Just remember to breathe,
dags
But ... but ... what about all those microplastics floating around in the air outside?
Just remember to breathe,
dags
But ... but ... what about all those microplastics floating around in the air outside?
Hi Sol.
Sorry to nag, but I retested the way the site pays/charges points for posts, and the ratio is still 5-to-1 (costs 1 point for every 324 words posted but only pays 20% of that back to reviewers). Of course, that means we have to review 5 average-sized chapters (e.g., 2000 words each) to be able to post one average chapter of our own, which I'm virtually certain is higher than it used to be before the site crash/restore (you had estimated 4-to-1 long ago).
We had discussed changing the ratio to 3-to-1 to make it easier to acquire and keep new members. Most long-term members probably have a lifetime supply of points, so it doesn't affect many of us. At 3-to-1, it should then cost 40% less to post than it does now yet still pay the same in points as it does now, which would apply to all members (not including poetry, where the math differs).
We know that using this site successfully involves establishing and maintaining a network of reciprocal reviewers, so points really aren't as important as they once seemed, although we still want to require members (especially new folks) to do at least some reviews before they can regularly post. If they aren't interested in doing a mere 3 reviews for every 1 post, then this site clearly isn't for them.
Please let me know when you or one of your elves has had a chance to change this. I'd be happy to test it.
Thanks
Dirk
It's amazing that one filthy rich foreigner, who isn't even an American citizen, may have so decisively affected the outcome of an American election. There's a reason the constitution doesn't allow foreigners to run as president, but by all means, let's allow unlimited amounts of their money to flood an election and buy the votes and access. Besides, you folks seem to have your hands full just dealing with the loonies who *are* American citizens.
Good news r.e. Musk, Tesla sales in Europe have cratered (down about 60% recently, I believe). In China too, I believe, but for different reasons. Poor Elon decided to go to Germany and back one of their far-right wingnut parties in an election that was absolutely none of his bloody business. Now, Europe is sufficiently pissed off, and there are enough Tesla alternatives to choose from, that buyers are voting with their dollars in droves.
Cool fact: 96% of new vehicle registrations in Norway are electric. Too bad the rest of the world is still doing it's best to destroy the planet for our kids and grandkids. Among them, Alberta's conservative premier went to Florida last month at taxpayer expense to kiss Mango Mussolini's butt, still pushing new oil and gas pipelines. Drill baby, drill!
Thanks, Sol.
Truman? Wasn't he the one played by Jim Carrey in the Truman Show?
Dick Van Who?
Those are the questions all the generations after me will probably ask.
And some even in the same generation as me.
Hi Janet. Thanks for letting us know. That's very unfortunate (actually it sucks). He and I read each other's books for many years until he left the site. He was a really nice guy.
Great! Then you can clear the snow. :-)
Of course, you'll have to pay a 25% tariff on all your worldwide possessions before you can cross. There is one border crossing you might use. I forget the exact location (probably on the net), but it's unmanned, or used to be. The crossing involves using a phone at that location to connect to a customs officer, whole ask you a bunch of questions, then decide whether you're allowed in or have to turn back. I kid you not, that was a real thing once.
And our national police force (the RCMP) always says please, when asking you to put down your gun. (Yes, that one I made up.)
LOL. I just posted it. Now I get to spend several days getting caught up on reviews. Ugh!
Not to mention clearing snow from my deck and driveway. I think I need a nap first, though.
Thanks.
I'm curious if y'all have any thoughts on how to handle the following: I'm about to post chapter 3 of Connor v2, and the observant reader will note that Connor, as described in the chapter, looks nothing like the blond, blue-eyed, muscular, handsome, tan devil spawn on the front cover of the v2 book.
That's intentional since the transformation from wimp to pseudo-god will be gradual as his Christlike powers "grow". Most of the changes are no problem (eye color, hair color, tan skin). The fly in the ointment is him somehow developing a muscular body from a scrawny waif. Since it's Connor, I can always speed up the process, but I'm wondering if I should go to the trouble of giving him some crazy hunger for food, especially protein, that allows his body to develop those muscles fast. Or should I just let it happen supernaturally like his other changes?
He'll of course be pretending to be sick for about the first week in the Holy Land, so it doesn't really make sense for him to stuff his face while sick. I don't want to dedicate many words to discussing him constantly eating to get bigger, either.
There are a number of superheroes in comics who transform into their superhuman equivalent pretty much at the drop of a hat. Shazam is one. I believe a fairly recent origin film for Captain Marvel did something similar. There are others.
