tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post7583791364252272996..comments2024-03-18T09:09:59.625-04:00Comments on Janet Reid, Literary Agent: Week in Review June 21Janet Reidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00615380335938685231noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-80663662219177851442015-06-23T10:36:55.178-04:002015-06-23T10:36:55.178-04:00Thanks, BJ. Dash was confused but loved the attent...Thanks, BJ. Dash was confused but loved the attention. Tess, however, was mortified. She stood off to the side, her back to us, and ignored Dash as if to say she didn't know him.<br />DonnaRUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13372323582931480620noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-49792830252230544672015-06-22T23:31:59.324-04:002015-06-22T23:31:59.324-04:00Great story, Unkwn, I can just picture Dash flying...Great story, Unkwn, I can just picture Dash flying through the air with his ears flapping. Lol.<br /><br />Julie, with my travels around the world, I can tell you stories where angels appeared out of nowhere at just the right moment. And yes they do come in all shapes, sizes, and occupations. Another great story. <br /><br />Thank you, ladies. <br /><br />LynnRodzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10796099106913990163noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-64768261907317572512015-06-22T22:45:48.219-04:002015-06-22T22:45:48.219-04:00Wonderful stories - Julie and Julie's friend! ...Wonderful stories - Julie and Julie's friend! Thanks so much for sharing.<br /><br />That poor Weimie... :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-23205513515464695102015-06-22T20:18:59.387-04:002015-06-22T20:18:59.387-04:00Ok, Julie, you win. One Weimaraner story. (I hope ...Ok, Julie, you win. One Weimaraner story. (I hope it shows okay. There was major overlapping of the text box when I entered the text.)<br /><br />It's been a family tradition for some years that we accompany my husband on his Father's Day shooting weekends. When I say we I mean our Weims and me. Both Tessa and Dash have always been oblivious to gunfire, as good hunting dogs should be.<br /><br />In between shooting events, we stroll down vendors row, where anything that can remotely be marketed as relevant to the shooting crowd is for sale. I walk Tessa. Steve walks his boy, Dash. They're always good as gold.<br /><br />And so it was that we approached a big box truck with a lift gate, the kind you see delivering fridges and other large appliances. The truck, with rear doors flung wide, lift gate up to form an extension of the truck's floor, and a flight of wood steps beside the gate, is stocked with purty shotguns for sale that the shooters can climb the stairs to see.<br /><br />Outside the lift gate, at the truck's rear, there’s a rickety table—y’know, the kind you store all folded up and only drag out for backyard parties?—only this one’s full of $3,000-$6,000 high-end gun stocks—exotic woods, beautiful graining, burls—about 20 of them all lined up and glowing in the sunlight.<br /><br />And that's when my dear husband decides he’s got to go into the truck to see the guns. He hands me Dash’s leash and heads up the stairs. Dash takes one look at dad up in the really cool truck and decides he HAS to be with him, and the most direct route?<br /><br />You guessed it.<br /><br />He bounds onto the table to propel himself up on to the lift gate. The table goes flying. The gun stocks go flying. Dash goes flying.<br /><br />By the time I corral him, and the onlookers stop laughing, and the vendor gathers up the beautiful stocks and assays the damage to them, we owe him $600--not that $600 would buy the two that Dash damaged, no, that money is just to repair the scuffed finishes.<br /><br />Happy Father's Day, dear.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13372323582931480620noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-20810203598784196512015-06-22T19:20:35.542-04:002015-06-22T19:20:35.542-04:00Late to the game and probably no one will see this...Late to the game and probably no one will see this now, but I'll share it anyway and y'all can take ti for what you will, but this is what happened.<br /><br />Years ago I was really struggling with the prison ministry. Don was fighting me. Some of the prisons were fighting me. We had no donations to speak of aside from the lessons and had 2,000 students amongst six teachers. Many of the students were very prompt in sending back the lessons so we might get mail from them every week. In each packet we sent out: a lesson; the graded lesson with stickers, notes, and colorful stamps; encouraging tracts; a magazine or book if we could; and a personal letter.