tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post6546904881512586281..comments2024-03-18T09:09:59.625-04:00Comments on Janet Reid, Literary Agent: Last Vacation Day: Every Agent's FearJanet Reidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00615380335938685231noreply@blogger.comBlogger60125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-3366679337130251592015-09-02T16:29:28.414-04:002015-09-02T16:29:28.414-04:00I believe most everything in the spiritual section...I believe most everything in the spiritual section is made up.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03736352366533619152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-68553451946843554682015-09-02T09:08:04.805-04:002015-09-02T09:08:04.805-04:00Really, I think it's big of the kid to be able...Really, I think it's big of the kid to be able to fess up at eleven. It would not be an easy thing to do. He's just a child, and I hope he doesn't get torn apart for this. As for the adults involved, they wanted to believe, and that's not a terrible thing. I agree with you, we all have our blind spots.Rachel Schieffelbeinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01629400142880123520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-51995607438215231862015-09-01T18:58:36.503-04:002015-09-01T18:58:36.503-04:00Jennifer Donohue: "...it has no effect on my ...Jennifer Donohue: "...it has no effect on my life, no impact on my faith. If I need a kiddo I don't know to confirm for me absolutely the state of Heaven, God, and the angels.....well, I need to go back to church and do some serious soul searching."<br /><br />Yes! This! This is why it really shouldn't matter. But anyone who's ever been hurt (which is all of us, on some issue or other) is so eager to get a bit of their own back and feel justified and healed. Thus mud-slinging is inevitable. <br /><br />Like you said, Janet: I'm just glad I'm not involved. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-20124225577068295582015-09-01T14:09:51.715-04:002015-09-01T14:09:51.715-04:00None of my comments say that I am without my own f...None of my comments say that I am without my own faith or that I don't believe in other worlds than these. I'm working on a new concept that directly incorporates some of those beliefs. <br /><br />It is fiction with a capital F. <br /><br />And that is the difference. Practitioners can beat me up on ritual, presentation, etc., but at no time will I claim that a stamp of non-fic should go on it. <br /><br />Of course this is turning into a discussion of what is and isn't true in faith. That's not how it works. This is about adults exploiting the whimsy of a child. The more attention he got, the bigger the story got. And the adults went for it. Not one scrap of blame goes onto the kid. Not one. <br /><br />TerriTerri Lynn Coophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07290316565247120848noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-84336880172339111042015-09-01T08:52:15.726-04:002015-09-01T08:52:15.726-04:00Julie, yes. Hadn't thought of that as I also h...Julie, yes. Hadn't thought of that as I also have used some books for research and am trusting, perhaps not so much in having all the facts in place, but in finding a voice and sense of place for the years I'm trying to write.Lisa Bodenheimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17809067722921953857noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-45017390276934987472015-09-01T08:44:46.606-04:002015-09-01T08:44:46.606-04:00I definitely don't like being willfully lied t...I definitely don't like being willfully lied to, but I agree with the others about making sure we factor in normal six-year-old development. There is a huge difference between his situation, even if he did it on purpose when he was six, and the adult examples. <br /><br />There is no way this situation could make me as angry as scientists who fabricate data, both to further their own career and to encourage funding of a particular agenda, and somehow six or eight other experts in the field manage to miss the glaring holes in their procedure and recommend publication in the the most prestigious scientific journal. <br /><br />When the scientific peer review process can screw up so badly, with experts letting themselves be blindsided despite training to the contrary, I can't be too upset at literary agents and kids. <br /><br />The neuroscience of confirmation bias and memory are both fascinating. It's basically impossible to protect yourself completely. RachelErinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09510327163701754950noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-48949262274724690612015-09-01T00:26:42.307-04:002015-09-01T00:26:42.307-04:00As a lawyer, I have to give my clients' storie...As a lawyer, I have to give my clients' stories a certain amount of weight. Some have convinced me of stuff that later turned out to be utter bullshit. You roll with it. <br /><br />First question to yourself is, "Did I willfully ignore warning signs?" If, when you look in your heart, the answer is "yes," you deserve the whirlwind you are about to reap.