Tag Archives: writing

Censorship Is Alive And Well In PayPal’s Misguided Little Minds

Deviating from my normal posts about travel, history, or the issues involved in living as an expat, today I am addressing a situation that has just been brought to my attention by one of the publishers of my books.

I publish both of my books about spiritual growth, social and historical issues, and future visions in paper versions — The Dreamkeeper and the most recent book, Darkness Folding Inward, Light Emerging — at Lulu.

But I also publish both books in electronic versions at Smashwords — and I am quite concerned because Smashwords is under attack by PayPal right now.

I found it breathtaking that PayPal has decided that it was appropriate to be ‘content police’ on what is published at Smashwords. They have informed the head of Smashwords, Mark Coker, that unless all books are removed that contain what they consider to be objectionable material, they will cancel the PayPal account that enables authors like me who live in countries other than the USA to be paid our royalties.

This is simply insane on at least three fronts. (1) It would immediately bring the wonderful flow of artistic output from non-USA-writers to a halt since we would not be able to be paid for our book sales. (2) It penalises all Smashwords authors, even if we are not producing what the ‘thought police’ over at PayPal consider objectionable. (3) It sets up PayPal as the judge and jury of what the readers of the world are allowed to read. And what gives them that right???

I will begin to immediately participate in the online protests against this impending action by PayPal against Smashwords. I encourage all of my readers to read this article at Electronic Frontier Foundation and do the same.

A New Facebook Page to Click On LIKE

Just set up a Facebook Page for this website A Wanderful Life — Around The World and Around The Neighbourhood Travels.

So if you are already on Facebook or planning to sign up, please DO go over there and click LIKE so I can get the minimum 80 LIKES this weekend and begin being indexed. Thanks ever so much!

HERE is the link for the FACEBOOK page!

Head Down and Hammering Away

Head down and hammering away has a dual meaning this week. I’ve been head down and hammering away on the keyboard as I worked and head down as the rain and ice hammered away each time I left the house. Thus, I haven’t had much spare time during the last week and my apologies for the lack of posts. But between moving from the beach house in Brehal to a charming stone cottage in Moyon a few days ago and my other ‘tasks’ — it would appear that I’ve been remiss in posting online.

The rain here in Normandy has been a daily event for over two full weeks. This precipitation might be making the farmers and the people who monitor the levels of the aquifers thrilled, but it has spoiled any chance that I’ve had for splendid daytime photographs in this most charming part of France. Atmospheric photos of glossy-rainy reflections are one thing, but exposing my Nikons to gale force winds and horizontal rain mixed with chunky hail is quite another thing altogether!

I’ve managed to get in some good writing time this week on the new travel book though, so yes, progress of some kind has been made even if there is no photo documentation of that. And I’m researching the idea of producing this next book only in e-book format instead of the traditional print version plus e-book. Now that Kindles and iPads are so popular, it seems like a logical next step.

I’ll post more information about the book as it unfolds. And have a happy lead-up-to-Christmas week, everyone!

Bookish Brainstorming

Ahhhh, it sounds so glamourous ‘in theory’ doesn’t it — the mid-life adventures of 2 rambling nomads who cast aside their safe and secure life in Australia to live out of a suitcase for long-term travel.

Normandy Guidebook

The reality occasionally lives up to the expectations and some of our destinations have been brilliant, scenic, and memory-making in a good way. We’ve also met so many interesting people along the way. But rather often we’ve had a gritty master class in the concept of ‘living in flow’ just so we could stay happy and sane.

Do we have any second thoughts about our intentionally chosen lifestyle? 99.9% of the time the answer is a firm no!

A small, tight, not-too-rambling book might be on the horizon — perhaps in e-book only format — perhaps also in print.

I did actually format a few pages today and I have a title. But that’s going to be a secret for awhile!

I’ll keep you posted.

A Bit Of A London Traffic Jam

How many pictures does each 8G memory card hold when shot in RAW format? Over 700 pics on each one??? And I have 4 and 1/2 full cards!!!

I have quite effectively created my very own traffic jam in the flow of my writing and photography output. Ouch!!!

Just a few traffic flow problems

In the last 2 weeks we have travelled from Edinburgh, through several stops in Yorkshire, and then we spent a week in London. During that time I took thousands of photos and never got a chance to edit them on the road because (to be bracingly honest!), I was simply too bloody tired to sit with a laptop and do it at night after being out and about all day.

So bear with me — there will be new articles in the next few days. But I simply must get through the culling and editing process and I have to complete the final submission of large-scale photography for a public relations assignment that I had this month.

Whew! Back to work I go!