What gets you off? The DOMA/Prop 8 decision

Warning: This post is of a sexual nature, some people will find it confronting, even though it is in no way explicit.

The outcome of the DOMA/Prop 8 debate is a positive one.  The ongoing movement to equality, whatever the variables, can only be a good thing.

Yes there will be the usual backlash - my favourite is the many variations of "Now THEY have the right to get married, what is to stop someone marrying a poodle? It's sick, SICK".

And yet there is some level of irony surrounding those assertions that sexual preference is a deviance.

PRISM and the NSA? Snowden flagged it for us, but there are bigger issues...

Watching you?
Yes, because you
agreed to it.

There has been a lot of hoopla about Edward Snowden and his role in (and ultimately distaste for) the actions of the NSA and the Prism project.

What HAS come of it are a couple of really good articles that describe the mechanics of how data-profiling work.

One of the more spine-tingling observations is the "revelation" that a program called Accumulo is a system used by the NSA as part of the PRISM project.

Well, the surprise is not about the Accumulo system itself, just that such a system is actually in use.

Without getting all hyper-geek,  the guts of the system is this - stick with me, I'll keep it short.

The ever-changing casting call...

The response to Erasure has been great and the reviews have been positive. A situation that doesn't cease to amaze me.

One of the most common statements made has been something along the lines of:
"Erasure would make a great movie, it's reads like one.. you should TOTALLY make a movie.."

I tend to agree, I mean what writer wouldn't?

Americans, they are all just so...AMERICAN.

The Great American Adventure.

We are fresh back from a trip to the states, a trip that we had talked about for a very long time (10 years is a long time to be planning an event, by any measure) and now, all too soon, it is over.

We got remarried in Vegas, saw some nice stuff, spoke to people about my book, and was heartened as to how well it was received.

I won’t bang on with the whole itinerary, but just know that in the 3.5 weeks we were there we saw a sizable chunk of the country.

Not all of it.

Not most of it.

Just a sizable chunk.

Thought I’d clarify that in case any of my US fans felt the need to weigh in with assertions that one CAN’T see all of America in 3.5 weeks.

I agree, hence keeping my estimate at “A sizable chunk”.

Enough of the geographical semantics. I’ll get to the point.

Which is:

Java Cabana - Memphis open mic night.

During the epic journey that was the great American adventure, (more on that in another post) while in Memphis we found ourselves staying in the fabulous Cooper-Young district...

... and fell completely in love with the area. An eclectic mix of bars, bookshops, art spaces, a cat rescue center and the fabulous Java Cabana coffee house.

Private?

A welcome reminder of why I write...

If you've been visiting the blog, and perhaps the facebook page, you might notice since the release of "Erasure" in early June that many of the posts that I've added tend to speak more from the "What's wrong with publishing" than anything else.

I really haven't set out to do that, it just seems to be the natural way of things. 

Generally when I sit down to work I don't follow a plan, so to speak. I just write, and pick up the pieces after. But write I do, and the next book in the series is well under way.

When it comes to blogging I take a different approach. If I have nothing to say, I don't blog.

It goes against the grain, I know. 

"You HAVE to blog, if you don't your book will die." Is the slightly exaggerated version of what all the author forums seem to preach. I didn't sign up for that sermon, and yet I still hear it ALL the time.

Today I have something to blog about. 

A solid reminder of what it really means when I say that I'm a writer.

I woke up Saturday morning, thankfully hangover free, and logged on to check out what was happening on that bright sunny day.

I was greeted by this message via facebook - and it made me smile (Thanks Gemma C.):

I have just read an awesome book, I can't remember ever being so taken by a book. I had chills, tears, laughs... the works. needless to say I double locked all my doors tonight and kept the lights on. Check it out guys - the book is called ERASURE www.athwebber.com BIG TIME WOW! and all you computer junkies totally gonna dig this one!

I've just started smiling again as I pasted the message.

I didn't set out to be some kind of writer-rockstar (although I'm not against the idea should the mantle be trust upon me). I write because it is what I do. I find it entertaining. I find the process incredibly detailed and frustrating at times, but while it (the process) might backhand me every now and then, the sense of achievement is a nice thing to feel.

This message reminded me that people do actually read my work.
It reminded me that the work is worthwhile.
It reminded me that someone I didn't know while I was writing the thing would ultimately turn the final page and feel like they had read, really read, what they probably say is a great book.

This whole writing thing can be an unbelievably lonely existence, but little beacons like this message stretch out of the gloom and reach me on my little hill. It is a connection I didn't know I needed until now. If I stand on tip-toe I can almost see the little hill top from where the beacon came, and can see many other little hills around it, all with their own singular inhabitant. 

I hope others see the beacon too. So that one day this valley will be ablaze.