S.K.S. Perry's Blog, page 6
March 26, 2013
Modern Convenience--Yay!
So I took my car for its emissions re-test yesterday. In southern Ontario your car must pass an emissions test every two years or you can't renew your plates. Anyway, Ontario has changed the way the test is done from actually testing your—you know—emissions, to plugging into the OBD ll computer on your car and bitch slapping interrogating it. Apparently almost half of the cars tested fail the new test for the first time, not because of poor emission results, but because the computer isn't "ready to be tested" yet. Maybe you didn't give it enough notice. Maybe it likes to be fashionably late. Maybe it still has to fix it's hair and makeup. Whatever.
When the test comes back as "not ready" you didn't actually fail, but you have to come back and do it again (but at only half the price!) after first running your car through a series of preparations—let it sit for eight hours, start it and let it idle for two minutes with the air conditioner on, drive it for at least 30 kms, let it read Emissions Test For Dummies, etc.
Oh, and if your Service Engine light is on it's an automatic fail, even though the light can come on for a number of reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with emissions. (My Jeep light often comes on because the gas cap isn't on correctly—a common problem with Jeeps.)
So my car "wasn't ready the first time" and I had to come back. Problem is, my service engine light came on shortly after that—the gas cap problem. So I drove the car for a couple of days to ensure the computer would be ready, then filled the tank (the service engine light went out) drove it around for a few more days, and went back for retesting.
The first thing they asked me was, "Is the service engine light on." No, no it's not.
Now, the reason for this new testing is that it's supposedly much quicker than the old test—only 8-10 minutes. There were only three cars ahead of me, so I figured maybe half an hour.
When they hooked up the second car in line (a 2009 Mazda 5), it died. Completely. They couldn't start it. They had to push it out of the bay. This didn't exactly inspire confidence in those of us waiting in line, btw. The guy running the test got on the phone with the mechanic for about 20 minutes, then they pushed the car back into the bay (after assuring the guy they wouldn't charge him again for the test—how fair of them), did some weird things to the engine (a bypass of some sort) and everything worked fine. The guy's car passed.
Anyway, they hooked my car up and it passed with flying colours. Only took ten minutes, too. Total time at the garage, however, was an hour and a half.
So this new test, that was supposed to save time, took me two trips as opposed to one, had me burn gas by driving around for at least 30 Km (highway and stop and go traffic) and letting the car sit idle and whatnot to prepare the computer, and ended up costing me an extra $20.
To top it off, as I was pulling away from the garage, my Service Engine light came on.
When the test comes back as "not ready" you didn't actually fail, but you have to come back and do it again (but at only half the price!) after first running your car through a series of preparations—let it sit for eight hours, start it and let it idle for two minutes with the air conditioner on, drive it for at least 30 kms, let it read Emissions Test For Dummies, etc.
Oh, and if your Service Engine light is on it's an automatic fail, even though the light can come on for a number of reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with emissions. (My Jeep light often comes on because the gas cap isn't on correctly—a common problem with Jeeps.)
So my car "wasn't ready the first time" and I had to come back. Problem is, my service engine light came on shortly after that—the gas cap problem. So I drove the car for a couple of days to ensure the computer would be ready, then filled the tank (the service engine light went out) drove it around for a few more days, and went back for retesting.
The first thing they asked me was, "Is the service engine light on." No, no it's not.
Now, the reason for this new testing is that it's supposedly much quicker than the old test—only 8-10 minutes. There were only three cars ahead of me, so I figured maybe half an hour.
When they hooked up the second car in line (a 2009 Mazda 5), it died. Completely. They couldn't start it. They had to push it out of the bay. This didn't exactly inspire confidence in those of us waiting in line, btw. The guy running the test got on the phone with the mechanic for about 20 minutes, then they pushed the car back into the bay (after assuring the guy they wouldn't charge him again for the test—how fair of them), did some weird things to the engine (a bypass of some sort) and everything worked fine. The guy's car passed.
Anyway, they hooked my car up and it passed with flying colours. Only took ten minutes, too. Total time at the garage, however, was an hour and a half.
So this new test, that was supposed to save time, took me two trips as opposed to one, had me burn gas by driving around for at least 30 Km (highway and stop and go traffic) and letting the car sit idle and whatnot to prepare the computer, and ended up costing me an extra $20.
To top it off, as I was pulling away from the garage, my Service Engine light came on.
March 25, 2013
It's been one of those years.
