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Hey Google! I Can Think for Myself

I created this blog on Blogger and later migrated it to WordPress. Part of me hated doing this. I loved Blogger. It was so easy to use. However, there was a problem. Google owns Blogger, and, like Facebook, Google is getting much too creepy.

As I discussed in my previous post, The Best Search Engines for Novel Writers, no writer should ever use Google for their searches. Nor would I limit this suggestion to just writers. In my humble opinion, no one should be using Google. No one. Google has become too powerful. So much so that it’s now trying to tell us what to think.

How Google is trying to manipulate us

One night, as I was listening to Coast to Coast AM, the host announced the her guest was an expert on alternative medicine. She began her introduction by stating that Google has eliminated ALL alternative medicine websites from its search engine. All of them. It has replaced them with ANTI-alternative medicine websites. This means if you’re looking for alternative treatments for your allergies, because all conventional treatments have failed you, you won’t find any information on Google. Why? Because Google thinks you’re too stupid to decide which treatment would be best for you. They will decide the treatment you need, not you. Nevermind the fact that we all have the right to live our lives as we see it. Unfortunately, this is but one example of how Google is trying to manipulate you and tell you how to think.

Needless to say, this can be especially problematic for authors. Whether you write fiction or nonfiction, you’ll need to do some research as you write. So what happens if you’re writing a novel about a character with cancer who seeks out other treatments? You certainly won’t find the information you need from Google.

Fortunately for us, there are other search engines that DON’T think they’re God. They will give you the information you are searching for, and they will allow you to think for yourself. These search engines include Bing, DogPile and DuckDuckGo, one of the search engines I discussed in my previous post.

Hey Google! We can think for ourselves, thank you very much, and there are much better search engines out there.

Gayle Martin

Let’s Stop Putting Labels on People

I will never forget the time when I attended a business networking meeting, and someone’s guest asked me what I do. It was a fair question. The whole idea of networking meetings is to exchange information and refer business to one another. I told her I was a novel writer. Her response, however, was appalling. She looked me in the eye and said, “Oh, so this means you have ADD.” (Attention Deficit Disorder — a mental illness.)

I was completely flabbergasted. How could a so-called business professional make such a hurtful, hateful, and not to mention, stupid, remark? I looked her in the eye, and without even thinking I said, “Well, in my line of work, it would actually be considered a job requirement.” It shut her up. She walked away with egg on her face as well she should have.

Are creative people somehow less worthy than other people?

Few things make me bristle like people who insist on putting stigmatizing labels on other people. Why must they do this? Is there is some narrow definition of normal out there? Do creative, imaginative people not fit into this so-called norm? Is this why creative people are stigmatized? Or is making other people look bad how they make themselves look good?

I suspect the answer is all the above. There are people out there who simply don’t like creative people. Period. I recall once reading an article telling parents how to “reprogram” their children if they showed any sign of being, “right-brained creative.” It was as if being creative was a mental defect that needed to be nipped in the bud.

Imagine a world without art, music or literature. No doubt it would be a dull and dreary place. So what defines us as a people? Among other things, it’s art, music and literature. And who creates art, music and literature? Well, certainly not the bitch at the business networking meeting.

I refuse to apologize for who I am

I happen to be one of those right-brained creative people. I’m the person the so-called experts don’t want your child becoming. And do you want to know something? I’m damn proud of it. I am the person God meant me to be, and, in spite of what some people may think, I’m actually mentally confident enough to perform my job. Not only do I write novels, I also I run my own book publishing business.

So, Miss Smart-Alec, who the hell are you to think you have the right to pin your scarlet letter on me and label me as somehow mentally deficient? My job involves using my God-given creative skills, and I’m so sorry it makes you jealous because you don’t have any. Oh, and here’s another thought. Why don’t you worry more about your own life and stop judging people you know nothing about.

Gayle Martin

Pondering the Meaning of Life

The other day I learned that an old family friend had passed away. She and her husband were close friends with my parents, and she was the last one standing.

I’ll call her Jane. I saw quite a bit of her when I was young, but once I became and adult and left home I only saw her at special events; weddings, anniversary parties, and funerals. The last time I saw her was over twenty years ago. As soon as I heard she had passed away, I looked up her obituary. It included a photo, probably taken a good fifty years ago. And while Jane wasn’t overly pretty, she was an attractive woman and surprisingly photogenic.

Her obituary began the usual way. When and where she was born. It mentioned her parents, grandparents, and siblings. It mentioned her marriage and a business her husband once owned. There was also a mention of her being a cub scout den mother, and that’s when her story took an odd twist. Instead of saying she was a full time mom and homemaker, it listed all the country clubs she’d belonged to. It concluded with saying that she had spent her entire adult life playing bridge at the country club.

Wow.

Don’t get me wrong. I’ve always had a great deal of admiration for full time moms. I think they have one of the most important, and overlooked, roles in society. I also think we should make time to do the things we enjoy doing. It brings meaning and balance in our lives. If playing cards is what you enjoy doing then so be it. However, there’s a whole lot more to life than just playing cards at the country club.

Life is about what we do for others, and doing what we can to make the world a better place. It’s also about the legacy we leave behind. Whether it’s my Luke and Jenny series of novelettes for young readers, or my Marina Martindale contemporary romance novels, my job as a novel writer is to bring a little joy into people’s lives, even if it’s only for a few minutes out of their busy day. For me, doing what I can to help people take a break from their troubles is a life well spent.

Gayle Martin

Welcome to From the Writer’s Desk

a blog for novel writers

There are a lot of writing blogs out there, and many offer great advice. However, most of the ones I’ve seen are geared toward nonfiction writers. As novel writers, we have different goals and needs. We’re storytellers. We write to entertain.

This blog is about helping you write a better novel as I pass along what I’ve learned about this crazy business. So please, pull up a chair and make yourselves comfortable. And if you see something you like, please be sure to hit the like button.

Gayle Martin

Why Off-Site Storage is a Must

Computers are mysterious creatures. I jokingly tell people they’re black magic, although I sometimes wonder if there could be some truth to this. Both times it happened was after I’d saved the files and shut down my computer properly. Obviously, files can be lost or hopelessly corrupted, even when you’ve done nothing wrong. This is why I have off site storage.

What is off-site storage?

Off-site storage, sometimes called the cloud, is just that. Your files are backed up to a third party server. So, heaven forbid, your computer gets lost or stolen, or an important file gets lost or damaged, you can easily download a backup. Some people may worry about privacy, which is a legitimate concern. However, any reliable off-site storage company will encrypt your files.

My personal choice

I use Carbonite, but there are other offsite backup services out there. Carbonite costs me a little over $50 per year, and it’s money well spent. It runs in the background and it automatically backs up my files. I never have to stop and do a backup. On those rare occasions when I’ve had to use it, I found it very easy. The first time was to recover missing a Word file. I got all but the last two paragraphs back. More recently, I had to recover an InDesign file that mysteriously vanished. Carbonite downloaded it completely intact.

But I back my stuff up on an external hard drive

Some people tell me they don’t need off site storage as they manually backup their files up on an external hard drive or a flash drive. Okay. So, what happens if you accidentally drop your external drive, or if you lose your flash drive? What happens if, Heaven forbid, your home is burglarized? Or if there’s a natural disaster? It happens. In such a scenario your external drive may be lost as well. You can replace your computer, but the data will be gone forever, unless you have an off site backup.

Stuff happens, and it can happen to you. Carbonite has saved my rear-end, not once, but twice. I’m now a customer for life.

Gayle Martin