#Writing Business

[nkjemisin]

well ain’t this some fuckshit

Just heard about the mess that YA author Maggie Tokuda-Hall has been dealing with. tl;dr, Her publisher offered her the chance to be part of an initiative that would’ve put her work in a lot more stores and libraries. It’s an initiative specifically aimed at amplifying Asian voices... but only if she removed the word “racism” from her author’s note. On a book about the Japanese internment.

I am very glad she rejected this offer, and I 100% agree with her that this is pure cowardice. I’m appalled at Scholastic -- or any other publisher who’s doing this but whose authors can’t take the risk of speaking out. This is the kind of crap that marginalized writers have to deal with all the time -- and it is also how fascism takes root:  “just business” decisions that perpetuate injustice, systematic erasure of targeted groups from their own damn stories, institutions choosing to do what’s easy over what’s right.

(I have been very fortunate to never have a publisher do this to me. Plenty of disrespectful bs from institutions and individuals within the industry, but never from the people who signed my checks. I’m also somewhat insulated from the book ban bullshit because my work is genre and isn’t aimed at kids -- though that’s coming, of course. Fascists don’t stop until they are stopped.)

Anyway. Pop over to Maggie’s blog to read the full story -- or better yet hop on a retail site and buy her books. It’s up to readers now to support marginalized authors, since it’s clear nobody else will.

[sulkybender]

I have a Ko-Fi now!

Someone got in touch recently to ask how they could support me, which was really sweet. And I thought it might make sense to set this up.

If my work has made you feel happy, or sad in the right ways, or less alone, here's an option for you <3

[rightwriter]

Heart Breathings is another great channel to follow! Here she talks about how much money she's made with her books! Super elucidating about the business!

[kimboo-york]

Chez Boo Update from the Depths of 2023

Tl;dr I’ve become rejuvenated with my writing, both fiction on non-fiction. I’m sharing more, writing more, and planning more fiction than I have done in a decade. I’m enjoying being myself in all my writing, rather than trying to shoehorn myself into a niche or a pasted-on brand. Thank you so much for reading and following my long-running blog series, Keely’s Way! As you can probably tell, I’ve…

[gurlmindyourbussiness]

writing Buddy

Hi, I am looking for a writing buddy that I can write stories with. If you are interested, please message me and we can find a way to be in contact with each other. Please tell me what you think. I think this would be a good opportunity for the both of us and please be over 14. Thank you and have a good day!

[lnk-and-lnspiration]

The Pros and Cons of Self-Publishing vs. Traditional Publishing

Self-publishing and traditional publishing are two distinct paths for authors to get their work out into the world. Both have their advantages and disadvantages, and it’s important for authors to weigh the pros and cons before making a decision. In this post, we’ll take a closer look at the key differences between self-publishing and traditional publishing, and the benefits and drawbacks of…

[monsoon-of-art]

[gwen-tolios]

New backstage pass on Kofi!

This month, I talk about social media marketing, putting my new perspective on author events to use, and some of the logistics of building a replacement to NaNo.

[zackprincebooks]

Me waking up: I want to write

Me eating breakfast: I want to write

Me getting ready for work: I want to write

Me at work: I want to write

Me eating lunch: I want to write

Me driving home: I want to write

Me at home, sitting in front of my laptop:

[writingvideos]

"I do love the world we’re in now. But it is astonishing to me how much work—work I’ve been attached to, involved in, loved, admired, and was inspired by—is either down to fewer than 50 available copies or is gone forever."

[chocum]

ughhh boob obsessed choso 😵‍💫

“babbyyy” he's whining, pout stretching his pink lips as he tugs at the hem of your top, fingers toying with the clothy fabric, “let me— please. just for a little”

“it’s never just for a little”

he tilts his head up to look at you from between your boobs— eyes squinting, before dipping down to lick your nipples through your shirt, a light gasp getting caught in your throat. “please” he muffles against you, for the thousandth time, "pleeasee"

you finallllyyyy break (one can only take so much begging), rolling your eyes (choso frowned at that but the smirk playing at your lips gives you away) before peeling your shirt off for him to suck on your pretty tits.

he perks up, letting his tongue lay flat against your right boob, his hand moving to flick and toy with the left one.

your hand moves to card through his soft hair, fingers dragging across his scalp.

“thank you” he gargles mouth full making you giggle.

[buggachat]

something so fucked up about Chat Noir’s whole deal is that he is in a lot of ways Adrien playing a character. Like Adrien picked up his miraculous and was told he’d be a superhero so he was like “ok, time to act like a superhero!” and he lets himself have fun w it and play up the role and let loose and kind of just allow himself to be silly and goofy and have fun and for once in his life not care about performing Perfection™.

But. But none of the other characters KNOW THAT. So everyone just sees Chat Noir and is like “look at this guy’s ego. He’s so full of himself. Surely it’d be fair to knock him down a few pegs” without being aware of how few pegs he actually HAS. He’s like the “insecure character who overcompensates in ego” trope except he’s really not doing it unironically, he’s just having a fun LARP pretending to have self worth in his off-hours but nobody else is on the same page about it being a game and he refuses to tell them. He just dramatically pouts about it and lets them laugh and pretends like he’s not internalizing it and it is almost 3 am and my brain forced me to write this instead of sleeping I’m gonna take a melatonin

[kmwoodson]

The unknown can be awfully terrifyin', so why not have help with it? I'm K.M. and I'm here for all of your literature needs! DM me now for a quote on:

Help with Research Papers

Ghostwritin' original content

Fanfiction

Speeches

Proofreadin' and Editin'

Any other writin' based issue you'd like help with!

