So yesterday was a quiet news day, huh?
I read her article and thought, at the time and as usual, Jane is really skilled at placing a specific issue in a larger historical context. In this case, she looked at their reported earnings and the reported problems from author commentary against the timeline of the digital book proliferation and asked, logically I thought, WTF?
It's a valid question, really.
Here's some more:
Ellora's Cave has filed a defamation suit against Jane, demanding that she take down the blog post and claiming damages in excess of $25,000.00. Plus, they've demanded in the suit filing the names of those who have commented anonymously on that post.
Oh, boy.
So what happens now?
A lot of people say WTF, for one thing. I know I am.
Nate Hoffelder wrote at the Digital Reader about the Streisand Effect, which is basically when a lawsuit highlights content or information that the lawsuit seeks to suppress.
The Streisand Effect was named after Barbra Streisand (who is amazing in many respects) filed suit against a photographer for publishing coastline photos of California's beach erosion, demanding that one be taken down because it showed her property. So of course once the suit was picked up by the media, everyone looked at that picture – which now accompanies the Wikipedia article explaining what the Streisand Effect is. A perfect illustration: hey, it's Barbra's house!
This suit, much like Streisand's, creates the same effect: instead of taking down the content, The Curious Case of Ellora's Cave is now probably among the most popular pages in DA's database.
So here's some Barbra Gifs to help me explain the rest of the reasons this is a big fucking deal.
So with the lawsuit, what happens now?
Well, the way defamation works, in the most simplest of terms, if the person being sued (in this case, Jane) can prove that what she said was true, then she wins. Jane's post links to several examples as backup for the points that she makes regarding nonpayment and the liquidation of assets.
Moreover, the process of discovery – which is when the attorneys on each side request access information they've determined is germane to the case – will examine Ellora's Cave's accounting, and whether or not authors have in fact been paid, since that's part of what Jane's column addressed, and part of what Ellora's Cave has objected to in their lawsuit filing.
But in the larger context, this means a publisher is suing a blogger for reporting about business matters. Effectively, EC is suing Jane for practicing journalism and also demanding the identity of her anonymous commenters.
And that right there is a big OSHIT. Because I'm also a blogger.
And so are many of you who read this page. (Hi there.)
What does this mean for bloggers?
Many – if not most – bloggers are hobbyists, who write about books because that's what they like to do, instead or maybe in addition to other awesome activities. Usually in addition to – bloggers are busy.
Most bloggers are not corporations – such as an LLC, or limited liability corporation company (sorry!). This site is owned by Smart Bitches Trashy Books, LLC, for example. Dear Author is owned by Dear Author Media Network, LLC. The LLC provides a sort of separation between business and personal for the person operating the site, and while state laws vary on how to establish an LLC, in most states it's a pretty straightforward process. At the book blogger convention at RT, I spoke briefly about advertising, revenue, and income from a blog, and the first step I advise any blogger is to establish an LLC for the blog.
Why? Because of situations like this.
In conversations with bloggers privately and in the Book Blogger Convention Jane and I run, many, many book bloggers have mentioned being afraid to write negative content about a book, or a publisher because of their worry about being sued for content. Because for one thing, lawsuits are messy and often painfully expensive.
And it's not just the book bloggers who have been afraid to speak up. Authors are also hesitant to do so as well. You might think this is just drama and self-aggrandizement, or people fanning themselves for attention.
I assure you, it's not. This case affects authors as well. I'm not the only one who thinks so:
What is happening to @dearauthor is EXACTLY why authors fear speaking out against certain publishers. Threats of legal action happen a LOT.
— Larissa Ione (@LarissaIone) September 27, 2014
I hope no one is still mocking the idea that EC authors were afraid to speak out.
— Bree Bridges (@mostlybree) September 27, 2014
The information Jane reported specifically linked to individual authors who stated that they weren't being paid, and in the comments, other authors agreed, several anonymously, and said they were in a position where they didn't feel they could speak out.
Now Ellora's Cave is demanding their identities.
That's dangerous for everyone. It's dangerous for anyone who writes about books, who joins us to talk about books, and for anyone who writes the books that we're writing about.
Nate and Jane both have also mentioned SLAPP, short for “strategic lawsuit against public participation,” which refers to lawsuits filed frivolously to silence critics. As Jane clarified today, Ohio, the state in which EC has filed suit, does not have anti-SLAPP statues in place, which means they can't be used to dismiss the suit.
Wait, what about those who are celebrating Jane got sued?
