Editing, Free Books, and Other things

First up: Free Book. This Found Thing. Get it. Read it. Enjoy it (if possible)

Second: I'm beginning to understand why people don't talk about it when other people abuse them. You have the fear of reprisal, which sucks...and then you get the people who won't stop talking about the thing. EVER. Guys, I am not and do not want to be "That writer that RH stalked" or "That rape victim" ect ect. It's a thing that happened, but it's not my identity. And that is the part that is getting very, very exhausting.

One thing that I dislike is when a victim's story becomes a part of their aggressor's narrative. It erases the identity of the victim, while simultaneously hooking everything about their life to their abuser, forever. I strongly admire people like Malala Yusafzai and Elizabeth Smart, because they both managed to rip their stories out of their abuser's hands and make it about them, their recovery, and about building up other girls like them so that shit like that never happens again. And that's what the point of stuff like this ought to be. It shouldn't be about how terrible Person X is--that should be a part of the story, dear GOD yes, but that shouldn't be the point of the story. The point should be this is what this behavior does, this is how people survive, and this is what we need to stop. 

It's not about them, guys. It's not about the people that hurt us. It's about us, and making ourselves and our lives have value above and beyond what other people do to us. There's a line in James Alan Gardner's Vigilant, "Live in the Real and name the lies". I believe a big lie is that the people who harm us have power over us. They don't. They can hurt us, but hurting isn't power. They only get power if we surrender it.

Don't let them get away with it, by all means, but don't let them and what they've done become so much of your life that you don't have room for anything else.

Meanwhile, I am editing books. I am back on the horse, somewhat. Should be able to start talking release dates for the next part of Ivory Scars, Iron Bars very soon. Like, within the next week soon.

So be well, my lovelies. Have a great weekend.

...and, uh, buy books. Mine. If you like. :D