The EFFector Newsletter (on Facebook Privacy... and more)

EFFector Vol. 23, No. 12  April 28, 2010  editor@eff.org

A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation
ISSN 1062-9424

effector: n, Computer Sci. A device for producing a
desired change.

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In our 535th issue:

* A SLEW OF NEW FACEBOOK SCHEMES THREATEN USERS' PRIVACY,
and EFF has created tools to help Facebook users protect
their information. One of the most radical changes is
"Instant Personalization," which gives other websites
(Yelp, Pandora, and Microsoft Docs, at the moment)
personal information from your Facebook profile as soon
as you visit their pages. Moreover, even if you opt out of
Instant Personalization, your friends can leak information
about you unless you block each application individually.

To completely opt out of Instant Personalization:
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/how-opt-out-facebook-s-instant-personalization

For more on Facebook's plans to make your information
public:
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/facebook-further-reduces-control-over-personal-information

* FINALLY, AFTER YEARS OF SECRECY, THE TEXT OF THE
ANTI-COUNTERFEITING TRADE AGREEMENT (ACTA) HAS BEEN
MADE PUBLIC. While this is a definitive victory for the
countless activists who pressed for transparency, the
officially released text makes it crystal clear that our
worst fears about this international agreement are real:
ACTA is not just about counterfeiting. ACTA targets
citizens' ability to use the Internet to communicate,
collaborate and create, and it poses significant concerns
for citizens' privacy, freedom of expression and fair
use rights.

For EFF's preliminary analysis of the official ACTA text:
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/eff-analysis-officially-released-acta-text

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EFF Updates

* Film Company Takes Down Hitler Parodies on YouTube
Countless video creators brought Internet fame to a
scene from the German film, The Downfall, by cleverly
subtitling an emotional rant by Hitler. Constatin Film,
the copyright owner, has blithely decided to wipe out
all the remix videos, fair use notwithstanding.

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/everyone-who-s-made-hitler-parody-leave-room

* Consumers International Video: When Copyright Goes Bad
The short film "When Copyright Goes Bad," featuring EFF
Senior Staff Attorney Fred von Lohmann, chronicles the
rise of copyright as a global consumer rights issue and
the ongoing fight for fairer copyright laws.

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/consumers-international-video-when-copyright-goes-bad

* 2010 Global IP Watchlist Promotes Access to Knowledge
Featuring significant contributions from EFF, the consumer
rights-focused document presents a detailed survey of
global copyright laws and their impact on citizens'
freedom to communicate, learn, and exchange information.

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/international-consumer-rights-group-publishes-2010

* Not-So-Gentle Persuasion: The Special 301 Report
For years, the Special 301 report gave US rightsholder
industries a way to intimidate other countries into
amping copyright laws. But for the first time in 2010,
groups interested in copyright reform were allowed to
submit comments -- will we see more balance?

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/shaping-ip-laws-not-so-gentle-persuasion-special

* Site Shows Government Information and Takedown Requests
Google's Government Requests tool is a tremendously
important first step towards informing the public about
the extent to which governments around the world seek
information about them.

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/google-shows-government-information-and-takedown

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miniLinks

~ EFF Profile: Protecting Freedom & Privacy
The SF Chronicle profiled EFF with an interview with
Executive Director Shari Steele.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/04/24/BU2V1D2VCT.DTL

~ Senator Schumer Takes on Facebook
Senator Chuck Schumer calls on the FTC to investigate
"major privacy concerns" raised by recent Facebook
decisions.

http://schumer.senate.gov/new_website/record.cfm?id=324175

~ Animator Nina Paley turns down Netflix Due to DRM
"DRM is designed to benefit Big Media conglomerates,
not artists."

http://blog.ninapaley.com/2010/04/23/turning-down-netflix/

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Announcements

* Party in Vegas with EFF's DEF CON Getaway Contest

EFF wants to help you get to DEF CON 18 and party
in style!

Register for the DEF CON Getaway Fundraising Contest,
and receive a personalized referral link. Send the link
to your friends and family, and tell them why they should
support EFF. The contestant(s) to raise the most money
for EFF between now and June 30, 2010, will win:

- two DEF CON 18 Human badges;
- a standard room at the Riviera Hotel for the nights of
  July 29-31;
- two tickets to the Vegas 2.0 Party at the Top of the
  Riv on July 29;
- two tickets to the iSEC Partners Party, location and
  date TBD; and
- two badges to the Ninja Networks Party, location TBD,
  on July 31.

There are prizes for second and third place winners,
as well. Visit www.eff.org/defcon for more information
and official contest rules. Contact aaron@eff.org with
any questions. See you in Sin City!

* Help EFF Go to SouthEast LinuxFest!

EFF is looking for donations of airline miles, flight
vouchers, and hotel points for travel to SouthEast
LinuxFest in Spartanburg, SC, as well as other conferences
and speaking engagements. If you have enough airline miles
for a free ticket and would like to send an EFF staffer
to a conference, let us know, and we will help you with
the process of making the reservation. Please note that
at this time we are unable to combine miles from multiple
individuals. We are also looking for hotel rewards points
to help reduce our overall travel costs.

