Dwayne’s Comments (group member since Apr 01, 2017)

Dwayne’s comments from the Support for Indie Authors group.

Hey all,

For starters, in case anyone wonders, I am on hiatus from "Fairy Tale Village" for about six to twelve months. I'm hacking out a few short stories and maybe a novella, then I'll get back to that novel. It was just getting way too deep under my skin and I needed a break.

So, here's a cover for a short story I'm dabbling with. I like the cover and would like to use it, that's not the question. The question is, do you think I'd be in any danger of copyright infringement? I want Teddy to be looking at a poster of Matthew Broderick, but I can't use the actual photo. I know that. Is this too close? Do I need to make it a little more vague?

B.A. wrote: "Great description of the shop teacher. Not sure I'd want him teaching my kids shop?"

I am almost positive the guy who taught wood shop in my high school was missing a finger.

Tomas wrote: "I've once seen a bus driver who was missing the middle finger on both hands - probably born without them, judging how his hands looked. A strange sight."

Heh. How does he flip people off when they cut him off?

Melissa wrote: ""

No links, please.

In March Teddy’s father surprised his family with a brand-new VCR. The Chessmans were the first on their block to have one and somewhere around the two hundredth family in Hendrix Iowa. A month later Ferris Bueller’s Day Off came out on video tape and Teddy called and begged every adult he knew to take him to Ames so he could buy a copy. He ended up riding with Mr. Parker, the shop teacher, who was a miraculously good driver, despite having only four fingers and a half a thumb.

Tony wrote: "I'm going to break all your rules at the same time!"

Nice try. You didn't get them all, but you gave it a good shot. Please don't try it again.

To recap, you posted in a mods-only folder, self-promoted, included a link... and on and on...

Gail wrote: "Wow! $22.95 for a kindle book! I don't think I've ever paid so much for one! Ouch!"

Again, I.M. is asking for help with their blurb. This is the second time today I have asked you guys to stay on topic. If you want to discuss the price of other books, take it elsewhere. We're here to support each other. Hijacking the thread to talk about the price of another book is rude.

Robert wrote: "How us a book written in 2012 out of copyright protection?"

It was published in 1965. Swain died in 1992. You might be looking at a Kindle copyright or something.

Let's stay on topic, helping I.M. with their blurb instead of discussing this Dwight Swain book.

Eldon wrote: "Saga wrote: "Hello,

Saga Fiction is happy to announce that we are launching two exciting new releases. Turtle A by Ellie Martin-McKinsey and Carrying On by Jonita Davis will be launched in collab..."

Thank you Eldon. I'm archiving and locking this.

I love both for different reasons, but city.

Actually, large town... or small city... argh. That's not how the game is played, is it?

Okay. City.

Accordion or bagpipes?

Andrea wrote: "Imagine if you were sat on a bus, and there was an author..."

It could happen! About eighty to ninety percent of the action in my novella Asphalt Carpet takes place on a bus. About half the stuff that happens to the main character happened to me on various bus rides around the country. About a third of my novel Suckers & Rogues takes place on a bus. Most of it is fiction, but roughly half the characters are loosely based on kids I knew when I was growing up.

I've seen lists similar to the first one. That's great, Phillip! The second one rings a little too true to me. I have a strong habit of basing characters off of people I know, then tweaking them enough the real person might not figure it out, should they ever read the story.

Gail wrote: "Interesting, Dwayne. I honestly had no clue the word was being used (overused) in that connotation. I've never actually used the word 'triggered' in my books...until I came up with my current cozy mystery tagline about 'triggering a (murder) game.' Of course, an entirely different meaning, but you make a very good point, and I agree."

You must not spend much time on social media. Good for you. It often looks a bit like this:

Comment 1: I think Ben Affleck is the best Batman ever.

Comment 2: What is wrong with you, dude? Michael Keaton was much better. Even Adam West was better than Ben Affleck.

Comment 3: Whoa. You're so triggered, bro!

I don't think I've mentioned this one. I'm getting tired of the word "triggered". I was in a discussion yesterday about the word and someone said, "Everyone is always so triggered these days." I disagreed.

I work in the mental health field and, yes, the word "triggered" gets used a lot. I have seen people legitimately triggered. I have had to talk people off the ledge from time to time.

In the discussion yesterday, those defending the word boiled it down to the word "triggered" being synonymous with "upset", "angry", "offended", "miffed", "uncomfortable", "irritated", etc. It's become watered down. It's dumbed down. I don't like this for two reasons: As a writer and lover of language, I don't like it when one word becomes so popular, all other, better words are being ignored. And working in the mental health field, I feel that the overuse of the word "triggered" for softer emotions and reactions makes it tough for people to understand when someone with mental illness truly is triggered.

Yeah, I guess this is bothering me a little triggering me.

Lilah wrote: "..."

Please read and follow all rules before posting again. Thanks.

They are in the first comment in the introduction discussion.

Hey. I've had to delete some comments from this thread lately. Please read the directions before adding to this thread. There are four short questions to answer. That's it. Adding your life story will get your comment deleted. Thanks.

The opening sentence is clumsy. It took a couple of reads to understand it. Now I question if he is immoral why he cares about making "brownie points".

Having no idea who Khumbila is, or what the crystals are, or who the Overlord is, I'm not getting invested here. You're telling half a story assuming the reader knows the other half already.

Same reaction to the third paragraph. I don't know Hiro and don't know why or who is rebelling. Jensen has no morals yet he can't abandon these people. That doesn't jive.

How are old friendships forged? Pull what off? Yeah I get that the Overlord is a bad guy but I don't really follow what he's doing or why Jensen is involved.

Yeah, my take on the rewritten blurb is... I feel like I've read your whole novel and have no need to open it. Focus on what is interesting enough to get the reader to open the book. Don't give us a play by play of what will happen in the novel. Give us a character to care about, a situation they need to handle, and the consequences if they don't.

Drop that first paragraph. It's a bunch of disjointed stuff that doesn't really connect to the rest of the blurb, other than the mention of sex trafficking later on. The rest is all right, but heavy with adjectives that slow the pace down. Is it important to know the skipper is "legendary" and "beloved"?