A Bone To Pick

I’ve a bone to pick and a choice to make. The part of me that’s grown in more ways than one since simple high school protests would like to say that I shouldn’t get involved for many reasons. Two more than others:

1. It in no way, shape, or form effects me.
2. I know it’s going to make vindictive waves and a small but possibly poignant ball of stress that I don’t need.

Let’s start with that first one- it really doesn’t effect me. Sure, someday this person could try to do the same thing to me that they’ve done to countless others but other than that… and even if they did… it still doesn’t change anything in my life. A mere inconvenience- if that.

So, why am I even thinking about this? Frankly? It’s the right thing to do. Maybe I’m wrong but if I’m wrong and standing up for these others and saying something to these… wannabe oppressors isn’t what I should be doing then why does thinking about it feel so right?

Perhaps I need to time to let things settle in my mind but I fear that won’t make the matter simmer down within. I’m not the sort of person who ‘just’ calms down over time. No. Instead I ‘calmly’ begin to plot about what can be done. I’ve always been like that in a self sufficient sort of way. If I can’t find something- I make it, this blog and most of my other websites are a perfect example of that. If I see something wrong and don’t know how to fix it- I teach myself and if I see something like this… I just don’t think I can let it go.

Some of you are probably wondering what the hell I’m typing about but I’m not certain I’m yet ready to say. Knowing myself I’d be very tempted to take what starts as a simple in post rant and turn it into vigilante recruitment article of some sort.

This gist of it, in the vaguest of ways, goes something like this:

I was on a writing site today, not a site ‘about’ writing but a site where people of all ages and backgrounds can come together and post stories known as fan fiction. The site is for people to get together share their love of characters from their favorite books, movies, and television shows. On this site authors of fan fiction can give and receive reviews on each other’s stories.

Now, I’ll admit, not everyone on the site is that great a writer. I can’t tell you how many times I want to pull my hair out when I see some of these stories, non-distinct paragraphs, poor use of English, and… well, I know I can’t spell but certain errors…

I digress.

Anyway, I was on the site. I have a migraine and even though my laptop screen isn’t very eye friendly it seemed like a good non-stressful way to kill time and it was until I happened along something different. It’s not uncommon for writers to post up ‘author notes’ in the place of chapters especially when they’re apologizing for taking forever to update (not that I’ve been down that road of course).

I came across one of these author’s notes and skimmed through it thinking I was going to find such a thing when some of what they were saying started to catch my eye and I took a closer look. It seems that someone, let’s call them UWC, left them a really bad review. Whatever, life happens, right? That’s what I thought on the matter at least- not everyone is going to like everything and there are bound to be a few vindictive people out there. Well, as I continued to read a lot of words the author used pulled me in. They weren’t hurt or whining about what the reviewer UWC said but sticking it to them so to speak. It sounded like they were defending their right to write.

Curious and bored I clicked up the author’s reviews and skimmed down till I found UWC’s and started to read.

What I found disgusted me on a level I wasn’t sure could be surpassed (but wait till you read the rest of this post).

I’m not going to go into detail, I’ve promised myself that for tonight because of my headache but the review included ‘mightier-than-thou’ language, telling the person to just stop writing, and some words that even I thought were questionable as far as being allowed on a public site. I mean, yeah, the story wasn’t that well written as far as my standards go but the review was downright hateful.

Still, this isn’t the big deal. Spiteful people are everywhere, they’re like ants. I can squish as many as I want but I don’t have a hope in hell of eradicating the whole nest of them. It’s not like this is the first time I’ve seen an ant either but this ant… is more like a… oh, I don’t know where to begin.

Further curious, yes- the cat is walking closer to the cliff, I went to UWC’s profile to see what stories they’d written. If they awesome and perfect and whatever I was just going to snub my nose and walk away, not my problem and even if they’re rude they know their stuff. If their stories were anything less than perfect my evil twin was going to point out every error I… er… my evil twin… could find but that was the problem. I didn’t find any stories at all. Nope. Instead I found that next level of disgust.

“This place has become a wasteland of shit. Our goal is to get the “SO-CALLED” writers who post here to stop depleting bandwidth here. If you receive a review from us that says to stop, it means you are wasting your time writing. You should get a job or play video games to take up your spare time. The bottom line is: STOP writing! You SUCK! Until you LEARN how to write, don’t post what you THINK is writing where people can review it and give you CRITICISM.”

That’s just a single quote and I think I’ll leave it to that. UWC sounds so righteous it sickens me. There are so many things I have to say on just this itty-bitty little piece but I’m afraid if I start I won’t be able to stop and I’m not even done telling you about this online adventure today.

That’s right. There’s more.

Wondering what sort of person this UWC could be I visited their listed profile and sunk down beneath another level of disgust. Between the site and a LiveJournal account I’m not even sure where to begin. The site included more righteous fervor justifying their ‘mission’ as well as providing a place for their followers to gather.

My thoughts were that this person must be some serious grammar, spelling, Nazi with a penchant for dirty words and belittling others. Once more, it’s still not my problem. This person has never once stepped in my path nor I in theirs but as I traveled further down the roughly dug rabbit hole I started to see I was on a path of no return.

It happened when I got to the LiveJournal.

With each review used to tell others they should never pick up a pen there was a corresponding post boasting about it along with links to the victim saying they pitied whatever poor souls happened upon the ‘trash.’

One post made mention of a user who’d stood up for themselves at one point in time and finally decided they just couldn’t handle it anyone and changed their user name and other info. The post contained a link to the old account and the old name as well as a link to the new account and the new name- they were encouraging their fans to continue to harass someone who’d clearly had enough and wanted nothing more to do with the subject!