Yeah. I definitely want to address those who are celebrating that Jane got sued.
There are plenty of people in publishing who dislike both Jane and me. We've talked about that at length.
But I've seen a few authors celebrating the lawsuit, and… wow. This is so much bigger than whom you like vs whom you don't.
Jane was writing about authors not being paid. About a publisher not paying authors, and authors speaking out about it. We've reported on similar situations in the past, both of us. Dorchester in particular – we both declined to review Dorchester books because Dorchester authors began posting wherever they could about nonpayment of royalties, and that their books still being offered for sale despite reversion of rights.
So this is, specifically, a big deal, and a giant WTF isn't nearly enough to cover my reaction. I'm completely baffled by the celebration over this lawsuit.
ETA: The celebrations of a few are minor compared to the overwhelming support Jane has experienced. As she said to me earlier, “most everyone has been amazing. I'm blown away by the support and I love our romance community.”
What about commenters?
Jane has stated that she will protect the anonymity of anyone who wishes to comment or contact her with information. I extend the same offer here – though please note, if you comment using an email address that you've used elsewhere, your Gravatar may show up. Better to enter a bogus address in the email field, like anon@anon.com or similar.
And how else can people help?
For right now, listen and learn. If the suit moves into litigation, Jane will set up a legal fund, and we'll post about that, too.
But most of all: talk. It's scary to speak up, especially with actions like this against a blogger. But the best part about the blogging community on any subject, not just books, is that hearing from everyone means we all learn more. It's scarier to speak up now – I totally get that. But it's important, more than ever.
What, there's more?
Yup! Updated information, new links, Twitter discussions – links ahoy, so grab a drink or a smoke or whatever can calm you down a moment. There's more.
You might have seen the Google cache of this page. Sorry about that – Reddit linked to us, which is awesome (hi Redditors!) but sent the server into a tailspin. But we're back, and my apologies.
First, Jane has retained the services of attorney Marc Randazza, described at Popehat as a “First Amendment Badass.” I'm not sure there's a better description for an attorney, to be honest.
Second, I didn't want you to miss this post from Sunita, who writes at DearAuthor, about the chilling effect of Ellora's Cave's lawsuit, and specifically why they chose to highlight Jane's personal details:
EC picked the wrong person to sue, no question. But by filing at all, they’re also reminding their authors and editors that they have no compunction about publicizing the personal information of anyone they see as an adversary. It’s not necessary to sue an individual person in this case; suing Dear Author LLC would have taken care of their needs.* But it wouldn’t have sent the same “we know who you are” message. EC has already stipulated in internal communications that authors “include both legal name and pen name when communicating with Ellora’s Cave.” This just ups the ante….
As Lawless points out in the comments… suing Jane was potentially more lucrative than suing Dear Author LLC alone. But that still doesn’t explain why Jane wasn’t sued as “Jane Litte.” That choice not only sends the message that EC will sue bloggers for reporting about them, but that they will (gratuitously and spitefully) take the opportunity to reveal private information as part of the suit.
And then there's Courtney Milan's post today which further discusses the chilling effect, and Jaid Black's response on Twitter about the suit (since deleted) and Milan's perspective on Black and Ellora's Cave as Limited Purpose Public Figures:
…the standard for defamation actions for limited purpose public figures is substantially different than for private citizens. The standard is that the speaker must be acting with actual malice: that is, they must know (or be reckless about knowing) that the statements they are speaking are false. What that means is that if I say something and I have a good-faith belief that what I am saying is true–even if it later turns out to be false–I am not going to be held liable for defamation.
I point this out because I am extremely, extremely pissed off about this lawsuit. I believe that this lawsuit was filed for the purpose of chilling speech–and for the purpose of chilling true speech about a matter of imminent public concern. And I think that despite the outpourings of support, it’s working. This lawsuit is about teaching authors to sit down and shut up, even if their livelihood is at stake….
So I’m going to be tweeting harsh things about Ellora’s Cave that I believe to be true, and that I am confident will not be held defamatory under the limited public figure test because they are not made with actual malice. If they sue me, they sue me, and I’ll consider it money well spent.
I can’t give you legal advice about what to tweet. I can’t tell you that tweeting is safe and that it won’t harm you. But I’m going to be tweeting these things under the hashtag #notchilled–because I refuse to have legitimate speech about a matter of public concern chilled by a self-important bag of farts who happens to have access to a lawyer.
Hashtag? HELL YES HASHTAG: have a look at #notchilled so far, as former EC authors, published authors, writers, bloggers and readers participate.
