I'm afraid I was just really mean on an email loop. A guy came on complaining that he was going to be getting another 3-star review on his book because, while the reviewer praised his storytelling, she said the spelling and grammatical mistakes were distracting and threw her out of the story.

And this guy is whining, because in his words, "I know my own spelling and editing skills suck, but that's why I assumed an editor would fix it and if I ask them to reedit, they're going to want to charge me!"

Ah... went with a small press, did we?

I just kind of let him know, in fairly kind language, that it's his name on the book and if he knows, going in, that he has spelling/grammatical/whatever issues, then it's up to him to find a critique partner or a freelance editor who can catch those things before it's submitted. That publishing houses are being downsized constantly and there are too many writers out there submitting clean manuscripts for him to waltz in assuming that he's so fabulous an editor's going to want to fix his p's and q's.

Still, I may have been a bit harsh.

My whole apartment smells like apples and cinnamon because I just made my first ever apple crisp. I hope it tastes as good as it smells.

I'll be over 'bout six, k, sj?

I am just loving that Smonster is posting so much now. That's all.

Also, Barcelona, despite it being a mostly work trip, and the addition of hiring a dogwalker/trainer has blown my budget to smithereens.

I'm not sure it's even possible for apple crisp to taste as good as it smells, it just smells that good. See also: coffee.

Barb, sounds like you adminstered a much-needed cluestick.

I am just loving that Smonster is posting so much now.

Ahahaha. Coincidentally, I was just thinking, "Damn! I'm posting too much."

From what I've been overhearing from my co-workers cubicles, the tightening of the Internet filters has led to a rise in loading games onto the computers, with an attendant rise in mini-networks to play each other.

Yeah, this increased productivity.

(And I'm currently at lunch, so I'm allowed to mock productivity, not that I'm not planning to load Dungeon Siege for when I'm here on the weekend.)

I'll be over 'bout six, k, sj?

K! Buffistas are always welcome here as long as they don't mind the clutter. I was halfway to getting really organized until I fell.

Ahahaha. Coincidentally, I was just thinking, "Damn! I'm posting too much."

No! There is no such thing as too much smonster!

sj, I'll be coming in with Barb. I'll bring tea.

I just kind of let him know, in fairly kind language, that it's his name on the book and if he knows, going in, that he has spelling/grammatical/whatever issues, then it's up to him to find a critique partner or a freelance editor who can catch those things before it's submitted.

From what I've read, submitting something that doesn't look like it needs a lot of editing is a big plus.