Check out Tuesday News: Dropbox drops files; YouTube stars getting book deals; SFF author revealed as controversial blogger; and Catherine Roach on Romance “claims” just posted at Dear Author. Heads Up: Dropbox Bug is Eating Files – So apparently Dropbox is actually deleting files, and while the company is trying to remedy the issue (and is offering a year of Dropbox Pro as compensation), they have apparently informed those they believe have thus far been affected: Hi, We’re reaching out to let you know about an issue affecting Selective Sync that caused some files to be deleted from Dropbox. This problem occurred when the Dropbox desktop application shut down or restarted while users were applying Selective Sync settings. Based on our investigation of this issue, we think you may be among the small number of users who were affected. If you haven’t used Selective Sync before, you can stop reading now because you weren’t affected. If you have used Selective Sync, we wanted to check whether your Dropbox may have been affected. We’ve set up a personalized web page where you can see if there are files that shouldn’t have been deleted and try to restore them. –The Digital Reader From YouTube Stars, Literary Lions – That sound you hear is the reverberation of my skull as it slams rhythmically against the wall. Granted, some of these YouTube celebrities are quite talented (some of the young women who have built an audience by being funny, clever, and intelligent are serving as fantastic role models), but do we have to offer EVERYONE who makes a mark in visual media a book deal? Publishers seeking the next hit author have a new hunting ground: YouTube. A wave of titles written by YouTube personalities is hitting the shelves this month as book publishers bet on the power of online media. They made a similar bet several years ago on books by popular food bloggers, such as Ree Drummond and Julie Powell. “The Pointless Book,” an activity workbook by charming, goofy U.K. video blogger Alfie Deyes is coming soon. So, too, is a book by comedian and YouTube star Grace Helbig on how to pretend to be grown up. Two titles based on popular YouTube series for teens also are planned. –Wall Street Journal Benjanun Sriduangkaew’s blogging past [my title] – This is an incredibly controversial revelation, with complex implications for the SFF community, and by extension, other writing and reading communities. SFF author Benjanun Sriduangkaew has recently been revealed to be the same person who reviewed and blogged as Requires Only That You Hate. Now, what makes this story more explosive than the usual ‘person who wrote stingingly negative reviews is now an author, oh, and by the way she’s a woman’ controversy, is that RH (also known as Winterfox on LJ) went beyond even the most generous boundaries of serious snark, and the question of whether her past should affect her writing career is seriously being debated online right now. I have to say that I am very uncomfortable with the idea of blackballing a writer for her behavior toward other writers, especially since I think there’s a gender double-standard at work. At the same time, I understand those who might boycott her fiction given the, uh, extremity of her alleged reactions to other authors. –Ello (@mamatas) and James Nicoll Noted with Interest: The Creed of Romance? – A post by Catherine Roach, literature professor and Romance novelist, on what she perceives to be the “nine central claims made by the romance narrative.” Eric Selinger reposted the list from another blog, and he also mentions and links to Amber Belldene’s fascinating post ,”The Secret Sermon in Every Romance Novel,” which I’ve been thinking about but haven’t yet put together any coherent thoughts worthy of articulation. Still, check out both. Here are Roach’s first three “claims:” 1. It is hard to be alone. We are social animals. Most people need and want love, of some kind. Amid all the possibilities for love as philia (friendship) and agape (spiritual or selfless love), the culture often holds up eros or romantic partner love as an apex of all that love can be and do. 2. It is a man’s world. Women generally have less power, fewer choices, and suffer from vulnerability and double standards. They often get stuck looking after men or being overlooked by men. 3. Romance is a religion of love. Romance entails belief in the power of love as a positive orienting force. Love functions as religion, as that which has ultimate meaning in people’s lives. –Teach Me Tonight
Posted on: Tue, 14 Oct 2014 09:12:49 +0000
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