Also: if you're an Ellora's Cave author who would like to let folks know about your other titles that are not published by EC, there's a form for you to fill out, which Jane developed.
Ellora's Cave has managed to anger several vocal parts of the romance community online, and I know word is spreading on email loops as well about this lawsuit. As I mentioned above, this may end up having the exact opposite effect that they wanted in terms of illuminating the complaints against them, but as Sunita and Courtney Milan have both mentioned, it's also spreading fear among those who write romance, and those who write about it. I know many people have written to Jane offering support, and I have seen so many people on social media and on their own sites writing about how angry they are, how unacceptable this lawsuit is, and how frustrating it is to witness it (let alone be the target of it). Sunita and Courtney Milan are right: it is scary to speak out now, and it is scary to know that they'd aim at a blogger (who is herself an attorney) who was practicing journalism. It's a relief to know that others are just as angry and appalled and are calling this lawsuit out as the bullshit that it is.
Updated 30 September 2014 1:30 pm ET:
Rather than start a new entry, I'm going to update this one until I can't update it any more because I've run out of room on the internet.
Today there was a temporary injunction hearing. During the hearing the judge did not grant the injunction, but did request that we come back for a more thorough hearing, where we would be able to provide evidence in our defense.
Truth is an absolute defense to defamation.
Therefore, If you are willing, I need help with the following:
Individual authors, editors, cover artists willing to testify, either in person, via telephone or in an affidavit to payments made/not made.
To clarify, anything that shows people not being paid or complaining about it.
It would be best if you could testify in person, but a sworn written statement will be adequate.
Additionally, if you have any Screenshots of any public statements regarding Ellora’s Cave, those would be helpful too.
You can reach me at jane@dearauthor.com.
You can spread the word via whatever social media or email loops you have. Here's a handy link to that entry on DA: bit.ly/help-jane.
Updated 3 October 2014:
Jane has asked me to administer a legal fund to help her with the costs of her defense: The Jane Litte Dear Author Legal Defense Fund is at GoFundMe, and details about contributions and the how and why of a legal fund are explained there.
Thank you for any help you can give, including spreading the word about how we can help Jane.
I know that Jane can’t comment on particulars related to the suit against her, but I wonder if someone here might have some insight.
I can’t help wondering about the impact of EC’s alleged failure to cooperate with court directives in a 2008 suit/counter suit against former EC employee Christina Brashears, filed in the same place in Ohio. Is that history likely to hurt them? (The EC folks were reported to have blown off court appearances and to have refused to produce documents as directed by the judge.)
Does the law require that the courts turn a blind eye to behavior in previous cases, or can it be taken into consideration?
Ooh – Mzcue, that’s a really good question. If I had to take a wild guess I’d say no, because the earlier case wasn’t a libel/defamation case and EC is represented by different counsel. But, I do expect them to pull the same stunts with discovery. No way in hell are they going to open their books. (Of course by predicting this so confidently I’m probably insuring that they do in fact comply with all discovery.)
I would also think if this case goes to trial, and EC loses, or DA gets summary judgment or something, it will be harder for them to litigate the same claims against other people in other jurisdictions. Defendants would be able to point to EC’s failure to prevail in this case as a reason for dismissing other such suits – I think. Maybe. Do not trust me on this.
Being the victim of an evil e-publisher closing their doors without paying their authors, I can empathize with the EC authors. The sense of betrayal and helpless to do anything feeling sucks and I don’t wish it on anyone.
I hope this whole mess brings to light how authors are actually treated and changes are made for the good of everyone.
“A little revolution now and then is a healthy thing, don’t you think?” [Red October]
UPDATE (I added this to the entry but wanted to make sure everyone who commented saw this as well):
Jane needs your help:
Today there was a temporary injunction hearing. During the hearing the judge did not grant the injunction, but did request that we come back for a more thorough hearing, where we would be able to provide evidence in our defense.
Truth is an absolute defense to defamation.
Therefore, If you are willing, I need help with the following:
Individual authors, editors, cover artists willing to testify, either in person, via telephone or in an affidavit to payments made/not made.
It would be best if you could testify in person, but a sworn written statement will be adequate.
Additionally, if you have any Screenshots of any public statements regarding Ellora’s Cave, those would be helpful too.
You can reach me at jane @ dearauthor.com.
You can spread the word via whatever social media or email loops you have. Here’s a handy link to that entry on DA: bit.ly/help-jane.