<br /><br />I didn't know how we could keep going and it was really weighing on me. I needed a small break and sent up a prayer, "Please Lord, just three days away from the worry." The fair was going on. We went. Will spun the wheel at a local radio station booth and won a chance for a trip to the CMA awards, tours, meals, hotels room, all expenses paid for three days. He couldn't take it because he was under age so I took the spin. I wrote Psalm 5:12 on the ticket and put it in the hopper. I won the trip and went with my oldest son because Will was too young. <br /><br />I figured Brandon could use a break too because we had almost lost him in a bullriding accident some weeks before. It came so close I stood there watching the light go out of his eyes as they tried to stabilize him for surgery.<br /><br />I still owe Will a trip.<br /><br />I sprained my ankle a few days before the trip, but I wasn't giving up, I was going even though the walking tours were miserable.<br /><br />Brandon crapped out on a lot of the events and explored the local bars instead. That's where he met the record producer and got the invite to all the private parties.<br /><br />One of the events was to a place that was featuring a new band and they had a nice big dance floor. The band was all right, but I certainly wasn't dancing. So, about an hour in, I decided to walk several blocks back to the hotel as the bus wouldn't be back for hours.<br /><br />About four blocks from the hotel a van stops at a cross street. I hadn't seen any traffic for a while. It was late and these streets were pretty deserted and not in the best area. A guy yells at me asking directions somewhere. I say, "I'm not from around here, sorry."<br /><br />Then a second one slides the side van door open and is crouched there like he's ready to jump out. I figure this isn't going to end well for Julie Weathers and send up a prayer for protection.<br /><br />The guy is trying to get me to come closer and I tell him I have to go as I keep backing away. It's only a matter of time before they either drive closer or the guy grabs me and drags me in the van.<br /><br />Just then an older black man comes up behind me and asks if I have any money. <br /><br />"Pardon?"<br /><br />"Do you have any money?"<br /><br />Great, I'm either going to get hauled off in a van or mugged. The guys in the van speed off.<br /><br />I answer honestly, "I really don't have much money." As an afterthought, I ask. "Have you been saved?"<br /><br />His face lights up. "Oh, yes, ma'am. I got saved in prison. What are you doing out on these streets this late at night? It's not safe."<br /><br />"I'm trying to get back to the ABC Hotel."<br /><br />"I know where it's at. I'll take you."<br /><br />I tried to refuse him, but he walked me right up to the door. I gave him some money and prayed for him. He disappeared into the darkness.<br /><br />The next morning, I figured my ankle would be swollen so badly I wouldn't be able to walk. I got up to take a shower. No pain. None.<br /><br />I have no idea what happened with the ankle, but I learned guardian angels come in all kinds, even panhandlers.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-35501857677574827762015-06-22T16:30:24.873-04:002015-06-22T16:30:24.873-04:00Ugh. Janet, your take on panhandlers has touched o...Ugh. Janet, your take on panhandlers has touched on a dilemma I'm faced with every day. There are so many in my neighborhood, it's impossible to give to them all. <br /><br />There's a very high concentration of addicts in my area of Chicago. You go down the main thoroughfare, there's rehab center after rehab center after rehab center. I have to walk by another one on my way to work. It's heartbreaking to see people ravaged by their addictions, aged before their time. One woman looks quite a bit like my 18-year-old niece, only she has a colostomy bag and a walker. (Up close, she looks quite a bit older.)