Writer Cat Fight

Wait, is Relix eligible for the NMAs? 'Cause that would be awesome.

 

OK, this should get things going again. This was just posted on Jones' blog. Some interesting arguments among the detours to Helen Reddy land.

http://michelledean.tumblr.com/post/4535764334/dear-chris-jones

 

PC - that's my point. Nobody can argue that. But that wasn't Jones' original point. He eventually tried to morph his argument into that. But his original stance was: winning used to be my greatest motivation. Now, losing is my greatest motivation. And if you don't approach writing the same way, you will be a failure. I already went over all of this earlier in the thread. Feel free to refer back, although I know it's more comfortable pretending I'm the enemy you want me to be.

 

You left out the part about the cloying entourage, Baghdad Bob.

 

Daemon, at the risk of any response I offer here being construed as flag-waving by some of our finest sock puppets, I'll say that it would be interesting to debate the merits of what you're saying, but it's kind of an unfair fight between you and Chris when you get to hack away at him in a very personal way yet remain anonymous. Sure, he came back at you in a very personal way, but it's a fight you picked. I feel like the balance of power at SJ has swung too far in the direction of the anonymous poster the last few years and I say this including people like Whitlock. People just hack away and take digs at those who don't hide behind a screen name, and I get that it's always been that way here, but it's become sport to take a run at someone who is willing to own their own words. Maybe you have considerable crediblity and maybe your words are enough. Or maybe you're a hack who is bitter he did not make it. I can't say.

I do think when Jones speaks of failure in the sentence that angered you so much, it's a relative term. We all write for ourselves on some level, and for the sake of art. But we also yearn to have it acknowledged by someone, even if that someone is one reader who hates it.
Saying your main concern here is for the young minds you worry Chris might warp is a little silly, but even if true, as I said before, you have every right to start your own courageous blog under your real name and call Chris a hack and a fraud. Do you have the balls to do it? The time?

Gods may not answer letters or bother with blogs, but perhaps those who run in their circles can find the inner strengh to grant you an exception.

 

The line wasn't particularly clever the first time.

 

Martin can change the name, but the profound unhappiness and lack of wit come shining through, every time.

Hey-0, lesson here, daemon...

 

She needs an editor.

 

Oh, stop nailing yourself to the cross. It's unbecoming.

Go back and read Jones' original blog posts. Here is the very first reference to how these things affect anyone other than himself:

"If you’re a writer, and you honestly don’t care how your work is received—if you don’t care whether your writing earns an audience, or money, or an award—then you will never, ever earn any of those things with your words. You will be a failure."

It didn't morph. That was his original point on the subject. Until then he limited his comments to how he felt about the award and his disappointment at failing to be nominated. There was nothing expressly stating anyone else should feel the same way, nor do I believe it was implied.

Then the trolls, alongside the people with friends who are far more talented than Jones and whose company he would kill to share, went batshit over the imagined slights he committed.

 

When it comes right down to it, it doesn't matter what your motivation is - does it? You're motivated to bust ass to win awards? Great. Because you're afraid of getting fired? OK. Because you want your copy to be talked about on tomorrow morning's sports talk shows? Fine. Because you think it might change the world? Knock yourself out.

The mistake Jones made, IMO, is saying everybody had to have the same motivation.

 

It's unfortunate the revisionists have obscured The Typefitter's meltdown. But that's their goal; they live to serve. They'd rather follow on their knees than to stand and fight the good fight.

Mark McGwire, it's pretty obvious who you are.

 

Hi, Sandy!