I'm leaning toward letting it just happen supernaturally, although I wish I had an explanation for how it could happen without eating constantly. It's one of those hokey plot holes that drives me crazy.
EDIT: Although he won't look muscular to start, he will reveal his incredible strength right from the first scene of chapter one, where he will fight Alessandro, admittedly using limited strength so as not to hurt him.
EDIT2: Perhaps his body grows unusually quickly at the outset based on what he eats, which is simply normal meals. His body could have the ability to turn what little he eats into muscles. In the third week, while sick, his body stops growing, and then resumes growing in the final week in the Holy Land.
Thoughts?
Dirk
Hi Lauren. Do you have a note in your books, perhaps right after the story, asking for reviews?
Perhaps try a different option for each promo (Daisy and Express). I like option 1 for at least one of the books. I would think getting into the top 100 might get the sales to really take off. No? Naturally, it might be hard to compare results of different options since you're promoting two different books.
By the way, Charles Brass (Seabrass) is deep into marketing his rather large portfolio of books. He might have some insights for you based on his own experience. He has a monthly newsletter that I subscribe to where he discusses his writing and marketing.
His website is https://www.seabrassproductions.com. He even gave TNBW a plug last month.
His email address and newsletter signup link are on the site.
Please let us know how the marketing goes.
Thanks
Dirk
While Connor, the AC, had those powers, Connor, the emerging Christ, does not yet have them.
Also, since I'm reverting to the original write-up, he won't use violence. He'll get flattened by Alessandro, then play dead until they run away in a panic.
I'll try writing it with brood of vipers first to reinforce who he may be.
If it stinks, I can go a bit further. Admittedly, I still like rat pack.
George, thanks for the message. As noted in my reply, the site ate my homework.
Course change:
Having thought about this some more, I may punt most of what I just wrote. Christian readers will no doubt be very skeptical of the story's whole premise, despite the alternate timeline. So, young Christ using any violence, however well-intentioned, and thinking in terms of name-calling (even though he doesn't yet know he's Christ), and even though Christ will return as a lion, all in the first scene, isn't workable in my opinion.
Off I go to v2 of this scene....
EDIT: For the first scene at least, the only narrated name calling he'll do is "brood of vipers". I want to reinforce the impression of who he may be before I consider deviating later.
Also, since Connor is supposedly just an ordinary kid who doesn't yet know he's Christ, I felt it was okay for him to think of the bullies as demon spawns and rats. He thinks in terms of "demon spawns" because that's what he himself is (that's me having a little fun), and rats is just short for the "Rat Pack", which is a phrase the other bullied kids normally use.
Since Jesus referred to the Pharisees as a brood of vipers, it's safe to assume he had to think of them as a brood of vipers before he said it. So, demon spawns and rats doesn't seem too much worse for a bullied kid.
Let's face it, none of those three are "charitable" thoughts.
EDIT: Connor also reveals that Alessandro's roommates refer to him as Tiny Tim behind his back. Because Connor is still trying to provoke the "beating" the rat pack intend for him anyway, he suggests Alessandro change clothes in the dark going forward.
Too much? If so, why?
Thanks
Dirk
Connor (before coming into all knowledge as Christ) is neither omniscient nor omnipotent until the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, after God the Father rips the veil off Connor's mind.
One my reviewers of v1 concluded that Connor couldn't be Christ because he asks questions of Romano as they fly home to Rome as if Connor honestly doesn't know the answers. Truth be told, it was a mere oversight on my part. I wasn't trying to give hints at the last minute and blow the climax. The fix is pretty easy, though. Connor can claim that unlimited knowledge and power are becoming accessible to his human body as fast as his young body/brain can handle them.
Fortunately, I only need to begin/continue Connor's omniscience from the moment at the Holy Sepulcher when the Father rips the veil off his mind until I reveal who Connor really is.
I'm working on a new scene for Connor v2. It was intended to be a short scene added to the beginning of the original chapter 1, where Connor cures Alessandro of his epilepsy through prayer. The new scene is supposed to happen before that, where Alessandro (a bully towards Connor) roughs him up.
I was going to have Connor play dead after a nasty punch (and of course he can slow his heartbeat and breathing to appear dead). However, in writing that scene, it didn't carry much punch as the opening scene of the actual "story", when the plot gets rolling.
As I changed and expanded the scene, it took on a life of its own (8 pages), and I now need to make it a chapter of its own, at least in terms of what I post here. I always have the option later to combine chapters when I pull the book together.
