Steal my music

Over ten years now I have been a member of music groups.  The music itself is geared more toward the underground therefore I have never once thought: “wow, my music is something that I can use to make a living”.  The get rich quick philosophyis exactly what destroys the art.  Art is created to receive a response.   The response and the appreciation from the public is the reward.  I have played a lot of live shows over the years.  I have only gotten paid maybe a couple times.  Playing live, seeing the reactions from the crowd, having the opportunity to bestow something beautiful on willing listeners’ ears – is all I need as a musician.  So when it comes right down to it, I share my own music willingly on Peer to peer programs and I want people to “steal” it.  And also hope they like it. 

Music is a huge part of my life.  If I wasn’t in a band I don’t know what I would do.  However, I will never quit my day job to try to squeeze money from something as pure as artistic expression.

Commericalism of literary fiction.

The publishing world is strange.  The Literary writers hate the genre fiction writers because genre fiction is purely entertainment.  Any student of a collegiate writing arts program can vouch for that.  However, it was surprisingly (to me anyhow) that at a horror convention, I was talking to a representative of a small press horror editor – and they appeared to hate literary fiction because it isn’t as marketable.   And commericalfiction prides itself on aspects of writing (many elements opposed to what we are taught at University) that sell books.  Note: I understand that it may have been this particular editor’s bias.  Regradless,  I find it strange that as a fiction writer we are supposed to create “marketable literary fiction” when in the publishing world they sometimes appear as polar opposites.  

Hiding behind IM

In the book Datacloud, Johnson-Eilola’s perspective concerning IM is a little too positive.  I find that it is scary that the author asks his students if they would rather prefer cell phone, email, or IM, and the students overwhelmingly choose IM (pg. 96).  I have been a substitute teacher and I manage high school kids sometimes at my job, so I am well aware of teenage attraction to IM.  And I understand the appeal.  IM alleviates all social anxiety – more so than a phone. 

The IM generation will not call someone if they are mad at them – they will jump on the computer and IM their anger at the convicted.  Why?  To avoid confrontation.  The IM generation will not break up with a lover or ask a person on a date, face to face.  Why?  Because its scary.  Because it is uncomfortable.  I believe IM is not helping the social development of teenagers.  As Nietzsche states in The Twilight of the Idols: “Out of life’s school of war: what does not kill you, makes you stronger.”  I am grateful for every time I was required to withstand and confront embarrassment, hurt, and anger face to face in the cruel environment of high school.  It wasn’t fun; however, the experiences made me a better person.

Online Marketplace selling

Ever since an acquaintance of mine got away with selling fake items and not paying the seller on Ebay, I have been mistrustful of marketplace selling/buying.  Although, the ripoff artist that I knew was scamming people when Ebay was brand new and the internet was fairly new, my anxiety cannot be lessened.  And this leads to frustration – because I have stuff I want to sell!  I currently own a highly sought after small press horror novella that I bought for $8 and is now sold for over $400.  I am thinking of selling it on Amazon, but I still think I’m going to be bamboozled.  On top of that, the lovely US postal service has been atrocious.  I only receive one out of every five packages in fair condition.  My packages are many times broken or stolen.  I have friends who have had similar situations with UPS.  So I guess that leaves Fed Ex and mail insurance. 

I just wish I could make the sale the old fashioned way: physical exchange.  That is the only way I can be sure i am not getting ripped off.

Interactive Internet

After I had read three online articles on active internet aspects (e.g. YouTube, Facebook, and lonelygirl15’s webcam cinema), I was taken back.  I knew the internet was becoming less passive; however, it looks as if the future will have no passive websites to speak of.  In five years I’m sure internet passivity will be exinct because an active website will always trump a passive website in user popularity.  

Soon after I had read the articles, a close friend of mine proposed an idea: building a more interactive NHL hockey information website / forum.  Both my friend and I do not and cannot build websites so we will ask another friend if he is interested.  As three hockey fans we will address the areas in which we feel are lacking in other NHL info / forum sites such as HFboards and Hockey Buzz.  Other details cannot be disclosed.  After reading the three articles, I am confident that the idea can be successful.  The difficult part is the work: making the idea a reality.  

Genre trouble

I have completed the full draft of my novella for Rowan University Writing Arts thesis.  The draft still must be looked over by both advisors but I am thinking that the text should not be too problematic.  

