Experimenting... again.

Lately I've been trying to find an antidepressant, since the depression returned in late summer. Worsening in early fall.

This hasn't proved successful.

Over the past week, since I didn't make it to my doctor's office yet -- I'd had dizzy spells, that seemed a really bad time to be driving -- I tried Vraylar again.

=-=

Yes, by myself. Just like when I stop any of the meds that suck, or make me worse, or ruin my sleep, I stop them myself. Since I react FAST to subclinical doses, this means I'm not waiting days [or weeks] for the doctor to decide. Atypical, but so it goes, and I've been living with my own body and reactions for decades -- they haven't. 

My recent doctors act like if they treat me like I don't have atypical reactions, then I'll respond normally. Not logical, and frankly the opposite of helpful! 

Since these drug reactions stay in my system for far longer than most people [i.e., six months in 2017] it's another reason I don't wait. I cannot. When meds don't work, I'm the one who needs to make that call.

I suspect the doctors I've been seeing hate that. Certainly a few argue with me about reactions I've had, as if denying them means they didn't happen. Man, when I've had hot flashes waking me up multiple times all night, wrecking my sleep -- I was there. 

Don't disparage my experiences! It lacks class. 

The worse thing is that I wasn't basing my experiences on one or two drugs. I was up to ten (10!) just by December 2016. 

=-=

Temping in 2000, cont'd.

Just in 2000 (blog post here), I worked as a temp at:

• Multiple places as reception; several requested I return, and if I didn't have a conflict, I did so -- at least twice for two different clients  

• Two dealerships: Flannery Ford [one week] and the original Saturn dealership** in Michigan [several weeks] { Newsweek link for Saturn's demise }

• The OCC Chancellor's Office, where I once answered the phone with "Chancellor's Office speaking" -- as another university's chancellor's office was calling! 8) 

• Advanced Medical Metpath, doing data entry on lab work forms (O that horribly dull place, no one spoke to other employees or temps! as you can imagine, I couldn't stand that; it was like working in a mirage of other people.) 

• March '00: My first Kelly assignment was at a psych clinic, which amused me, since that was the first time I'd ever been on the other side of the glass.  Plus one of my previous shrinks was there, and greeted me with joy... ("Where have you been?" he exclaimed. "California!" said I.) 

• Handing out paychecks in California for Adecco. *** Cushiest temp assignment ever.  ;)  They were sweet and even paid me for a couple extra hours, since they needed someone just to do this one thing all day long.  I sorted people's time cards on the side to keep my hands busy; this may be the real reason they loved me that day.

2000-05 income: temping.

Back then, I temped constantly.  I enjoyed being able to leave a place I didn't like, or that had a rotten work environment... or was boring.

Most jobs never took me long to master.

(Unlike the coupon-book publisher I worked for in 2003.  That job, ahhh, that was nice and meaty, and took me weeks to learn what was what.  Involved filing, much proofreading, plus using both PCs and Macs.  Lovely workplace...)

In just 2000 I had 15-odd assignments.  I was really proud of that.  I remember people who were horrified by this, and I could not understand why.

C'mon, having companies who clamored for me to return, that's pretty neat!

August 2016: Cat dramas.

~~ I wrote this 27-August-2016.  I should have posted it then, but I'll post it now.  Dates were added for clarity.


So Shadowcat seems to be expecting again.  I was basing it on how oddly she was acting, initially.

The current batch of kittens were weaned about two weeks ago.

Then suddenly all kittens (Oreo, 'Violet, DustBunny) were nursing again.  They shouldn't be.  They're three months old!

That was unexpected...

Our two kittens are still around.

Vee (the female) seems very pleased that Allen comes up to see if they're out and about, and then gives them treats.  I suspect she's bonding to him.

She still hasn't decided yet about this whole petting thing.  Her brother is very keen on us petting him, however.  8)

So I haven't pushed it, trying to touch her.  Maybe Vee will want to be petted; maybe not, also.  I suspect she would like Allen to pet her first.

I am not sure that Dusty / Dust Bunny is a name that's sticking to her brother.  He seems to simply respond to my voice.  Unless it's that he thinks "Hey, sweetpea!" is his name.  Maybe he does.

Maybe I'll call him Sweetie instead.  He is a very affectionate kitten.

"I don't understand..."

~ Authoritarians and being susceptible ~

I'm reading a fascinating article that's somewhat scary.  It's about people who are afraid, who let themselves be ruled by fear.

