Scozzafava

Pulled from the headlines of today! Apologies in advance for the political talk. I've tried to resist, but it occurred to me that if I feel strongly enough to write on any subject that I had better be willing to. And frankly, I should be looking to get my blog posts together any way I can.

As reported here, moderate Republican Dierdre Scozzafava has withdrawn from the New York House race, leaving Conservative party candidate Doug Hoffman as the de-facto Republican nominee.

In some respects, this is a great day for grassroots democracy. Scozzafava (who has possibly one of the greatest last names ever)was hand-picked by the 23rd district's county chairs because she was considered the most electable candidate. There was no primary and no caucus - understandably so, given that this is an unscheduled election resulting from the previous district's Congressman, John McHugh, being named Secretary of the Army.

Scozzafava's nomination angered the party's conservative base, mainly because she is pro-choice and supports equality of marriage. Doug Hoffman saw this and beat her like a gong, garnering support from high-profile Republicans like Sarah Palin, Tim Pawlenty, Michelle Malkin, Rush Limbaugh, and practically everyone except Newt Gingrich and the RNC.

In my view, seeing a third party candidate topple a candidate from one of the Big Two is cause for celebration. Every now and again I think the country needs proof that you can be something other than a Democrat or Republican and still be electable, despite the examples set by Ross Perot and Ralph Nader.

On the other hand, Hoffman's defeat of Scozzafava is another degree of swing for the GOP towards the far right end of the political spectrum. Despite the attacks against her, Scozzafava was never anything other than a moderate Republican. GOP members in New York are a different breed, Republicans who have mostly ignored the Christian Coalition and the Southern Strategy, so Scozzafava's pro-choice and equality of marriage stances were well within the tolerances of the area. Her other major sin, voting to raise taxes, was done when it was a requirement to meet budgets.

But Scozzafava was also against drug law reforms, against gun control, against labor, against benefits for multilingual police officers, against reforming knockless warrants, against foreclosure protections, and for tort reform when it came to health care. Again: moderate Republican.

That Hoffman was able to drive her out of the race in New York by abusing her social conservative bona-fides is a red flag for how much power the right-hand wing of the party has these days. It's the same thing we've been seeing with Arlen Specter abandoning the party, Michael Steele becoming a hardliner, Meghan McCain's feuds with Ann Coulter and Michelle Malkin, and the widespread abuse of so-called RINOs (Republicans In Name Only) in general.

I consider myself a political moderate. The last thing I want to see is one of the main political parties in my country falling under the control of its most extreme members, but that seems to be exactly what's happening to the GOP. If we don't get more politicians on the right side of the aisle in the next few years that are willing to compromise for the greater good, then I expect the partisan divides in this country are going to get a lot worse before they get better.

--Dave

Author's Log

Completed and submitted three one-page novel pitches solicited by a publisher. I have about a month to wait until they'll get back to me, which is the perfect amount of time for me to complete a Nanonovel.

Current Reading

Just finished two of the latest books in Black Lagoon, a full-on shoot 'em up manga series by Rei Hiroe. A definite recommendation for the shonen set.

Also, if you have an interest in good political writing, check out Senator Joe McCarthy by Richard H. Rovere. It's a biography of Senator McCarthy that was written in 1959, but is still available from Amazon. Rovere injects his own opinions into the subject almost constantly, but he still manages to give an unbiased account of McCarthy's history, and I consider the book essential reading for any political pundit you care to name.

Truth Can Be Less Interesting Than Fiction

Feeling a little cheated. On Friday I had two of my wisdom teeth pulled. Here are the horror stories I got to hear in the week leading up to that:

"You'll end up spitting blood for two days/five days."

"Your face will swell up for a week/a month/a whole damn year."

"You'll go to sleep and wake up in a Giant parking lot."

The actual result? I was in and out in an hour, have barely felt any pain, and have not had any significant bleeding since yesterday. My meds aren't giving me any hallucinations, pleasant or otherwise, and I don't even remember getting a gas mask shoved into my face.

As life experiences go, the whole thing was very boring (which, compared to the horror stories, is probably a good thing). The only worthwhile part was getting to sit in a lobby that looked like it was pulled straight from The Shining. There's just something inspirational about blood-colored marble floors, which is an excellent choice for an oral surgeon's office, by the way.

Ah, well, maybe I'll mix my meds with a beer or two, see if the great Gazoo would care to impart me with some wisdom. Or else I can just get back to finishing up the pitches.

--Dave

Author's Log

Ah yes, the pitches. I'm currently standing at four possibles, each one page long, giving a fair description of a possible novel.

Pitch writing doesn't give you a big word count, but it can be a great learning experience, and I'll go ahead and recommend it for anyone writing a novel. For one thing, you'll probably have to draft a pitch eventually to sell the book, and there's no harm in getting started early (except for the possibility of an extra revision or two, of course). For another, distilling a story that runs for 100,000 words down to a single page really makes you think about what the most important parts of your story are. If you're obsessing too much over a subplot or background details, cutting your story down to the bone might be enough to get you back on track.

