Just a quick question. Has anyone started using Internet Explorer 9? I've had some warnings not to do it, but some of those people are still using Windows 95.

Wren

First, thank you to all who responded to my earlier blog. Not only were there far more well-wishers than I expected, there were some from people I never would have expected. (There were also a couple of people who were notable by their absence, but that's all I'll say about that.)

It's gone back from showers to just partly cloudy all weekend. And now they are saying a slight chance of showers.

I guess we'll just have to set up tents and hold our hands out to see if they get wet.

So you're all still invited to join us at the 2nd West Coast BCTS get together, as long as you can make it to downtown Walnut Creek on your own

PM me if you are interested.

Holly

I usually don't post much on my blog here. But like the title says I'm feeling disheartened and honestly once again like way too many people do It's about the comments. I've looked for the flavors of whatever seems to be the choice of the week/month and all I see is a reduction of comments from a lot of the stories that are up right now.

When one meets folks your daughter's friends and even Professors, it can be a bit stressful - at least it can, if one is still not sure whether you pass well or not.

Okay, another Ranms chapter and this one is one of the more demented in all honesty. I am a bad bad writer.

Really, really bad writing can be hilarious. Unintentionally hilarious, but hilarious nonetheless.

Some incredibly cruel person, who obviously works in publishing, has had the bad judgement to violate the trust placed in them by their employers and the authors who submit their work, and post selected groaners for the whole world to see.

So, of course, I had to repost it: http://sichumor.tumblr.com/

Hi everyone...

Don't worry; I'm not rewriting it! At least, not yet anyway, but when I saw the beautiful cover art Piper's created for it, it did make me want to go back and do some rewriting, to bring it up to par with the new image.

The above quote is from the old cartoon, "The Jetsons". As the end credits rolled, the main character would get on a treadmill, only to have it go completely out of control. I feel a bit like that. I am running my heart out just to stay in the same place, and ever once in a while, I slide under, get crumpled, and then spat back out to start running again. And the idea of actually getting any traction seems like a no-go. But I wont stop. I will keep fighting, keep trying to find a way to be Dorothy full time. Thanks again to "Team Dorothy" who have picked me up and put me back on track.

For those still interested in participating, here's the update on what challenges are due in April for the Year of Challenges.

Hello Everyone !
I wish that I could have posted a new chapter today instead of this small update.

Real Life as usual has gotten in the way of something I would much rather do and that is edit and post more of this tale. I am working on the chapter 9 and it should be ready for you to read (and enjoy) soon.
Allyson is making headway in getting her devious mutiny plot going. (as one commenter put it). I'm not really happy with how that is being put down on paper so I may end up with something completely different, at this stage it is too early to tell.

Ok, so when I submitted the final version of 12-String: 12 to my editor, a problem with the court scene at the end of 12-String: 11 came to light. It's not that what was there was wrong, per se, but that it leads to an incorrect conclusion about what is happening. I've already changed it, but the paragraphs I changed are as follows:

There are many factors that go into camping and a basic one that most everyone I have read forgets when writing is that guys and gals pee differently and thus peeing in the woods is very different. As many people know, guys pee rather easily in the woods. It is rather a non-issue.

It's perhaps a bit early, but I just received confirmation from Social Security that I will be receiving retirement benefits starting next month. Actually, this month, but they won't actually pay me until April.

It's kind of a bittersweet situation. Those with whom I've shared know that I have been out of work and looking for about three years now. It's frustrating for someone with my experience to be passed over. My resume (CV) is impressive, perhaps too much so.

There are occasionally, stories one shouldn't read in certain moods. I loved it, but Randalynn's story "Case Closed" hit me hard. The trouble i have is how much I feel like Paul:

"what do I have to look forward to? Years stretching ahead of me, all alone and in pain, tormented by all the real people? That’s the clarity you gave me this morning, by the way. I know now that I can’t be anything but what I am — the human joke. It’s not going to change.”

“You could — ”

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1369991/Transgender-...

Nice story about high school transgendered junior allowed to attend prom as her girlself. Sounds like she had a great time.

Well, writing is going well. I wrote over ten pages on 300 Rains just today, so that was good. This post is just an FYI for all of you, things are coming up that may cause some sensitive readers some emotional upset. As they get closer to Brazil things get crazier and crazier. Like I said, this is a storm warning, so make sure that when the storm hits you you are emotionally prepared. So in the immortal words of Samuel L Jackson, "Hold on to yer Butts!"

When the chapter in question hits I will just put storm in the extra description. Just saying.

http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/19ff96988d124df9a0cde4...

He must have really needed a new mattress.

Winter's Quiet

Hey, all!

Sorry I haven't posted stories lately, but I'm a very seasonal writer, and go quiet in the winter (or dormant, or into hibernation, or whatever...)

Since Spring is here and I'm writing again, I'll be posting soon.

