Comments on: Monthly Wrap: Times We Turned Pink

By: SusanHenderson

SusanHenderson — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 19:15:29 +0000

Then I won’t give it another thought and I’ll simply use this space to brag about the Steelers…. http://bleacherreport.com/images_root/image_pictures/0013/1937/random_key_84234_file_9740506_Steelers_v_Cowboys_feature.jpg

By: DConaway

DConaway — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 17:26:48 +0000

Karma is a bitch, that’s my view. Given how many options there are in the world, and how many writers who need/could use/would die for your help, I wouldn’t give this another thought–in fact you’ve already given him far more consideration than he deserves. The most generous thing you could give him is to give him nothing whatsoever–which of course is the far kinder choice than just about any option I’d contemplate, under the circumstances. And if your guilt engine insists on weighing in here (“if I were a bigger person” etc), then counter the guilt-engine argument with the one you’ve laid out above: giving him ink and attention would deprive others of same, and why do that for somebody who used HIS opportunity in this regard (where you were concerned) to demonstrate his own small-mindedness.

By: SusanHenderson

SusanHenderson — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 08:13:14 +0000

Someone dropped me a note recently, asking about Joseph Campbell’s gravesite. I have pictures of it here: http://litpark.com/2007/01/12/weekly-wrap-our-2-sentences/

By: SusanHenderson

SusanHenderson — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 22:27:58 +0000

National Book Award Winners:

YA: Judy Blundell, What I Saw and How I Lied (Scholastic)
Poetry: Mark Doty, Fire to Fire: New and Collected Poems (HarperCollins)
Non-Fiction: Annette Gordon-Reed, The Hemingses of Monticello (W.W. Norton & Company)
Fiction: Peter Matthiessen, Shadow Country (Modern Library)

By: SusanHenderson

SusanHenderson — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 19:57:32 +0000

Awww. What a great story. Good to have you here, Kelley.

By: Kelleybell

Kelleybell — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:38:52 +0000

What a cute story. It reminds me of one of my own:

I took a job selling roses in the local bars of St. Pete Florida on Friday nights, one summer, long, long ago…

One bar, called The Salt and Peppa was (unbeknownst to me) a front for a brothel.

The madam who posed at the front door collecting the cover charge took pity on me. She could tell I was young, inocent and struggling.

As I walked through the bar, every woman at every table literally begged her beau to buy my roses. When I got to the back of the bar my box was empty.

Then the madam made a motion to her girls I did not understand.

As I walked back to the front, each of the women pulled one rose from their boquet to keep, and stuffed the rest back into my box for me to sell at the other pubs on my route.

You see, the way it works, is the flower sellers give you a route, and advance you the roses. You sell what you can, then must pay for the whole lot. You earn just enough to pay the debt and buy a meal, but never enough to get ahead.

When I left that bar, I had a pocket full of cash, and a full box of stock to sell.

I literally broke down in tears.

These women understood, without even asking, what a tough time I was having, living on my own for the first time, and trying to find a real job. They knew how rough it could be, and they reached out to help.

It was the most amazing act of human kindness I have ever witnessed, and one I will never forget.

By: SusanHenderson

SusanHenderson — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 10:18:38 +0000

I don’t know about my impact on this writer. Mostly, tying my name to him and pleasing a publisher would do my own career good. It’s like the power of lobbyists. But I’m not going to go there cuz I’ve decided I’m going to donate the book here:

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=33470239062

By: mlakers

mlakers — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 08:53:15 +0000

I like that line of thinking. And another way to get to the same place would be to ask, “Where will my review/promotion have the most impact?” Chances are, if this author already has a big house solidly behind him, your contribution would be a drop in an already full bucket. But for that quietly waiting author…oh, yeah, it could be a tidal wave.

By: SusanHenderson

SusanHenderson — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 08:18:56 +0000

Yeah, I do agonize about things, probably too much. But I thought I’d do it out loud this time because I was honestly on the fence. I’m not a grudge holder, so any personal hurt isn’t and wasn’t part of the equation. But I was struggling with what was at first my dilemma, which was a sense that it goes against all of my personal instincts to reward snotty or pushy or self-righteous behavior, and it also goes against my instincts to play some kind of moral authority.

But your note here tips me far into the side of letting this person’s book go because you reminded me of why I started this blog to begin with. Because there are a lot of really tremendous writers here who are kind and play by the rules and don’t have people strong-arming for reviews, and they keep getting passed over. And this isn’t a book, judging by the back cover, that I would have picked up without the pressure. And certainly, choosing him would have meant passing over some quiet writer who’s patiently waiting in line, probably for ten years now, and I’d rather find that writer.

By: SusanHenderson

SusanHenderson — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 08:08:29 +0000

Hee. Now I really want to hear the snarky version.