As a thanks for your donation, we can offer a free
membership and a mention in EFFector (if you'd
like). Please contact aaron@eff.org if you can help!

* "Life 2.0" at the San Francisco International Film Fest

EFF is proud to be a presenter of Life 2.0, directed
by Jason Spingarn-Koff, at the 53rd San Francisco
International Film Festival (April 22-May 6). EFF
consulted with the filmmakers during the making of
this film.

Documented both online and in the real world, Life 2.0
examines the effects both humorous and unnerving of the
virtual world Second Life by focusing on the lives of
its users and chronicling their successes, failures,
lives and loves.

Showings at the Sundance Kabuki Cinemas:
Friday, April 30 at 3:00 PM
Sunday, May 2 at 1:00 PM
Wednesday, May 5 at 9:15 PM

For more information on Life 2.0, visit
http://fest10.sffs.org/films/film_details.php?id=45

For tickets and more information on SFIFF53:
http://fest10.sffs.org

* EFF Seeking Staff Intellectual Property Attorney

Dream job alert:  EFF is seeking an intellectual property
staff attorney for its legal team. Responsibilities
include litigation, public speaking, media outreach,
plus legislative and regulatory advocacy, all in
connection with a variety of intellectual property and
high technology matters.

Qualified candidates should have at least four years of
legal experience, with knowledge in patent law and at
least one other IP specialty (copyright, trademark, trade
secret). Litigation experience is required, including
significant experience managing cases, both overall case
strategy and day-to-day projects and deadlines. Candidates
should have good communication skills and interest
in working with a team of highly motivated lawyers and
activists in a hard-working nonprofit environment. Strong
writing and analytical skills as well as the ability to be
self-motivated and focused are essential. Tech savvy
and familiarity with Internet civil liberties and high
tech public interest issues preferred. This position is
based in San Francisco.

Interested applicants should submit a resume, writing
sample, and references to ipjob@eff.org.

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* Administrivia

EFFector is published by:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation
454 Shotwell Street
San Francisco CA 94110-1914 USA
+1 415 436 9333 (voice)
+1 415 436 9993 (fax)
http://www.eff.org/

Editor:
Richard Esguerra, EFF Activist
 richard@eff.org

Membership & donation queries:
 membership@eff.org

General EFF, legal, policy, or online resources queries:
 information@eff.org

Reproduction of this publication in electronic media is
encouraged. Signed articles do not necessarily represent
the views of EFF. To reproduce signed articles
individually, please contact the authors for their express
permission.

Press releases and EFF announcements & articles may be
reproduced individually at will.

Current and back issues of EFFector are available via the
Web at:
 http://www.eff.org/effector/

Forced Mate Review

I'd hardly call this link a "review", and the tags that the site has chosen mystify me. Nevertheless, I suspect that this is a new feature, and for my author friends --and reviewer friends-- who like to hang out on the cutting edge, this might be a site to watch.

Forced Mate Review

By the way, I was sorely tempted to comment on an ambiguous book title: Write A Romance Novel For Dummies. It's not quite so rude to readers when one sees the cover!

1st Turning Point » You’ve Got…Hate!…Mail

1st Turning Point » You’ve Got…Hate!…Mail

New porn virus holds your browsing history hostage

New porn virus holds your browsing history hostage

I wonder how long it will be until this virus hits some of the ebook sharing sites?

Goodreads | Authors Without A Yacht (AWaY)

Tax time in America brings it home to many author just how much our income is affected by ebook piracy. One cannot even deduct uploads let alone downloads of illegally created copies of our books as "spillage" (which is what bookstore owners call shoplifted books).

Goodreads | Authors Without A Yacht (AWaY)

Some of us got together to create a social networking group to discuss piracy and share just how rampant the situation is.

"Authors Without A Yacht" is a group where book lovers can ask questions and receive honest answers from authors who are affected by piracy.

Most of us would be happy if we could afford a canoe from our book royalties. Readers keep us afloat, piracy and e-book file "sharing" is sinking us.

If you ask, we'll tell you where you can legally find our books for the best possible prices (usually libraries and used book stores), which online retailers are legitimate.

We'll tell you the tell-tale signs that a "free" book is probably stolen, and the trouble that downloading a bootleg could cause, and what to do to be safe... and much more.

Goodreads | Authors Without A Yacht (AWaY)

Please join the GoodReads group, and invite your friends.

And now for something completely different.

I'm one of the moderators of a GoodReads group called "Tips..." It's for authors only, and is all about sharing advice on promoting and marketing books.

One member requested a little brainstorming on how to position his book as a graduation gift. I obliged thusly (some remarks have been redacted):

..... it would be a really good idea to ask people .... to tag the book "graduation gift". I've just written it in for you, but you'll need a lot more write-ins before it gets on your main menu.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0982501...

There are 823 rival tags of "Graduation Gift". 459 products are in the Graduation Gift community.

The top tagger is Linda Chai with 71 products tagged, but your most creative rival is probably Dahlia, because she is the only one with an atavar, and has tagged 49 times.

http://www.amazon.com/tag/graduation%20g...

There is one discussion (only one!) and it is hardly scintillating.

42 Lists and guides (have you started a Listmania?) but no images!

You could own this Amazon Community. Get on the leader board by tagging 75 of your rivals starting with those that only have 1 vote/tag.

