J.L. Peridot's Blog, page 5

Interesting: Verso

"Verso" is a book design term referring to the "left" or "back" side of a two-page spread of a left-to-right book. In a right-to-left book (like some books in Chinese, Japanese or Arabic), verso refers to the "right" side of the spread instead.

From Wikipedia:

Recto is the "right" or "front" side and verso is the "left" or "back" side when text is written or printed on a leaf of paper (folium) in a bound item such as a codex, book, broadsheet, or pamphlet.

By book publishing convention, the first page of a book, and sometimes of each section and chapter of a book, is a recto page, and hence all recto pages will have odd numbers and all verso pages will have even numbers.

Although many of us indie fiction authors deal mostly with ebooks, having terms like "verso" and "recto" in our vocabulary gives us more precise ways of articulating our needs if we ever dabble in book design. It's just the kind of arcane knowledge that could make life easier or one day get us out of a bind (lol).

Explainer: Verso

"Verso" is a book design term referring to the "left" or "back" side of a two-page spread of a left-to-right book. In a right-to-left book (like some books in Chinese, Japanese or Arabic), verso refers to the "right" side of the spread instead.

From Wikipedia:

Recto is the "right" or "front" side and verso is the "left" or "back" side when text is written or printed on a leaf of paper (folium) in a bound item such as a codex, book, broadsheet, or pamphlet.

By book publishing convention, the first page of a book, and sometimes of each section and chapter of a book, is a recto page, and hence all recto pages will have odd numbers and all verso pages will have even numbers.

Although many of us indie fiction authors deal mostly with ebooks, having terms like "verso" and "recto" in our vocabulary gives us more precise ways of articulating our needs if we ever dabble in book design. It's just the kind of arcane knowledge that could make life easier or one day get us out of a bind (lol).

Status Update: Jan 2023

It's been a long time since I've done one of these, as most of my updates now go to Dot Club. A lot has happened since the last status update (from back in Sep 2020, I think?), which got retired when this blog switched from Wordpress to 11ty.

Well, what better way to start the new year with a fresh update on the cusp of the second month ���� Here we go...

Yet We Sleep, We Dream

The novel I spent last year sweating over has been drafted and revised. After going a round with a very capable international editor, I realised it would also be appropriate to find a sensitivity reader. That's where we're at right now.

I've not had luck with this in the past. Back in 2021, I reached out to a few sensitivity readers for O, swear not by the moon but heard back from nobody. Then the deadline hit and the story went out. I worry the same thing will happen again, even with more time in the schedule.

Crossing my fingers and toes that things go better this time around.

Redesigning my brain

It's been almost thirteen months since I stopped using Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. From a mental and emotional perspective, shit got weird over the first six months. Then it got weirder. I started seeing the world differently, felt less fried and more able to focus on what was in front of me. And when other triggers for distraction, compulsion and FOMO popped up, I found myself able to step away and not think about them anymore. And I could turn my attention to work that felt right for me to do.

I've been reflecting a lot on this, and can now confidently say I was not addicted to social media. Quitting felt good and wasn't too difficult, despite the visceral urges and mild physical jitters. I suspect I was highly conditioned to keep using it, the way someone might be conditioned to believe one way of life is the only way if they somehow un-learned other ways to live.

Certain influences and ways of being become ingrained, become habits that stop us from choosing otherwise. Over the past thirteen months, I've been un-learning, re-learning, and just learning. After a long stretch of feeling unsure and stressed out about my work, I'm finding joy in it again.

Other notes

Headspace digestives:

Free Floating by Stefanie SimpsonSchismatrix Plus by Bruce SterlingSunburnt Country by Joelle GergisChokepoint Capitalism by Rebecca Giblin and Cory DoctorowThis is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone.

WIP board:

Yet We Sleep, We Dream, a chaotic Australian space-fantasy comedy romance where children of a changing climate meet the old gods of a long-dead world. Awaiting sensitivity review."Lacewing", a time-travel sci-fi romance. In planning.The Satine Collection, a series of short sci-fi erotica set in a lunar correctional facility. Awaiting first draft.Sunset on a Distant World, a reverse age-gap adult-coming-of-age sci-fi bodyguard romance. Under revision.

Key dates:

24 JUL: Visiting Amber Daulton's blog23 SEP: Yet We Sleep, We Dream release

Is it healthy to compare yourself to others?

I think so. We're generally told not to, but I've always found comparison a great way to learn. There's a smart way to do it, though, so we don't come away feeling like we'll never be good enough.

First, accept that everyone (even you!) has a unique perspective, and that writing is the purposeful art of self-expression. Good writing is, first and foremost, about mastering the art of telling your story your way.