Fear that the world will change, that the status quo will change, that The Other will triumph.

The article is about the authoritarian desire to feel safe by "destroying" the threat[s] with a strongman leader, or who claims to be, who promises to do drastic things to "solve" the problems.

Even when they are foolish impossible things offered as solutions.

November 2015: links.

Business Musings: Getting in Touch:  Kris Rusch points out that if someone cannot reach you, then they may not be able to [a] pay you [b] offer you money for something you've already done [c] just discuss a business deal or even meet you.

And if it's your high school pal, your editor, your agent, your fan, a future business partner, or any combination of those... then you failed.  

It's even worse if you happen to be an author whose assistant decides to "help" by denying you those messages.

Consider the folks who want to give you an award, one that you'd love to have -- the Newbery or the Hugo.  Do you really want to be That Author, the one no one can reach for anything?  Really??

Keep in mind that "pay you" part.  That isn't the be-all and end-all of having email where you can be reached by certain people.

It's pretty damned important, however.


I should point out that when I was Steve Brust's p.a., I didn't block people.  He read his own fan mail.  People mostly contacted me about conventions.  Some of Steve's editors did write me, and often I took care of things with his agents, but only certain things.

BTW, Kris's post has made me realize I need a Comment Form of my own.  Expect one to show up sometime in the near future.

Editing costs.

It's interesting how people vary from the "But -- this just takes you reading it, right?" to the "I want you to catch all the things in my writing!" mindsets.  With, of course, variations all along the range there.

This includes editors too.  I have had editors who thought I just took a few moments to copyedit, that it wasn't a process that involved much time at all.

The Hugos and Worldcon 2015: ongoing.

It is ongoing.  The Saga Continues, forsooth!

I will buy a supporting membership to WorldCon for ten people who cannot afford it. Here's why. http://t.co/QR1M07YDs3
— Mary Robinette Kowal (@MaryRobinette) April 11, 2015

Mary's blog that week, Talk with me about being a fan of science fiction and fantasy -- is about the Hugo awards, Worldcon voting, sf fandom, assumptions and backstory...

I was offline much of that week, so I missed this membership gifting.

I have read about the 2015 Worldcon/Hugo kerfluffle, as many have been calling it.  John O'Neill over at Black Gate called it The 2015 Hugo Train Wreck.

Thanks to my best friend Bea for sharing about the Black Gate post.

Absolute Write: huzzah! (Also agents.)

Dear Absolute Write's forums, source of much usefulness, knowledge, wisdom... and they answer my tricky copy editing questions rather more than you might guess.

Anyone looking for answers is well advised to look here.  I've been using the Bewares Index (link below) for years to research publishers.  You should too.

As a copy editor, I know that if a publisher won't pay its writers, then I won't get paid either.  Against that, any publisher who treats writers well gives me a far better chance as a freelancer, of getting paid and being treated well myself.  I also learn from the AW forums which publisher communicates readily versus one who never replies.

Hachette, publishing, Yog's Law.

Amazon and Hachette Resolve Dispute at the NYT.

It's good, and it's bad. "If anyone thinks this is over, they are deluding themselves. Amazon covets market share the way Napoleon coveted territory."

Yeah... that.

Step off the plane to learn Hachette and Amazon have reached a deal. A relief, sure...but I still hope you buy books from your fav indie.
— Barry Goldblatt (@barrygoldblatt) November 13, 2014

Monopsony, Amazon, Colbert, and you.

Oh, Amazonia... :/

Amazon closes a contract with one major book publisher (not that one, though) via Melville House.  (Storystream of the Hachette-Amazon battle at the Verge.)

Do I believe the worst of Amazon?  Yep.  I know I'm not alone.

So does Stephen Colbert.  No, really.  Back in June, he replied to them on his show:  Amazon vs. Hachette and with Sherman Alexie (see the Verge).  Because Stephen's a Hachette author.


Paul Krugman explains in Amazon’s Monopsony Is Not O.K. at the NYT.

Of the many great links Paul has in his op-ed, there is the New Republic's Amazon Must Be Stopped: It's too big. It's cannibalizing the economy. It's time for a radical plan.

Which tells you a lot right there.  But you read it to see all the scary bits yourself.

Paying it forward: Links and tips.

Five Overlooked SF/F/H Books of 2013  (Must point out that I copyedited the first book in the B and N list. And it's a wonderfully fun book.)

