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People in crit groups can mean so much when they say those three words. What makes something derivative, or a trope, or a cliche?
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We cover the gift list for the writers in your life (or, alternatively, what you should put on your wish list!)
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A little bit of NaNoWriMo wrap-up, but then we deal with the idea of goals again, and the trouble I have with these goal programs that are everywhere. I’m wondering if goals for writers are different. And I’m taking another one now, from Udemy. Which is pronounced you-de-ME, not YOU-demy.
I am super excited for streaming this week, both on my channel and Worldbuilder’s. On Wednesday I’ll be having a watch party of a beloved Henson classic with a puppeteer who’s worked with Henson’s company, and on Thursday I’m playing Among Us with other authors for charity! All times EST.
In text:
I’m doing a special offer on Patreon for the next two weeks- if you support my Patreon you can sign up to receive hand written holiday postcards and birthday postcards from me.
(This also applies to current supporters at $3 and up)
I’m removing some things and consolidating some things on Patreon, making it more efficient. I’ve unpublished some tiers (this will not affect the existing supporters) and set up the special postcard offer!
I will need your address if I don’t have it, and your birthdate. (I do nothing with this info, no selling, no marketing beyond what is already done via Patreon, no home mailings beyond cards.)
I would love to send you a card this holiday season. I’ve commissioned original art from Len Peralta for the postcard, which will go out to the first 50 people who confirm their mailing address. I’m hoping this Patreon special offer can insert some cheer into your 2020. It’s a pretty grim time, and it would be nice to have some pleasant postcards come in the mail!
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Yeah, I know ‘words have power’ is cliche, but the basic decisions on how to describe people, considering your POV and your own biases, can dramatically affect your book.
TL;DR
I’m raising money for Duke Children’s Hospital via Extra Life this season, and figured holiday watch parties on Twitch would be a fun way to do so. Anyone who knows me knows I’m a sucker for holiday romances, and my bar for quality is quite low. Now that Twitch lets you stream Amazon Prime movies, they’re offering watch parties, and I thought that would be a great idea to enjoy some movies, invite some of my snarkier friends to join me from time to time, AND raise money for charity!
If you support over at Extra Life you can get books from me, or even choose the next movie I watch. (Must be on Amazon Prime, and must be holiday related.) But there is one movie I will watch ONLY if I raise $1000, and that’s the movie rated 0% on Rotten Tomatoes: Kirk Cameron’s Saving Christmas.
To add some fun, I discovered you can create your own custom BINGO cards, so I made a Christmas movie card! Get your own randomized card and play along! I will watch chat during the movie, and the first person to BINGO will win a prize! Here’s a sample card.
Apologies, there doesn’t seem to be an accessible version, if anyone knows of a way to make it accessible, let me know.
I’m starting TODAY at 3pm EST with A Holiday Engagement. You can watch with me if you can stream it on Amazon Prime, and if you can’t but you have another service with the movie, just put it in another window and start when I do.
I’m still working on the schedule and guests, so watch this space, or over at Twitch, to find out more.
NOTES:
While I would LOVE to pontificate on the political impact of all the fake “not England”* countries that crop up in the new Christmas royalty genre**, and I absolutely cannot WAIT to rewatch the new, expletive-filled movie Holidate, they’re rooted over there at Netflix, which I am unable to stream legally. I have considered just telling you to watch Netflix on your own at the same time as me, but we will have to see how the Amazon Prime parties play out.
I also don’t think I can pause the movie, so any commentary I make will be over the movie itself. But it was good enough for MST3K I guess…
I can’t record this, so live is the only way you can watch it. Not sure if there’s a VOD or not… Anyway, I will be playing with different days and times for these watch parties to try to hit audiences around the world.
* Aside: I might make a map of all these “not England” countries from romances that have American queens now. I think it’s a US plot to take over Not-Europe.
** Y’all, this article was last updated in 2018. There have been MORE movies since then (including a new Princess Switch movie – Switched Again, where Vanessa Hudgens gets to play a THIRD character. I now expect this franchise to go full Orphan Black and nothing else is acceptable.) I may be emailing Jenna Guillaume for an update.
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What kind of equipment do you need on this adventure, especially two weeks in? Food? Alcohol? Caffeine?
Goal: 23,333
Housekeeping:
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Monsters you can come across on your adventure including the evil time eater…
Goal: 21,666
Housekeeping:
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Back to the spoof radio shows, this time we look at the soap opera, and how it teaches us one of the basic things about characters. Namely- they’ve got to WANT something.
Goal: 20,000
Housekeeping: