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The -BER Months Are Here! (2023)
This is the last weekend of “💰 Commercial 🌞 Summer 🔥” for this year. As it turns out, it’s also World Coconut Day, International Bacon Day and National Blueberry Popsicle Day, so feel free to have a lovely snack this holiday weekend. By the way, Monday is Labor Day, so put away those white slacks, you scofflaws…
Pumpkin 🎃 Spicy!
I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion. ~Henry David Thoreau
Well, I’m not sure that sitting on a pumpkin is a great idea for me until I’ve lost considerably more weight, but I’m feeling the sentiment.
I’m not one for being crowded on a cushion. As an introvert, I’m not wild about being crowded under any circumstances.
That’s one of the many reasons I’m grateful for my current form of employment. The whole work-from-home thing is what I’ve been waiting decades to be part of.
This is the “new normal”, or so it seems. More companies are doing this, and so much the better.
Fashion Scofflaws
Why do you not wear white after labor day? Where did this rule come from?
In addition to the new era of working from home, we’ve also shaken off some of the bizarre old habits that were common in my parents’ day.
Wearing suits as everyday clothes? Bizarre! I mean, if you’re an executive type or a traveling salesman, I guess that’s acceptable. Wearing a suit to mow your grass or go to the McDonald’s? Thank you, no.
This whole thing about not wearing white after Labor Day reflects an age long past without the actual context. I’ve heard of the “rule” but I never understood why, nor did I much care to adhere to it.
Frankly, I’m not a big fan of social norms that don’t conform to sensible reality. Once t-shirts and jeans became the official uniform of Americans, it seemed rational to me that this would become commonplace in all environments.
Back in the 80s, there was a stratification of jeans. You could gauge your social status by the brand of jeans you wore. If your parents bought you the elite brands with the embroidered designs on the back pockets, you were a shoe-in for the in crowd. If you got sensible plain jeans, you were a disadvantaged schlub.
Fergawdzakes…
It’s A Fair Cop
A person who won’t read has no advantage over one who can’t read. ~Mark Twain
Okay, guilty as charged. Being busy at work and mentally exhausted after work has ensured that I have neither the time nor the capacity to do much catch-up reading.
The best way to see what’s working in mass market fiction today is to read current works in your selected genre. By getting a handle on what’s being produced by the big five and/or any of the larger niche publishers, you can see what’s selling, what’s in keeping with current prose standards and the latest formatting conventions.
Interestingly, we’re still seeing regular mass market paperbacks in a 5½ x 8¼ format. KDP tends to default to 6×9 for some reason. I never saw a 6×9 book outside of nonfiction until KDP started enabling POD works for self-published authors. Honestly, I just ran with it.
I don’t think I’ll do that for The Sentinels, Tales Of Olde Auringia or Far-Flung Reaches. I’d prefer that they be in the more familiar and portable 5½ x 8¼ format.
I’m still doing 6×9 for my Holiday Season Serial Romances, if only for consistency among the books.
As much glee as I get from attending library clearance sales and used bookstores, I have yet to read anything I’ve bought lately. I need to remedy that, but there’s only so much you can squeeze out of a day.
Yet another thing for my ever-expanding to-do list…
That’s all for one holiday weekend. We’re transitioning through the unofficial end of 🌞Summer🔥, and I couldn’t be more thrilled.