I am sharing a mind with Micole on this, which is very good, because it's a hell of a good mind to be sharing.

That Court decision was brutal - another drop in the "let's turn books into commodities for tax purposes, and reduce authors to manufacturing status" bucket of slop. And I think you're absolutely right, about Lee getting caught in big shifts without knowing it - SF followed a traditional pattern, swell-glut-tighten, and horror did the same. At the moment, it's cozy mysteries; the market is glutted and unless you've got something completely off the beaten path, or a very good voice, mostly publishers aren't buying them. Eventually, I imagine that will right itself as well, as the chaff shakes free of the wheat, but in the meantime, I give thanks every day for my editor.

But I'm still very cross about how the industry - because it is one - handles available funds and promotions. A little help for the newbies and esoteric and plain old midlist writers would be good. Tom Clancy and Bil O'Reilly don't need their tours paid for, damnit. And they don't need ten-foot ads on the sides of buses.

The problem for genre writers wasn't so much the death of small independents (except for speciality stores, they tended to do poorly by genre), but the loss of large outlets like supermarkets, etc.

I think that the problem with Spider Robinson was the continuing decline of his writing rather than the market in general, but then I'm mean. And lots of midlist writers I do like had and continue to have problems getting books published.

Mildred Ames! Anna to the Infinite Power and The Silver Link, The Silken Tie deeply creeped me out as a kid, even though I now have no memory of the latter's plot. Huh, and the Amazon description doesn't help. Anna's expensive, too, though it looks like I can refresh my memory of the other one for under five bucks.

[Tries very hard to convince self that I've spent enough on books this month.]

I remember The Girl with the Silver Eyes, although I remember better that Roberts did a lot of "issue" novels, some of which were so manipulatively tear-jerking they make me cringe to this day. But my adult skim of Silver Eyes says sometimes she still holds up.

Zilpha Keatley Snyder, now. She holds up nicely.

I'm about 9 chapters into Mieville's Perdido Street Station, and I just can't make myself go any further for now. I will have another go at it shortly.

My brother! I've been stalled in the same place for a while. It's all the effort required in decoding the I-am-so-grungy London-ness of everything. I'll get around to it eventually, but in some ways it feels like homework.

I tell you what, when the book starts feeling like homework, I move on.

Too many books. Too little time.

I think that the problem with Spider Robinson was the continuing decline of his writing rather than the market in general, but then I'm mean.

Huh. We really do appear to share a brain at times.

Interesting stuff about publishing, warehousing and contracts with authors. I learn stuff here every day, I swear. Tanith doesn't seem to me to be a person who groks the business world. She's been home writing books all along, and holding out for favorable terms, and I suppose that's good, what with the making a living part.

That said, I got this back from Egerton House this morning:

There are whispers here about the 4th Scarabae book but as yet we don’t have a date. We are very committed to the idea of publishing this addition to the Blood Opera series and are very confident that readers, such as yourself and your friend, would greet it enthusiastically. For now though, other projects command our attention. Of course, as soon as there is any news, Tanith’s website will be updated. Thanking you for your interest and support Sincerely, Chris Holroyd

So woot! I am happy. And I would really like to read "Girl with the Silver Eyes."

Whoops, formatting.

I think that the problem with Spider Robinson was the continuing decline of his writing rather than the market in general, but then I'm mean.

That may in fact be true. I don't know, I haven't read Spider in years, although his column is usually insightful and funny. I just remembered him being outspoken at the time. There was another author who spoke up, and I remember people snerking about his output then too. However, Spider, for example, does seem to have a market and has sold books since that time, so generic meanness does seem misplaced, in his case.

Although never unwelcome. (If you can't find something nice to say ... come sit next to me.)

There are whispers here about the 4th Scarabae book but as yet we don’t have a date. We are very committed to the idea of publishing this addition to the Blood Opera series and are very confident that readers, such as yourself and your friend, would greet it enthusiastically. For now though, other projects command our attention. Of course, as soon as there is any news, Tanith’s website will be updated. Thanking you for your interest and support Sincerely, Chris Holroyd

Rock on! That is good news.

Huh, I should go check her website. I haven't done so in a while.

People who were horror fans at the time may remember the horror sections in bookstores literally disappearing, as the big-selling names like Straub and King got shelved in general fiction and the rest of the section got axed.

One of the reasons I prefer Borders to B&N is that Borders still has a horror section. A teeny-tiny one, usually on the other side of the romance novels, but they at least have a horror section, unlike B&N.

Of course, then there's the local bookstore, complete with cantankerous old guy owner, who made a point of re-organizing their horror section; the last time I was browsing, the owner smiled and informed me that he put all the vampire novels together on their own shelf, so I could have an easier time finding ones I hadn't read yet. (yes, I am happy in my gothy cliché-ness. Vampire books! Wheeee!)

Vague memories of a book I read as a child have been bugging me for years now, and I don't know why I never thought to ask in here if anyone remembered it.

My sister received a book for her birthday once that I coveted beyond belief. She let me read it once, but then wouldn't ever let me borrow it again. It was a paperback collection of short fairytales that had been turned around. Rapunzel was rewritten as man, for example, and there were pen and ink illustrations. What I remember most about it was the humor. The rapunzelesque guy was sleeping in a tower and the heroine had a terrible time getting him to wake up and stay awake.

There was also a story where one of the fairy godmother wishes for a princess was that she always have long flowing golden hair. When she got tired of it because of the weight and heat, she cut it off... and it went crazy and grew and grew and no one could figure out how to stop it until a guy had them put her on one scale, the hair on another, and then chopped it so girl and hair weighed exactly the same. I believe said guy and princess then married and lived happily ever after.

Do any of you remember this, what it's called or the author? I think the author was a woman, but I don't know why I think that. I believe the book was published in the early to mid-70s.

However, Spider, for example, does seem to have a market and has sold books since that time, so generic meanness does seem misplaced, in his case.

His writing, which I used to really like, went downhill with no brakes and last I checked, still hadn't hit the bottom yet.

I know I'm not the only former SR fan who stopped bothering to buy his stuff after repeat disappointments.