Help Jane? Puh-leaze. She like you tear down and make fun of authors and now you naturally want them to pay your attorney fees? I have two quotes for you: ‘Don’t bite the hand that feeds you.’ ‘You reap what you sow’. By the way its 2014, whrn are you goimg to get with the times and review IR and multicultural romance?
“‘You reap what you sow’.”
You sure do, darlin’. Which is what you will do with such a nasty attitude. Of course you’re a coward, going with the anonymous drive by, but don’t worry, you’ll get bitten.
As for Jane, she’s reaping what she’s sown, all right. Hundreds of people, including those of us who’ve tangled hard with her in the past (and even people who really don’t like some of the things she’s done), vowing financial and moral support for whatever she needs. Jane has supported authors and readers and reviewers in the past, and now they’re going to support her. They already are.
“By the way its 2014, whrn are you goimg to get with the times and review IR and multicultural romance?”
It’s 2014, when are you going to learn to use a fucking spell checker?
JerseyGirl, for one thing freedom of speech and being able to honestly express opinions is important. You’ve obviously missed that. Secondly, as far as I know, she actually hasn’t asked anyone to pay for anything, but many of us have offered, even those who don’t always agree with her, because YES we feel free speech is THAT important.
@Jerseygirl:
Jane hasn’t asked for money. She’s asked for help from anyone who is willing to speak up about their experiences with Ellora’s Cave, which is scary for many authors.
Like I said, this is a lot bigger than whom you like and whom you don’t. If you don’t like what we say or what we write, that’s ok. There are many other spaces online for you to enjoy.
But a publisher who tries to silence one of us is trying to silence all of us – and that includes you, too.
@ jerseygirl
I can’t believe how BLIND you are about what’s going on. This aint about Jane and whether or not she’s trashed your books on her blog but about suppression of….oh why bother. I’m not an author but I read and I read LOTS especially IR and multicultural romance. If I knew your pen name I wouldn’t touch your books even if you paid me because I think you’re a moron.
God this is awful! I hope Jane gets a swift/speedy outcome from all this mess. I’d definitely help out if the hat is passed around. And I’m in Australia!
@Ann Sommerville: you rock! Plus I have some of your books (excuse the fan girl moment :))
“Plus I have some of your books “
Thanks, hon!
@Ann Sommerville how am I being anonymous? I don’t have a website so that’s why my name doesn’t link to anything. Speaking of anonymous where are your pictures on your website/twitter page? What do you have to hide? LOL! Oh, and have you ever heard of auto type on cell phones?
@Erin Burns The writing was on the wall. Just had her BFF Sarah do it. And the EC authors would be stupid to donate or even testify. What will they gain? It’s not going to get their rights back any sooner. It will hurt them even more by possibly delaying or freezing checks. But, I sure as heck won’t support someone who’s downed Ellora’s Cave from the jump.
@RomanceReader ‘I wouldn’t read/touch your books’ WTF? GROW UP! I’m not an author so I don’t give a f*@k because you don’t pay my bills. And if I were an IR writer, I wouldn’t give two f**ks. A fickle reader wouldn’t be an audience I would try to maintain or run after anyway.
@JerseyGirl I am still not seeing any where where she is asking for money. If there is some plea, by all means link to it. As for the EC authors, best I can tell, plenty have given up on ever getting their money or their rights back. What will they gain? Sometimes people do things for what is right, not for what they will gain. That is a personal choice each individual must make for themselves. And I certainly wouldn’t call what DA has done downing EC from the jump. Look back through archives. They reviewed EC books, and discussed things that EC was doing previously, without any negativity.
As for you posting anonymously, while that is certainly your right, you don’t have to have a website to post as yourself. It is fairly simple, you just type in your actual name in the place where it says name.
This is not about suppression of speech. Why a bunch of people not involved in this suit have turned it into a big suppression of speech suit they’re directly involved in is beyond me.
This is a defamation suit lodged against a specific entity based on a specific piece.
Not one single person’s “speech” has been suppressed, nor has their been a “chilling effect”.
Writers willingly, knowingly, happily signed confidentiality clauses. Now they’re bound by them. Sorry, but that’s not having their speech suppressed, nor is it the result of a chilling effect. They’re adults who signed a legal contract and now they have to abide by it.
This is the sort of stuff that people should look into BEFORE they write hit pieces.
I am not so sure DA is in the clear here, although I think EC is stretching with some of their accusations.
As in just about everything, the truth lies somewhere in between the two extremes, or “sides”.
