Tag: anthology

The State of Writing Today

What’s Happening With Authors? Including Christian Authors?

rockyfort

A couple of weeks ago I posted Nora Roberts’s response to the plagiarism issue going on with a Brazilian author who has become known as #CopyPasteCris. According to @CaffeinatedFae, “We are now up to 64 books, 35 authors, 3 articles, 3 websites & 2 recipes that were plagiarized by #CopyPasteCris.” (https://twitter.com/CaffeinatedFae/status/1104161561399123969)  Yes, I copied @CaffeinatedFae’s words, but because I’m telling you where it comes from, it becomes research. And you can go there and read a lot more about the situation

A number of years ago I used to write a satirical column that I emailed out. (This was before Facebook and Twitter) I had a radio DJ who had a talk show and did some comedy pieces as part of it that he would love to use my work if I didn’t have a copyright notice on it. I told him that I had no problem with him using some of my stuff, just let people know where you got it. (I know – being paid in exposure. I didn’t know anything about it at the time.) He declined to do that, even though it would be throwing a bone to a local, struggling writer by giving me the recognition for my work. At least he had the integrity to not use my stuff then.

We’re seeing a lack of integrity in the writing in many situations right now. We had the romance writer who tried to trademark a common word used in the Romance Genre, “cocky,” that threw a lot of writers up in arms. If this could happen in the romance genre, it could happen elsewhere. A lot of people got mad. Some friends wrote a Romance Anthology with the title “As Cocky as They Come” as a protest – with every story title including the word “cocky.” I tried to write a story for the anthology, but if there was any doubt before, there isn’t now: I’m not a romance writer. I wrote a forward about the importance of fighting that kind of censorship. Whatever your view on the genre, and some of the stories are ones that I wouldn’t read, trying to trademark a word is blatant disrespect to others. I think we should stand in support of the rights of others, even when their expression of their rights isn’t our cup of tea.

What really bothered me today was reading a Christianity Today article about a popular author for Christian ladies. Many of my friends admire her work. They made the claim that her second book, “Girl, Stop Apologizing,” is full of plagiarism. I haven’t read the books, but I’ve heard others talking about them. That a Christian author would plagiarize like that, if the article is correct in its assertions, is unconscionable. Holly Hansen, a friend who’s done more research on this than I have, wrote a blog post that dealt not only with the plagiarism, but also the theological quality of the books. Her blog, titled, “Girl, Read a Great Book” helps to highlight to problems the author of “Girls, Wash Your Face” and “Girl, Stop Apologizing” has set in motion.

There are other posts out there that deal with this problems of theology, but sadly, self-help and self-adoration appears to be a popular genre among people who claim to follow Christ. I would make the point, and saw that some of those other posts made the same point, that Christians need to stop worrying about getting a hold of our lives and start learning to let God take control. The best life I could ever have is one where I’m walking with Christ and living in obedience to Him. Should I plan? Sure. Should I work hard? Sure, but I should always be living and writing ethically and in accordance with His will. So stop worrying about taking control of your life, and learn how to give that control over to God.

Blog Administration, Daily Work

January 13 – Where Does Sunday Go?

rockyfort

So today, there won’t be any bird pictures. If you came here looking for them, I apologize, but Sunday is a busy day. Last week I tried to get some pictures in, but right now, there aren’t enough birds flying around to make it worthwhile. What takes so much time on Sunday? We leave the house around 7:45 to go to church. I usually have duties at church that require me to be there from 8:00 AM (or earlier) until our second service lets out around noon. Of course, we talk to our church family until about 12:30 before we head out. Today, my duties included photography for a special commitment service. I used the church’s camera, so I don’t have any of those pictures to share.

When we got home, I fixed a quick lunch and did a few things before leaving again about 1:40 to go to a retirement center where I lead a Bible Study. I do that for half an hour, and then head back home where I have to do family things and write my devotional, except today, I had a rough time putting my thoughts together. Then, it’s time to prepare supper and at this time of year, it gets dark early enough that I can’t go out and take pictures.

My devotional, by the way, is called Daily Enduring Truth, and is available every day at the link in the text. I share one of the things that I learn from my personal Bible reading. This year, I’m doing something different by making the devotional an evening devotional with the idea of having people reflect on their day and see how they can learn and grow from the issues of their day. It’s a new concept for me, but I began thinking about this late last year when I thought about how the Bible describes a day. Each time, it begins in the evening. “It was evening and it was morning, the first day.” or “Evening, morning, and at noon will I pray.” My first set of devotional books is based on the same Bible readings, but meant for the morning. The possibility exists that thee will be a second set, but I have other writings to work on.

Now, one last bit of news. A short story I wrote has been accepted for a charity anthology. We will be supporting Alex’s lemonade stand. So, in addition to Bird Brain Chronicle posts showing up here, I’ll even be including some other bits and pieces of my writing and promoting the books that I have short stories in. I may even have some excerpts from the story of the journey my wife and I took as she battled breast cancer. Thanks for reading here and following here.

Daily Work

And Now – My Second Short Story Is Being Released

rockyfort

The date is Tuesday, August 7. My story is entitled, simply, “Coffee.” We’re having a Facebook Party to celebrate the release of the Anthology called Counterclockwise. I just gave you the Kindle pre-order link and will post the link for the paperback when that’s available. Here’s my description of the festivities

I’m so excited Folks! This begins at 3:00 Eastern, or 2:00 Central if you live in a civilized area. And, for one hour I can claim to be the best host for this Party! (That’s because I’ll be kicking off the kick off.) I hope you’ll plan to stop by online. Don’t ask me what I’ll be doing – I’ll know about 2 minutes before I do anything. Don’t ask me what I’ll give away. I’ve just begun working on that! I just know that you’re going to have a lot of fun ALL day with the great authors in this anthology. You’ll enjoy it so much, you’ll want to travel back in time to do it again!

Daily Work

First Short Story Has Been Released

rockyfort

I am excited! While I have a couple of my non-fiction books available, my first fiction story in an anthology has just been published! It can be found by clicking either the front cover or the back cover of the book below. The title is One Last Performance and it’s the story of an aging actor’s last performance. I had fun writing it and I hope you have fun reading it. The cost is $8.99 for the paperback and $2.99 for the Kindle. It’s also on Kindle Unlimited, so it’s available at no extra cost there.

   

And…if there’s a first, there has to be a second, right? I have another short story coming out August 7. More on that later.

Daily Work

May 12 – Some Days You Got It…This Wasn’t One of Those Days

rockyfort

Every time I started writing  I ran into writer’s block issues. Working on my devotional. Working on my short story for an anthology. Editing. Nothing seemed to work. I guess those days just happen. The devotional was the only thing I did today. Everything else avoided advancement. Those days happen. Tomorrow, I have a little less pressure. No evening class for Financial Peace. My wife wanted me to cook for Mother’s Day instead of going out, so tomorrow should be more relaxed. So…not a very long update tonight.

Today’s Devotional – May 12 – Judgment, Grace, and God’s Only Begotten Son