<br /><br />Someone asked me the biggest mistake I ever made as a lawyer. The answer is I trusted a client to tell me the truth about his criminal record without verifying it. He swore up, down, and all around that his two previous cases had been reduced to misdemeanors. I negotiated the plea based on that. They were felonies. He went to prison for 15 months because it changed his criminal history score. The guy was just so conditioned to lie, he did, even to his lawyer, even on something obvious, and even to his detriment. <br /><br />If this happened to her Sharkiness, she'd open a bottle of scotch and start working the phones and then when damage control reached its maximum efficacy, she'd sever relations with said client. I'm sure the retainer has a candor clause in it. Not that your book is honest, but that you aren't withholding anything that would damage the agency. And if a publisher tried to sue because of it? There's that lovely "hold harmless" clause in the contract. <br /><br />Terri<br /><br /><br />On this one, the agent and publisher willfully ignored warning signs. No. Just. No. There were so many ways to couch it - as a dream, as fiction, as a parable. Not as non-fiction. Terri Lynn Coophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07290316565247120848noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-11953401098196650072015-08-31T21:46:24.267-04:002015-08-31T21:46:24.267-04:00I like Colin's point that God doesn't have...I like Colin's point that God doesn't have to speak/relate to us through feelings and impressions, but that He sometimes does, anyway.<br />And I'm glad you got that peace, Julie. I can't imagine a worse thing happening to a mother. I'm just so grateful that God grants us peace when we pray for it, because this life would be unbearable sometimes if not for that.<br /><br />As for the book- I heard some rumours about it being fake a couple months ago, and was just surprised it hadn't made bigger news. It's not something I ever believed anyway (I believe in a literal heaven and hell, but I also believe that the time of prophecies and visions is over, and that we have the complete revealed Word of God now). It's nice to know that the kid is being brave and saying what he knows is going to result in a LOT of flak.<br /><br />At the same time it makes me sad that (as Julie says), it gives other people another reason to mock Christianity. It's one thing to be mocked by people because we're doing the right thing: it's a shameful thing to be mocked for doing what's wrong. At least the little one came out and admitted it, which I think mitigates his lying a fair bit.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-67631997700392181532015-08-31T19:29:08.936-04:002015-08-31T19:29:08.936-04:00Julie, you're breaking my heart today. I'm...Julie, you're breaking my heart today. I'm so sorry you went through that and very glad you found solace and a way to begin healing. You've enriched my life by your stories and presence here and I'm grateful for you. And good grief, anyone who thinks there's anything even remotely "weak" about you just isn't paying attention.<br /><br />Janet, as others have said, I'd much rather be guilty of wanting to believe something than be so horribly cynical and jaded that I'd never be "fooled" by innocence. Hope you're enjoying the last day of vacation and feeling recharged by the time away.<br /><br />After clicking the link and getting a bit of background, I just feel sorry for this kid. And he is just a kid. One who survived trauma and is now paralyzed. Sounds like he's trapped between two parents, now divorced, who manipulated the situation and continue to do so, for whatever reasons. What a shame.<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-24492602555807295702015-08-31T19:12:55.201-04:002015-08-31T19:12:55.201-04:00When my mother was taking care of my great-grandmo...When my mother was taking care of my great-grandmother just before she died she would have conversations in Spanish with her long-dead husband. Everyone assumed she was delirious until she told him very firmly "Vicente, I can't go yet." The door slammed and my mother heard footsteps going down the hall. When the footsteps passed the gaslight in the hall it flickered. <br /><br />When my grandfather was very ill my mom was taking care of him. Out of the blue he asked if she ever had a baby he didn't see. My older brother only lived a few hours. My mom and her father were estranged at the time and she never told him about Joseph. She asked Grandpa why he asked and he told her a young man had been visiting him and told him he was his grandson and his name was Joseph. <br /><br />My father traveled a lot. When he came home he would always come by my room, give me a kiss and say "I'm home." One night I heard him say it but when I opened my eyes he wasn't there. I went out into the hall and Mom was there. She said "Did you hear Daddy?" The phone rang and it was the doctor telling her Daddy had a heart attack and passed away. My brother was on a military exercise in Europe and couldn't be reached. Shortly after he landed in Germany he called home. He told Mom he dreamed Daddy said "Call your mother" so he did. <br /><br />Our son was 3 months premature. He was airlifted to a neonatal intensive care unit several hours away. They wouldn't release me until the next day and I was really upset. I was praying and asked Daddy to help me. In my mind's eye I could see him by my son's incubator. He smiled and gave me a thumbs up. The next day we drove over to the new hospital and one of the nurses said "Oh your dad just left." I asked her what he looked like and she described him perfectly down to his favorite green sweater and glasses in his pocket. She clearly thought I was strange asking her that. I never told her my dad died when I was twelve. CynthiaMchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12175917641033760408noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-78253270493756286372015-08-31T16:05:55.992-04:002015-08-31T16:05:55.992-04:00I planned to comment on the original post, but the...I planned to comment on the original post, but then I read the story from Julie. It stopped me, and erased my memory.