It’s really interesting to read, and I particularly like the below definition of a journalist, and it demonstrates how the blogger doesn’t fit that mould and thus isn’t given the same protection/allowances as journalists are:

‘Defendant fails to bring forth any evidence suggestive of her status as a journalist. For example, there is no evidence of (1) any education in journalism; (2) any credentials or proof of any affiliation with any recognized news entity; (3) proof of adherence to journalistic standards such as editing, fact-checking, or disclosures of conflicts of interest; (4) keeping notes of conversations and interviews conducted; (5) mutual understanding or agreement of confidentiality between the defendant and his/her sources; (6) creation of an independent product rather than assembling writings and postings of others; or (7) contacting “the other side” to get both sides of a story. Without evidence of this nature, defendant is not “media.”‘

I find the whole story fascinating, as I do with the debate about bloggers as journalists generally.

Do I classify bloggers as journalists? On the whole, no.

Do I see myself as a journalist? At the moment, no.

Do I classify some blogs and their writers journalists? Yes.

People like Rachel Hills, Marieke Hardy and so on.

People who were full-blown journos before starting their blogs. (Or perhaps people who started out as bloggers, used that as a platform, and are now journos. But can their pre-proper-journo blog be counted as journalism now?)

I like how the definition above points out ‘proof of adherence to journalistic standards such as editing, fact-checking, or disclosures of conflicts of interest’.

As everyone knows: anyone can set up a blog and write whatever they want.

What journalistic standards! Pfft!

I’d like to think I hold myself to most – if not all – of those standards, but that still doesn’t make me a journalist.

If you look at other forms of media – newspapers, magazines, television – you have to have a certain level of respect, of knowledge, in order to write for them.

Anyone with a computer connection and basic internet skills can start a blog.

I don’t think bloggers deserve the same credibility, rights or similar as journalists, but I think we need to carve out our own rules and expectations.

Which is going to be hard, given their is no convening body to over-see everyone.

What do you think?

Because I think I should be.

Ever since my interview with Don Grover, former CEO of Dymocks, about D Publishing I knew it wasn’t good.

Finally, they’ve released the contracts and self-publishing deals.

And, well, let’s just say, AUTHORS BEWARE.

Steph first told me about it last night and my jaw was literally wide open as she briefly described some of the terms and conditions.

I think the easiest and most concise way to find out is to read The Australian Literature Review’s summary of the contracts.

Some of the ‘highlights’ of the contract include:

Dymocks are given editorial control

The relevant clause here is under the heading of Legally Objectionable Material but don’t let that fool you, because another clause states that:

“headings are [for] the ease of reference only and do not affect interpretation.”

Therefore the clause below applies, whether related to legally objectionable material or not:

“If the Author refuses to amend or delete passages in the Work to Dymocks reasonable satisfaction then the Author must, at the request of Dymocks, repay all monies paid by Dymocks. On repayment of all monies this agreement terminates and the rights granted to Dymocks revert to the Author.”

An author’s future earnings potential, which could be based on years of time and effort, are put in Dymock’s hands and can be taken away

As the holder of exclusive rights, Dymocks could take punitive measures against authors they have a disagreement with by decreasing distribution or stopping it entirely for the author’s book(s) and not allowing the author have that work published elsewhere.

——

There are more, heaps more. It sickens me to think that D Publishing is sinking this low.

I would have expected more from them. Not much more, but more.

I think an important thing to remember is – as The Aust Lit Review points out – the Dymocks shops and franchisees probably had little to nothing to do with this.

This won’t shop me from shopping at Dymocks – especially at franchise stores – but there’s not much they can do will get my respect back.

Yes self-publishing tends to be bad. But this bad? Honestly?

It’s interesting to note that they’ve already amended the contract and taken certain parts of it off their website – no doubt thanks to the back-lash which is quickly making its way around the internet.

The worse part is that there are writers out there desperate enough to pay Dymocks and sign their writing souls away.

The power Dymocks has to stock books in their stores is large no doubt, and many people will over-look the crap contract to see their shining book in the Dymocks stores.

It’s really awful how companies such as this can blatantly rip people off and get away with it.

Yes, no-one is forcing people to sign up with Dymocks but does that make it any better? Where are the morals?

Anyone who spends half a day in publishing can tell the contract is awful and shouldn’t be allowed.

“We wanted an author paid rather than the publisher pull,” Grover says in my interview with him.

What an utter joke.

Boy it’s been a long time and a rough few weeks.

Firstly, to explain my absence over the past week or so: my grandfather died.

He was sick and in a home, but it happened suddenly (stroke Wednesday, died Friday, funeral yesterday) so since last Wednesday I’ve been in a crying-and-family bubble and haven’t done much else.