This is the United States of America, we are all protected by the same laws and have the same right to exercise our freedoms, and one of those freedoms is the right to seek recourse through the courts when we believe we have been wronged. The law will prevail in this case, as it should. That’s the deal with citizenship in this country—it’s not about who’s friends with who, and who was mean to whosit on Twitter, or whathaveyou. This isn’t high school. It’s the real world. In the real world, when a person poses as a journalist of sorts and writes an expose about a person or company, they knowingly leave themselves open to legal action by that person. In that light, they ought to think long and hard about what they write, what their sources are, and they should make sure they have documented evidence for each of their allegations BEFORE the piece goes live.
So we shall see what we shall see—the judge will decide if DA has enough evidence to back up the piece or not, and the suit will be dismissed or will go forward.
The rest of this nonsense going around Twitter and at these various sites is just a bunch of overaged meangirls engaging in catfights.
@thisiswhyistoppedreadingromance Actually, the freedoms protected by the US Consitutution in this case are the freedom of speech and the freedom of the press. There is no freedom to bring frivolous lawsuits in this country and that is what EC did. I suggest you read Courtney Milan’s explanation of the legal standards involved since she is as brilliant an attorney as she is a writer and very clearly explains why EC has no case. EC brought this case because they wanted to punish a blogger who wrote a serious piece on EC’s already well publicized financial difficulties. By bringing a lawsuit they are subjecting Jane to very serious legal bills. Any one else who thinks to say anything publicly about EC will see this behavior and, depending upon their own personal resources, could decide that they should keep silent rather than potentially incur huge legal bills for speaking the truth or their opinion. That is the chilling effect of this lawsuit. EC also requested information on the persons who commented on the piece which would certainly scare those who commented and scare off in future other potential commenters which is what a “chilling effect on speech” means. It is about people other than Jane and DA being afraid to exercise their first amendment right to free speech. In this case the truth does not lie between two extremes, this case is frivolous, EC has no chance of winning and brought it to cause pain to a person who published a serious piece analyzing important issues. Jane I am sure had sufficient evidence for her piece, but more evidence is helpful now that she is in court. If she can show overwhelming evidence to support her journalism, it will be easier to demonstrate that this case is frivolous and it may just be possible to obtain sanctions against EC, including attorney costs, which is what ought to happen in a just world. It is odd to me that your pen name suggests that you would stop reading a genre because you dislike a blogger or what is written about the industry. How is a genre of fiction at fault?
not reading romance?
Have you ever heard of Popehat? (This is a rhetorical question, given what you wrote, you haven’t)
Popehat is a blog run by a number of lawyers. The main blogger, Ken White, is a huge fan of the First Amendment, and therefore, covers all manners of suits which seek to limit free speech.
What Jane Litte posted on The Curious Case of Ellora’s Cave consisted of facts: matters of public record (unpaid tax liens) and documents sent by the company to authors, editors, etc.; along with inferences drawn from the comparison of these facts to the statements/boasts made by the company’s founder and owner.
All of which is clear if you actually take a moment to read the post and follow the links within.
Suing an individual reporting on facts and drawing conclusions from those facts, is in fact very much within the type of lawsuits that Popehat calls vexatious litigation aimed at chilling free speech.
But you are not interested in any of the above, are you? Of course not.
It’s all about the “mean girls” and the “catfights”—with the parting dig about ages.
Very credible comment, indeed.
Again, the judge in this case will decide if DA has enough evidence to satisfy their claim that their piece is not defamatory, and will also decide whether EC’s case is frivolous/without merit.
You can claim the suit was intentionally lodged out of some grand scheme for Romancelandia-domination, but I think you’re giving EC/JB far too much credit.
I think what most likely happened is EC just wanted the piece down and lodged a suit hoping DA would cave, but is now going to have to put up or shut up in court. And that’s great—that’s how it should be. OTOH, by the same token, DA is gonna have to put up or shut up, too. And that’s also a good thing.
The reason I used terms like sides and catfights and meangirls is because of the whole us v. them nonsense that’s being whipped up behind the scenes—well, not so behind—openly on Twitter and in comboxes on sites like this one. It’s interesting that if anyone dares say something out of line with the preferred narrative, they’re pounced on and accused of all kinds of things, even met with really hateful and threatening rhetoric from some people, yet the very same people doing their best to quash any commentary they don’t like are whining about chilling effects and suppression of speech. Yeah, whatever. People like that are not worth anyone’s time. They’re always and ever the victim. I’m just waiting for this suit to be blamed on Misogyny! and The Patriarchy!