<br /><br />I have nothing to offer you, but I hope it's cathartic to tell the story, and know that there are many people out here that wish you well always. There are things in life you never get past, and I'm inclined to think that must be one of them.<br /><br />Thinking of you. And grateful for the people in your life that kept you going.John Frainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01702305890462479118noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-57237398517769012172015-08-31T15:44:54.233-04:002015-08-31T15:44:54.233-04:00Follow up questions, Ms Reid
Clifford Irving wrote...Follow up questions, Ms Reid<br />Clifford Irving wrote an autobiography of Howard Hughes. He claimed he worked with Howard Hughes on it. He lied. Because he convinced the publisher to pay money to Howard Hughes, which he and his wife kept for themselves, he served 17 months in prison for mail fraud.<br />Clifford Irving later wrote a book called “The Hoax” detailing the events surrounding the fake Howard Hughes autobiography.<br /><br />The questions: If you were the agent for the fake Hughes autobiography, would you represent Clifford Irving on The Hoax? If you weren’t the agent for the Hughes autobiography, would you represent Irving on The Hoax? <br />Joseph S.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07437663031050410028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-75885886203008583042015-08-31T15:33:04.619-04:002015-08-31T15:33:04.619-04:00Everyone has blind spots. I suppose the only thing...Everyone has blind spots. I suppose the only thing we can do is be aware of our own weaknesses, and remind ourselves to be extra cautious in those areas. How do agents generally deal with non-fiction? I imagine it is something along the lines of 'trust, but verify.'<br /><br />I tend to get very annoyed with 'non-fiction' that is actually fiction. I love fiction. I have no objection to making up a good story. Give me all the good stories! But don't pretend they are true. We use these different labels for a reason. Fiction explores what could happen to people. Non-fiction records what did happen to people. Clearly, some people care more about the distinction than others. And I'll keep thinking about why it matters to me.Amy Schaeferhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17263719891092841767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-25008718949484731962015-08-31T14:55:20.216-04:002015-08-31T14:55:20.216-04:00As others have said, memory is a slippery thing. O...As others have said, memory is a slippery thing. Our perceptions are not photographic, either. Three people can witness the same event, be questioned immediately afterwards, and you'll have three different versions of the event.<br /><br />The Truth may be out there, but it's very hard to pin down.<br /><br />When something is billed as the truth, or at least not fictionalized, I want it to be as truthfully accurate as possible. I don't want to read a memoir just for a good story. I want to know that it depicts the truth as the the author experienced it, and if I find out it was made up, I will be more than a little irritated. If it's fiction, market it as such.<br /><br />As to the Janet's example, I don't think anyone should get too stirred up over a child's revelations, whether he's six or eleven. It comes back to the memory thing again. The six-year-old may or may not have "made up" his story. The eleven-year-old may or may not accurately remember what the six-year-old self experienced. <br /><br />I'm always surprised by people that require faith to be bolstered by "proof". In my book, Faith is what you believe in the absence of proof. Even more, Faith is what you believe when the "facts" say otherwise.Elissa Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10727748060605823895noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-38968559696750672622015-08-31T14:50:31.721-04:002015-08-31T14:50:31.721-04:002Ns: Oh, and there's a whole nuther rabbit tra...2Ns: Oh, and there's a whole nuther rabbit trail. Memory. Do we ever really forget, or just choose not to remember? And if remembering is the forging of connections in the brain, how much of what we claim to have forgotten is actually just lying around in our brains somewhere until one day, a connection is forged...? Any neurologists in the audience? :)Colin Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03292997431935215499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-1545475031638933232015-08-31T14:45:18.371-04:002015-08-31T14:45:18.371-04:00When taken to a cemetery for the first time, (my n...When taken to a cemetery for the first time, (my nephew and his wife were placing flowers on a relative’s grave), their little boy, at almost three, stood staring across the gravel road and waving at someone. They were alone in the cemetery. When my nephew and his wife asked the little guy who he was looking at and who he was waving to he said, “Grandma”.<br />He was an infant when she died. <br />He was looking toward her headstone. “Hi Grandma,” he said. <br />How did he know the stone was hers?<br />Did he see her standing next to it? <br />Did she appear in order to see her much loved great-grandson?