A writer's life

On this day, St. Patrick's Day in the year of our Lord 2019...

It's finished. A work that has taken much too long to write has been wrapped up. The timeline was long due to many issues; jobs, health, family matters. Life does actually get in the way of things. Battle Wagon, the third book in the sci-fi Home World series has had the final words imprinted.

But it really hasn't.

Hasn't what?

Hasn't had the last word typed. 

But you finished it...

Sort of. It's sort of finished.

A writer's life isn't just writing the book. In the world where you are an independent there are many other things an author has to do to complete the book. It needs editing. Why? Because there are likely small mistakes along the way. Unless you do it  yourself which is very difficult, because you tend to read what you think you typed and not what you actually typed, it costs money to have someone look over all the words to make sure there aren't mistakes. Spelling is only one form of editing. There is also content editing where you have someone read the book to make sure you don't have a cluster of mistakes along the way that you didn't catch yourself.

How is that possible you ask? Well, there are all sorts of details that you forget along the way even if you take exceedingly impeccable notes. But even then, things crop in. Since I am not published by one of the large book houses, I have to do it all myself. You'd be surprised how many mistakes there really are in traditionally published books.

There's also formatting. Huh? What's that? Well, that is how you line everything up so it reads the way it should, so it looks like is should whether you are reading a paperback book or you are reading it on an electronic device (ebook). Each of those is formatted differently. If you don't know how to do that, guess what...pay someone.

Then there's the cover...

You guessed it, if you don't do it yourself it costs $$$ to have someone design your image. This image is only for an ebook. You need another cover for a print book. Why? Because you have to have a back for a printed book. So now you have two covers.

These are just some of the issues writers face when writing a book. Some do it for the money. Some do it for the love of writing. If they never see a dime, they're okay with it. I'm kind of a blend of the two. I'd like to make a living from my efforts but I have an overwhelming desire to put words down on paper ... or an electronic device. It's a passion.

So, the next time you run across a book don't flinch at the price. Most indie authors don't charge more than a few dollars for their efforts hoping against hope that a lot of people will buy it and love it. Most books cost less than a 'frappy crappy-chino thingy' at the local coffee shop. You drink it once and it's gone. A book, well, it lasts forever. (And don't forget to leave a review. We get noticed that way 😎 )

Remington steel

I was originally going to post something that was light-hearted this evening. Something I did that I haven't done in probably thirty or more years. But the world is in an ever devolving state and the news changed my mind.

A court ruled today that the gun maker Remington is liable for the deaths in the Sandy Hook shooting. They determined due to the way the gun (the AR-15) was marketed, they now became liable and can be sued by the victims. In the ruling Connecticut's highest court said Remington violated state law due to the product being marketed as a militaristic weapon.

This ruling completely ignores the fact that the individual who broke uncounted laws simply isn't really responsible for his actions because someone else told him to do it. It also opens the door for so many lawsuits to companies for other things because the perpetrator of any crime is now not responsible.

For instance right off the top of my head: video game manufacturers for any game involving a gun to shoot people; any automaker for marketing their ads for vehicles as fun and carefree (why bother with rules of the road)? When someone dies in an auto accident, Ford or GM or any other is now liable; the producers of any violent movie or television show that shows murder... get my drift here?

You can't stop people from doing stupid things with legitimate products. It's not Tide's fault stupid people die from eating laundry detergent. Likewise, it isn't the fault of Remington that a mentally unstable person used their product illegally. Repeat...illegally. If the product had been different but the damage the same would the company who made it be liable as well? What if the product was a knife? Is that now the knife manufacturer's fault?

Believe me, I feel horrible that such a tragedy took place in this country. It is a different world we live in. I would be just as grief stricken as a parent and grandparent if it were my grandchild. The difference is I know where to place the blame.

*edit*
I am amending this to note that this author is not a gun owner, however I respect the rights of gun owners as granted them by the Constitution.

Which is which?

