Macmillian, a follow-up, and every tab must go

So this weekend’s publishing industry fracas seems to have resolved itself, at least for now. Macmillan, which is enormous and has imprints for everything from textbooks to science fiction, threw down with Amazon over ebook pricing. Macmillian wanted variable pricing at $14.99 or less, while Amazon dug in its heels and demanded a $9.99 cap. Macmillian refused, and Amazon pulled all of Macmillian’s books (print and electronic) from the virtual shelves until late today, when Amazon agreed to Macmillian’s terms.

Amazon is, unsurprisingly, trying to look as populist as it can and making an effort to paint Macmillian in a negative light by calling them a monopoly (which, seeing as this is Amazon, is kind of like Mussolini complaining that somebody is a fascist).

Of all the commentary I saw on this, probably the most useful was Tobias Buckell’s, in which he explains why Macmillian isn’t being unreasonable. It’s a long read, but worth it. Also worth reading is Catherynne Valente’s post about how Amazon’s strong-arm tactics harm writers in the long run.

I’m a bit uncomfortable, though, at the resurrection of the #amazonfail hashtag on Twitter. (If you’re unaware, #amazonfail was previously been used to describe the de-listing of LGBTQ books on Amazon early last year.) I’m trying to draw an analogy of why I found it disconcerting, but coming up blank.

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Okay, so I confess I’m still working through comments on the last post, which turned out to be so much more about slash than the pro m/m romance and erotica market in the end. That being said, Ann Somerville appeared as if by magic and linked me to her breakdown of authors by m/m romance imprint, which is very interesting indeed.

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Other things I can’t help but share:

- Out In Print – All queer book reviews all the time.
- Galco’s Soda Pop Stop – I just want to order a ton of juniper berry soda, Fentiman’s dandelion and burdock, or some shandy.
- N.K. Jemisin’s article about sex, religion, and the gods – I confess, I’m not familiar with Jemisin’s work, but this article’s great, which means I’ll be checking shelves when I’ve got disposable income.
- Offered without comment: The True Risk of Airborne Terror.
- CRAP!

This post has been mirrored from Christian A. Young's Dimlight Archive. To see it in its original format, visit dimlightarchive.com

New article in Crossed Genres! Idol Musings sighted in the wild! My early work is very serious!

Considering how hard I’ve been on slash of late, it’s marvelous and timely that my article “Writing Our Own (Alternate) Histories: Fanwork as Folklore” should happen to be in issue 15 of Crossed Genres, which comes out today. (PRC – PDF – Print – Subscribe)

Really, at the end of the day, I do love fanwork. I think it’s one of the most significant, deep, and intimate ways a person can interact with extant material, and the community is a place where people can play and enjoy language in ways they might not wish to or feel empowered to otherwise. That, to my mind, is a social good.

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I found out last week (and then promptly failed to post) that people who pre-ordered are starting to see copies of Idol Musings. Fey has confirmed it, and at least one reader has said some very nice things.

While I haven’t held it in my hands yet, I’ve got it on good authority that this thing is a 600+ page behemoth of awesome.

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Don’t ask how I found this:
eBay – The Sun, by C.A. Young, 1897 edition.

This post has been mirrored from Christian A. Young's Dimlight Archive. To see it in its original format, visit dimlightarchive.com