<br />Children are sensitive to the unexplainable. That little boy, in first grade now, has forgotten the incident but his parents and the rest of us have not. <br /><br />No one, not even the Malarky child who now claims he did it for attention, knows the real truth. <br /><br />Rob’s elephant story is exactly the point I’m making. <br /><br />Memory torments and sometimes protects, by doing that which it is not supposed to do, forget.<br /><br />And to Julie W. my heartfelt condolences to you. <br />Carolynnwith2Nshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18394998702410764388noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-65578695061007827562015-08-31T14:32:09.195-04:002015-08-31T14:32:09.195-04:00I am a believer based on both theology and experie...I am a believer based on both theology and experience. The bottom line is that any valid experience must line up with the truth of the scripture. (I think that is Colin's point, if I am reading correctly)<br /><br />What a delightful day to hear of other commenter's journeys of faith!!<br /><br />My son often used a phrase that we thought was gibberish, but as he got older, he used it as a name. He insisted that the person was with our family all the time.<br /><br />"You know, Mom, that guy who eats dinner with us all the time." (we never had a guy over).<br /><br />"You know, Mom, he always sits in that chair." (never had a guy sit in that chair)<br /><br />This is the son who is a Phd and as a child was brilliant beyond our reckoning - analytical, logical, never engaged in make-believe unless he was putting on a play for us.<br /><br />We have come to think of this man as my son's guardian angel. I won't reveal the whole name, but the first name is Latin for "white."<br /><br />We know that people have seen and spoken to angels in Biblical accounts. I am comforted to think that children's eyes may be more tuned to see the unseen world around us. (hence my comment a few days ago about the opening of Elisha's servants eyes to the unseen.)S.D.Kinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05707682524268581476noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-26805726865246456172015-08-31T14:29:41.279-04:002015-08-31T14:29:41.279-04:00BTW: If I've offered off-line conversation on ...BTW: If I've offered off-line conversation on a topic, I do so for the sake of trying to help the comments stay reasonably on-topic. If you want to take me up on such a conversation, my e-mail address is linked to my Blogger account. I'm not going to presume you want to engage the topic, so I'll wait for you to contact me. And if you decide not to, that's perfectly okay.Colin Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03292997431935215499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-45267978586246257742015-08-31T14:21:20.836-04:002015-08-31T14:21:20.836-04:0042 comments in, I'm sure the topic has been co...42 comments in, I'm sure the topic has been covered so all I'll say is:<br /><br />Susan, always listen to your intuition. It's God's way of speaking to us.<br /><br />Julie, the things I can tell you that have happened in my life where God or His angels have intervened. Well, let me just say, like you, I know God is real. Thanks for sharing.<br />LynnRodzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10796099106913990163noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-15337501599715762872015-08-31T13:38:10.096-04:002015-08-31T13:38:10.096-04:00It makes me smile when my 11-yr-old tells stories ...It makes me smile when my 11-yr-old tells stories of things that happened when she was "a kid"... :)<br /><br />Jennifer: My 19-yr-old realized only in recent years the WWII backdrop to The Sound of Music. That might have something to do with the fact that she's much more aware, and much more interested, in WWII history than she was when she first saw the movie. :)Colin Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03292997431935215499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-69041969252643564542015-08-31T13:05:03.393-04:002015-08-31T13:05:03.393-04:00Julie, you're getting a huge, virtual hug from...Julie, you're getting a huge, virtual hug from me right now. I'll have to 'talk' to you sometime. My experience wasn't quite the same, but every bit as bad for me.<br /><br />I haven't read the book in question. I tend to stay away from stories like that because it only fuels my depression. I've felt God comfort me on more than one occasion and yet, I panic myself into a corner for weeks at the thought of dying. Go figure. So I don't read that stuff. But as much as I want to believe things like that happen, I'm too much of a bible student to know that they do. Near death experiences? Maybe. God will have to explain that someday when I stand before him. But spending a lot of time there and returning? I can see a six year old's mind telling the story.<br /><br />I worked in a hospital and know that coma patients really can 'hear' what people are saying around them. They can, if they come out of the coma, sometimes repeat conversations that took place in their room almost verbatim. Maybe this boy heard that and interpreted it to be more than what it was.<br /><br />But when a book like this is presented to an agent, ANY agent, that agent is also going on faith if you will, that the story is exactly what it is. I don't think, unless the agent knows the truth and buries it, that they can be held responsible for an author's intent to defraud.