The whole page reeked of bullying and encouraging others to belittle these writers and yes they are writers. Even if they don’t write well, even if it’s only fan fiction. If they are expressing themselves, their imagination, or their thoughts through use of the written word then they are writers and they have every right to express themselves in a non-hostile environment!

I believe UWC has every right to say what they say. Like I said, it’s not my problem if they give harsh reviews and they have as much freedom in speech as I do. Yes, they are harshly belittling writers who don’t deserve such treatment, once more not really my problem it happens to everyone at least once and it’s what makes some of us stronger (I don’t like it but it’s life) but when UWC starts to encourage harassment like that, causing others to close their accounts and stop writing forever- a line has been crossed and something must be done about it.

I’ve read numerous letters and author’s notes where writers have stood up for themselves only to be put down further and ganged up upon by these self proclaimed judges. I’ve looked at handful upon handful of links that lead to now inactive accounts from people who were just happy testing the waters of the writing world. I’ve read and researched and found myself moved by those who stood and by those who ran.

I’ve thought long and hard about it and I find myself plotting.

Each of those writers were just a candle by themselves. Standing tall only to be blown out in the wind- but what if all those candles were gathered together at once? How tall would that blaze be?

Even a tornado will only spread the flames once they grow so big.

I need to put a day or two worth of thought into this before I make my move. Nothing drastic, just a few well placed letters to the right people. Ants can always rebuild their nest, yes, but it’s damn hard to start a reputation up again in the wake of certain events.

Reaching Back

Wow, I was going over the statistics for my blog earlier and… wow. Just wow. This little corner of the internet contains 250 posts, 852 comments, and 134,645 words!

Curious for whatever reason I started going back over some old posts of mine and I found a few hidden gems, some entirely forgotten while others I remember clear as day. Some were quite popular while others… may have never been read. :) Here’s some of my favorites that I’d like to share with you since I haven’t been posting as regularly as I used to.

My Idea [Sept, 14, 07 / 0 Comments] – This is my very first post ever. It’s nothing much but I figured if I’m going over old posts then I should give this one at least a little love. I remember back when I first started this blog on a Blogger it was because I was looking for something in particular but I couldn’t find it… nowadays with my knowledge of the Blogopsphere I could but back then I was pretty lost so I just made what I was looking for. :) I think my goal has turned out quite nicely.

My Vow Against the Mirror [Dec, 4, 07 / 12 Comments] – And this one is my most popular post as far as comments go. I don’t really know what to say for it other than it’s worth a look according to everyone who’s read it so far.

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Earth [Oct, 16, 07 / 0 Comments] – This is just an old post that I thought never got the chance it deserved. It started out as one thing and then ended up as a bit of a poetic tangent.

Personality of the Pen [Oct, 30, 07 / 1 Comment] – Just my thoughts on how writer’s are their characters and so much more all at one. Fairly short compared to my other posts.

Shadows [Jan, 26, 08 / 2 Comments] – This is one of the very first prompts I started working with. It’s basically what I think of when I think of shadows but it also ties into a story I’ve been working on for a… well, a lot of years. Something I’m waiting on before I complete it.

Born Under an Early Sky [Jan, 28, 08 / 3 Comments] – This is also for a prompt but it’s an edited version. I’m not yet willing to explain how but I hold these words very close to my heart, in some ways it relates to another story of mine but in others it relates to some experiences throughout my life.

More Deng Ming-Dao [Mar, 03, 08 / 1 Comment] – I absolutely love the writings of Deng Ming-Dao! I think, through his writing, I’ve learned to bring the craft I love so much closer to that of my spirituality. I’ve watched two seemingly completely different facets of my soul come closer over time and while I can’t give the Taoist’s philosophy all the credit I can thank it for helping me realize many things along the path.

Do You Hear Me, Darkness? [Mar, 31, 08 / 6 Comments] – This is my protest against those (people, events, self destructive thoughts) that would bring me down.

Purposely Untitled [July, 23, 08 / 2 Comments] – More Tao and a ramble, nothing important but it’s me so why not?

A Visit to My Mother [May, 23, 08 / 2 Comments] – An experience I went through during some Spring or Summertime meditation outside. It doesn’t involve my ‘bio mother’ or other moms in any such way. I’d really love it if those of you who haven’t read this would give it a chance. This post is very important to me.

Do You Head Me, Darkness? Part 2 [May, 05, 08 / 3 Comments] – My second battle against the things that get me down but this time I know my weapons- my writing, is with me. :D

Four in the Morning [Oct, 06, 08 / 3 Comments] – Some real fears and thoughts at four in the morning surrounded by loved ones who’ve made all the difference in my life.

Now, I have a challenge for some of you out there, those who’ve been blogging on and off for a least a few months. Go into your archives, scroll through some of your most popular and least popular posts, read a few of your random ones, and then select a handful to re-share with the world. Everyone out there is constantly seeking fresh content but when you blog/journal, be it professional or otherwise, you pour a little bit of yourself into your words eventually and they are important. Don’t let your thoughts, feelings, and memories be forgotten.

PS, comment counts in this post are excluding my own because I don’t think that’s very fair.

Guess I’m Young – My Long Reply :)

4. – My favorite moment in life so far is this one morning. I woke up really early, grabbed a cup of tea, and sat listening to the silence while my family slept on. It was beautiful not because it was quiet and everyone was still in bed but because I was able to take that time to ‘feel’ that moment. It was so precious to me because for once in my life I wasn’t looking for everything, I had everything I could have ever wanted right there.