 I was describing the novella to a friend of mine in which I could not pin point the genre of the piece.  I have been told by professors that this is a good thing (Genre fiction is the Devil. Formulaic stories are not well written stories); however, now I do not know how to describe the story and more importantly, I do not know which publishers/agents to send the material.  Presently, it seems that the novella is too dark for literary fiction and too deep to be considered horror. 

Literary psychological horror, maybe? 

Tufte’s The Cognitive Style of Powerpoint

This pamphlet surprised me.  I assumed the text would be more liberal regarding the effectiveness of Powerpoint presentations.  I was happy to see Tufte take a stand against Powerpoint.  I haven’t had much experience with PP, only as a viewer not as a creator (although J-man, my roomie during four years of undergrad, was required to create PP presentations seemingly every week, so I had the exciting honor of watching  bullet pointed slides being born.  However, in my roomie’s defense, he tried to liven the presentation by adding random pictures of Han Solo, Jawas, and Jabba the Hutt to the pages.  Needless to say, it confused his audience: they couldn’t figure out how Star Wars related to Economics.  In actualiy, it didn’t relate whatsoever).

Even though I have never created PP presentations, I am not a fan of experiencing such presentations. Like Tufte mentons on page 15, presentors should distribute hand-outs to the audience.  Not only can participants more effectively relate to the info, they also can look over the info at home if they so desired. I believe this is important.

Powerpoint simplifies information to the point of ambiguousness.  I do not believe there is a problem with handing out complex texts to the audience and teaching the audience about the texts.  Such an approach aids mental containment of information because the audiences’ brains are pushed to think more analytically about relevent data.   

Issues in Composition Studies grad class

Has anyone who has been through the Rowan Graduate program or who is currently in the Rowan Graduate program taken the class Issues in Composition Studies?  If so, how did you enjoy the class? And what type of assignments are involved?  I assume it is primarily geared toward teachers, but does the class only concern issues of education? 

I have registered for the class for the Fall semester.  I was curious if I will take anything useful away from the class being that I am not a teacher. 

Any info will help.  Thanks! 

 

Writing: completion is a mean to begin again.

Recently, I am finding it difficult to focus on my thesis novella.  I am not sick of the story or discouraged by repetitive editing.  Quite the contrary.  I am satisfied with the plot and in love with the characters and tone.  I want to be finished with the novella so I can graduate: an obvious advantage. However, another pressing desire that constantly raps on my brain is the desire to sink my teeth into another project. 

I am not a fan of pending projects.  When I find something that needs to be done, I do it. If I do not complete a task, I become perturbed.  Pending writing causes me extreme anxiety: when I have an idea and an idea on how to express an idea, I wish to churn out a final product.  An idea wandering aimless in my mind or sittting static on a draftboard is merely a tease.   

Therefore, I find myself thinking constantly about my new project (Note: I would explain the novel idea, but being a private person who is mistrustful of the public internet medium, I fear someone – not in WEC, but in the internet community – will steal the idea).  I actually find myself active researching the new project: buying books, running internet searches, and browsing my own library.   

 Summer is right around the corner.  Although summer should be a time to rest, the time excites me because it is a time to work on individual projects: editing an existing novel, beginning a new novel, trying to sell my thesis novella, and starting and completing three short stories all sit on my plate for this summer.  All of these projects look up at me with eager eyes, waiting to be devoured.  And my stomach is really starting to growl.

 

Conflict

Chapter Four of M. Syverson’s The Weath of Reality was both commendable and interesting.  I have to commend Margaret for addressing a negative aspect of the ecology theory. This proves that she is being honest to the ideas she is proposing.

 The negative aspect she discusses is conflict.  When many people come together to collaborate written ideas, there is conflict.  Sometimes enlightenment results from impassioned dialogue / conflict.  Enlightenment is the progression towards an answer or truth, therefore conflict can result positively.  On the other hand, sometimes personal agendas of the players shift unknowlingly.  Side are taken regardless of the ideas expressed.  Players become narrowminded.  They think of new ways to creatively refute fellow players, instead of thinking about the ideas themselves.  In other words, players become focused on the conflict between each other, rather than the conflict of ideas.  I find this negative aspect of the ecology to be commonplace on internet forums and lists: many people enjoy arguing for the sake of arguing or to prove they are right – instead of striving towards an infalliable truth.