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Apparently, whilst I was punishing myself on the train yesterday by reading Fifty Shades of Grey, Daily Mail blogger, Samantha Brick was causing a bit of a shit-storm with her blog ‘There are downsides to looking this pretty’: Why women hate me for being beautiful.

Samantha writes:

On a recent flight to New York, I was delighted when a stewardess came over and gave me a bottle of champagne.

‘This is from the captain — he wants to welcome you on board and hopes you have a great flight today,’ she explained.

You’re probably thinking ‘what a lovely surprise’. But while it was lovely, it wasn’t a surprise. At least, not for me.

Throughout my adult life, I’ve regularly had bottles of bubbly or wine sent to my restaurant table by men I don’t know. (more…)

I actually initially posted about the topic below this post on Goodreads yesterday, and the “writer” who’s comment I copied and pasted, came along to take umbrage with me.

Arch wrote:

“Karen, I’m the one that wrote the above statement and I stand on what I have said. I’m not an author – I’m only a writer. I don’t desire to be published and if I did desire to be published, I would still write for myself and no one else. A lot of people feel they should tell a writer what they should write and not write and they are in the wrong. I don’t and will never let people move me. I write the stories that I want to tell and I’m fine with people hating my work, but yet, I haven’t written the story for them”.

Do you guys really believe that she’d be fine with people hating her work? I think not.

Anyway, this was part of my rather diplomatic response:

“I guess that’s the difference then Arch. I think as somebody who doesn’t particularly want to be published, it’s easy to say that you would only ever write the stories of your heart. I think if you relied on writing as a career, you’d end up treating it as a business rather than as a hobby.” (more…)

Got this email last night:

I hope I have the right email for Karen Knows Best. I have a complaint and wish to let others know not to submit to Mundania Press. I was an author with Hard Shell Word Factory who Mundaia Press bought out in the fall of 2009. To date, I have seen only the 4th quarter 2009, 3rd and 4th quarter 2010 royalty reports. Nothing for the 1st and 2nd quarter 2010 or 1st quarter 2011. Mundania has an authors loop but regardless of how many authors post emails regarding royalties and payments, all we ever get in return from publisher Daniel Weitz is “we’re working on it.” They also have an online ticket submission via private email with the same results. Zip, zilch, nada in the way of answers.

This has gotten to the point of ridiculous and I would like to alert authors not to submit to them for fear of the same results. I hope you can help me get the word out. I have also alerted Allison Kelly at RWA National to the situtation.

Thank you in advance for your time and consideration of my letter. Please feel free to contact me should you need further information.

Patti Shenberger
www.pattishenberger.com

Mundania Press….Who are they again? Are they related to that other scummy e-pub – Phaze Books?

Anybody got any more info?

Apparently Wendi Felter of Red Rose Publishing, owes people money left, right and centre, and she aint paying up. These people aren’t very happy.

Here are some of the comments:

I’m another person she’s cheated, both as an independent contractor and as an author. She offers diamond bracelets in response to our demand to be paid what she owes us, and does not respond to our inquiries or requests for payment.

Notherone

Why are people still submitting to this publisher? (more…)

The following comment was left on a blog post (by somebody calling himself Barack Hussein Obama Sadaam) that I wrote a while ago, questioning whether or not racism in America had increased since Obama became president:

“I think that racism is increasing.

Minorities act like they want us to be racist to them.

Obama supports the NBA, which has some of the worst (dangerous) black people in the world.

Black leaders, such as NBA superstars, need to lead by example if blacks want racism to go away. I do not think blacks want racism to go away though.

Solution: Have all newborn black babies be adopted by intelligent white people. This will get rid of their terrible language of ebonics along with helping them succeed in life.”

This was my response: (more…)

fucktards

Warning, the following rant is full of bad words, so read on at your own risk

The decision by First Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond, and Justice Secretary, Kenny MacAskill, to release the only person convicted for the Lockerbie bombing in 1988, has infuriated me no end. On grounds of compassionate fucking release? Are you fucking kidding me? There were 270 people killed in those attacks, where was the fucking compassion for them?

Alex Salmond is a fucktard

I believe that MacAskill’s and Salmond’s decision to release this evil man, was pure political posturing. He didn’t want to be seen to be kow-towing to US pressure, and so decided to release him despite the public outcry.

alex salmond

Kenny MacAskill is a wanker

I didn’t have any relatives on that plane, but I still have the overwhelming desire to go to Scotland and punch them both in the face for releasing that man. Due process my fucking arse.

(more…)

asshole

For those who were curious about Cindy Cruciger’s post that she deleted, here it is in full with some of the accompanying comments. I’ve edited out some of the more laborious comments, because… well, because they were boring and not really relevant.

Savage Incivility” – tried it once didn’t like it May 2

Filed under Jane Litte, Apropos of nothing, Assholes On the Web, Blog wars, Dirty Politics, Light a match for Karen Scott’s last bridge, Loose Thoughts, Pointless Blathering, The Four Horsemen, Writing by admin | 45 comments (K:There were 45 comments, but just 3 commenters)

Must be soap box day in 3 … 2 … 1. (more…)

At least according to one British, Labour MP (Member of Parliament).

Graham Stringer, MP for Blackley in Manchester, said it was “wicked” to label children as dyslexic because they were confused by bad teaching methods.

“The education establishment, rather than admit that their eclectic and incomplete methods for instruction are at fault, have invented a brain disorder called dyslexia,” Stringer wrote in a column for the Manchester Confidential website.

“Dyslexia is a cruel fiction. The sooner it is consigned to the same dustbin of history, the better.”…
Stringer said if dyslexia existed then countries such as Nicaragua and South Korea would not have nearly 100 percent literacy rates.

What an effing moron.

I didn’t find the guy who threw the shoe at President Bush amusing in the slightest. I’m sure there will be Democrats all over the US, who think he got his just desserts, but I thought the so-called journalist who threw the shoes, was utterly pathetic. Fortunately for him, he was able to make his protest, without fear of torture and death hanging over his head.

I’m not a George Bush fan, far from it, but I don’t believe he’s an evil man. I think he fucked up royally, but I do believe he thought he was doing the best thing for his country, when he took you guys into war, just as I believe that Tony Blair thought he was doing the right thing also.

Dubya deserves to be verbally pilloried for his catastrophically bad political choices, but throwing shoes at him, says more about the dickhead journalist, than George Bush in my opinion. Besides, I suspect that the man just wanted to make a name for himself.

OK, who thinks he deserved to get the shoes thrown at him?

Seriously?

I can’t see how the judge wasn’t influenced by OJ’s first major brush with the law.

I for one am glad he got a harsh sentence. He got away with murder all those years ago, and didn’t have the sense to stay out of trouble.

You’d think that he’d know that brandishing a gun at somebody, whilst threatening them with violence would be frowned upon.

Dumbass.