cheap drunk: 1 glass - woozy. Not good.

[erastes]

Another pirate site with literally thousands of files:

I'm sorry, Ms Koala Nest, but if you don't agree with people broadcasting these thieves then go and read someone else's LJ, ok?

I just finished "Murder in the Rue Chartres" by scottynola (who, I hope is heading home, or is home now) and I really really enjoyed it. Anyone who reads me regularly will know I'm a sucker for a good old detective story and this suited me down to the ground. I want to say a lot more about it, but I can't because I'm doing a review for Chroma next month so I'll bellow when I've got it up over there.. as it were.

Very amusing post by K Z Snow - "Can you write m/m without pissing off 3,684,963 people?"

I did two blogs today: A small review of "Lost in Austen" on The Britwriters, and a post of some of my favourite gay historical art on The Macaronis

Comments

[lee-rowan.livejournal.com]

"Can you write m/m without pissing off 3,684,963 people?"

Don't know.

Don't care.

I can't get into that site - it keeps giving me an 'adult content' notice and when I click 'okay,' it says 'done' but doesn't move off the warning page.

Now that does piss me off.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

*laughs*

well that's 3684964!!

[lee-rowan.livejournal.com]

Got it straightened out (pardon the notion) -- great essay. And she's right, except that the HEA is sometimes a publisher's requirement. But really -- what writer, anywhere, doesn't irritate someone? And what writer with any self-respect would stop writing a story because it might piss somebody off?

[erastes.livejournal.com]

I agree, I just write things and worry about selling them afterwards. I can't think "Oh noes, someone might not like this torture scene" while I'm writing it, at least!

[lee-rowan.livejournal.com]

After what Solzhenitzen and Rushdie went through, 'oh, noes! This might UPSET somebody!' seems rather tepid.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

*dies of the giggles*

Dear Mr Solzhenitzen, my mother died of cancer and I found your book most offensive!

[lovefromgirl.livejournal.com]

Hey, 's not bad being a cheap drunk... at least we can get pissed without breaking the bank!

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Seems to have worn off now, thank God! Oh the shame!

[suryaofvulcan.livejournal.com]

Thanks - you just reminded me to download Lost in Austen. Bookjumping comes to television - I wonder if Jasper Fforde watched it (while on the phone to his lawyer ...)

[erastes.livejournal.com]

That's something I was wondering about, to be honest... They'd have done better to have a male protag.

[suryaofvulcan.livejournal.com]

oooh yes ... a gay male protag ... and Darcy ends up besotted with him instead of Elizabeth ...

I think I'm about to start writing P&Pslash.

[enolabloodygay.livejournal.com]

Oh the shame?

Can I mention that ebil South African wine you bought once? After half a glass we were squiffy, after a whole one my family left us to the sitting room in disgust and we woke up in the morning with a broken computer desk (think that was me) 72 new friends on ICQ (I blame that one on you - you're the touch typist, after all) and half a box of wine left!

Half a box left is true shame!

[kalitakasar.livejournal.com]

um is ms koala nest implying that her mother uploaded other authors' work and is making money off the downloads? That's how it read to me.

If this is the case, Amber Green (whoever she is) will never get a book sale from me!

[lee-rowan.livejournal.com]

No, no - Amber Green is one of the authors whose books are up on the pirate site, and her daughter seems to believe that the announcement incited people to steal downloads. I don't know if that's the case -- the only way to determin that would be to monitor the number of downloads a few days before and a few days after announcing who's up there, and I'm not sure it would be worth the loss (and anyway, if one knew about the site, why wait for a public announcement?) It might be a good idea next time one of these bottom-feeders floats to the surface, if only to determine whether there's any truth in the accusation. If that is the case, then maybe the warnings should be friends-locked or something.

But as these idiot sites only take complaints from authors or publishers, the best way to get 'em taken down is to let the authors and pubs know that they're up. (I recognized one author on one of the lists as being with Linden Bay, and let them know--but I don't even have the addresses of most of these folks, let alone any idea of who they're published by.)

A public post may not be the ideal way to get the word out, but I'm damned if I can think of a more efficient way to do it. Personally chasing down contact info for each and every pirated author is way above and beyond the call of duty for an unpaid volunteer position.

[kalitakasar.livejournal.com]

ah, okay. I still don't get the objection to the alert being given. If my name had been on that list, I would appreciate being told. I guess there is a fine line between doing a service for authors, and letting those who would be likely to dl the files know where to find them.

[lee-rowan.livejournal.com]

I don't know---I suppose a few people do use this info wrongly. I can see the temptation to check out a new writer that way; since you can't return or resell a download, when you get a stinker it's money down the drain, and I've had the experience a few times, so I read a lot of excerpts and buy relatively few e-books. (I spend too much time staring at the screen anyway.)

I've also read that many of these sites are used extemsively by people in places like China, where they cannot buy the books legally, and/or where poverty makes it impossible, so even this issue isn't completely black & white. But until writers know where the pirates are, it's impossible to fire a (legal) broadside at 'em. Some sort of communication tree might be more secure, but that would mean a lot of volunteer time, and I don't know of anybody who's got much time to spare. Just compiling an email list would be a bear.

[kalitakasar.livejournal.com]

I too, tend to read excerpts and only seldom buy the books. I will buy the work of authors I know well and whose work I know I can trust, but it takes a few recs from people I know before I will actually buy a book by an author I haven't read before.

I understand that this whole thing is a gray area. My partner and I have discussed it pretty extensively. Most of the people who download these files wouldn't buy the books anyway, so in some respects there is no loss to the authors and there may be a gain if the downloaded file prompts the reader to go looking for, and possibly buy more books by an author.

[lee-rowan.livejournal.com]

I don't think the people who are regular pirate users will ever actually buy books -- if you read the comments, it's always, "Gee, that was good--got any more?" Why should they buy 'em if they can get 'em free?

What I don't understand is why these sites require complaints from an author or publisher. You don't have to own a house to call the cops if you see someone breaking in. Copyright theft is a crime and these websites should be required to take and act on reports from anyone.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

I don't think so, I think she means that by "outing" these illegal sites I am in fact advertising them, and in consequence more people download the files, thereby taking more money from her mother. True, in essence, but if one DOESN'T out these sites, nothing gets done.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

ah - Lee's already there! Shows I should read ALL my mail before answering!

:)

[lee-rowan.livejournal.com]

It was about 3 am in England..