The Year in Review in the rear view mirror

Back on Dec. 31 I posted a short Year in Review, which mostly consisted of reviewing what a miserable year it was for us financially, with a paragraph at the end noting how much the Hugo nomination hurt.

Mike Glyer, the Lavrenty Beria of the s-f establishment (look it up), pulled out that last part and posted it his web site, File 770. I didn’t get savaged too badly, but I thought I’d run through a few of the comments:

The original post on File 770 on Jan. 2:
(13) YEAR IN REVIEW. Like on that game show, Lou Antonelli delivers the answer in the form of a question: ”2015? The Year in Review?” at This Way to Texas.
“And then, what I would have thought would be be a great thing, being nominated for the Hugo award twice, turned out to be the worst thing that ever happened in my life. But it helped me realize that, in the end, I really only write for myself and friends, and in literature – as in other things in life – trying to please other people is the fast track to misery.”

Teresa Nielsen Hayden:
“I doubt this is true or even possible, and if it is, it’s certainly not undeserved; but Antonelli doesn’t hesitate to baste himself in self-pity. He got two Hugo nominations, lo how he suffers!

To which Hampus Eckerman replied:
“I actually believe this might be how he feels and I see absolutely no reason to denigrate a person for feeling miserable, regardless of if it might have been deserved or not. Antonelli is human and it must have been a terrible situation for him where badly miscalculated the reactions of the Worldcon fandom and also managed to create a horrible PR catastrophes right before which severely damaged his reputation.
“I guess he now feels that his career has been damaged, possibly with no chance of recuperation and it is absolutely something he is allowed to feel miserable about.

RedWombat followed up::
“He’s certainly allowed to feel miserable, and in isolation, the blog post does nothing to indicate how much responsibility he feels for that….miscalculation.
“In…ah…gestalt, I’d be surprised if he took any responsibility for his part in it, but I suppose he could surprise me. I do hope his next year is better–regardless of how much of an ass he’s been, financial instability sucks. But I wouldn’t be human if I didn’t give his commentary a little bit of a side-eye, considering.

Teresa Nielsen Hayden comes back:
“Hampus, I’d feel more sympathetic if I hadn’t watched Antonelli and the other Pups repeatedly go way out of their way to misinterpret friendly-to-neutral fannish input as further evidence of their martyrdom. They insist on it, even when doing so requires that they flat-out contradict known and easily checked facts.
“When people work that hard to embrace that unlikely a conclusion, I start doubting that it hurts, or that they don’t want to reach it.

Lexica then said:
“If getting nominated for two Hugos and not winning is the worst thing that’s happened to Lou Antonelli, I envy him.

Hampus Eckerman replied:
“Here is the thing. I’m as much as for smacking down on bad behaviour as anyone else. But this was a post from Antonelli on a very bad year that cost both him and his wife financially. It was also a post that did not attack anyone else.
“It was a post about the Hugos without lashing out. Without putting blame on others. A post only about how the experience left him feeling miserable. And I think it is ok to write those posts without getting snarky comments back.
“If it had been the usual puppy nonsense with attacking absolutely everyone else, yes, then snark would have been appropriate. But I don’t like attacking people when they’re down.

Then McJulie weighs in:
“If Mr. Antonelli is going through hard times money or healthwise, I’m sorry for his troubles. But if he wants sympathy because he just feels really bad now about the fact that his former bad actions have led him to a worse place in his life… I’m not willing to grant that.

So here are my comments by way of a follow-up:

Teresa Nielsen Hayden seems to think getting even a Hugo nomination is a big deal. Well, maybe once, but not anymore, and certainly not after 2015. Vox Day is in the process of destroying the award, and Nielsen Hayden and her chums are cooperating magnificently. I respected and admired the award once, also, but the way things are preceding, I doubt it will be around along much longer, and its respectability is already destroyed.
So, yes, catching a lot of shit over a worthless award was the worst thing that happened in my life, especially when you factor in my disappointment.

Hampus Eckerman seemed to embrace a small flicker of humanity in that pixeled cesspool, and “got it”. I’m impressed.

Finally, I made my original comments simply as s statement of fact, certainly not looking for sympathy. Like I have said in the past, don’t ever go on the internet looking for sympathy.

Here's my end-of-the-year roundup -

My publications in 2015 were as follows:
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"The Cookie Crumbles" - ConDFW XIV Souvenir Program Book, February 2015:

A short story that supposes that all American businesses are controlled by one secret organization,and that the real reason there has been such an anti-smoking campaign for the past 50 years is because R.J. Reynolds defied that control. In an alternate reality, it was Nabisco, and cookies are subject of the health-directed efforts, not tobacco.
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"The Grove of Curiosities" - 4 Star Stories, No. 14:

"A tale of a want-to-be Squire who, equipped only with his wits and sense of honor, embarks on a quest that may cost him his life" - http://www.4starstories.com/4StarStories_Archiv…/story_1.htm
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"Cerulean Dream" - Tales of the Talisman, Vol. X No. 3:

"Hurricane Katrina had a far-reaching impact for New Orleans and the country. Lou Antonelli shows us the impact it had on mermaids." - http://www.talesofthetalisman.com/Tales10-3-TOC.html
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“The Queen of the Lesser Gods" - C Spot magazine, June 2015:

Mythological creatures are not gods or monsters, but survivors.
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“Would Olympus Fall” – Ruins Excavations anthology, Nov. 2015:

An archaeologist digs for lost Aztec gold in a post-collapse America.
http://www.amazon.com/Ruins-Excavation-Eric-T-…/…/0989263169
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“Port Radium” – Tales from the Otherverse anthology, Nov. 2015.