Here's a quick summary (Connor's POV, but I steer his thoughts around his real identity):
- Connor is confronted by Alessandro and his roommates (the "Rat Pack") who bully many of the kids, especially Connor.
- There's a flashback to some of the past abuse that Connor has suffered, all while refusing to engage in a fight (he turns the other cheek).
- At the end of the flashback, Connor realizes the violence is escalating and decides he has to do more to protect everyone and end the bullying for good.
- Back to the present, where Connor intentionally becomes confrontational toward the rats, especially Alessandro.
- As Alessandro attacks, Connor shocks them with some of his power (he takes a vicious blow to the face and barely flinches, then stops Alessandro's fist cold with one hand and won't let go, and soon ends the fight with as little violence as he can, then forces the rats to agree to stop bullying others).
Question:
- Is it okay for Connor (aka Christ) to finally resort to limited violence to protect everyone, or is that likely to be seen as too out of character for Christ as a child (who supposedly doesn't yet know he's Christ)? At that point, Connor is "merely" an innocent kid who cares about others and tries his best to avoid violence. He doesn't want to reveal any other powers at that time, and he uses as little violence as he can against the rats.
- I really haven't left him any other options if he wants to protect everyone. The priests do what they can but can't be everywhere all the time. The rat pack are relatives (nephews and grandnephews) of senior Catholic clergy, who protect them from what they see as too much (non-violent) discipline by Romano, so he's limited to stern lectures and figurative slaps on the wrist.
- Romano cares too much about the other orphans, including Connor, that he chooses not to resign his role as rector of the seminary in protest.
- If it helps, Christ is supposed to return as a lion, not a lamb, in the Second Coming.
Thoughts?
Thanks
Dirk
I read a post this evening on Reddit, where someone used the term Mango Mussolini. Absolutely love that. We have to figure out how to make that go viral.
Only $6.99? I may have to drive down there for cheap groceries.
I normally pay USD $5.60, give or take the exchange rate, although those are free range/organic.
Naturally, the price would go up if Trump invades and steals our chickens.
We're paying on average USD $4.40 per gallon for regular gas right now in spite of Alberta's drill-baby-drill dumbass mentality.
Father is an interesting case. Most Catholics use Father to refer to God the Father, and use father to refer to an unnamed priest in a given sentence. For example, Father Romano is walking around the Sea of Galilee. The father has never been here before. The Holy Trinity consists of the Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit.
I recommend the above approach to minimize confusion. Ditto for pastors, nuns, and sisters. If the "title" is followed by a name, capitalize it (e.g., Pastor Brown).
Ah, my favorite topic. Capitalization alone has probably added months to my writing over the past 12 years.
I questioned Gemini about this. It sees bus driver as merely a job, whereas it sees doctor, captain, astronaut, etc. as titles of respect. Of course, I'm sure there are plenty of cases where there would be no consensus as to whether to use titles of respect for given careers. I intentionally questioned it about astronaut and it says it should be capitalized in direct address ("Hello, Astronaut."). The latter is goofy since I've never heard of someone addressing an astronaut that way, although I suppose it's possible. Another case is someone with a master's degree vs. someone with a doctorate. Basically, no one calls me Master Dirk (except maybe if I had had a butler as a kid, lol), yet a friend of mine can be addressed as Dr. Lomow. Yet, if I'm a Jedi master or a mage, it would be Master Dirk.
If I had had hair over the past 12 years, I wouldn't anymore.
Does anyone know how to use color for some of the text in my book content summaries and chapter notes? I've seen people do it, but I don't know the syntax. Last I checked, it wasn't the same as the colored text syntax used in the forums.
Thanks
Dirk
I refuse to allow him on my TV or in my head anymore.
My mother despised the younger President Bush while she was still alive. Every time clips of him appeared on TV, she'd say she could just kick him in the face. :-)
She lived long enough to see Biden win in 2020 and probably thought, thank God that's over!
The period from 2016 through 2024 could never get made as a fictional TV movie because it's too far-fetched to be believed.
Even though I lived half my adult life in the US, I have no desire to see stories about the Antichrist (other than my own). I still read a little US politics at bedtime, but even that will soon end. I just want to watch Hurricane Orange make landfall and see the destruction begin. Musk is already contributing to the effort with his repeated Nazi salutes the other day.
What kind of stories do you read/write?
Welcome, Greg.
To maximize the number of reviews you'll receive on the site, have a look at one of the dedicated posts on that topic in the Premium forum. It's pinned near the top of the forum.
Hope it helps.
Dirk