Commit to only comparing the things you can control. Like technical ability, depth of knowledge, or the soft skills that lend to better writing and authoring. So if you ever find yourself lacking, you'll come away with a new list of things study. It never makes sense to compare what you can't control, because what could you do about it other than cry helplessly into the night?

Finally, compare yourself to a diverse range of writers, regardless of whether they're "better" or "worse" than you. In this creative field, we can learn something from everyone, regardless of whether they mean to teach us or not ����

Comparison is only useful if you approach it with enthusiasm for your art and a genuine desire to learn. Otherwise, it really can be the thief of joy.

Originally published in Dot Club #22 (August 2020)

Reflections on losing the Time War

Sometimes a book creeps up and grabs you in ways you can't foresee.

When N recommended This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone, I certainly didn't expect its epic, larger-than-life concept and unpanderingly clever prose to take root in my heart.

But it did. And now, weeks after The End, the bloody thing haunts me still.

There is a war in the world of this book. It spans time and space and dimension. Two rival agents, Red and Blue, forge a relationship through letters and reality-bending acts of subterfuge and courage. They know the war is unending, and realise the only way to win is to ensure their love goes beyond eternity.

As Red and Blue move through time, deployed to diddle with cause and effect to the advantage of their respective sides, I'm reminded of the futile sense of being trapped within a system that considers us expendable. We're certainly necessary���leaders always need followers and servants. But ultimately we're only retained to perform a function that could be carried out by someone else if we were ever deemed defective.

In that regard, there was something deeply touching about this sapphic romance. It suggests that in the midst of a seemingly pre-determined existence, mired in suppressive rules and conventions, we can still sidestep that path. We can choose to love. And in doing so, we allow our actions and experiences to mean something, and maybe even make a difference.

Even though the book is titled This is How You Lose the Time War, its true meaning is clear: that choosing to love is actually how we'll win.

My 2022 in lists

Work I released this year

Five-Star Cottage (a free read)

New things I learned about

Life after social mediaDigital carbon footprintsThe "hyperactive hive mind"Permaculture, but with technologyThe dark side of DRM

What I wish I did less of What I wish I did more of

I'm happy with how I spent my time this year.

Books/Stories that grabbed me

Time Was by Ian McDonaldTender is the Flesh by Agustina BazterricaVibes & Feels by Sarah SkyeTentacle by Rita IndianaThis is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Movies that grabbed me

Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (2022)The Lost City of D (2022)Language Lessons (2021)The Lobster (2015)

What I���m grateful for

My familyMy friends ����������������My psychPerth weatherA loving home

My hopes for next year

Fall in love with gardening againFinish writing the Satine seriesStart work on a new novelette (codename: "Laceweave")Learn more about sustainabilityFinish outlining The Basilica Conspiracy

It Starts with a Kiss is now available on Leanpub

It Starts with a Kiss is now available on Leanpub.

Leanpub is a publishing platform that offers two things that look pretty neat. First, they allow indie authors to donate a portion of their royalties to registered causes. Second, they offer a higher royalty rate than the major retailers.

You'll notice the retail price is higher than the usual RRP for this DRM-free ebook. This is because Leanpub enforces a minimum price on every non-free purchase. However, the (approximate) difference in price will be contributed to OpenIntro, a 501(c)(3) US-based nonprofit making educational products that are free, transparent, and lower barriers to education.

Check out this book on Leanpub.

Not back on social, but happy about Mastodon

For nearly all of this year, I've been telling people I left social media. But I'm realising now that's not strictly true.

Although my Facebook and Instagram accounts were deleted, and my Twitter accounts turned into a username parking spot and an automated syndication outpost (before being deleted completely), I'm still fairly social. My activity just moved from the Dark Forest to email, RSS, blogs, the IndieWeb and Cozy Web, and snail mail.

I like these spaces and technologies, finding them less stressful to participate in, and full of interesting stuff that's more relevant to my interests. Fewer ads, less flaming, more nuanced discourse, context and civil debate.

In hindsight, I realise now that what I left was recommendation media: the beast who murdered the social media we originally signed up for and wore its skin. If something's smelled a little off in recent years, this is possibly the vocabulary for articulating why.

My old Mastodon account was included in the January purge, but I have a new one now at @jlperidot@eigenmagic.net. I think Mastodon may still be inherently social due to the lack of engagement-driven algorithms (that is, other than our own brains and choices).

It's a microblog and community platform, and I'm heartened to see more people getting into it, even if the inciting incident and progressive complications leading to this have been stressful. Masto reminds me of Twitter's good old days, when the timeline was time-based, the heart was a star, Failwhale was a cultural icon, and your feed showed people you followed instead of randoms and ads.

At least from a technical perspective, it's a platform more respectful of its users and seems to uphold more enthusiastically the spirit of the internet. Things I particularly like about it:

You can follow people in different communities

You can join the Mastodon community (known as "instances") of your choice (eg. Mastodon.social, Romancelandia.club, Aus.social, FLOSS.social) and connect with friends in other Mastodon communities. (Assuming those other communities aren't blocked, but each community gets to decide who they block.)