Just before heading off to the gym I received this amazing fan letter for Darkside 1 and 2, but when I got back, there was an email *recalling* the first one. What? He changed his mind?
--"Dear Mr. Perry, I just want to tell you how much I loved Darkside 1 and 2." *Send*
D'oh! Wrong books. I meant Darkhide 1 and 2 by S.K.S Derry.--
Why does this stuff always happen to me. *sigh* Oh well, at least that vampire clan has stopped hassling me.
--"Dear Mr. Perry, I just want to tell you how much I loved Darkside 1 and 2." *Send*
D'oh! Wrong books. I meant Darkhide 1 and 2 by S.K.S Derry.--
Why does this stuff always happen to me. *sigh* Oh well, at least that vampire clan has stopped hassling me.
March 17, 2013
Happy Birthday marshallpayne1!!!
It's worth saying twice! Happy Birthday
marshallpayne1
!!!
marshallpayne1
!!!
March 6, 2013
I knew it wouldn't be that easy.
I just received this from Amazon:
To confirm your rights to distribute the book(s) listed above, please provide any documentation or other evidence that proves you have retained rights for these book(s). Alternatively, you may have the rights holders contact us directly with confirmation that you have retained rights.
Exactly how do I prove I DIDN'T give up the rights to my book that they've happily been selling for me for the last 2 years? Give me a break.
To confirm your rights to distribute the book(s) listed above, please provide any documentation or other evidence that proves you have retained rights for these book(s). Alternatively, you may have the rights holders contact us directly with confirmation that you have retained rights.
Exactly how do I prove I DIDN'T give up the rights to my book that they've happily been selling for me for the last 2 years? Give me a break.
Oh, that service.
Okay, I take back all (most) of my bitching about Amazon. I just got an email from them saying "Thank you for providing the requested information, and your book will be available for sale on Amazon soon."
What service does Amazon actually provide, anyway?
On advice from a few of you, I decided to change DARKSIDE's category at Amazon from Fantasy/Contemporary to Fantasy/Paranormal. Of course, by doing so it had to go under Amazon's review process again—which usually takes about a day.
Last night I received an email from Amazon to the effect that, while reviewing my submission, they found that DARKSIDE was "widely available on the web." In order to protect my copyright (kind of ironic coming from them, considering DARKSIDE's past history with Amazon) they are requesting I provide them with the URLs for all websites where DARKSIDE is published, and an explanation as to why the content is available online. If the books are considered in the public domain, they want proof/justification for that, too.
If they're not happy with my reply, my book "will not be made available for sale."
So let me get this straight. They found that DARKSIDE is being offered for free (I allowed Obooko to offer Darkside as a .pdf download, and it can be read online on my website) and of course there's a gazillion pirated sites. And if I can't justify this to them, they're not going to offer it for sale?
Is Amazon my distributor, or publisher? DARKSIDE is also available through Smashwords (and therefore in other eBook formats—sony, apple, kobo, etc.) at the same price that it's sold for at Amazon for their e-reader format. As far as I'm concerned, Amazon has the right to distribute DARKSIDE as a Kindle eBook ONLY, and at our agreed upon price. DARKSIDE sells for .99 cents, which means Amazon takes 70% of the profit simply for hosting it on their site. And they're complaining?
Copyright infringement is none of their business, unless they're the one's doing the infringing.
Anyway, no idea how this is going to go, but knowing Amazon DARKSIDE may not be for sale on their site for much longer.
Last night I received an email from Amazon to the effect that, while reviewing my submission, they found that DARKSIDE was "widely available on the web." In order to protect my copyright (kind of ironic coming from them, considering DARKSIDE's past history with Amazon) they are requesting I provide them with the URLs for all websites where DARKSIDE is published, and an explanation as to why the content is available online. If the books are considered in the public domain, they want proof/justification for that, too.
If they're not happy with my reply, my book "will not be made available for sale."
So let me get this straight. They found that DARKSIDE is being offered for free (I allowed Obooko to offer Darkside as a .pdf download, and it can be read online on my website) and of course there's a gazillion pirated sites. And if I can't justify this to them, they're not going to offer it for sale?
Is Amazon my distributor, or publisher? DARKSIDE is also available through Smashwords (and therefore in other eBook formats—sony, apple, kobo, etc.) at the same price that it's sold for at Amazon for their e-reader format. As far as I'm concerned, Amazon has the right to distribute DARKSIDE as a Kindle eBook ONLY, and at our agreed upon price. DARKSIDE sells for .99 cents, which means Amazon takes 70% of the profit simply for hosting it on their site. And they're complaining?