Current Reading

I've read a fair few books over the week worth mentioning.

Death Troopers, a Star Wars novel by Joe Schreiber, brings the terrifying menace of the undead to a galaxy far, far away. It sounds like a disaster waiting to happen, but it's actually a very well-executed horror story that fits itself into the Star Wars universe surprisingly well. It's not a necessary read to follow the Expanded Universe canon, but if you're looking for something scary to read and don't want to wait for Stephen King's latest, you could do a lot worse.

Shamanslayer, a Warhammer novel by Nathan Long, continues the long-running story of Gotrek & Felix by setting them against a horde of Beastmen (half-men, half-animal, all evil). Some old characters from the William King books resurface, an old and nearly forgotten plotline gets resolved, and lots of carnage and mayhem occurs throughout. It's probably not a good idea to read this book if you aren't following the series, but longtime fans will find a lot to like here.

After a long delay I finished Fool Moon, the second Dresden Files book from Jim Butcher, which concluded in high style with lots of werewolf-on-werewolf action (minds out of the gutter...). I've just started in on the third book, Grave Peril, which looks set to delve into ghosts and the perils of the Nevernever. Still nothing but good things to say about this series.

Setting Goals - Abject Failure

Well, let's tally the final results, shall we?

The Goal: 2,000 words per day, six days a week.

The Result: 2,000 words in a week.

I suspect that trying to match Stephen King right off the bat was a bad idea. On the bright side, I'm up 2,000 words from where I started, and they're nice, character-developing, story-telling words, not notes or synopses or the like. Some of those words might actually see print one day.

Still, the scourging awaits. Do your worst, friends.

Author's Log

1,000 words since the last update, plus some work on a pitch. I'm not sure, but I imagine it's easier to pitch a novel you've actually written beforehand than it is to pitch one you haven't written, especially when it might be one that you will never write.

Current Reading

Unseen Academicals, the latest Discworld book from Terry Pratchett. I'm only halfway through, but this one seems to meet the usual Pratchett quality standards, and has a nice focus on the inhabitants of Unseen University that we don't usually get (which is to say that the wizards are actual protagonists this time out, rather than supporting cast).

Setting Goals - Midweek Update

1,000 words. That's all I've managed to write so far, just 1,000 words.

Do I intend to whine about this? No. I'm going to post this, shut up, and get on with the work. 11,000 more words to go this week.

Author's Log

So far this week, I've indulged in the following excuses:

• Donated blood to support our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.


• Went to lunch at the Cheesecake Factory with the wife. Word of advice: Always get the cheesecake, approach the rest of the menu with caution.


• Worked out of the home to catch up after the recent vacation.


• Played with the dog.


• Cuddled with the wife.

And then there's New Comic Book Day tomorrow, like a dark cloud crawling across the sunlight of my resolution...

Ugh. If I'm coming up with similes like that, I need to wrap this up.

Current Reading

About a quarter of the way through Fool Moon, the second book in the Dresden Files. More excellent stuff, including a smattering of "proper" werewolves, from back before they went all Hollywood.

Received double-secret research materials in the mail today for the current project, and am feeling giddy. That gets read tomorrow, with all due apologies to Jim Butcher.

Setting Goals

Alright, long story short, I am disappointed with my writing habits. I have obligations coming up that will require me to be better about said habits, not the least of which is NaNoWriMo. I Need To Set A Goal.

Stephen King claims that he writes 2,000 words a day come hell or high water. He is a full-time writer. I am, at best, a part-time writer. There is no reason on Earth why I should hold myself to that standard. I'm going to anyway. Almost.

Starting tomorrow, I will write 2,000 words a day, 6 days a week, for a total of 12,000 words weekly. That means I should be able to draft a 100,000 word novel (which is a respectable length) within 2 months, if that is all that I write.

Blog posts will count towards that, as will writing that will never see the light of day, but is vital background information for a story. And if I slack off one day, I'm willing to make it up on the next. But I am serious about that weekly word count, oh yes indeed.

If you catch me slacking, Yell. Scream. Shout. Hold me accountable. I have every intention of completing two novels within the next year, and I cannot afford to slack off.

--Dave

Author's Log

I roughed out three pitches for a potential novel, amounting to about a page and a half of writing. I'll be fleshing these out for the rest of October, and hopefully ending up with at least one acceptable pitch.

Current Reading

Finished off Reiksguard. A good book, possibly a little tame as far as Warhammer novels go (in that no one's soul gets torn to shreds by the dark powers of Chaos), but no real complaints.

Also started Fool Moon, the second book in the Dresden Files. I'm not far into it yet, but so far it's great. I had to force myself to find a good stopping point, which is always a good sign. Glad I picked up the series.