video, zombie-Michael and zombie-Farrah would both say something to the effect of, “Thanks for the attention, guys, but there are more important things going on in the world.”

Whatever your feelings or beliefs on the following issues, no sane person can question their importance. read more »

The Cemetery Girl is a novel I've been working on (and mucho thanks to Lane, Kij, Erick, Nate, and Aaron for writing advice.) The novel itself opens with the protagonist, Tamara Weaver, and her mother and sister getting into an auto accident during and after which Tam experiences what she had thought was a leftover childhood nightmare.

I've been interspersing the modern day action with little flashbacks, and have also reworked those flashbacks into a short story (which is currently at F&SF awaiting Mr. Van Gelding's acceptance or rejection). The present-day scenes are in a more informal tight third person simple past tense, and, although it may seem counter-intuitive, the flashback scenes are in a more literary present tense.

While I, of course, won't post the entire thing--either the novel or the short story--here is the first scene from the short story version. read more »

Depression from the inside

In my last essay on this topic, I discussed the futility of telling someone with a mood disorder to snap out of it. Eventually we'll get to treatments, coping, and other stuff for people with mood disorders like bipolar disorder and unipolar depression and their friends and family, but first, I want to talk about what it's like from the inside. read more »

I hear a lot of would-be fiction writers say they "don't believe" in studying writing. They fear that to do so will force them to write by some preset formula and destroy their "personal styles."

Nothing could be further from the truth. If you look at some of the greats--who have wildly divergent styles--you will find that they almost universally studied the craft. Until you begin studying the craft, you can't call yourself a serious writer any more than you could call yourself a neurosurgeon without going to medical school. read more »

Note: At least two versions of this bill have come up, and future ones doubtlessly will, as well. All so far have been similar. I'll update this if something new is included in the next one.

There's been a lot of noise among webcomicers and others who post art and other content online about an "Orphaned Works" bill that supposedly "takes away copyright" from unregistered works. This is just noise. Those protesting most strenuously against the bill don't seem to have actually read it in its entirety. read more »

(This is not a comprehensive discussion of copyright law, but a summary of the facets that are of most interest to webcomicers and other online content providers. All of the proceeding is from research at http://www.copyright.gov, and applies to the United States. You should also read my trademark article, as that goes into much of what people confuse with copyright. I am not a lawyer, and--as usual--accept no liability if this information pees in your Cheerios, drinks all your beer, and eats your babies. You may also want to see my essay on the Orphaned Works bill.)

There is quite a bit of misinformation floating around the webcomic community about copyright, big chunks of which have changed over time. Here's how current (as of this writing) copyright law affects you, the webcomic creator or other online content provider. read more »

(From Jungmin Escobar with added material from Rob)
So, here's a list of super useful shortcuts in Photoshop that I've found. They should work in almost all versions. read more »

You read that right. Now, I didn't say that they denounce Ronald Reagan himself, but they are coming out in opposition to his policies on both taxes and foreign relations. read more »

(Although I am writing about the Netherlands here, much of this essay applies to other countries, as well--The United States, for instance\")

\"Tolerance\" does not mean tolerating bigots, and some of the alleged \"victims\" of intolerance are among the worst offenders. This is not to say that there are no honest victims--but many seem confused about the meaning of the word, and their hollow claims of unfair discrimination cheapen and belittle the experience of those who live under genuine persecution.(Although I am writing about the Netherlands here, much of this essay applies to other countries, as well--The United States, for instance.) read more »

So let's debunk some of the lies... read more »