An alternate history: "What if Douglas MacArthur had been a German general during WWII?"
http://www.amazon.com/Tales-Otherverse-James-…/…/B018CQF05I…

I think "Port Radium" is a decent alternate history, "Cerulean Dream" can be considered either fantasy or s-f (depending how you hold it up to the light) and "Would Olympus Fall" a good near-future story.

If anyone would like to read any of my stories published in 2015, just PM me and I'll get you a copy.
Hope your new year is going well.

2015? The Year in Review?

Honestly, one of the worst years in our lives. I was fired on Jan. 2 after working as managing editor of the local paper for seven and a half years - the last half year with new owners. But I assumed at some point the new owners would want their own person in the job, so I had some contingency plans, and I was working at another newspaper by Jan. 6 - but with a big drop in pay. I made up a lot of that decrease with a part-time editing job, but that ended in the fall.

My wife was forced to resign as a teacher - the local school district is pretty much a hiring agency for locals, and she was treated so shitty she couldn't take it any more. She found another job, too, but again, with a big drop in pay.

As the year ends, we are making 58 percent of what we were at the start of the year - so we're struggling financially.

And then, what I would have thought would be be a great thing, being nominated for the Hugo award twice, turned out to be the worst thing that ever happened in my life. But it helped me realize that, in the end, I really only write for myself and friends, and in literature - as in other things in life - trying to please other people is the fast track to misery.

On the positive side, the odds are probably pretty good that 2016 will be a better year - that won't be hard to do.

I will post a list of my publications in 2015 in another post later today, since that is also something traditionally done at year's end. I had six short stories published, some of them - I'd like to think - that were pretty good.

Why Dogs Like To Snuggle With People

You’ve probably never heard this, but it’s true – Adam and Eve had fur just like so many other animals in the Garden of Eden (and just like their cousins the Bigfeet have today).

As God was kicking them out of the Garden, the other animals watched and felt bad for then – but especially Mr. and Mrs. Dog. They were good friends. Adam always threw the stick for Mr. Dog, and Eve would comb Mrs. Dog’s fur.

As they walked through the gate, Adam side-mouthed to Eve: “We screwed up big time, but at least we’ll be warm,” and he tugged at the fur on his arm.

God heard that.

“I’ll show you, wise guy,” and he leaned down and grabbed both of them by the nape of the neck, and with one clean gesture yanked the fur coats right off them!

“You’ve left us naked and cold to the world,” wailed Eve.

“Too bad, so sad,” snarled The Big Guy. “Now git!”

Mr. Dog turned to Mrs. Dog.

“Oh my, they’ll freeze to death without any fur!”

“We need to do something help them,” said Mrs. Dog.

“Let’s go with them!” said Mr. Dog, “We can keep them warm,” and they both jumped up and ran after the humans.

They managed to slip through the gate just as it closed. Adam looked behind him as the Garden disappeared into the mist.

“Thanks for sticking with us, old chum,” he said as he rubbed Mr. Dog’s ears..

“Well, we have at least two friends in the world,” said Eve.

That night, Mr. Dog slept up against Adam, and Mrs. Dog cuddled with Eve, and kept them warm. The two dogs looked at each other and sighed.

So remember when a dog snuggles or cuddles or lays up against you, it’s not just because they love you. Of course they do, but they also feel sorry for all of us. When a dog curls up with you, he wants to keep you warm as he thinks:

“I’m sorry you lost your fur.”

Latest anthology sale

Bryan Thomas Schmidt says he is preparing to assemble and send edits and contracts out for his latest anthology, coming out in 2016 from WordFire Press, Decision Points, his "long planned, star-studded" young adult anthology of science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories wherein character choice plays a major role.

It will feature new stories from Jonathan Maberry, Nnedi Okorafor, Jody Lynn Nye, KD McEntire, Kate Corcino as well as myself.

It will also include a never before anthologized Ender story from Orson Scott Card, and more reprints from Robert J. Sawyer, Cory Doctorow, Kevin J. Anderson, Lois McMaster Bujold, Robert Silverberg, Steven Gould, Rebecca Moesta, Beth Davis Cato, Alethea Kontis, Eugene Myers, Mike Resnick and Jennifer Brozek.

Needless to say, I'm proud and honored to be included such a stellar line-up.

Latest short fiction sale

I'm proud to announce that the e-zine Aurora Wolf has bought my alternate history "Captain of the Clouds". This will be my first publication of 2016, and my 96th short story since I was first published in 2003.

This is an alternate history where the Germans hijack a dirigible to steal helium in the 1930s.

Lost in translation

My mother and father were both Italian immigrants who met and married in Boston in 1956. For their honeymoon they drove to Quebec. At some point they stopped at a local gas station.

Quebecers have a good second sense of whether to address a stranger in English or French. The gas station attendant walk out, looks at dad behind the wheel, assesses (correctly) that he is not an native English speaker, and speak to him in French.

My father was a more recent immigrant to America and his English was proportionately poorer. He turns to my mother, curses in Italian and adds, “I didn’t know there is another language in this country! I’m having a hard enough time learning English!”

My mother gently pointed out they were not in the U.S. and indeed, in Canada they also speak French – to his great relief.