:-)

How's that?

My correspondent came back with another question about tagging, to which I replied:

:-)

People tag out of reciprocity. Also out of gratitude if you comment on their discussions in their Communities or blogs.

For instance, you could go to http://rowenacherry.blogspot.com and comment on my guest Kelly A Harmon's guest post. (She's doing a blog tour and offering one prize over the course of the tour to one commenter, so commenters will be returning to my blog from her later blogs to leave some remark in hopes of winning.)

So, you visit my blog, and you leave a comment for Kelly... and ask if her book would make a great "graduation gift" and if so would history graduates enjoy it. When you sign in, you include your http TO YOUR AMAZON PAGE instead of to your website.

Maybe you add a sig line at the bottom of your comment
"MR 'graduation gift' expert"

Others see "graduation gift" and associate your name with it. The search engines eventually pick up your name in connection with "graduation gift".

:-)

Amazon communities are an untapped resource. Author friends, check it out. Really. You could start your own on almost any subject. There's even a "sperm donor" community!

Three cheers for Congressman Fleming

Congressman Fleming is encouraging people to go on his Website and Sign his petition (very simple - just a name and an email address).

I have just done just that at:

http://fleming.house.gov/index.cfm?sectionid=55

Please urge as many people as you can to do the same!  Congress should have to accept the same level of health care for themselves and their families as the rest of America.

The Two “Secrets” of Being a Productive Writer (Guest Blog by Kelly A Harmon)

The Two “Secrets” of Being a Productive Writer

Kelly A. Harmon







Writers write. And no matter how much they produce: a hundred words a day, a thousand words a day, a novel in six weeks...nine times out of ten, if asked, they’ll tell you they wish they were more productive.

The fact is, we could all write more. But between email, the phone, and popping out to the Internet for a bit of research, all that productivity starts to wane. We try to multi-task, but concentrating on more than one thing at a time weakens our ability to do any one of them well.

No lie. Scientists have proven that multi-tasking is a fallacy.

I’m not talking about the trick of putting in a load of laundry and writing while it washes: that’s simply ordering your tasks in a manner which allows you to accomplish more. The fact is: first your put the laundry into the washer first, and then your write. You’re not really doing more than one thing at a time.

Consider a writer who sits down to write with a cup of tea at hand. He types a few words, maybe a few sentences, and then stops to take a drink. Did you hear the key word? He stopped. As soon as he reached for the cup, he was no longer writing.

Imagine how much time he loses when he answers a ringing phone or reads an email.

So the first “secret” of being a more productive writer is to just write. Focus on putting words on the page and ignore everything else until the writing is done (or you’ve reached your time limit, or your word goal, etc.). Just concentrate on one single task.

When you’re finished with that task, start the next. Finish it, then start the next. It’s called serial mono-tasking.

The second “secret” to being more productive is to keep more than one writing project in the hopper at a time. When you’re done with working on the novel, turn to a non-fiction article you’ve been wanting to write. When you tire of that, move on to the novella you’ve been toying with. Don’t just close up shop for the day when you’ve finished the task at hand. Keep moving. Always strive to do a bit more than is necessary. Push yourself to accomplish more.

As Johann Sebastian Bach said, “I was obliged to be industrious. Whoever is equally industrious will succeed equally well.”

So, in truth there are no secrets to being more productive: focus and hard work, which have been around forever, are the key.

A tale of murder, betrayal and comeuppance.

King Theodicar needed an heir. When his wife, Queen Piacenza, became pregnant, he’d hoped for a boy. His wife, along with her nurse, Salvagia, knew it wouldn’t be so: with each cast of the runes, Salvagia’s trusted divination tools yielded the same message: “A girl child must rule or the kingdom will fall to ruin.” The women were convinced that the child would be a girl.

When the queen finally gives birth, the nurse and the king are equally surprised. The king is faced with a terrible choice, and his decision will determine the fate of his kingdom. Will he choose wisely, or will he doom Borgund to ruin?


Excerpt One:

Theodicar looked down at the mewling infant in his arms, and felt the anger rise up. Even in death his wife defied him, the nurse ensuring her success. Women did not rule. He would not allow it. They had created a male child, and that child would take the throne upon his death.

“You can save the boy,” he said to Salvagia.

She slitted her eyes at him, her stare mutinous. Her words were loud and hard in the wake of Pia’s death. “I have the power to save one at the expense of the other, Sire. The girl is stronger. And eldest. She was born to rule.”

Theodicar watched the girl curl up in his arms, her birth fluids staining a brown patch on the dyed-yellow wool of his tunic. She burrowed into the crook of his elbow, trying to achieve the comfort of the womb.

“I will not hear those words again,” he said. “That absurd idea died with my wife. My son will rule.” He reached for the boy, thrusting the girl child back into the nurse’s hands. “There’s no need for a daughter. And no need for anyone to know of her.”

“So be it,” Salvagia said, wrapping the weary girl in a square of wool, covering her face. She reached for her basket.

“Kill her now,” said Theodicar.

Salvagia looked stricken.

“Sire, if we kill her now, she will be of no use to her brother. Once dead, the blood won’t flow, and we need her blood to strengthen his.