<br /><br />HEY! No cabbages! No picture at all.nightsmusichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05984119792540771870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-48289420699513781302015-08-31T13:02:33.861-04:002015-08-31T13:02:33.861-04:00When I was a kid, all stories happened "when ...When I was a kid, all stories happened "when I was three". Some of them actually did, I imagine, but 3 seems to have been my Big Consciousness milestone and where my memories really gelled. It's when I was 5 that I decided yes, I wanted to be Christened, and wanted to be Catholic like my grandparents. Arguably, a 5 year old "can't" make that decision. Arguably, a 5 year old "should be allowed" to make that decision. So. <br /><br />I didn't know THE EDUCATION OF LITTLE TREE was written by a Neo-Nazi and at the age I read it, I wouldn't've known what that was anyway. It's like how I didn't know The Sound of Music was about Nazis the first time I watched it (I read DIARY OF A YOUNG GIRL when I was ten), and it wasn't 'til high school that I came to that lightning bolt realization. So I guess that's another wrinkle in my reading habits and need for truthiness; I frequently don't care who the author is. What were Daphne DuMaurier's politics? Dunno. Or my aforementioned Erik Larson, don't know that either. It's like how I enjoy bands, but frequently can't name members therein (unless they broke up and toured after. It's why I know the members of Led Zeppelin, more or less, and a couple names from Pink Floyd). Jennifer R. Donohuehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00363886899308588391noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-22755283681719326182015-08-31T12:54:03.442-04:002015-08-31T12:54:03.442-04:00bj: Not the place to really get into it, but faith...bj: Not the place to really get into it, but faith is based on theology. Everyone has a theology--even an atheist, and even a child. And that theology informs one's presuppositions, which in turn affects how one processes feelings and experiences. Some people have degrees in theology. Some people just have "what I think about that." But we all have theological ideas that shape the way we see and experience the world. You can't separate faith and theology.<br /><br />Another one for off-line discussion, if you like. :)Colin Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03292997431935215499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-9833561606596205672015-08-31T12:43:46.940-04:002015-08-31T12:43:46.940-04:00Rob, thank you for the great story!
I know my mid...Rob, thank you for the great story!<br /><br />I know my middle schoolers HATE to be reminded of things they said / did when they were six or younger. It's as if that part of them never happened or that they want to distance themselves from that younger, silly child now that they're so much older wiser.<br /><br />I can't help but wonder if Alex might have lied about the lie, or simply found it easier believe it didn't happen.<br /><br />A wise Carmelite friend had this definition: "Truth is that which you need to know in order to live."Hermina Boylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03373655531972239199noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-46316102841660860532015-08-31T12:41:35.644-04:002015-08-31T12:41:35.644-04:00Children's brains work differently from adult ...Children's brains work differently from adult brains. They're less restricted by reality. They can believe things that aren't real, or things that are real but adults don't believe. They can see things that adults don't see, because adult eyes just skip over them as being mundane or unreal. It's entirely possible the 6-year-old did see what he said he saw, or that he really believed he saw that. As he grew older, he learned to disbelieve it. But it's also possible that, yes, he'd simply been a child looking for attention.<br /><br />I'm not saying the book is true. I don't know an awful lot about the book or the story behind it; this is the first I've heard of it. But seeing through a child's eyes - in a book or by listening to them talk - opens the adult mind to a world of wonder.<br /><br />When my niece was 3, she lost her great-grandmother. She asked me a couple times why great-grandma had to die. I told her that God wanted her in Heaven with him, and I asked her what she knew about Heaven. She told me a wonderful story about an airplane in the sky, with Jesus and all the dead people on board, and it was always a sunny day up there and everyone was happy... and it was so beautiful to get that glimpse into her mind. She's in her 20s now. I doubt she remembers any of this.<br /><br />We don't have to believe everything a child says, and often it's not wise to do so. But if we let a child talk, we might experience the wonder they see. And we might see things we might have missed otherwise.<br /><br />Is the story told from a child's point of view? If so, then it's very possibly truth, as seen by that child. Then as the child grew older, he rethought what he'd *known* he'd seen.<br /><br />Julie: Your story brought tears to my eyes. I can't say I've lived through anything like you have, but I, too, need that peace. God bless you.<br /><br />Colin, there's a difference between theology and faith. Theology is a study. Faith is knowledge, often based on feelings and experience. I know I wouldn't be here if it weren't for God, but I don't know that through study. I know it through feelings and experiences.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com