I spoke at the funeral, saw people I haven’t seen for years and generally was a mess the whole time.

It’s hard to believe he’s really gone, you know?

I am also very far behind in my new degree considering the lack of study over the past week.

Also, two Saturday’s ago my car broke down and on Monday that cost $500 to repair. Fun. Times.

This morning I took my sister and her best friend to the airport – I had to be up at 4.30am! I am clearly a Very Good Sister

This past week has been so stressful, sad, tiring, messy and intense.

Leaving little room to do anything but collapse at the end of the day (bed at 9pm last night anyone?).

On the plus side, something extraordinary is happening tomorrow night so I should have a bumper post for you Saturday. (Saying I don’t collapse from exhaustion half way through! )

And Sunday is Penguin Live so watch out for that!

Currently I’m at work biding my time until I leave for another job. Then I have a list of things I need to do in two hours (picking up stuff, dropping stuff off, washing, waxing, etc) before going to another job later tonight.

I just need to get through these next few weeks and come January hopefully I can breathe again!

You’ll all wait for me, right?

(Winner of The Sending is Rani!)

RIP James Russell Burke, 1921-2011

Here’s why:

1) My housemate and I re-arranged my desk area in my bedroom. It took us over five hours to clean, move and finally re-assemble everything.

Here’s the finished picture:

There’s a printer behind the television, that’s crushed pineapple in the bowl and the red thing on top of the monitor is my childhood alarm clock! I was so excited to find that (buried under piles of crap ).

(Don’t judge my Taylor Swift poster – focus on all the book things! )

I decided earlier that day that I missed using the huge desk I got from the side of the road, because that’s in the study and not in my room. So I decided to move it!

The jumbled mess of cords under my old, small desk was an electrical hazard: there was three power boards on top of each other, and the base one (plugged into the wall via an extension cord) was all cracked. My housemate was surprised I hadn’t died.

Now, as you can see, he did an awesome job of tying all the cords together so it’s neat. And not an electrical hazard.

I am beyond in love with all the new space I have!

Although now, as you can see, it’s half blocking my walk-in-robe (left) and there’s about half a foot space between the corner and my bed (right).

Oh well. Worth it!

2) Monday marked the beginning of my Communications degree! Yay! So far, I’ve almost finished week 1 of one subject (just have to do the one hour online chat on Thursday) and am starting the next subject. I am getting mega-confused because all three subjects are with different unis (through Open Universities Australia) and therefore they all have different: ways of delivering the course (ie audio lectures, paper lectures), referencing standards, ways to hand in assignments, websites, support – so basically everything. It’s a nightmare trying to navigate everything and I’m just getting tangled in circles. I decided to work through one subject at a time in an attempt to sort everything out. On the plus side, I’ve listened to one lecture twice now!

3) Saturday I babysat from 9am-1am and on the way Ben (my car) died. Cue panic and tears. Luckily my dad came to the rescue! Ben’s going in for a service on Monday, there goes my rent money… Sorry Mr Landlord!

4) I bought a new book the other day: Give Me Four Reasons. One thing I didn’t know when I purchased it was that the kids are in primary school (not mentioned at all in the blurb!!) but I’ve read a few chapters and am enjoying it. It’s just very young young adult…

5) This is going around Facebook, and made me laugh:

6) Slightly worrying and disturbing article about an author that (allegedly) ripped off his own student-teacher affair and wrote about it.

7) I’m not even writing this today. I wrote it yesterday. Because today I am working 7am-10am then 10am-2pm, then 230pm-5pm, then the online tute for one of my subjects. Busy busy!

I quit the Gift Shop! Hooray! Feeling vaguely sad as it’s the end of an era (I’d worked there since I was 15) but I’m so glad I’ve done it. The manager was a bully-nightmare, the pay wasn’t even minimum wage and it was generally a stressful job. Plus I didn’t have any time.

9) If you missed it yesterday, Penguin are holding a BTL Live event. Check out the details and come along!

10) Some competition’s I’m running you may want to enter: The Sending (closes today! Hurry!), Froi of the Exiles, Divergent.

What’s new in your world?

I went with Steph from My Girl Friday and after filling ourselves up with yummy cupcakes and milkshakes (which was a bad idea considering the event was catered!) we headed over there.

Steph, because she is a legend, has already put up a very comprehensive summary of all the new books coming out in the coming year!

Each publisher presented four books to the crowd – most did two from this year and two coming next year.

Many authors were there too, presenting on behalf of their publishers, including Fiona Wood, Cath Crowley and Michael Pryor to name a few.

As Steph scribbled madly beside me (honestly, check out her post! Look at the detail!) I just sat back and marveled at all the new books.