<br /><br />I would love to hand out money to these people. I would. But... every morning a different addict is at the bus stop, asking for cash--sometimes demanding it. So many of them are clearly not looking for food and make no bones about the fact that they're going to score their next high off of whatever you give them. Some already have a beer in hand. With one, I had to avoid his pot shower and beer bath when he threw a half-drunk bottle at a trash can and missed, all the while smoking a joint. (Yet one morning another guy, also smoking a joint, politely gestured for me to get on the bus before him.) <br /><br />We're encouraged by the city to not give out money to panhandlers. But I think about this issue every day. Sometimes I feel judgey for withholding my loose change, but from a moral standpoint, I don't think I am. I know these people are struggling. I just think there's a difference between helping and enabling--and in my neighborhood, I think it's pretty clear I would be doing the latter. Stacyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03365582623380288038noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-81269365984062772122015-06-22T08:24:39.222-04:002015-06-22T08:24:39.222-04:00Regarding quietly autographed books - maybe for so...Regarding quietly autographed books - maybe for some bigger name authors it's not so much about promotion as it is about giving readers a bit of thrill? How fun to pick up a novel by a favorite author and see it was signed!<br /><br />Thanks for the mention, Janet! <br /><br />(My Monday blog post, written and scheduled in advance, is actually a quote from the Shark herself. Funny how that worked!)Madeline Mora-Summontehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05529397293165046430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-44577841197762949712015-06-22T08:21:51.175-04:002015-06-22T08:21:51.175-04:00I should've said, "I'm sure I'll ...I should've said, "I'm sure I'll learn a lot."LynnRodzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10796099106913990163noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-90138751567040768412015-06-22T08:20:38.842-04:002015-06-22T08:20:38.842-04:00Another great WIR and I'm mentioned twice! Tha...Another great WIR and I'm mentioned twice! Thank you, Janet, for answering my question. "CHUM had at least 10 points of view; I read it, loved it, signed it and sold it." Wow, that is encouraging. I just finished ordering Jeff's book and look forward to reading it. I'm sure I'll learn a thing or two.<br /><br />Yesterday was la Fête de la Musique, we danced in the streets of Paris until 1 a.m. then headed home. That's why my comment is a day late.<br /><br />As far as spoilers go, I too think there's a limit on when something is a spoiler. Even if I haven't read the books or seen the films, I know Voldemort and Darth Vader are the nemeses. You have to live under a rock or on a planet far away from Carkoon if you don't. That said, I don't want to know about The Girl On The Train because it's next on my reading list.<br /><br />I've mentioned before, my WIP is about a homeless man and it's interesting what you say, "Avoiding looking at panhandlers was so ingrained it took a steadfast act of will every single time...." that's exactly what my protagonist talks about, people avoiding eye contact with him.<br /><br />I think Julie has it right. There are so many scammers. I saw a report not that long ago on TV where these Romanian panhandlers (whole families) spend six months in France begging and earning enough money for them to live a very comfortable life in Romania. They showed, and bragged about, their beautiful homes, new cars, and the expensive furniture and carpeting they had thanks to the people of France. I'm sure many people who gave them money don't live as well.<br /><br />There was an article here recently, as well, why babies, small children, in the arms of panhandlers are sleeping all the time. It's because the children are drugged so they remain listless in the adult's arms (not always the mother) while she's begging. I think The Schengen Agreement was one of the worst decisions made here in Europe, but that's another story. <br /><br />Thanks again, Janet, for the WIR.<br />LynnRodzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10796099106913990163noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-70448737408310486032015-06-22T07:01:04.966-04:002015-06-22T07:01:04.966-04:00Carolynnwith2nns I thought the same thing,Team Sha...Carolynnwith2nns I thought the same thing,Team Shark embroidered on the front pocket, with Bruce the Shark on the back (TM'ed of course) swimming through a submerged library. (Maybe the tears of queried Authors?)french sojournhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14262858704848580714noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-55355157432093027502015-06-22T06:14:09.193-04:002015-06-22T06:14:09.193-04:00Hmmmm, t-shirts, TEAM SHARK on the front and CHUM ...Hmmmm, t-shirts, TEAM SHARK on the front and CHUM BUDDIES on the back. I'll have to think on that. Carolynnwith2Nshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18394998702410764388noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-30505985696133697332015-06-22T01:55:34.513-04:002015-06-22T01:55:34.513-04:00What a great WIR! And I can't wait to see the ...What a great WIR! And I can't wait to see the winners of the contest tomorrow - there were some great entries!