“Then drain her now,” he snapped. “I will not have her crying out when we call the witnesses back to cut the boy’s cord.”



I encourage you to follow Kelly A. Harmon's tour and comment; the more that readers comment, the better their chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here: 
http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2010/03/virtual-book-tour-blood-soup.html

Interested in hosting Kelly on your blog?
Email goddessfish@gmail.com 

Amber Polo's Why I Write Fantasy series

Amber Polo has lined up a number of my friends for fun, quick and quirky interviews. Maybe you'd like to check them all out?

 

Why I Write Fantasy interviews -

Past, Present and Future

February 26     Dana Davis, speculative fiction author and ghost buster

March 6           Mary Carrales, erotic romance author writes fantasy to explore wish fulfillment

March 12  Kate Robinson - Studying in mystical Wales , writer of slipstream fantasy

March 21  Kari Thomas, paranormal romance author, writes shifter fantasy because she’s insane (her words, not mine)

March 28  Kelley Heckart - Historical fantasy author, writes of Dark Age Scotland to escape complex modern world

April 4   Arlene Eisenbise, writer whose spirit guide (or muse) told her to write about Atlantis, the Maya, and the Hopi.

April 11 Kris Neri – has added unlikely supernatural characters to her mystery novels

April 18 Skhye Moncrief, research maven, writes time travel and cross-genre fantasy romance

April 25 Renee Wildes writes fantasy, action, romance, heroics and lots of critters

May 2 Gail Dayton writes fantasy, paranormal romance and steampunk

May 9 Brenna Lyons writes milieu-heavy dark fiction in 18 established worlds plus more

May 16 Hywala Lyn Looks at the difference between US and UK fantasy readers

May 23 Heather Kuehl Kick-butt action adventure fantasy

May 30 Rowena Cherry -heroes larger than life in every way

June 6 Pamela K. Kinney & Sapphire Philan – Double identity – Erotic romance, horror and ghostly non-fiction.

And more to come Jane Toombs, Mistress Rae, CK Green, and more...

WordShaping
Amber's Website

E-Reads: Publishing In the 21st Century » Blog Archiv » Google Blogger Shutdown Deadline Looms

E-Reads: Publishing In the 21st Century » Blog Archiv » Google Blogger Shutdown Deadline Looms

Why host a Blog Tour?

My blogging-author friends, have you have ever toyed with the idea of hosting guest authors?

If it seems like too much trouble to advertise for guests, post their posts, moderate the comments they receive (some of which will be very thinly veiled invitations to visit other sites), and generally keep an eye on things... you might be right.

On the other hand, there are tangible benefits in addition to the traffic from people who "discover" your blog because they are following the guest on her tour and may be hoping to maximize their chances of winning an online bookstore gift certificate.

Blog tour organizer goddessfish also offers a really good incentive to appropriate hosts: "Any month you host one of our authors on a virtual tour, you’ll receive 50% off of banner or book video creation from Goddess Fish! Are you a tour partner?"

Judy and Marianne do first rate book videos and banners. Imagine commissioning one of their book videos for $20 instead of $40

Like this:


On April 12 I shall be hosting dark fantasy author Kelly A Harmon for the day, as she inaugurates her "Blood Soup" blog tour. Please come back to check it out and leave an encouraging comment for Kelly (on Monday April 12th).

A tale of murder, betrayal and comeuppance.

King Theodicar of Borgund needed an heir. When his wife, Queen Piacenza, became pregnant, he’d hoped for a boy. His wife, along with her nurse, Salvagia, knew it wouldn’t be so: with each cast of the runes, Salvagia’s trusted divination tools yielded the same message: “A girl child must rule or the kingdom will fall to ruin.” The women were convinced that the child would be a girl.

When the queen finally gives birth, the nurse and the king are equally surprised. The king is faced with a terrible choice, and his decision will determine the fate of his kingdom. Will he choose wisely, or will he doom Borgund to ruin?

Meanwhile, if you might like to host Kelly A. Harmon (who has a number of interesting blog topics prepared) you could visit
http://www.goddessfish.com

and
http://www.goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com


to sign up as a potential host and choose a guest and a day.

E-Reads: Publishing In the 21st Century » Blog Archiv » File-Share This. Court Judgment Costs Music Downloader $675,000. Book Pirates Next?

E-Reads: Publishing In the 21st Century » Blog Archiv » File-Share This. Court Judgment Costs Music Downloader $675,000. Book Pirates Next?

E-Reads: Publishing In the 21st Century » Blog Archiv » Revised and Sweetened Google Settlement

Apparently, this is the Authors' Guild position on the Google Book Settlement

E-Reads: Publishing In the 21st Century » Blog Archiv » Revised and Sweetened Google Settlement

E-Reads: Publishing In the 21st Century » Blog Archiv » Still Dithering over Google Settlement? This Will Undither You

Literary agent and publisher of e-books, Richard Curtis blogs about the Google Book Settlement.

E-Reads: Publishing In the 21st Century » Blog Archiv » Still Dithering over Google Settlement? This Will Undither You

E-Reads: Publishing In the 21st Century

Richard Curtis blogs about the importance of the Google Book Settlement.