Do you ever have a continual problem of misidentifying something? You know, something so mundane that it just doesn't sink in? Something around the house perhaps? Not something difficult like a whats-a-doohickey or a thing-a-ma-bob. I mean something as mundane as dish towels. Or are they really dish towels?

Huh?

Yeah, dish towels. When My Beloved and I moved a couple years ago in 'The Great Downsizing', we purchased a few new items for the abode. You know, things like dish towels, curtains, hand towels for the bath, all those things that bring a fresh touch to the home. To be honest, ours were well worn and ready to become shop rags for around the workbench.

The problem is, for me anyway to the unbridled amusement to My Beloved; I can't tell the kitchen towels from the hand towels for the bath. As the awesome husband that I am, I routinely do laundry. When the towels are thrown into the batch, I somehow end up mixing them up. I put bath towels into the kitchen drawer and kitchen towels into the linen closet. My Beloved just politely takes the bath from the drawer and switches them with the misplaced kitchen towels. She just shakes her head as she walks by.

You'd think I'd know the difference since I also do my fair share of dishes. At least until the dishwasher gets fixed.

Plugs that go poof

Many years ago when I was a much younger man and the age of the new-fangled kitchen gadgets started coming into play, a revolution took place with the advent of the drip coffee maker. Yes folks, I am that old that I remember when Mr. Coffee became a hit. Although I have siblings who predate those memories 😀 (you know who you are).

Back in those days there were repeated instances of these new-fangled coffee makers catching fire. I don't usually obsess about such things but it seemed like forever that I would never leave my coffee maker plugged into an outlet. I believe the one sitting on my counter now could be the first one I have ever let stayed plugged in. Golly gee, I hope I just didn't jinx myself.

So why are you telling us this wonderful and enchanting story now Robert T?

Well, the other day I was sitting at the kitchen table pounding away on the next great sci-fi novel. I usually write in my nice big chair but My Beloved was sitting there so I had to make due. As I was blazing away on the keyboard (I'm down to the last few thousand words on Battle Wagon), the tip of the plug supplying power to the computer literally started smoking. And I don't mean just a slight smell. I had a volcano of white smoke pouring from the thing.

With cat-like agility I ripped the plug from the computer and snatched the plug end out of the wall socket. The tip had melted inside the computer and I had to dig it out. It is an old computer and is (was) the original power cord. It was quite the experience. Thankfully nothing else is wrong with the laptop and it functions just fine.

And that's why I always unplugged my coffee maker.

The writing in Battle Wagon must be a smokin' hot for the laptop to catch fire...I'm just sayin'. Coming soon to an ebook retailer near you.

The Harp-man

Baseball is a wonderful sport, the sport of my youth. It is looked back on fondly as we spin around this blue marble and march on. It is still a sport I follow as an aging (hey, who said aging) adult. I tend to follow the National League although I keep track of the AL.

Baseball has devolved into a business more than at any time in its past. At least in the public's eye although I'm sure to those who own teams it has always been a business. It just now touches the public more than ever in the past since we as a sporting public have access to sports news and topics 24/7.

That being said, I don't understand the runaway spending on players like Bryce Harper. Now don't get me wrong, I'm for anyone who gets paid for their efforts. Earn what you can earn. Complete blind loyalty to one organization isn't what it used to be several generations ago. I just don't see the value in someone who has a contract for $330 million dollars, whether it's spread out over 13 years or not. His stats when you look at them are good, but not worth that type of money in my opinion. In the prime of his career where he is now, he is only 13th among active players with a lifetime slugging percentage of 512. His batting average last year was a paltry .249. Although he has a lifetime batting average of .279, that's certainly respectable but hardly worth $25 million per year. As for home runs, he does have an average of 32 over 162 game season. That stat is more than respectable.

He is definitely a star in the baseball world and I will give him his due. I just don't believe a player with those stats is worth that kind of money. How much better does one player make in this game when you could spend that money on upgrading the rest of your team in other places.

But then again, I'm just a writer and retail manager. What do I know?