Mastodon gives you an RSS feed

https://THE_NAME_OF_YOUR_INSTANCE/use...

Just replace THE_NAME_OF_YOUR_INSTANCE with the name of your instance, and YOUR_USERNAME with your username. With that URL, people don't need to be on Mastodon to follow your updates. They just need an RSS reader like Feedly, Thunderbird (yes, the email app), Reeder, or any other RSS app they choose.

You can put content warnings on your posts

Just hit the "CW" in the box where you type your posts (called "toots") and label your content accordingly.

There's no algorithm and f4f pressure makes no sense

No need to stress over engagement metrics. "Like for like" is not a thing because "likes" are more about bookmarking than training an opaque algorithm. Likewise, "follow for follow" isn't a thing because following on Mastodon is really about what content you want to see (ie. have the capacity to read) in your feed. You are your own algorithm.

More tips and other articles worth readingMastodon and the Fediverse: Beginners Start Here10 quick Mastodon tipsHow To Leave Twitter for MastodonA Brief Mastodon Guide for Social Media Worriers

I'm still not properly "back on social media", but am happy to see the landscape shifting, evolving. Hopefully for the better.

Fresh Find: Don't You Forget About Me

Don���t You Forget About Me (Love on the Radio, #2)
by Naima Simone
Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Whoever said be careful what you wish for had a serious gift for understatement.

As one of the world���s hugest musicians I���d seen and had it all. Sold out tours. Awards. Fame. Money. Women��� And I���d almost lost it all. Epically.

Now I���m back home. A broken, burned out, desperate rock star���and a single father. I returned to give my son a family, stability. To figure out my life. But coming home meant seeing her.

The woman who was once my everything. Who made life in this too small town bearable. Who I loved with my whole heart���my whole body. But long held secrets forced me to leave nine years ago. Forced me to abandon her. And she���s never forgiven me.

Still...

I���ve never forgotten her or the heat between us that burned so hot we damn near went up in flames with it. And I want it again. And again. Even knowing the past will only tear us apart once more...

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Excerpt

It doesn���t occur to me not to touch her.

Eliminating the space between us, I pull her into my arms.

���King, don���t������ Her whisper ends on a sob, and I tighten my hold on her, pressing my lips to her hair.

���No. I can���t. There���s no way I can let you go right now.��� I inhale her, take her so deep into my lungs, her scent burns me, marks me. Rubbing my mouth over her hair, I beg just like she wanted me to. ���Let go, Len. Let go and allow me to be the one who carries you through it. Lean on me, baby. Just for a little while.���

Her fists ball into my shirt, stretching the material at my waist. She rolls her forehead against my chest, and her jagged breaths scorch me through my clothes. I slide a hand up her spine, cupping the back of her neck, squeezing it.

As if that unlocks something inside her, her shoulders shake and seconds later, her cries rip through the room. She crushes her cheek against me, and her tears dampen my shirt and skin. Stroking her back with one hand, I cradle her head with the other, fingers tunneling under the bun to scratch her scalp.

How long she sobs in my arms, I���m not certain. Minutes, hours. A lifetime. It���s not long enough. Curling my body over her, I brush my mouth over her ear.

���I left, yes. But I did look back. So many damn times. And never, ever did I stop giving a f*ck,��� I softly admit.

Her breath shudders against my chest, and locking down a groan, I lift my hands to her face, tilting it back. Her eyes, moist with all the tears she���s shed, meet mine. Even with her face wet and swollen, she���s beautiful to me.

���Liar,��� she accuses, voice so rough, it���s nearly painful to hear. ���You���re such a liar.���

Then she raises on her toes and crushes her mouth to mine.

About Naima Simone

Published since 2009, USA Today Bestselling author Naima Simone loves writing sizzling romances with heart, a touch of humor and snark. Her books have been featured in The Washington Post and Entertainment Weekly, and described as balancing ���crackling, electric love scenes with exquisitely rendered characters caught in emotional turmoil.���

She is wife to Superman, or his non-Kryptonian, less bullet proof equivalent, and mother to the most awesome kids ever. They all live in perfect, sometimes domestically-challenged bliss in the southern United States.

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Enter the giveaway!

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Tour organised by Xpresso Book Tours

Five-Star Cottage ��� free to read

Five-Star Cottage, a romantic quiet horror about a couple on a secluded forest retreat, is now free to read on my website:

A reluctant introvert and a passionate outdoorsman arrive at a romantic getaway, only to discover their cottage (and what lurks beneath) holds more than meets the eye. This story is a romantic blend of quiet horror and weird fiction.

Read Five-Star Cottage on jlperidot.com