-A

I saw a nice car today. It had lovely curves, and a very slight hint of chunkiness. I got the impression that the chunkiness was the result of a severe manufacturing defect, that had been mostly corrected.

...And the last three letters on the registration plate? = )

Well, yesterday was a full day. I picked up my check from the telephone sales job (I made 300 dollars in 3 days, so not bad)

To me, the only kind of magic is that which you see on stage and on TV - simply about fooling an audience into believing something has no explanation, when in reality it has.

I think most people on this site would define it as something which cannot be explained, but if that is the case, I cannot understand the urge of people to attribute so many things to magic, as though that explained things, when by their definition, it does exactly the opposite.

I can distinctly remember a time not so very long ago, when I had myself utterly convinced that I was absolutely incapable of writing short, one-shot stories. I guess, in a way, I was incapable at the time, but not for lack of ability.

In retrospect, I think it was more a combination of facts. One of those was that I was just so laser-focused on writing my novel/serial. In the past, writing has been my therapy. I wrote for the exclusive purpose of writing what I needed to write, what I needed to get out of my system.

When we say something is "hysterical" we usually mean that's a good thing. But sometimes, I think laughter can lead to hysteria in the sense of a loss of control. At least I think thats what happened to me last night. I was talking with my girlfriend Kylie, and I started laughing, until I was in pain, having trouble breathing, and yet being unable to stop. I'm not sure what that means.

How come whenever a guy magically or through science is transformed to a girl in the stories (all the ones I've read on BCTS) do they automatically have long hair. Surely at least sometimes there should be a natural progression of the growing of hair.

I enter the local hospital Wednesday morning to have an cardiac catheterization performed, with a distinct possibility of an angioplasty and stenting. I hope that's what happens. The other, (worse) alternative will be a bypass operation, which I really would like to avoid.

Anyway, by about this time tomorrow I should know, although the pre-surgical nurse did mention I could end up being loaded on a med-flight helo and flown to the nearest cardiac care center right away if things are bad enough. I guess that's the worst possibility. :(

Princess and the Jock Cautions

I have received many comments and PMs from readers that are disappointed with where the story ‘The Princess and the Jock’ seems to be going. I am not hurt or angry, in any way with these comments. I get great enjoyment out of the reader’s ideas, discussions and arguments over these characters and story details.

Back in 3/2010 I posted, and offered, the wonderful story Midnight Downloads by Wendy J. You can find that in my blog history. Since it has been a week over a year, I thought I would again offer it to anyone interested in reading this one. It can still be found in a few places. The copies I have are her edited files in chapter 1-30. And she had also released a few more chapters. I have through 50. The later chapters are incomplete, and a couple are just working ideas. Email if you are interested. I have sent this to probably 100 people over the years.

Well, it's been a busy morning. It started out by discovering my email account had been hacked. I've already shared that.

On Denise's (my lovely wife) request I met with a 'mental health professional.' Okay, so I've been a bit down lately.

Some time early Sunday morning someone managed to get into my Gmail account and spam everybody in my (somewhat extensive) contacts list. If you got one, please delete it.

I discovered it this morning when I could not get into my account. They had changed the password. I went through the password recovery and got control of the account back.

When I was able to get back into the account there was a message from Google that the account had been accessed from China and if it wasn't me that I should change my password.

I've concluded that my chapters of Angry mermaid might be too long for some and that's why they get bored before the chapters are concluded.
I've been a little bit disappointed by the lack of comments recently and I suspect many readers just switch off before they've finished the chapter.
I'm therefore going to try a new tactic by shortening the chapters to about 25 kb instead of the normal 50-ish.

After Chapter 25 the chapters will run about roughly 25 to 30 kb's.

Just have to wait and see if people prefer it that way.

Bev.

There is a project I've been working on for some months now. It's going to be postponed. See, my entire life is pretty much a pile of GNORT, the Living Spleen -- and the reprieve I had for a short time seems to have ended. I have my lovely partner, but the rest of things... losing my job, being faced with the revelation that I really am as reprehensible a person as I always thought, the still-raw loss of my baby brother three and a half years ago, has resulted in my ability to write being pretty much admitted to the psych ward for awhile. Sure, I can write some...

A report in today's Guardian about a gay character in a Malaysian film who has a sex-change to please his/her boyfriend and then regrets it before falling in love with a girl.

See for yourselves: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/18/malaysia-first-f...

Well, I am trying to keep a positive attitude about my brief experience in the workforce as Dorothy. It was good for me to be me in a RL situation, something I can try and build on if I find another place accepting enough to let me be myself. I just don't know how realistic that actually is. I have so few skills, I feel like some grunt job is my best option, and those are not usually flexible. Ah, well.

Hi

Just thought i'd share this free shipping offer to those of you in the UK.

go to http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fAcctID=192079, select your books then quote 'GROUNDUK' when you check out to get free ground shipping within the UK.

valid until 21 March 2011

ttfn
Maddy