How to Kill Your Writing Career in Five Easy Steps

1) Trademark a single word that isn't even the name of your series.

2) Steal someone else's intellectual property and illegally use it in your trademark.

3) Send your own cease and desist letters over the single word to small-fry authors using the word instead of paying your attorney to do so.

4) Try to avoid the blowback from the C&D letters by sending DCMA notices to Amazon.

5) Piss off the indie writer community by doubling down when you're called on being a trademark troll on said community.


If you're an indie writer, you've heard about Faleena Hopkins and #cockygate by now. One thing I can say about indies is they are a very supportive group.

Unless you decide to be a trademark troll.

We artists get enough of this shit from big corporations who think we can't fight back. Not long ago, MCA Hogarth was attacked by Games Workshop over the generic sf term "space marine". So when one our own does something stupid, our reactions range from Jenny Trout's WTF Faleena! to Cassie Sharp's Sweetie, you need to get some real friends.

Others actually took action. Some authors like Jamila Jasper went public with the letter she received. Jamila then used #cockygate to promote her renamed book. RWA contacted Amazon about the issue as a blatant attack on their membership. Several members then created a "cocky" anthology to help with the attorney fees (the book was released on Saturday, May 26th). Then there's writer/attorney Kevin Kneupper, who filed to cancel Faleena's trademark.

All this happened before I started writing this post. A death in the family last week  meant I came back to finish it five days later. And even more shit had happened.

Faleena stupidly thought filing a personal injury lawsuit against Kevin, Tara Crescent, and Jennifer Watson would make things go away. Mark Marcotte, a lawyer whose case is cited in Faleena's lawsuit as precedent, says Faleena's lawyer badly misstates his case (@markmarcotte on Twitter).

My favorite part was Faleena claiming she called Carol Ritter of RWA on May 16th and was pissed that Carol referred the call to RWA's counsel. Umm, if your already threatening to file lawsuits against people left and right, why on earth would anyone trust you to just talk?

There was a damn good reason Ms. Ritter didn't talk to Faleena. The cocky indie writer lost on her attempt at a Temporary Restraining Order last Friday on the Cocktales anthology. The Preliminary Injunction will be heard this morning.

The good thing to come out of this mess is that more writers are paying attentiion to trademark and copyright listings and trying to understand their rights and responsibilities. I'm not saying trademarks are a bad thing. If Faleena had trademarked the actual name of her series, instead of ripping off Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward's cover style and title, this would be an entirely different matter.

The bad thing is we have more idiots who don't understand, don't care, or just want to troll other authors in an effort to eliminate what they perceive as the competition.

I'll say this one more time: people can read more than we can write as individuals no matter how speedy we are. It's not a zero sum game. And if you need tricks to "win", maybe you're a sucky writer, and you should focus more on your craft to win the readers over.

- Angry Sheep, stepping off her soapbox.

Monday Movie Mania - Solo: A Star Wars Story

This is the movie those of us who were kids when Star Wars came out have been waiting for! Rogue One was good; Solo is excellent.

We won't talk about Episodes VII and VIII.


* * *


SPOILERS


* * *


PROS
1) Bringing in Ron Howard as director to complete the movie was a smart decision. Ron GETS Star Wars!

2) Phobe Waller-Bridge wins my vote for favorite new character as Lando's subversive love interest.

3) Donald Glover was delicious as Lando.

4) John Powell's score with its nods to John Williamson's originals gives the film a true classic feel.

5) The fabulous surprise cameo from someone from the Phantom Menace.

6) HAN SHOT FIRST!


CONS
1) Alden Ehrenreich wasn't bad, but I think Taron Egerton would have been a better choice as the new Han Solo.

2) Emilia Clarke's Qi'ra felt too much like Daenerys from Game of Thrones.

3) A few too many "why the hell did they do that" holes in the plot (or maybe I've been writing fiction too fucking long).


Overall, Solo earns its 9.5 stars out of 10.

Music I've Been Listening to Lately

And there's the classic talent. They all sound incredible!

GDPR Privacy Notification

The European Union now requires websites like this one to tell you how we use your personal information.

If you live in the EU, you should see the general Google notice regarding cookies at the top of this page. If you don't, please let me know IMMEDIATELY!!

