It's All Write

via NYPost: Immigration and Customs Enforcement is preparing to launch a “big f–king operation” across sanctuary cities — including Chicago and New York — immediately after President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, multiple sources told The Post.

So, I write YA, which means that for most of my contracts when the book is in hardcover, I get 10% of about $20 (YA books tend to be cheaper bc we want kids to buy them. They are going up in price, which is not ideal for kids). An author writing adult books gets the same percentage, but the books are almost twice the price, so the get a theoretical $4 every time I get a theoretical $2.

Once the paperback comes out (if it does), the percentage AND the price drops, but adult books remain higher than YA.

I got a flat fee for AHSOKA (I try not to think about what my life would look like if I got normal royalties, but...let's just say I'd own my house, and that's not counting the rest of my IP books, which I get 1-5% on), but we have been arguing with Disney every contract since then.

This is why we beg you not to pirate books. We need sales numbers to keep our advances (ie the original amount of money our publishers pay us) in the "livable wage" range, and even then, it's not a regular payment, so we need to keep selling books. Publishers only buy our books if we have a sales record, and pirating torpedoes that. Corporations don't really care if you pirate, but literally every sale is important to the author.

(Libraries buy books, so that's great! And used books are also good because SOMEone bought it, and now we might get a new fan. Buying ARCs is not cool--it literally says so on the cover--but I can't really blame consumers for that: it's the bookstore that should know better.)

My definitive ranking of my least favorite bodies of water! These are ranked from least to most scary (1/10 is okay, 10/10 gives me nightmares). I’m sorry this post is long, I have a lot of thoughts and feelings about this.

The Great Blue Hole, Belize

I’ve been here! I have snorkeled over this thing! It is terrifying! The water around the hole is so shallow you can’t even swim over the coral without bumping it, and then there’s a little slope down, and then it just fucking drops off into the abyss! When you’re over the hole the water temperature drops like 10 degrees and it’s midnight blue even when you’re right by the surface. Anyway. The Great Blue Hole is a massive underwater cave, and its roughly 410 feet deep. Overall, it’s a relatively safe area to swim. It’s a popular tourist attraction and recreational divers can even go down and explore some of the caves. People do die at the Blue Hole, but it is generally from a lack of diving experience rather than anything sinister going on down in the depths. My rating for this one is 1/10 because I’ve been here and although it’s kinda freaky it’s really not that bad.

Lake Baikal, Russia

When I want to give myself a scare I look at the depth diagram of this lake. It’s so deep because it’s not a regular lake, it’s a Rift Valley, A massive crack in the earth’s crust where the continental plates are pulling apart. It’s over 5,000 feet deep and contains one-fifth of all freshwater on Earth. Luckily, its not any more deadly than a normal lake. It just happens to be very, very, freakishly deep. My rating for this lake is a 2/10 because I really hate looking at the depth charts but just looking at the lake itself isn’t that scary.

Jacob’s Well, Texas

This “well” is actually the opening to an underwater cave system. It’s roughly 120 feet deep, surrounded by very shallow water. This area is safe to swim in, but diving into the well can be deadly. The cave system below has false exits and narrow passages, resulting in multiple divers getting trapped and dying. My rating is a 3/10, because although I hate seeing that drop into the abyss it’s a pretty safe place to swim as long as you don’t go down into the cave (which I sure as shit won’t).

The Devil’s Kettle, Minnesota

This is an area in the Brule River where half the river just disappears. It literally falls into a hole and is never seen again. Scientists have dropped in dye, ping pong balls, and other things to try and figure out where it goes, and the things they drop in never resurface. Rating is 4/10 because Sometimes I worry I’m going to fall into it.

Flathead Lake, Montana

Everyone has probably seen this picture accompanied by a description about how this lake is actually hundreds of feet deep but just looks shallow because the water is so clear. If that were the case, this would definitely rank higher, but that claim is mostly bull. Look at the shadow of the raft. If it were hundreds of feet deep, the shadow would look like a tiny speck. Flathead lake does get very deep, but the spot the picture was taken in is fairly shallow. You can’t see the bottom in the deep parts. However, having freakishly clear water means you can see exactly where the sandy bottom drops off into blackness, so this still ranks a 5/10.

