sundries

[rm]

No major re-writes! Also my editor is awesome and thoughtful and willing to take the material as seriously as I do. It's great.

On the other hand, the Internet at home is broken and may not be fixed until Sunday. I've finally stopped freaking out about it, but Not Cool.

SAG got money out of Enchanted for me. How satisfying. That whole thing was so ugly.

I've applied for two Guide positions at About.com, which as many of you know was my employer back in the previous millenium. I don't know how they feel about an ex-employee being a guide, or even if they got my guide apps as the confirmation emails never came (and weren't even in my spam box), but it would be a good step towards yet more freedom for me. I've applied in both the dance and celiac areas, but I suspect I am more qualified for the dance one.

Comments

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[keith418.livejournal.com]

I started reading Sandman when it started and have read all of Gaiman's work in comics. I don't think he's a bad writer, but his chief flaw is his sentimentality which usually serves to ruin most of what he attempts. This kind of sentimentality, however, is what his fans respond to. When people rave about him I usually think it's because they haven't been very much exposed to other, better writers.

Re: ...

[rm.livejournal.com]

I think you're right that it's the sentimentality which people respond to (and it's also what turns me off), but most of the devotees I know are exceptionally well-read, so I actually have no idea what it does for them (although I suspect it is that they romanticize childhood far more than I do).

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[keith418.livejournal.com]

When i first responded to your post, I thought of asking whether you'd read his work on Miracleman. Then I recalled that I was thinking about Alan Moore's work on that ill-fated title. Gaiman's work on it wasn't nearly as interesting.

Before Gaiman came along, other writers had tried to do his kind of "cutesy" and failed. I'm thinking of J.M. DeMatteis's Moonshadow in particular - a work that could send anyone into a diabetic coma. I think Gaiman's appeal is also broader, gender-wise. DeMatteis's appealed more to sentimental men. Gaiman hooked everyone. You know my rant thinking about bourgeois sentimentality, so I'll stop here...

[melebeth]

I lost the e-mail that I was sending you where I said that I think it took a couple of days to get my Guide application confirmations. I'm going to try and check, though.. *does some research* My confirmations came in on January 19 in the afternoon. I sent out my applications... January 19. Never mind. The confirmations did come right away.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Do you think I should email them or not worry about it?

[melebeth]

You got a confirmation for neither? I'd drop them a quick note, just in case there's something wrong with the submission system.

[rm.livejournal.com]

For neither. Yeah. I don't want to look high maitenance, but you know....

[melebeth]

They're all about the high maintenance. Seriously. They WANT you to be chatty. It's a requirement to pass review. I had to suck it up and be chipper on listservs where I had absolutely nothing to say. So if you write a note in a friendly "just checking, I"m so excited!" blah blah blah way it may actually count in your favor.

Gosh I'm cynical.

totally OT

[nobodyreally.livejournal.com]

but it's HP trivia so there ya go...

What kind of car did Weasley's dad make into a flying car?

Re: totally OT

[rm.livejournal.com]

Ford Angelina

[00goddess.livejournal.com]

I applied for the Guide position for CFS/FM a few months ago and eventually learned that I did not get the job. I think a Guide position would have been ideal for me, though.

Good luck!

Re: ...

[00goddess.livejournal.com]

I found "Stardust" to be weak because it was so very cutesy. On the other hand, I really enjoy "American Gods"- I think people who dislike it take it far too seriously. A (rather cranky) friend of mine panned it partially on the grounds that "it sucks when authors try to write books 'about America,'" but I don't think it's really a book "about America." I found it to be quite sarcastic and tongue-in-cheek and amusing and literary.

It's also the best I've ever seen out of him. "Anansi Boys" was disappointing. The Sandman books are okay but not amazing.