Copyright infringement is none of their business, unless they're the one's doing the infringing.
Anyway, no idea how this is going to go, but knowing Amazon DARKSIDE may not be for sale on their site for much longer.
Odds are.
From Harper Voyager:
A quick update on the digital submissions. As per the previous post, we received 4500+ entries, and in early February we had responded to 2220 entries. We have now responded to 2905 submissions that were not right for our list. 851 have been marked for further reading/consideration, and 787 are still to be read (1638 in toto).
As before, we will continue to read and review the remaining 1600+ entries as quickly as we can without sacrificing due consideration, and will update you again in a few weeks.
Still no rejection for THE MOONLIGHT WAR, so either it's one of the 851 marked for further consideration (still pretty hefty odds) or one of the 787 still to be read.
(Or my rejection got lost in the junk mail.)
A quick update on the digital submissions. As per the previous post, we received 4500+ entries, and in early February we had responded to 2220 entries. We have now responded to 2905 submissions that were not right for our list. 851 have been marked for further reading/consideration, and 787 are still to be read (1638 in toto).
As before, we will continue to read and review the remaining 1600+ entries as quickly as we can without sacrificing due consideration, and will update you again in a few weeks.
Still no rejection for THE MOONLIGHT WAR, so either it's one of the 851 marked for further consideration (still pretty hefty odds) or one of the 787 still to be read.
(Or my rejection got lost in the junk mail.)
March 5, 2013
Marketing sucks and then you die!
You know that Amazon thing they do where it says, "People who bought this also bought this." Well, apparently people who bought DARKSIDE are pretty much buying horror and spy novels—which DARKSIDE definitely isn't. If I were a marketing guy I'd say there's a problem. While the cover of Darkside might lead you to believe it's a horror novel, the blurb should quickly convince you otherwise.
No matter, what's clear is that it doesn't seem to be reaching its target audience, which is urban fantasy—and humorous urban fantasy at that—despite the cover blurb and the reviews. (It's listed under "Contemporary Fantasy on Amazon, which was a close as they came.)
I'm not sure what can be done about this, other than to write a horror/spy novel
No matter, what's clear is that it doesn't seem to be reaching its target audience, which is urban fantasy—and humorous urban fantasy at that—despite the cover blurb and the reviews. (It's listed under "Contemporary Fantasy on Amazon, which was a close as they came.)
I'm not sure what can be done about this, other than to write a horror/spy novel
February 20, 2013
One day at a time.
They say that during a near death experience your life flashes before your eyes. I've had at least eleventy-four near death experiences, and they've taught me two things:
1. The only thing that flashes before my eyes are multiple immediate action options for surviving said situation;
2. The realization that I have to learn to stop getting myself in these situations.
Made it to work today without getting into an accident, being abducted by space aliens, driving through an inter-dimensional portal, or being attacked by a Taliban hit squad, so other than that first thing today sucks!*
*Okay, so maybe I still have to work on item #2.
1. The only thing that flashes before my eyes are multiple immediate action options for surviving said situation;
2. The realization that I have to learn to stop getting myself in these situations.
Made it to work today without getting into an accident, being abducted by space aliens, driving through an inter-dimensional portal, or being attacked by a Taliban hit squad, so other than that first thing today sucks!*
*Okay, so maybe I still have to work on item #2.
February 19, 2013
Good Luck/Bad Luck
I had a car accident this morning. I'm fine, not a scratch. Lost control of the car on black ice even though I was doing 60 Km/hr in an 80 Km/hr zone, and was in AWD. (I think the anti-skid system just made it worse.) Just about spun into oncoming tragic, but pulled a 180 at the last minute and slid sideways into the only metal pole around for miles--a brand new gas main valve. It tore the front fender off the car and warped the rim on the left tire. The gas guys said there was no gas in the line--they were scheduled to turn it on tomorrow. How lucky is that? Oh, and the rental agency gave me a Subaru Outback to drive until my car gets fixed.
A fan commented that it's "God's sign that He want's me to finish Darkside." Umm...surviving the crash, that is, not getting the Subaru.
A fan commented that it's "God's sign that He want's me to finish Darkside." Umm...surviving the crash, that is, not getting the Subaru.