E-Reads: Publishing In the 21st Century

Open letter about intellectual property rights to White House Task Force

Subject: Copyright

Dear Ms Espinel,

I am an author member of the Copyright Alliance and have been informed of your very welcome invitation to share my thoughts on my the infringement of my rights as a creator. Thank you for listening, and for taking action to protect authors' livelihoods from rampant copyright infringement and theft and also vicious attacks to our reputation and means of earning our income and paying our taxes.

My name is Rowena Cherry, also Rowena Beaumont Cherry. I am an author of humorous speculative romance. I am published by Dorchester Publishing and by New Concepts Publishing. I reside in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

Although I sold my print works to a New York publisher, I retained all my e-rights in hopes that one day I could make more than 4% royalties for the e-versions of my books. The two versions of my two works that are e-published have been pirated and links for "free" downloads are available on Astatalk and other secretive pirate sites, and my stolen works have been sold as part of "private e-book collections" on EBay and no doubt in other places also. My copyright has been infringed (repeatedly, but allegedly accidentally) by a major online retailer, and by small timers. Google does not help the situation, because Google search results direct the public to free downloads of ebooks. Yahoo is also a problem because its yahoogroups do not permit members of the public to report infringing links to "free" books. "Sharers" can and do also set up sites on Twitter, Blogspot, Wordpress, Facebook to post solicitations to infringe and provide links to where ebooks are available to download in violation of the rights owners' rights.

Several times a week (because I signed up for it), EBay sends my "reader" address an email with notices of all the ebooks currently being sold on EBay, and most of them are illegal bootlegged copies. I have informed EBay of infringements of books that are not my own, and have either been rebuffed, or ignored. EBay vendors do not have to list every book in a collection, which makes it hard for authors to know without supporting theft whether or not their books are in the collections. EBay permits vendors to post outrageous lies about what copyright is, and what first sale rights are for privately burned CDs of ebooks. There ought to be some provision for comment, so authors can publicly refute what the vendor alleges.

Often, an auction lasts a couple of days. By the time an author's complaint is processed, the auction is over, and sales of illegally copied works have gone through. The same applies to eCRATER, iOffer, Blujay.

One ebayer, now removed from the site, spent two years selling thousands of bootlegged ebooks. She built up a huge clientele, and a list of stolen books in excess of 11,000 titles. Her list covers 495 pages, with 50 titles per page. My novels are not (so far) on her list, but many of my friends' books are, and it seems that there is nothing any of us can do to gain restitution. We rather doubt that this woman is paying income taxes. She certainly does not pay royalties on the ebooks she resells time and time again.

The problem begins with universities which misinform teachers about copyright and fair use, and the teachers pass on inaccurate information to generations of students, who come out into the world believing that educational and library exemptions of fair use apply to entire romance novels read in private homes. Even some professors and lawyers do not seem to understand and appreciate that an author needs to be paid for her creative writing whether it is published as a paperback, hardback or ebook.

There surely ought to be some consequence for posting mischievous misinformation which induces innocent readers to break the law. Possibly...joint liability in the event that a downloader or file sharer is sued or prosecuted, and the defendant is able to prove that they relied upon a legal opinion from a lawyer or learned opinion from a professor.

Another problem is that manufacturers, universities, and other businesses support pirate sites with their advertising. Should advertisers be legally protected from consequences if their advertising dollars fund illegal activities and the non-payment of taxes? Also, PayPal and other credit cards assist pirates in their business by facilitating "donations" so readers who enjoy access to what they think are "free" ebooks can send a donation so that the pirates can buy (or steal) more ebooks to "share" in violation of an author's right to control the reproduction and distribution of her works.

I have spoken out against piracy, and have tried to educate readers. As a result, my website has been spam bombed to such an extent that I had to change servers and email addresses and pirates have posted vindictive reviews of my books on social networking sites and book selling sites. This, too, is a common practice. Pirates justify their theft by abusing the author and saying that the books are trash and not worth paying for.

I belong to the Copyright Alliance, as I have stated, also to AuthorsAgainstEBookTheft (a yahoogroup) and to AuthorsAgainstCopyrightTheft (another yahoogroup). I am also one of the four founding members of the Authors Without A Yacht groups on GoodReads, Facebook, Myspace and other social networking sites which are intended to discuss copyright issues in a friendly, non-confrontational way with readers.

Ms Espinel, the government could help in many ways.
1. You could require an explanation of intellectual property rights be posted on every uploading, downloading, and storage site, so that everyone uploading or downloading a file (at least of novella length) should have to read it and agree and supply their real name, email address and telephone number.

2. You could require that all uploads to sharing sites be reported to the IRS. Also, all ebay sales on ebooks, cds, etc. The IRS is most certainly owed a vast amount by EBay, PayPal etc for commissions and fees for bootlegged and infringing copies of copyrighted works. Simply auditing PayPal would send a powerful message. You could invite authors, agents and publishers to supply you with their records of who has stolen what from you, when and where. Most of us keep copies of our take-down notices.

At the moment, anyone can upload or sell anything without having to prove who they are or that they own the rights to an ebook etc. An author has to provide a great deal of information in a DMCA notice. It should at least be as arduous for the potential infringer as for the rights owner!