The only additional cookies added are from Amazon's Affiliates program if you click on an Amazon link on my blog. I do not receive any of your personal information from the Affiliates program, though I am grateful if you do click on the links because I may get advertising revenue at no additional cost to you for purchases you make within the next twenty-four hours, not including my books.

The only personal information I may receive is your e-mail address if you use your e-mail address on the account you use to leave a comment on a post or if you use the "Contact Me" widget.

I do not share your information within anyone outside of Angry Sheep Publishing.

BY LEAVING A COMMENT, EITHER PUBLIC OR PRIVATE, YOU CONSENT TO THE USE OF YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS FOR ADDITIONAL CONTACT FROM ME OR MY PERSONAL ASSISTANT (if I ever get one).

Three Funerals and a Wedding

I didn't get the post I'd planned for today done. One of DH's uncles died over the weekend. Visitation is today, and the funeral tomorrow. I find myself once again scrambling to wash my dress up clothes needed for the events.

That's the third death in the family within the last 365 days. We've only had one wedding. I'm getting to the age where that's the normal ratio, and it sucks donkey balls.

Monday Movie Mania - Deadpool 2

In general, sequels are rarely as good as the first movie. There are exceptions. The Empire Strikes Back. The Godfather, Part II. And now, Deadpool 2.

Though to be totally honest, the part that made me wet myself with laughter was the mid-credits scenes. Depends, Poise, or whatever brand of leak product you prefer will be a necessary evil to attend this movie.

We went to AMC's double feature. Despite using the ladies' room between Deadpool and D2, well, just use protection.


* * *


SPOILERS


* * *


PROS
1) If you thought Reynolds got his previous disasters portraying superheroes out of his system, he didn't.

2) Zazie Beetz fucking rocked it as Domino!

3) I'm a little ashamed to say I loved what they did to Shatterstar because I found him to be one of the most annoying members of X-Force in the comics.

4) Unfortunately, Stan Lee didn't make a cameo, but the surprise cameos of some other fan favorites (referenced by Deadpool in the first movie when he arrives at the X-men's mansion) had me giggling.

5) The other cameo that had me laughing my ass off was the gentleman who played the Vanisher.

6) I was ecstatic to see Brianna Hildebrand back as Negasonic Teenage Warhead. It was even better seeing Shioli Kutsuna playing a decent, closer-to-the-comic version of Yukio.


CONS
1) Really, guys? You had to do that shitty, obvious plot thing before the opening credits?

2) I've got some mixed feelings about Josh Brolin as Cable. Ultimately, I have to come down on the con side. There's plenty of actors who could have done the job, and done it better. (Psst - Pierce Brosnan was free.) Josh did a wonderful job as Thanos, but it almost felt as if he phoned in the Cable role. And he didn't need a chance to redeem himself like Chris Evans and Michael B. Jordan did.


Overall, I give Deadpool 2 10 stars out of 10 for the mid-credits shenanigans alone!

Music I've Been Listening to Lately

There's a former band member of Oingo Boingo who surprise you with the depth of his talent...

End of an Era - RT Book Reviews Is Closing

I heard a couple of rumors floating around the interwebs, but yesterday morning, those rumors were confirmed by some of the publishing trades. RT Book Reviews, both the online magazine and its annual readers conference, were shuttering their doors effective immediately. RT's founder Kathryn Falk made the announcement during the 2018 Annual RT Booklovers convention this week.

Falk's fairwell letter was posted on the magazine's website.

Falk and her magazine (originally published under the title Romantic Times) was a mainstay in the romance genre for nearly forty years. It started out as a newsprint newsletter before it was eventually transformed into a full-color glossy with the latest industry news and interviews with authors. In the 21st century, Falk changed the magazine's name and expanded the reviews into other popular genres such as sci-fi, fantasy and mysteries.

Additionly, Falk was an romance author herself. Her How to Write a Romance and Get It Published (Paperback, 1984) was my first guide into the mysterious world of publishing.

In July of 2016, RT Book Reviews management closed the published magazine, a move all too familiar to the publishing industry as all glossies struggled for reader attention. However, the magazine continued in its online form until this week.

I find it ironic the magazine is closing at a time when the trad publishing companies are essentially ceding the romance genre to indies. It'll be interesting to see what emerges out of all this.

Music I've Been Listening to Lately

Or it's the scores that haunt you for decades...

Geek Fun

Did everyone watch The Big Bang Theory's season finale last night?