Jon F. Merz is the author of THE FIXER, THE INVOKER and THE DESTRUCTOR all released through Pinnacle books. The latest book in his Lawson Vampire series, THE SYNDICATE, has just been released.
164 Fri November 07 2003 - 16:55:46 Fullname: Michael Richards Email: Comments: ">sigh< Okay, here we go..."
Oh, I'm sorry Jon, am I inconveniencing you? I dare to argue with you, so I'm an annoyance? My posts are lenghty so I can explain what I'm talking about. Would you rather I didn't back up what I have to say, and just threw idle comments out there? I _know_ I didn't mention the teens in my first post...at least do me the courtesy of properly reading my comments. And I didn't claim to know anything about your past experience with teens, I merely asked if you had any knowledge of their reading habits.
Look, it's understandable to argue here so as not to lose face with your friends and fans who read this (and to those people I'm sorry for this intrusion), and it's not my intention to flame you, but you made a mistake (and it _was_ insulting and offensive to the audience you were talking about, regardless of what your supporters here say) and I called you on it. You've now edited the blog because you know your comment was foolish (if you still say you stand by the comment, then you should have stood by your convictions and left it up). But you couldn't even do that with decency, you had to make a joke of it. I guess in your eyes I'm just one of those crazy nutballs who make the world go around. Well, I'm glad you find it so funny.
Actually, since you've written some of it, your book _is_ partially complete ;-) But you know what? A building with flawed foundations won't stand, and you don't have to actually complete the building to know it'll come down.
I didn't mean the James Joyce comparison in a negative way. My point is, your normal writing style is _not_ too complex for a YA audience and (yes, here it comes again) my advice is write as you normally do, _toning_ it down (not 'writing' it down) to suit the audience.
Well, I've made my point, I think you get it even if you won't come out and say so, and I won't tie up your board or your time anymore. Remember, though, the quality of a YA book, even more than an adult novel, can be the difference between someone starting a lifetime love affair with books, and someone deciding they don't like to read. Maybe you _should_ spend some time considering the posts you make in your blog. You are a writer, you are in the public eye, and what you say on a public forum goes out to a lot of people you'll never meet. A stupid comment from 'a real writer' can knock the wind out of someone's sails. Suddenly, maybe six arduous months to read a YA book wasn't the accomplishment it seemed for someone, if according to Jon Merz, YA books are not on a par with adult novels.
165 Fri November 07 2003 - 15:33:37 Fullname: Harry Shannon Email: Comments: Hey, Merz. How did the campaign go? Any feedback? Come say hi, we miss you're odd sense of humor (grins)
