#I know some of y'all will get annoyed and unfollow me or block me etc like I am sorry I am aware this is embarrassing

[buffysummers]

Hi. So, those of you who have been following me may already know the financial struggles I've had in the past, but the situation has become much more dire. So, I started a gofundme so that if I raise any money, it is publicly displayed.

I don't really expect anything but I do have to try. I took a job that is commission based after I was laid off from my editing job, but that it is not high paying nor is it reliable because it is commission based only. The money I make from this job will never be enough for me to live off of.

I am also, of course, actively searching for other jobs but things are so competitive and also barely pay a living wage.

Sorry if this is either too long or too short. If anyone needs more details about the situation in order to feel comfortable donating, please feel free to message me. ❤️

Thank you to anyone who took the time to read this, spread this link or donate to my tense situation. I know this is embarrassing, I hate having to do this. But I gotta try something.

[classiclitbracket]

I just need to put this out here because I've seen a couple of people complain about it. I am not responsible for lack of diversity in the polls or in the results of the polls. I tried to include classic lit from a variety of applicable countries and from authors who are both male and female, gay and straight, and white and non-white. I even tried to get a cross-section of the most famous classic lit novels in my auto-entries to encourage a wider variety of submissions.

I also don't control what people vote in the polls. I've been trying to remain impartial as far as what I post on this blog goes, and I haven't seen any discriminatory propaganda/comments but I would not support it and block those involved if it were to happen. If people are voting mostly for white, straight, male authors, this is a demonstration of systemic and historical biases in the way we conceptualize classic lit. You have every right to be angry about that, but don't direct it at me or anyone who votes that way. There are plenty of valid reasons to vote for any one of these books, and this is not at all meant to shame anyone who votes in good faith for books by non-minority authors.

If you're annoyed about the restrictions I've placed on the definition of "classic lit" for the purposes of this bracket, there's a section about it in my welcome post which I will reproduce here:

There is so much amazing Islamic, African, S./E. Asian, Pacific, and South American literature out there, but I feel it really merits its own bracket by someone who understands the material more and that it wouldn’t really get the fair chance it deserves in this bracket anyway, as I expect it to be American and Brit Lit heavy as is, and more people will likely come out to support those books, so I might as well just limit the criteria off the bat.

If you're annoyed I've included books that portray certain things in a negative light, there's a section on that in my pinned which I will reproduce here:

I do not want to see any moral complaints. Many of these authors/works were racist, sexist, etc. and I fully condemn that, but we can separate the art from the artist and still understand the importance of/enjoy the work despite its flaws. You’re free to not like/not vote for a book due to offensive material, but I don’t want to see tags/comments/asks saying “you shouldn’t have included x because it’s racist” or “nobody vote for y it’s misogynistic.” This isn’t “which classic lit book is the most morally correct”.

This blog is explicitly a safe space for people of all races, nationalities, sexual orientations, genders, and religions, and if you feel you're not being represented here I'm very sorry and you have every right to feel that way, but this is supposed to be a lighthearted little bracket about love of books. I didn't intend for and don't want it to get political. If you really have an issue with my blog or its results, you're welcome to unfollow, and if you think you could do it better and want to make your own classic lit brakcet, go for it! I'll even give you a shoutout over here if you don't go about it in a rude way.

Lastly, if you're one of the people who has said something like this, I don't want you to feel called out/shamed etc. You have every right to that opinion and those feelings, and most of them I agree with. This is also not directed at the people who were jokingly calling Well of Loneliness (and I think another book I don't remember for sure) losing homophobic. I know that was a joke and I don't care if y'all do that in good fun. Also, if you see any of these comments in the wild, please, please, PLEASE do not harass those people because a) they're probably correct b) it's rude and not worth it and c) this is supposed to be fun and lighthearted and doing that is the opposite!

If you still feel like I've screwed up in some way please just DM me and we can talk about it. I don't want to deal with this more on here if I can avoid it.