[vadlings]

Represention of Autistic Frustration in Laios Dungeon Meshi

Like many other autistic people, I related strongly to Laios Touden while reading Dungeon Meshi. This post isn't going to spend time disputing whether he displays autistic traits or not—while I could do that, I want to focus on why specifically his portrayal struck a chord with me in a way the writing of most other autistic-coded characters has not.

Disclaimer: as the above suggests, this post is strongly informed by my own experiences as an autistic person, as well as the experiences of my neurodivergent friends with whom I have spoken about this subject. I want to clarify that in no way am I asserting my personal experience to be some Universal Autistic Experience. This post is about why Laios' character feels distinct and significant to me in regard to autistic representation, and while I'm at it, I do feel that I have interesting things to say about autistic representation in media generally. This also got a bit long, so I'm sticking it under a read more. Spoilers for up to the end of chapter 88 below.

The thing that stands out most to me in regard to Laios' characterisation is the open anger he displays when someone points out his inability to read other people. This comes up prominently in his interactions with "Shuro" (Toshiro Nakamoto):

The frustration pictured above (Laios continuing to physically tussle with Toshiro, using crude language toward him) becomes even more notable when you remember that this is Laios, who, outside of these interactions, is not easily fazed and often exists as a lighthearted contrast to the rest of the cast. Then we get to Laios' nightmare.

In Falin's words: "Nightmares love emotional wounds. Wounds you hold in your heart. Things that give you stress, or things that were traumatic for you. They aggravate memories like that and cause the dreamer to have terrible dreams." (chapter 42, page 10.) (damn. i'm properly citing for this post and everything.)

Thus, Laios' nightmare establishes an important fact: even if he is unable to recognise social blunders while he's making them, he's at least subconsciously aware that other people operate on a different wavelength to him, and that he's an outsider in many of his social circles (both past and present). His dream-father's disparaging words stress the impact this has had upon his ability to live up to the expectations set out for him, and we also get a panel of kids who smirk at him (presumably former bullies to some degree). Toshiro's appearance only hammers home how much Laios is still both humiliated and angered by his misunderstanding of their relationship.

I've thought a lot about anger as concomitant to the autistic experience. When autistic representation portrays ostracization, it's generally from an angle of the autistic character being upset at how conforming to neurotypical norms doesn't come easily to them; as a result, they express a desire to 'get better' at meeting neurotypical standards, a desire to become more 'normal' (whether the writing implies this is a good thing or not). In contrast, not once does Laios go, "I need to perform better in my social interactions, and try to care less about monsters, because that's what other people find weird." His frustration is directed outward rather than inward, and as a result, it's the people around him who are framed as nonsensical.

The Winged Lion starts delineating Laios' anger, and Laios' reaction is to think to himself, "It can sense all my thoughts, huh?" (chapter 88, page 16.) This is the scene that really resonated with me. I'm not saying I have never felt the desire to conform to neurotypical norms that is borne from insecurity, but primarily, I know that I don't want to work toward becoming 'normal'—I don't want to change myself for people who follow rules I find nonsensical. It's the difference between, "Oh god, why can't I get it," and, "WHY CAN'T YOU GET IT?" (phrasing here courtesy of my friend Miles @dogwoodbite). And for me personally, Dungeon Meshi is the first time I've seen this frustration and the resultant voluntary isolation from other people portrayed in media so candidly. Laios' anger is not downplayed or written to be easily palatable, either.

The culmination of Laios' frustrations in this scene wherein we learn that Laios has fantasised about "a pack of monsters attacking a village" drives home just how alienated he really feels. I need not go into his wish to become a monster himself, redolent of how many autistic people identify/have identified with non-humans to some degree as a result of a percieved disconnect from society (when I was younger, I wanted to be a robot. I still kind of do.)

Obviously, wishing death upon other people is a weighty thing, but the unfiltered nature of this page is what deeply resonated with me. The Winged Lion is laying Laios' deepest and most transgressive desires bare, and they are desires that are a product of lifelong ostracization by others (whether intentional or unintentional). This is the brand of anger I'm familiar with, and that my neurodivergent friends express being familiar with, but that I haven't seen portrayed in writing so explicitly before—in fact, it surprised me because most well-meaning autistic representation I've experienced veers toward infantilisation in trying make the autistic character's struggles easy for neurotypicals to sympathise with.

Let's also not neglect the symbolism inherent to Laios' daydream. "A pack of monsters attacking a village". Functionally, monsters are Laios' special interest—he percieves everything first and foremost through his passion for monsters. His daydream of monsters attacking—killing—humans, is fundamentally a daydream of the world he understands (monsters) overthrowing the world that is so illogical to him, that has repeatedly shunned him (other people). I joked to my friends that it's an autistic power fantasy, and it actually sort of is. And in it, his identity is aligned with that of the monsters, while his anger manifests in a palpable dissociation from the rest of humanity. This is one manga page. It's brief. It's also very, very raw to me. I think about it often.

To conclude, I love Laios Dungeon Meshi. This portrayal of open frustration in an autistic character meant a lot to me, and I hope I've sufficiently outlined why. Also, feel free to recommend media with autistic representation in the notes if you've read this far—I would really like to see if there is more of this nature. Thank you for reading. I'm very tired and should probably sleep now.

[rightwriter]

ELLEN BROOOOOOOCK !! Serving us solid facts about how to avoid the cliche and melodrama!