<br /><br />I just can't say enough how much it meant to me that you guys kept Alaska in your thoughts and prayers during our scare with the wildfire. I am very happy to report that it is now almost half contained and those awesome hotshots are just whooping its behind. Thanks be to God.<br /><br />For a long time I read and lurked here on the QOTKU's blog. Like many of us, I'm super introverted, and I know I'm not the only one who took a while to dig up the courage to finally post something "out loud." But I am so glad I did. There really is something special about this particular blog and its family of readers. It's a rare and astonishing thing when strangers from all over the world can hang out together and learn from each other and come to genuinely care about one another. I’m proud to be a Carkoonian, and if there was a t-shirt that said, TEAM SHARK I’d wear it.<br /><br />In other words, you guys rock. ♥<br />Christina Seinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18411040428007697691noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-57015592505633842412015-06-21T23:01:02.595-04:002015-06-21T23:01:02.595-04:00Wonderful WiR,
Chum is on my list. Have to read t...Wonderful WiR,<br /><br />Chum is on my list. Have to read the title that sold Somers to the Shark.<br /><br />I'm happy things worked out for Christina. Carkoon is gettin crowded, at least it's raining in Alaska.<br /><br />Panhandling is big here, lots of people with small children on their laps. It's hard to look them in the eyes too. I've given clothes and toys to the children or food. <br /><br />There was also this very bent hunchback man who slept in a square near by. I gave him a blanket once.<br /><br />Thank you (again) for answering my question.<br /><br />The contest entries where fun to read. Looking forward to your picks.<br />angie Brooksby-Arcangiolihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08000615140577512304noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-43204514653818903712015-06-21T22:35:42.076-04:002015-06-21T22:35:42.076-04:00Eegads! You people need to behave--we're runni...Eegads! You people need to behave--we're running out of cave space here! I think I've found the perfect place for Diane, though--a medieval design, so I'm told. Not sure exactly what makes it "medieval" here on Carkoon. Outside toilet? Anyway, I'm sure it's lovely...<br /><br />Thanks for answering my question about advertisers, Janet. As for wanting to write for your blog, isn't that what the comments are for? :)<br /><br />And I thought you signed Jeff Somers for the sheer cheek of querying you a novel called CHUM! It's actually a good book too? I'll have to check that one out... ;)<br /><br />Your time may not be any more precious than ours, Janet, but it is still golden, and we're blessed that you choose to spend some of it on the WiR. Thanks! :)Colin Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03292997431935215499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-9059963057650831482015-06-21T20:07:07.732-04:002015-06-21T20:07:07.732-04:00I'm trying to drag Donna Rubino in here to tel...I'm trying to drag Donna Rubino in here to tell the story of the dismayed Weimaraner who matches that picture, I would imagine.<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-78755087298574465022015-06-21T19:36:01.482-04:002015-06-21T19:36:01.482-04:00My Queen, I hope that you never tire of hearing ou...My Queen, I hope that you never tire of hearing our keyboards clack out thank yous. Thank you for the WIR and thank you for enlightening me. A memoir is a non-fiction that is not a non-fiction.<br /><br />I will also thank you for the mention though I wish it was for something brilliant rather than ignorance. I once knew the weight of the sub-header crown. I shall regain that someday. It was a low week for me but maybe next week will be it.<br /><br />Thanks again.Craig Fhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07157301156577795781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-9779794147706657622015-06-21T19:05:47.258-04:002015-06-21T19:05:47.258-04:00KD, several time zones? Hell, we are around the wo...KD, several time zones? Hell, we are around the world. Wait a minute...we ARE the world. Hmmmm, sounds like a great name for a song:)Carolynnwith2Nshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18394998702410764388noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-9764851848536878892015-06-21T18:51:21.598-04:002015-06-21T18:51:21.598-04:00"So far, neither of those seem likely."