Waterstones offers Twauthors – The best authors on Twitter


Over on Goodreads, Steven Saus tells us The Write Agenda Can Teach You How To Avoid Untrustworthy People... Like Themselves. If you read nothing else, go read that. It will help you with contracts, with understanding the behavior of the anonymous troll -- and the vanity press publishers -- and the many MANY scammers out there preying on the new authors and future authors.

Writer Beware is a major example of paying it forward.


A Few Things a Writer Should Probably Do at Least Once from Doctor Doyle.  Since I'm in SCA, I can tell you that yes, these would indeed help you.  Have I done them all?  No.

As a copy editor, guns and other weapons are something I tend to research a LOT.

Shh: a simple tip for talking about race.

Bonus:  Until this paragraph, this entire post was an example of paragraphing style.  [Which Nero Wolfe will tell you all about in Plot It Yourself; you should read that.]  I tend to do mine a certain way, and I vary it deliberately while writing to make it easier on readers.  And just for variety's sake too.

Business Rusch: Revisions and editors.

I admit, I'm sporadic about reading blogs, even ones I like...

But if you are in this business, it's important to keep track of what's going on.  So I do my best.  I'm very fortunate that my fellow editors often provide useful links via Twitter.


I look for definitions of editing all the time.  Why?  Because people ask me to explain my job.

Kris Rusch, who is an amazing source of publishing knowledge, provides a little two-week course on editing.

Part 1:  Editorial Revisions
Part 2:  Hiring Editors

If you're a writer do go and learn from her, I pray you.  Whether you're publishing your book, or in traditional publishing, or just trying to find out what all this means, Kris will help you at the Business Rusch.

Freelance and editing links.

How Do You Know When You Know Enough?

What is substantive editing?

Fact-checking a new word, part 1 and part 2 from Copyediting.com (link found through EditFish's reading list 5-Sept-12)


Freelancing:

10 Marks of a Self-Disciplined Freelancer


Also be sure to read the comments, as Angela Booth says:

If you decide you want to work with a company, don’t quit if they ignore your first dozen pitches. Keep pitching. Decide that you won’t stop pitching that company until one of three things happens: they go out of business, you die, or they offer you a contract.

Not only the best attitude, but she wins my vote for the best way to put this!

Adventures in full-time self-employment (Libro) has written Going It Alone at 40 in case you feel a need for encouragement.

The SNAP Challenge: eating on $4.50 a day.

September is Hunger Action Month.  A youth advocate details her SNAP Challenge (Four Days In) from August 2013.  SNAP is the current name for food stamps.

I may have traumatized my poor TL -- because I Tweeted every one of Ron's days -- after I happened on the CEO of Panera Bread, Ron Shaich.  Ron just completed his SNAP Challenge.

Training: So You Want to Be an Editor.

This being September, my c/e anniversary month, I suspect more c/e and freelance info will be posted.  Keep an eye out...

Starting with the Editors' Association of Canada (EAC 2011) and So You Want to Be an Editor because So You Want to Be a Wizard is still one of my favorite Diane Duane books.

Make sure you look at that first link carefully...  I'd say that 90 percent of freelance editors still make the lower median wage.


Copyeditor Training Parts 1 (Various Courses), 2 (Other Options), and 3 (More Choices) by Erin Brenner.

KOK Edit (Editor-Mom) adds her views on training -- check her list for many colleges and associations and their editing courses.  Here's how to join the Copyediting-L list to learn more about other copy editors' thoughts on Editing or experience?

She also has the priceless Copyeditors' Knowledge Base.


Does Training Matter? What Publishers Say about Proofreading and Editing Courses by Louise Harnby, proofreader.  Also from Louise Harnby: Proofreaders-to-be: Loving Books Isn’t Enough.

Are Editors Born or Made? by Amy Einsohn [PDF].

Freelance copy editor training.

The importance of training:

Buyer beware!

CPD:  Training counts

Why train?


If you're interested in freelance editing, you should look into training.  I really can't stress this enough.

Some publishers won't hire freelancers without training or certification.  In the USA, we have the Editorial Freelancers Association; they offer online courses.  Other organizations exist, but I check EFA courses first.  The EFA's invaluable.


Margaret Aherne talks about Advanced Copy-Editing

What a publisher looks for before hiring you as an editorial freelancer

[Links broken.]

Many thanks to the SfEP and PTC, who provided these links originally (barring the EFA link, of course).