At the train station, we went through our goody bag, which included three books and – obviously – tonnes of publisher catalogues.

It’s so much fun, to me, to see everything that’s coming out.

I remember at the bookshop my boss never read catalogues – simply chucked them in the bin. I was the one who rescued them and lovingly gave them attention!

I remember another time I saw a nice-looking envelope with his name on it on top of the recycling, unopened. I asked what it was for, and he said it was an invite for the Random House Christmas Party. I was shocked it was in the bin and he shrugged and said he hated going to events like that. I stood with my mouth open and he told me to take his invite and go! I’m pretty sure there was a life-or-death situation on that night otherwise of course I would have gone!

It was a lot of fun, but I think sometimes events like this can just be cruel as I want the new books now dammit not next year!!!

If you missed out on this, don’t worry, as Penguin are holding another awesome similar event!

BTL Live is happening in a couple of weeks, and all the details to register are here. I’ll be there with Steph so come and hang out with us!

One of the books they gave us was Divergent by Veronica Roth. I reviewed it earlier this year and loved it so I’ve decided to give away my copy of it I got last night!

I don’t need two copies so I’m spreading the book-love!

Simply leave your email address in the comments below and pick which Faction you’d be a part of! (Read my review to find out more about what that means.)

Candor (the honest)
Abnegation (the selfless)
Dauntless (the brave)
Amity (the peaceful)
Erudite (the intelligent)

Competition closes 19 December, everyone can enter!

Fiercely loyal to the Queen and Finnikin, Froi has been trained roughly and lovingly by the Guard sworn to protect the royal family, and has learned to control his quick temper.  But when he is sent on a secretive mission to the kingdom of Charyn, nothing could have prepared him for what he finds.  Here he encounters a damaged people who are not who they seem, and must unravel both the dark bonds of kinship and the mysteries of a half-mad Princess.

And in this barren and mysterious place, he will discover that there is a song sleeping in his blood, and though Froi would rather not, the time has come to listen.

Froi of the Exiles is the sequel to Finnikin of the Rock and sure to be a fantastic read if the brilliant reviews thus far are anything to go by!

Thanks to Penguin, Lit Life has a copy of this fabulous book to give away!

Simply either email me or leave a comment below with your email address to be in the running!

Comp closes 19 December – just in time for Christmas!

Australia only:)

So yesterday it was Thanksgiving in America and despite not being American, I really think the holiday has some good values that the rest of the world could see fit to introduce.

A holiday without presents where everyone gathers around to give thanks for what they have? Yes, please!

(It’s also hilariously ironic that they often call it Turkey Day and that I have a picture of a Turkey on here as my nick-name in primary school was Turkey! My surname is Burke, then you go Burkey-Turkey… get it? My best friend even named her new gold fish after me when we were 12, Turkster and Gobbling )

However if I ever were to go to America to celebrate it, I wouldn’t eat the Turkey  – ewww! My best friend always refers to that as me not wanting to be a cannibal by eating my own

So, I decided that I’d spend a moment here talk about the things I’m thankful for – one, because I shamelessly stole it from Mamamia and two, because my sister’s guinea pig died today from unknown causes, she was sitting beside me crying while I drove her to the vet and it really made me stop and think.

So, in no particular order and no doubt forgetting things, I am thankful for:

1. The fact that I have choices and are free to make my own decisions. Today, for example, I dropped everything and went to my sister’s side. This meant, however, the manager at the Gift Shop was very shitty at me, but who cares! Even better about making my own decisions: I quit! I was planning on quitting anyway (okay, so I had planned from about an hour before my sister called me) (I am seriously worried about having no time to study :s) but since I wasn’t going to go in because of that and I couldn’t make tomorrow either I figured I’d just do it at the same time (don’t worry, government law says casuals don’t have to give notice (I don’t even get minimum wage so I don’t feel bad!!)). Felt totally justified when my manager started yelling at my sister. Honestly!!!
2. Yes, I did smash my iPhone on concrete today, but total first world problem
3. Books! I am so thankful for all the wonderful books in my life
4. Family and friends, duh
5. That I’m free to do what I want – my new uni course starts next week, I’m getting a new housemate (hooray!), and I now have three hours free to continue editing my manuscript
6. I’m thankful that my landlord is mowing the lawn and snipping the garden (means I don’t have to do it )
7. I’m also thankful for lots of things that I can’t think of right now

(And now I’m feeling all the more thankful as that Dido song is playing – from the Victorian government WorkSafe TV ads.)

What are you thankful for?

It’s a first-edition Virginia Woolf My Moment. It is BEAUTIFUL.

It even came with some old newspaper clippings from the 1960′s which are articles about Woolf:

It’s pretty much the coolest thing ever. It has the yellowing paper, that delicious old-book smell.

