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I mentioned in my last blog post that the 'writer' on Amazon, Belinda Jacobs, had stolen a story of mine. I reported it to Amazon. Afterwards, two other SOL writers reported to me that they had also been ripped off and I was able to verify that. I urge every writer on SOL to check this individual's Amazon page and check for your work. It is obvious he/she is mining SOL for stories to publish and sell. Let me know if you've been ripped off. I am taking what action I can. Thanks.
Warning - I just received an email from SpartySam that a 'writer' named Belinda Jacobs copied my story Disparate Housewives and published it under the title Desperate Housewives on Amazon. Thank you SpartySam! I thought this was pretty ballsy, since my story is already on Amazon and has been for five years! I contacted Amazon and have begun getting this fixed. I'm more pissed than anything else at this point. I'll keep you posted.
And now to the real reason I am posting a blog entry…
About ten years ago I wrote a story titled Influence of the House of Incest that was an add-on to the story Curse of the House of Incest by Notlef. The original story, which is unfinished, was about a house that mysteriously affected anybody who visited and caused them to immediately start screwing everybody in their family. My strange and perverse mind sort of liked the premise of the story and I very quickly began writing my add-on. Eventually the original story went off the rails, but I finished my story. Still, for years I have had in mind a complete rewrite of my story, separating it from the original.
This spring, after finishing The War of the Crystals I found myself with some time on my hands. Combined with my retirement in December, I decided I had the time to revisit the story. I came up with a different origin story, a few follow-up tales, and a complete rewrite of my original Influence story. Now it all ties together. This is a totally new story and I will begin posting it by the end of the month. I'll be pulling the original story down shortly, so if you want to read it, you have a small window to do so.
For those who want me to return to writing literature like A Fresh Start and The Grim Reaper I'll remind you why I started writing. I began reading Internet porn about twenty years ago, and my feelings at the time were simple. It was AWFUL! Monkeys with typewriters could write better stuff than the schlock that I was seeing. (I've had email exchanges with authors who were proud and happy that they were able to get a Six on their scores. I don't even read stuff with scores that low! Jeez, can't you even turn on the spell checker?) I wanted to write what I call literate porn. By and large, I think I've succeeded. I didn't plan to become a writer of literature. I simply wanted to write some stuff late at night that would get me warmed up before heading to bed with my wife.
All that being said, I am still planning on writing another book or novella based on the next chapter in the life of the Grim Reaper. He remains one of my favorite characters, and I already have several chapters laid out in my head, and another three or four later chapters planned. I plan to work on this in the near future, but it will be at least another year before I am ready to do anything with it.
I've had several thoughts on this story.
First, a major dichotomy developed in the readership of the story. One group wanted more sex, more graphic sex, more of the harem, and more breeding. The other wanted less, in some cases significantly less, and more about the crystals and what they could do. It seemed that it was a fine line to walk, and I don't think I walked it the way most people liked. I thought it would have done better in the ratings than it has, especially compared to the original unfinished story. I am also sure that is my vanity speaking and not my intellect. Oh well.
Many readers enjoyed the premise of the final chapter, where Construct explained how Jack could fix much of what is happening in Washington. I heard from readers on both ends of the spectrum and most everybody agreed Congress and the Presidency are massively screwed up currently. Many wanted the story to continue, to show how Jack and Construct fixed things. Unfortunately, once you get past the 'Washington needs fixing' stage, nobody can agree on what the fix should be! As a result, I took to sending out the following reply - "Thanks but continuing the story would get into too much politics, and I don't need the hate mail." I got enough of that with both Carl Buckman and the Grim Reaper!
And so we come to the end!
For those curious about spelling, capitol and capital are often used interchangeably. Not sure what to use, I googled it. The answer I found was interesting. Capital with an A refers to a city that is the seat of government for its region. Capitol with an O is only for buildings; that's its only use. So, Washington DC is the capital, and is the location of the Capitol.
For those who complain about politics intruding into the story, Construct said it best. "What do you think I have been training you for?" If Jack is going to become a leader, he will have to deal with politics. As to why the villain is a right-wing kook, it was just easier that way. As Construct also said, "The other side has their kooks as well." I could have had an ultra-liberal East Coast femi-nazi spout about the need to kill all the billionaires and nationalize every company in the Fortune 500 but that just didn't have the same visceral gut punch of reinstituting slavery. Get over it!
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