The Lower Congo River, multiple countries

Most of the Congo is a pretty normal, if large, River. In the lower section of it, however, lurks a disturbing surprise: massive underwater canyons that plunge down to 720 feet. The fish that live down there resemble cave fish, having no color, no eyes, and special sensory organs to find their way in the dark. These canyons are so sheer that they create massive rapids, wild currents and vortexes that can very easily kill you if you fall in. A solid 6/10, would not go there.

Little Crater Lake, Oregon

On first glance this lake doesn’t look too scary. It ranks this high because I really don’t like the sheer drop off and how clear it is (because it shows you exactly how deep it goes). This lake is about 100 feet across and 45 feet deep, and I strongly feel that this is too deep for such a small lake. Also, the water is freezing, and if you fall into the lake your muscles will seize up and you’ll sink and drown. I don’t like that either. 7/10.

Grand Turk 7,000 ft drop off

No. 8/10. I hate it.

Gulf of Corryvreckan, Scotland

Due to a quirk in the sea floor, there is a permanent whirlpool here. This isn’t one of those things that looks scary but actually won’t hurt you, either. It absolutely will suck you down if you get too close. Scientists threw a mannequin with a depth gauge into it and when it was recovered the gauge showed it went down to over 600 feet. If you fall into this whirlpool you will die. 9/10 because this seems like something that should only be in movies.

The Bolton Strid, England

This looks like an adorable little creek in the English countryside but it’s not. Its really not. Statistically speaking, this is the most deadly body of water in the world. It has a 100% mortality rate. There is no recorded case of anyone falling into this river and coming out alive. This is because, a little ways upstream, this isn’t a cute little creek. It’s the River Wharfe, a river approximately 30 feet wide. This river is forced through a tiny crack in the earth, essentially turning it on its side. Now, instead of being 30 feet wide and 6 feet deep, it’s 6 feet wide and 30 feet deep (estimated, because no one actually knows how deep the Strid is). The currents are deadly fast. The banks are extremely undercut and the river has created caves, tunnels and holes for things (like bodies) to get trapped in. The innocent appearance of the Strid makes this place a death trap, because people assume it’s only knee-deep and step in to never be seen again. I hate this river. I have nightmares about it. I will never go to England just because I don’t want to be in the same country as this people-swallowing stream. 10/10, I live in constant fear of this place.

Honorable mention: The Quarry, Pennsylvania

1. Even if you do something embarrassing AND someone judges you AND talks about it to others, you really haven't done anything but improve their life. People like bonding over interesting stories. If I'm at the mall and I look strange or act weird, people at best don't care and at worst have a little story to tell their friends.

2. Talking about people is part of life. You probably have done it to others. What comes out of people's mouths when you're out of the room doesn't necessarily reflect their true feelings. Getting words out of your head can be how you check if they're true. Many people might say something mean so they can come to a more neutral understanding. We often think "said behind my back = true feelings" but it isn't true.

3. If someone is actually consistently talking behind your back in a cruel, mean way and being two-faced to you, that's actually them being in the wrong. You aren't responsible for that. You don't have to burden yourself worrying that you're doing something that would make someone act this way. You can operate as though everyone is being upfront and honest and not make concessions for passive aggression.

4. If you talk behind people's backs a lot and operate in a judgemental way to others, try cutting back on that behavior. It honestly helps you feel less scared of others talking about you.

5. If your friend group talks a lot behind people's backs and judges or harasses others for fun, try to discourage that behavior or step away. Seeing people obsess over others isn't good for your health, and those people's behavior isn't normal. Same with hanging out on dramamill websites etc.

6. If you actually concretely find people actually talking behind your back a lot, analyze why. It could be that it's bullying, but it could also be that people don't feel safe telling you their feelings. Think about how you treat others.

He sounded interested and even concerned. I thought he had been touched by what the doctor and advocates in the meeting had just shared about their journey with their patients and their own family members. But I was wrong.

“Those people . . . ” Donald said, trailing off. “The shape they’re in, all the expenses, maybe those kinds of people should just die.”

I truly did not know what to say. He was talking about expenses. We were talking about human lives. For Donald, I think it really was about the expenses, even though we were there to talk about efficiencies, smarter investments, and human dignity.

I turned and walked away

[from later in the article]

Donald took a second as if he was thinking about the whole situation.