It’s golden-embossed spine has ‘The Hogarth Press’ on it which is just fantastic, and I love love that it is a first edition.

As some of you may know, I collect Woolf like she’s going out of fashion. I have all her dairies, all her letters, all her books and essays, almost every biography written on her, and lots on other people in her life: Leonard Woolf, Vita Sackville-West.

I found this in a second-hand bookshop in Lorne (Fowlers, just a great store) when I went a few weeks ago. (Sadly, I was down to my last dollars and it was either eat or buy this book. I would have seriously purchased it but driving back to Melbourne through a storm with three people in the car without food? Probably not a great idea!)

It was in a glass cabinet and looked so pretty and inviting and awesome just sitting there and I knew before I even touched it I had to have it.

Collecting Woolf is like an addiction. I have more books on and about her than I know what to do with, but I can’t stop. I see one, I have to buy it.

Second-hand bookshops are truly treasure troves: you never know what you’ll find.

Has anyone had any great second-hand bookshop buys?

It seems everyone has been watching it – yesterday I was out having lunch in a cafe and three middle age men were behind me and they were talking about how ‘bloody good’ The Slap was.

The mini series, by ABC, has had generally positive reviews, and, if my Facebook feed is anything to go by, it well-loved by general viewers.

Me? I’ve been watching it (obviously!). I haven’t watched last night’s yet (Aisha) as I was out, but I plan on watching it tonight.

Can I be honest for a second?

I really enjoyed the first episode, Hector. Thought it was great. I also loved Anouk.

But as the weeks have gone by, I’m finding my liking for it has been dwindling…

Last week’s, Manolis, I was on my phone for most of it and tuned out: I just wasn’t that interested.

I’m looking forward to watching Aisha, and I’m definitely going to be watching the end of the series – but I don’t know. Something just isn’t right.

If I were even more honest, I remember reading the book when it came out and I remember my interest dropping as the chapters went on.

It’s odd: I can’t put my finger on it.

Saying that, when I got an email from The Wheeler Centre yesterday about a special event including a screening of the last episode – Richie – and a discussion with key players in the series including author Christos Tsiolkas - I almost fell off my seat with excitement.

And then I realised it’s on a night which I am busy, and can’t get out of

So, can someone go for me? And tell me how it was?

Details below.

What do you think of The Slap?

The Slap
Exclusive Screening

It’s not too often a piece of Australian television can be a true barbecue stopper.

Adaptation can be a tricky thing: the more you love the original work, the harder it is to
embrace its reimagining in a different medium. For fans of Christos Tsiolkas’ electrifying novel The Slap, the dramatic potential of a TV version was a given. But its creative and popular success — and boldness of vision and execution — have exceeded expectations.

Over the past seven weeks audiences have embraced ABC1′s landmark adaptation of the modern Australian classic: rediscovering Hector, Anouk, Harry, Connie, Rosie, Manolis and Aisha. Next Thursday night, the 24th of November, it all comes to an end with the final episode: ‘Richie’.

To celebrate, The Wheeler Centre is proud to invite subscribers to an exclusive cinema screening and discussion at Melbourne’s Kino Cinema.

From 7pm, a panel made up of some of the key players will reflect on the series. Radio National’s Peter Mares will be talking with Christos Tsiolkas (author), Tony Ayres (director), Blake Davis (actor) and Carol Sklan (ABC TV Drama).

Then from 8pm the episode itself will be shown.

This is a free event. Book now for your chance to be part of this rare opportunity, and to celebrate this rare creative achievement.

Thankfully, The Sending, is out now!

The series, first published in 1987, has been a huge hit with devoted fans all over the world – and critics, with plenty of awards won too.

The Sending:

 The sixth book in The Obernewtyn Chronicles. The time has come at last for Elspeth Gordie to leave the Land on her quest to find and stop the computermachine Sentinel from unleashing the deadly Balance of Terror arsenal. But before she can embark on her quest, she must find a lost key. And although she has long prepared for this day, nothing is as she imagined. Elspeth’s search will take her where she never thought to go, and bestow upon her stranger companions than any she thought to have. It will lead her far from her destination to those she thought lost forever. And it will test her, as she has never been tested before…

Look! You can watch this awesome video of Isobelle talking about her life and writing:

And guess what! I have a copy of The Sending to give away!

In the spirit of fans having to wait a very long time for the series, answer this: what’s one thing you’ve had to wait a very long time for?

This is going to sound mega-lame and mega-embarrassing, but I think I have to say I waited *years* for Miley Cyrus to tour!!! Sad, yes. (I’ll just get back in my box now )

Comp closes 1 December, Australia only my lovies!

For more information,
Penguin Australia
Isobelle Carmody’s website