3. You could require sharing sites such as Scribd (which complies pretty well) Plunder, Astatalk, Underground, Zippyshare, etc to lodge copies of all take down notices with the IRS or with your office. You could give authors, agents and publishers an address to cc our take down notices and cease and desist letters. Even the appearance of scrutiny and a permanent record of all take down notices would be a help.

You would also have a Rights Registry to rival that being established by Google, so Google does not have a monopoly.

Possibly, there could be a Take-Down fee. Removing illegally uploaded files must be troublesome for the site, and they ought to be compensated for their time. If they are compensated, the government should receive income tax. Possibly, there should also be an element of restitution for the creators and their publishers. This would have to be accomplished by the internet equivalent of a security deposit, which would be forfeited in the event of a take down notice.

Given the costs of piracy to the economy, this could be very helpful to everyone except the pirates!

4. Although many pirate sites are located overseas, they have US servers (which are usually very good). The government could reward servers that are helpful, and take away the bandwidth of those that are not. "Sharing" sites use a lot of space. Downloading books and movies takes up a lot of space. Maybe net neutrality is not such a good thing when it facilitates copyright infringement and tax avoidance.

5. People who read illegally copied ebooks are not paying the creators, and they are not paying sales tax. Maybe there ought to be a question on the tax forms about downloading free ebooks/music/movies, just as there is a question about whether one has made sales tax free purchases, and whether one has employed a domestic servant or babysitter.

6. Only the government can garnish wages and benefits and attach assets. It seems wrong that a student can reproduce and distribute creators' works with relative impunity, and when sued, can declare bankruptcy and not pay his creditors and his fine, let alone provide any sort of restitution to the creators whom his activities have damaged. Poverty should not be a defence when someone can afford expensive internet equipment and services but alleges that they cannot afford to pay creators... and therefore has a "moral right" to steal, copy, and distribute.

7. Education is key. I am not in favor of prosecuting or suing people who genuinely do not know that "sharing" is wrong. The government could make a good start in schools, and also in emphasising that there is a difference between what can be done in a school or university, and what can be done in the home.

Thank you very much for your time.

Friend of ePublishing Award

Thank You, EPIC. Thank you Brenna Lyons for the nomination, and for your eloquent reading of this speech, thank you to all the EPIC authors who have phoned in in the past and will phone in in the future. And thank you, Lillian Cauldwell, station owner and author, without whom CRAZY TUESDAY, the radio show, would not exist.

CRAZY TUESDAY is warts-and-all radio. It's a cross between blogging aloud and a chat over the backyard fence with all the world listening. My guests are authors, unless they are editors or copyright attorneys, or soup-kitchen-running monks.

It's "warts" because it's not always pretty. Things do go wrong. My author guests phone in—or don't! in which case the show sounds like a séance, as I ask "Are you there…?" We've carried on by candlelight during power cuts during a memorable program about e-published authors who are also military veterans, and an erotica author once had to call in --to discuss werewolf sex-- furtively from a church. We try to do a bit of good, share useful information, raise money for charities, and increase awareness of issues facing electronically published authors. Such as poverty, promotion, e-book piracy and file "sharing".

Our most recent CRAZY TUESDAY show was on March 2nd, and can still be heard on http://internetvoicesradio.com . We threw open the Crazy Tuesday airwaves to key members of the yahoo group AUTHORSAGAINSTEBOOKTHEFT to launch a new project called AUTHORS WITHOUT A YACHT to educate readers in a social networking context about what copyright really means for the average citizen, and how e-book sharing affects electronically published authors….and editors… and publishers.

Thank you all very much indeed for your votes, for your support, and for this award. The Friend Of E-Publishing Award is an immense honor, but more than that, the title "EPIC Award winning" will help the radio station, PIVTR, and especially the show CRAZY TUESDAY to do much more in the future for E-Publishing and E-Published authors.

Thank you.

Love Making Tips (not original)

Friends, I'm doing my taxes and I really, really needed a laugh. So, when a friend sent me these, even  if they are doing the rounds, I decided to share them. If anyone can tell me the proper attribution, I'll be delighted to post that.

Subject: Love Making Tips For Seniors



Love  Making Tips For Seniors

1. Wear your  glasses to make sure your partner is actually in  the bed.

2. Set timer for 3 minutes, in  case you doze off in the middle.

3. Set  the mood with lighting. (Turn them ALL  OFF!)

4. Make sure you put 911 on your  speed dial before you begin.

5. Write  partner's name on your hand in case you can't  remember.

6. Use extra polygrip so your  teeth don't end up under the bed.

7. Have  Tylenol ready in case you actually complete the  act..

8. Make all the noise you  want...... The neighbors are deaf too.

9.  If it works, call everyone you know with the  good news!!

10. Don't even think about  trying it twice.


'OLD' IS  WHEN...
Your sweetie says, 'Let's go upstairs  and make love,' and you answer, 'Pick
one; I  can't do both!'

'OLD' IS WHEN...
Your  friends compliment you on your new alligator  shoes and you're barefoot.

'OLD' IS  WHEN...
Going bra-less pulls all the wrinkles  out of your face.

'OLD' IS  WHEN....
You don't care where your spouse  goes, just as long as you don't have to  go
along.