“I don’t know,” he finally said, letting out a sigh. “He doesn’t recognize you. Maybe you should just let him die and move down to Florida.”

Wait! What did he just say? That my son doesn’t recognize me? That I should just let him die?

Did he really just say that? That I should let my son die . . . so I could move down to Florida?

Really?

[...]

Maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised to hear Donald say that. It wasn’t far off from what he’d said that day in the Oval Office after our meeting with the advocates. Only that time, it was other people’s children who should die. This time, it was my son.

When you’re legitimately so evil you tell a parent, your own fucking nephew, to their face that it’d be more cost-effective to let their child die because they are disabled.

Honestly, it's not the ableism or eugenics that shocks me. Donald Trump has shown who he is time and time again. I guess what got me was that he’d be willing to hold the same views for family members.

Usually these types of people make exceptions for their own. “It’s not immoral if it’s my abortion, I’m only doing this because I have no choice, mine is necessary” kind of thing.

But nope. Donald just straight up thinks his great nephew should die because it’s expensive to keep him alive.

Jesus Wept.

Fucking vote. Please, I’m begging you. As a disabled immigrant who isn’t able to vote I see so many people saying they’re going to boycott the election by not voting and I want to scream.

You boycott products by withholding money.

Not voting in elections only disenfranchises yourself. You’re not protesting. You’re giving tyrants power.

Please vote like people’s lives depend on it because they do.

From her Wikipedia page:

"On her first day as secretary, Haaland met with tribal media in a press conference organized by the department and the Native American Journalists Association, speaking about her intention to include the tribes as decisions that impact them are made.[73] In April 2021, Haaland announced a new unit within Bureau of Indian Affairs that plans to tackle the decades-long crisis of missing and murdered Native Americans, saying, "We are fully committed to assisting Tribal communities with these investigations, and the MMU will leverage every resource available to be a force-multiplier in preventing these cases from becoming cold case investigations".[74]

In May 2021, Haaland approved the new constitution of the Cherokee Nation with protections for Cherokee Freedmen.[75]

In June 2021, Haaland announced the creation of the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative. The initiative's goal is to investigate long-standing abuse in the now defunct residential boarding schools that housed Native American children under the 1819 Civilization Fund Act.[76][77] Haaland attended a series of Road to Healing events to bring together survivors and their stories.[15] Haaland's grandparents had also been sent to the boarding schools.[15]

In November 2021, Haaland banned the word "squaw", a derogatory term for Native American women, from all federally owned lands, and ordered a task force to determine new names for the 650 places that currently use the word.[78][79]

In March 2023, Haaland announced $25 million to be dedicated to bison conservation.[80]

Haaland was involved in President Biden's designation of national monuments, including Avi Kwa Ame National Monument and Baaj Nwaavjo I'tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument.[81][82]"

From this Washington Post article:

"The 54th secretary of the interior and only the third woman to serve, Haaland possesses a biography familiar to many Americans. She has been a single mother who at times has been on food stamps, in forbearance and without housing, crashing on friends’ couches.

“I know what it’s like to have $5 in your checking account,” she said. “I know what it’s like to decide between paying the rent or, you know, buying groceries for my child.”

...

She took the lead in a 20-year ban halting gas and oil development in New Mexico’s Chaco Canyon, a sacred cultural site for Native people, which angered some Navajo over the loss of revenue, leading them to blockade the roads to last month’s victory celebration.

...

Her only child Somah is nonbinary, uses the pronouns they/them and works in media for an Indigenous nonprofit and a cultural center. "

They were Aggressively Ecumenical. When they conquered, which they did a lot, they schlorped up everyone else's gods and added them to their own pantheon (hence the multilingual ritual texts). They called themselves the People of A Thousand Gods. They were not exaggerating.

Their first king, Hattusili I, has an official royal edict where he whines forever about how his family was super ungrateful and didn't support him. His son? Gave him a vassal state, rebelled. His daughter? Left her home at the capital, she incited rebellion there. His nephew? Conspired with his mom, Hattusili's sister, against him. We don't know the sister's name because he just calls her "the snake."

There's a Hittite letter to the Mycenaean Greeks which indicates that they could maybe stand to cool their tits about Troy.