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Here in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s summer. It’s hot, sunny, beautiful. School’s out, summer camp is in. Marshmallows, camping, long days at the beach.
Yet it's not all peachy for everyone. EPA, the very agency tasked with protecting our environment, accidentally spilled 3 million gallons of toxic wastewater from an old mine into the Animas River. The same river that provides water for numerous communities, including the Navajo Indians.
Coca-Cola, storied beverage maker, has funneled millions (dollars, not gallons) into a new "non profit" organization to try to convince us that we don’t have to worry about calorie intake anymore, as long as we exercise enough. Well, let me run out for a Coke right now!
Slavery is alive and well on the high seas. Did you know that's how some of the fish we—and especially our pets—eat is so cheap? What an appetizing thought.
I could list a thousand other wrongs, but also a thousand rights that never go reported.
Like the woman in India who learned how to make jams the French way and now has a growing business selling home-made jams to families concerned about excess sugar and chemicals in the food their kids eat. (Watch this space... we're adding her to our Visionaries page!)
Or the CEO of Gravity up in Seattle who decided to raise the starting salary of his employees to $70,000. Major hat off to the guy.
Or the intrepid crew of the Sea Shepherd that tracked down an illegal fishing trawler operating out of reach of most authorities.
I have all kinds of emotions about the things that are wrong with the world we live in. But guilt is not one of them. Guilt, especially indirect guilt, as in guilt by association despite personal innocence, is too often misplaced, misdirected, and overly politicized. In which case it doesn’t actually help anyone; it just gives you ulcers. I can be angry, but I prefer to be informed, and if I can, to take action, no matter how small.
What does any of this have to do with writing?
Everything.
It's why journalism, social media, and blogs matter more than ever. What we write matters. What we say matters. Because words inform the world.
And hopefully, with enough truthful words written, spoken, and shared, they can change it, too.
~ Birgitte
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How many of you have written a novel? And have you then shopped it around to agents and/or publishers? Gotten it professionally edited/proofread/designed/laid out? Hired a publicist/marketer/street team? Begged/bribed/threatened bookstores to carry it?
Of all the things you're expected to do, don't forget to have your book beta read. My chocolate book is the first literary work I've engaged beta readers on, and it has been a great experience. I truly recommend it. No matter how imaginative of an author you are, you'll never come up with the wide variety of perspectives that beta readers will bring you.
Tip: along with your target audience, have people of different ages and backgrounds read it, too. You'll get a much richer and diverse set of opinions and feedback.
Plus, you get to give back in unexpected ways. One beta reader, a writer herself, asked me how to make her fiction writing more concise. My suggestion was to write a few business articles or technical materials. Ideally for an actual client.
Why? First, because clients will tell you in no uncertain terms if the work you do for them falls off the verbose end of the waterfall.
Second, in business, and even more so in a technical setting, there is no room for flowers. Those you want to save for your book launch party.
Third, you don't get emotionally wrapped up in articles about cloud computing or the latest trends in management. At least you shouldn't!
But, wait, you might say, what about journalism? Doesn't that help cut down on the wafting literary flowers, the tangents, the scenic routes?
Of course. But business and technical writing make you think in different ways than journalism, and it's this kind of mental flexibility that comes in rather useful at unexpected literary times.
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- Chocolate novel: Final editing is nearing completion. It's taken this long because I've decided to make the story more dramatic, more entertaining, and a whole lot richer than the first draft. Work is also starting on a whole section of my author site dedicated to the book—and if you're on this list you'll get all the sneak peeks and previews! Even I can't wait to see it. Right now it's all just sketches on napkins.
If you have ideas or special wishes that you'd like to see included on this microsite, all you have to do is reach out. I always aim to please.
- Educational game: As we transition from alpa to beta prototype, we're looking at sound designers. On that front we're also open to referrals and recommendations.
Above all, enjoy the rest of the summer! What, we have like two weeks left before it supposedly ends...?
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You are receiving this message because you have signed up for my mailing list, registered with a user account on my author's web site, sent me flowers or dark chocolate, survived a live television program with me, or otherwise communicated with me and/or shown interest in my work or the official Birgitte Rasine author web site, or because you are someone I know personally. If you have any questions, please contact LUCITÀ via email at info@lucita.net or by telephone at +1 408.542.9942.
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