threeplusfire: (smoking)
three ([personal profile] threeplusfire) wrote2004-09-23 08:46 pm

days go by

Tomorrow is Brett's last day at work. I'm jealous of his freedom. Today I did so much work that I wonder if I'll get audited again.

I bought mint tea soap, and English bath salts and French lemonade. I fell in love with an insanely expensive bedspread that does not work with my life at all. But it was so soft.

Anne Rice posted a bizarre screed on Amazon, in the reviews for her latest novel. On one hand, I can understand being so wrapped up with a character or a story that you feel like you live with it every moment of your day. I can understand loving your art like you would love a child. I can understand the anger when people don't like your work or when they miss the point because it's hard to stomach cruelty towards the things you love.

But that doesn't mean you don't need an editor to proof your manuscript. That's absurdly arrogant, and trivial mistakes in tense or spelling or grammar mar your "virtuoso" performance. I'm not saying you need to allow them to rewrite sentences or to compromise the integrity of your art, just to catch any typos. No one likes typos.

[identity profile] alainn-sorcha.livejournal.com 2004-09-23 08:14 pm (UTC)(link)
Why is Brett leaving?

[identity profile] tsarina.livejournal.com 2004-09-24 04:54 am (UTC)(link)
He's moving back to Dallas, to save money to finish college. That, and he hates the Flood. We're going out tonight, I will call you or email as soon as I know where.

[identity profile] alainn-sorcha.livejournal.com 2004-09-24 06:08 am (UTC)(link)
Please do!

[identity profile] tinywarrior.livejournal.com 2004-09-23 09:20 pm (UTC)(link)
Do you have a link to the Anne Rice thing? I hadn't heard this and I'm curious to see what the fuss is about.

[identity profile] todfox.livejournal.com 2004-09-23 11:06 pm (UTC)(link)
Yes, I would like to read what she wrote. All I've heard is about it, I haven't seen it.

[identity profile] maldeluxx.livejournal.com 2004-09-24 02:08 am (UTC)(link)
You could try [livejournal.com profile] burnt_rice. :)

[identity profile] tsarina.livejournal.com 2004-09-24 05:04 am (UTC)(link)
I think Amazon might have taken it down. I'll see if I can find a cached copy.

[identity profile] tsarina.livejournal.com 2004-09-24 05:02 am (UTC)(link)
I'll post it soon, as you would have to wade through hundreds of reviews on Amazon.

[identity profile] maldeluxx.livejournal.com 2004-09-24 02:09 am (UTC)(link)
Reminds me of when I did the family tree of Mayfairs out of the first Mayfair Witches book - noticed how sometimes one person was blonde, sometimes brunette... Yeah, she's a mess now.

[identity profile] tsarina.livejournal.com 2004-09-24 05:31 am (UTC)(link)
It's rather sad. I read once that any mistakes in her books were "meant" to be there and it made me cringe.

[identity profile] roadnotes.livejournal.com 2004-09-24 04:32 am (UTC)(link)
The one thing I've found in her favor was a comment to the effect thatthis was the book she was workingon when her husband died, so it may have some deeper emotional resonances with her than it does for anyone else.

Nevertheless, her writing has gotten worse since she stopped using editors. And that was a foolish/stupid display.

[identity profile] tsarina.livejournal.com 2004-09-24 05:33 am (UTC)(link)
She started it around the time her husband was diagnosed with cancer. And while she probably didn't mean for it to be this way, to coinciding of her husband's death and the end of the series must be very hard to come to terms with in the head.