'OLD' IS WHEN...
You are  cautioned to slow down by the doctor instead of  by the police .

'OLD' IS  WHEN..
'Getting a little action' means you  don't need to take any fiber today.

'OLD'  IS WHEN...
'Getting lucky' means you find  your car in the parking lot.

'OLD' IS  WHEN...
An 'all nighter' means not getting up  to use the bathroom.

AND

'OLD' IS  WHEN...
You are not sure if these are facts  or jokes?

Worst Mistakes Authors Make

Worst Mistakes Authors Make

No one likes "gatecrashers", and it seems that one of the top promo mistakes that authors make is to do the virtual equivalent of gatecrashing someone else's party.

Worse still, authors who've made a Promo blunder go on to compound their initial mistakes, either by attacking the readers who point out that they (the author) or the promo post don't belong, or else by leaving damaging "stuff" lying around for all the reading world to see.

On GoodReads.com there is a special area known as "The Spammers Circle In Hell" where readers discuss authors whose misplaced promotion attempts have offended them. Friends of 1stTurningPoint should take note. The "Next Best Book Club" group has a readership of just under 6,000 members strong. Potentially having that many readers vow never to read anything by you could be a very major mistake.

The following lists are posted with permission.

FIONA'S list of Worst Mistakes Authors Make On GoodReads.com

1. Trying to slip their own book into group nominations (to be read by every member of the Book Club Group) especially without even trying to be honest about it.

2. Throwing a hissy fit when they are asked/informed to read/keep to group rules etc (for instance, about self promotion and spamming the forums.)

3. Creating multiple accounts and pretending to be different people so as to pretend they actually have friends who have read the book.

4. Failing to use paragraphs, punctuation or spelling in their attempts to advertise their 'book'. Obviously these people probably aren't serious authors.

5. Only seeming interested in their book, only ever wanting to talk about their book, trying to twist every other group conversation into something to do with their book…(as in)… "This is an interesting topic... blah blah this is my book"

6. Also, promising to give away £10,000 worth of free stuff if you buy the book probably doesn't work very well either.

7. And people should introduce themselves first. You know, "Hello I am so and so, I like these books…" and try not to mention the fact they are an author for five seconds.

(Here's an example of what NOT to say)

"I am a big fan of James Patterson books and I have written so and so which I think is very good too." It's just SO cheesy and fake. And who are you to say your book is good or as good as some top-named author?

8. GoodReads is first and foremost for readers I think authors on GR should think of themselves as readers first and maybe get to know the group first before posting to it.

Also try to actually pay attention to where (within a group's topics) they should post such advertisements. Some groups, such as TNBBC (The Next Best Book Club) have special folders. Others of course may not but it doesn't take long, much thought or much intelligence to actually look.

For instance... the Important Messages folder (on TNBBC) is for group messages/information from Lori (the group owner) not for authors to advertise their books.

People should check out the group rules and with the new group rules feature on GR I don't think there is an excuse not to do so. At least look at the group description before doing anything! Anyone can make a mistake, but it feels very annoying that people can't be bothered to at least think a little bit before acting.

A correspondent on Facebook echoes Fiona's seventh point about authors who try too hard"

"OVER-doing. Driving people crazy because every single thing they say, every workshop they attend, every comment is all about THEM. Their book. Their sales. Their pitch. Until people cringe to see them coming.

Sometimes authors need to remember the best way to make a friend (or a reader) is to be one. Take some interest in what others are doing. Offer something your readers can enjoy and be involved in."

Another GoodReads group member agreed that one of the worst promotion mistakes she has seen is where authors use Amazon and other book discussion forums to promote their own books in really, really irrelevant threads. It happens far too often.

A Facebook friend of mine made a similar point about the importance of being relevant.

"If an author describes the book they have written, and the reader buys it because of the description -- and the book actually does not match the description, the reader will become very reluctant to buy any OTHER author's book because of an author's description."

CINDY from GoodReads spoke about "Friend Spam" also known in some circles as "Author Spam":

"How about authors sending friend requests without any attached note? I'm shocked how many friend requests I get from authors when their books aren't even in a genre I read or participate in. I can only presume they are sending out mass friend requests just for promotion. Blech.

I can't imagine that friend requests or private message solicitations gain authors enough royalties that it's worth their time."

BECKY from GoodReads enlarges on other ways that excessive promotion can backfire.

"There is one author in this group who is not only notorious for talking about her own book in almost every post, but more than that, she's just stuck on one subject: the one her book seems to be about. ( … comments to the author's credit redacted …) She's very earnest about her book, and wants to spread the word, but her method removes all credibility.

And more than that, her posts are all poorly written with run-on fragmentary sentences, little to no punctuation and misspelled words.

That's the worst thing that authors can do, in my opinion. If I can't read or understand the post you made ABOUT the book, why in the world would I want to read the actual book? An editor can only do so much."

BECKY also points out that some authors seem to regard GoodReads.com as a place to make money, and readers resent that.

"I think that they don't see "Goodreads" like we do. They see "Goodread$" instead.

And therefore, they post their "advertising" anywhere and everywhere they can, and then get their feelings hurt when people, like group moderators or vigilant and active members, ask them not to."

Several respondents mentioned authors behaving badly if and when readers object to inappropriate sales pitches.