..."So far, neither of those seem likely."<br />Awww. Thanks. It takes so little to make me insufferab-- er, happy.<br /><br />Carolynn, you'll just have to adjust your aim. (Sorry, couldn't resist.) One of the things I like about this comment section is that it crosses several time zones and countries and doesn't operate on a standard 9-to-5 EST schedule. There's no "bad time" to stop by and catch up.<br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-52546019269041851192015-06-21T18:03:47.724-04:002015-06-21T18:03:47.724-04:00Well, since this is the last day I get to finagle ...Well, since this is the last day I get to finagle myself in between every other comment or so and because my brain is melting from editing, I realized that my latest project is something that would make Janet, (the person), salivate and the smooth and slippery skinned beady-eyed agent, catch a current and swim off, after a chomp of course. <br />It’s about paint, wall paint, every color there is and then some. I’d send samples, those little squares of color that look like boring postage stamps, but alas it is not the shark’s thing. Too bad.<br />Okay, my brain took a break, back to work. <br />I’m sure gonna miss you guys tomorrow morning. <br />Carolynnwith2Nshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18394998702410764388noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-84183423372557732652015-06-21T16:29:40.377-04:002015-06-21T16:29:40.377-04:00Is it me or does every week in review seem like a ...Is it me or does every week in review seem like a thesis. Just gobsmacked with the amount of effort that goes into every one. We are so unfinking worthy. <br /><br />Thanks for the flash fiction and the WIR and the daily posts. Dang nabit, it overloads the minds of the unwashed like myself to read these posts.<br /><br />Cheers Hank.french sojournhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14262858704848580714noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-82868264614348222232015-06-21T15:42:29.644-04:002015-06-21T15:42:29.644-04:00Great week in review.
The panhandling situation ...Great week in review. <br /><br />The panhandling situation got very bad in Odessa when I lived there. I see too many of those videos where the panhandler finishes their day and hops in a nice new car, while someone who just gave them $10 gets in their clunker and is mad about being conned.<br /><br />Odessa encouraged people not to give people money, but rather to purchase coupon books. The coupons could be traded in for meals, bus rides, shelter, care packages etc and even care for their pets. By getting them to organized places and off the streets, they could actually try to find long term solutions and get the ones who really needed help the help they needed, not just a temporary hand out.<br /><br />If the guy who was starving turned down the coupons for free transportation and meals, it was a safe bet he really wasn't hungry. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-72375724218089733082015-06-21T14:54:37.978-04:002015-06-21T14:54:37.978-04:00Aw MAYUN. I was all flattered to be all over the W...Aw MAYUN. I was all flattered to be all over the WIR, and then I got Carkoon'd. For a comment that was intended to be theoretical - comparing the idea of being blast-emailed by the Shark to the idea of being blast-emailed by (I'll go ahead and say their name, since they sent the email) Curtis Brown. I was not SUGGESTING a newsletter, merely commenting on the relative appeal and *value* of getting one from her.<br /><br />Dena, your good fortune is remarkable indeed!<br /><br />bj, you can join us soon enough ...<br /><br />*Shutting up and sweltering*DLMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08768285199864217885noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-90060105236070764702015-06-21T14:42:52.456-04:002015-06-21T14:42:52.456-04:00Wow. I made it into the WiR three times and someth...Wow. I made it into the WiR three times and something I said even made it to the subheader (over two other very worthy candidates)! What a week!<br /><br />Maybe I should quit now, while I'm ahead? Nah. I can't stop talking for that long, and I can't seem to drag myself away from this terrific community. <br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-62712191054788325732015-06-21T14:01:37.637-04:002015-06-21T14:01:37.637-04:00A lovely WIR, and glad to catch some stuff I misse...A lovely WIR, and glad to catch some stuff I missed. (how could this be?)<br /><br />(The one thousand foot leap into giving to panhandlers is Captain BS, a.k.a. Meerkat Scout's fault.)<br /><br />Dena - the water thing in CA is scary!<br /><br /> Donnaevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09026536210749494257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-83330713743004839452015-06-21T13:39:18.260-04:002015-06-21T13:39:18.260-04:00Jennifer, yup and yup sort-of.
Back to mid-day co...Jennifer, yup and yup sort-of. <br />Back to mid-day commenting tomorrow.<br />I hold the record though and the challenge is on boys and girls. <br />Great WIR.<br />Capt. BS thanks for your paused finger allowing legacy in place of mutiny.<br />Twin Inns, Mr. F is so amusing.Carolynnwith2Nshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18394998702410764388noreply@blogger.com