As LYN M said:

"The one I would like to add is authors who spam a group without being (an established, regularly participating) member AND THEN throw a hissy fit when you call them on it. It's bad enough when they spam, but then if the follow it up with comments like "I thought this would be a fun group, but obviously not" or other demeaning comments about the group and/or its members. Those authors go on my NEVER TO READ list."

Another Facebook friend summed up the mistakes authors make

"Going where you're not wanted and pushing your book, such as lists on another author's day. Posting promos that are too long without a hook. Not maintaining a neat website. Not having a website at all. Misusing Twitter and Facebook by ONLY using them to promote. Doing a huge push on release but then not keeping it up. Expecting the publisher to promote for you. There's a few..."

I'd like to thank my reader friends who gave me permission to quote their powerful words of advice and caution to authors who wish to learn from others' mistakes. I haven't enlarged on the "damaging stuff". It's said that once you post something on the internet, it is there forever, but if you post an ill-advised promo as "News" when it isn't, or to a "Discussion" where it doesn't belong, you usually can return to the site and delete it. Sometimes, discretion is better than ending up on a NEVER TO READ list, or in the modern day pillory for authors in The Spammer's Circle In Hell.

Rowena Cherry

A Blog Tourer’s Guide to the Galaxy (with Apologies to Mr. Doug Adams)

1st Turning Point » A Blog Tourer’s Guide to the Galaxy (with Apologies to Mr. Doug Adams)

The blogosphere is a wild, unregulated place, but if-as some say-you gotta go, then you’ve got to go…blog touring, that is.

JA Konrath aka Jack Kilborn, Emily Bryan aka Diana Groe, Joy Nash, Sandy Lender, and yours truly have found that blog tours can be fun, incredibly time consuming, hard work, and very good for name recognition.

Joy Nash advises :
“I’ve done two extended blog promos-a 50 Day, 50 Books Blog Tour Giveaway for Immortals: The Crossing, and a Countdown to Summer Blog Party for A Little Light Magic. I highly recommend a tour as a fantastic way to get out and meet the readers. A theme adds to the fun. My Summer Countdown had readers posting all kinds of summer-related memories and experiences. If you’re doing a tour, be sure to include giveaways and contests-it can only increase your traffic. Caveat: be sure to allocate a good chunk of your (probably over-taxed) free time to the endeavor. What with the advance planning, writing up content, and interacting with readers, I guarantee it will take waaaay more time than you think.”

So, here’s how to do it.

Finding Tour Guides and Hosts:

Penny Sansevieri http://amarketingexpert.com/
Marianne and Judy of http://goddessfish.com/
DIY: email colleagues directly, ask your publisher’s PR department for help, post requests for hosts on your-genre-related author loops…and on Facebook and Twitter.

Know Your Goal:

The goal of a blog tour is to meet and entrance new readers at each blog. A lesser goal might be to make friends with the more established authors who are hosting your visit.

Know Your Limitations:

How long does it take you to write a piece? You will need to write one unique piece for each stop on your blog tour, and you will need to bookmark and return to each stop for at least the day your blog posts, and for two days after that, and then once a week until your tour is over.

Your Ticket: (You need a good hook)

Content is King (but Contest is Queen). Know something about your hostess, her interests, and her audience. Write a good headline, one that will attract readers, even when it is archived. Write an original post for each hostess. Don’t forget to name your book, give a buy link, give the URL to your website.

Some authors treat their blog tour like a scavenger hunt, where anyone who wants a free copy of their book must follow that author from site to site all month long.

Do those authors realize that such followers will probably postpone buying a copy of the book for the entire month? Time your blog tour for the month before your book is released. Then, parsimony makes sense.

If you want comments, you should offer prizes at each stop. The prize does not have to be a copy of the book in question, but it could be, especially if you have ARCs, and want reviews before your book comes out.

Making Friends Along The Way:

Show up early (send your blog post in to your host in good time) and stay late.

Successful guest blogs may get up to 100 comments (including replies by the guest author) on strong, busy sites such as Bitten By Books, all the way down to none at all, not even a public welcome-and-thank you from a hostess.

Take heart. Just because blog visitors don’t comment does not mean that they aren’t reading your guest blog post, and or don’t want to win your book. Moreover, if you have an intriguing headline for each individual post and a few quotable quotes in it, the search engines will pick you up.

Don’t forget to bookmark and go back to the blogs you have visited this month, and to respond to anyone who has commented (this will double the number of comments, giving the impression of success, and will gratify your hostesses, as well as your potential readers.)

Shouting Out The Stops:

Talking of good manners…how and where should an author promote her tour and her destinations?

Twitter
Status updates (on LinkedIn, Facebook, MySpace, Gather, Ning, Eons, etc.)
Yahoo Groups-Some accept such announcements on certain, designated days, or on Promo Only groups. Others frown on it.

Otherwise, promo is doable if the blogger focuses on a topic of general interest and spins the blog as an excuse for other authors with similar interests to promote themselves to the readers who regularly visit the hostess’s blog. (That’s why so many authors support Barbara Vey’s PW blog.)

The Authors Show

Rowena Cherry is interviewed by Don McCauley about "Knight's Fork" on
The Authors Show