Oh, and that one particular “pen name” (huh? I’m not a romance author.) was just a flip reaction to the kind of stuff that truly has turned me off romance. It’s all gotten so ugly and political and meangirl-driven. I think the lawsuit is the culmination of a lot of ugliness and nastiness that has seeped into the romance community (if that was ever a real thing in the first place).
I still read some romance on occasion, but only from a very small group of writers I always liked, and only if they’re published by a mainstream publisher.
@thisiswhyistoppedreadingromance / @anonMK – @Patricia M. and @Azteclady do an excellent job rebutting your juvenile comments, so I won’t repeat their responses. I will just add my personal opinions, for what ever/how little they are worth.
Your initial stated name, thisiswhyistoppedreadingromance, kind of says it all. You come to a romance blog, make statements essentially demeaning those of us who read romance and enjoy this community, as well as the overall importance of this issue, and then are surprised when your comments aren’t well taken. I support your right to your opinion, but the way you went about presenting it says more about the kind of person you are and the point of your statements rather than your intent to express any real opinion. If you truly feel that a “lot of ugliness and nastiness that has seeped into the romance community,” go away. Enjoy the books you read and stop trolling.
No they don’t, nor do you. You are, however, making my case for me. Thank you.
If you don’t like my comments, don’t read them. Or go away yourself. Your choice.
thisiswhyistoppedreadingromance: You’ve got a very poor grasp of the legal issues involved in this case—burden of proof, truth as a defense to libel, and others.
Believe me, I know what it’s like to get a bad review from DA – Jane even tweeted all the things she didn’t like about mine as she was reading it. I know people who’ve been flayed by both DA and SBTB. Bad reviews and poor sales are heartbreaking, but I don’t think you’ve chosen the best way to deal with it. You need to be drinking wine and bitching with your friends in private chats or FB groups, not posting churlish and inaccurate comments on a website devoted to something you profess not to like.
@AnonMK Putting aside for a moment the dispute involved in the EC lawsuit, this lawsuit is going to cost the taxpayers of Ohio money. Courts are not free; judges and court clerks get salaries and even juries get paid, pittance though it may be. The taxpayers of Ohio support the court system with their taxes. Clogging the courts with nuisance suits requires that there be more personnel for the system, but worse, slows down the justice for the suits brought that have merit. Every minute that the judge in this case wastes on EC’s suit could be used on a suit with a real issue.
I understand from your comments that you don’t have a background in First Amendment law which is controlling in the EC lawsuit. I am no expert which is why I suggested that you read Ms. Milan’s explanation, but I do have some knowledge of the area. Your comment about a journalist must think long and hard before publishing an expose in a lot of ways goes to the heart of the issue. Yes a journalist must have a reasonable belief in what they write, and the DA’s piece had screenshots and a lot of sources cited for its statements. It did also cite anonomous sources for the allegation that authors were not being paid, but anonmous sources are used in journalism, and there are even laws to protect anonomous sources in many states. What do you want as a society, a press that can report on issues freely or one that can be tied up in lawsuits? Should Woodward and Bernstein have failed to report on Watergate because Deep Throat refused to go on the record? The US Supreme Court has over many cases considered the balance between the value to our society of a robust press that reports on issues and other societal issues such as libel and those cases and the standards that they set are controlling for EC’s lawsuit. It just does not pass the smell test, let alone any other standard. Since it does not, people correctly look at what was truly intended and concluded that it was intended to scare people by letting them know that any negative publicity could lead to big legal bills. I enjoy reading DA’s pieces on publishing and have learned a lot about the trends in the industry. It is important to me that DA continue that reporting, but in most instances I am very strongly in favor of freedom of the press.
A bad review of what? I’m not an author. Yet you assert as fact that I am and imply that my opinions are based on this fact you claim that I am a disgruntled writer. On a thread where the discussion is about someone being sued for presenting as facts their assumptions about someone.
You can’t make this shit up.
Lawyers are to blame for nuisance suits, not me.
Actually, I’m drinking beer at The Ramp with a bunch of guys and we think you’re pretty funny – unintentionally so, but amusing all the same.
“If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.”
George Washington
We have already seen the Supreme Court confer personhood to corporations through the Citizens United ruling. There are a number of states where it is illegal to take photos of police as they go about their business. In other places, no photos may be taken of farm animals or food preparation. Mainstream media used to be a real check on corporate misconduct, but after deregulation that same media has become a corporate profit center.
Bloggers are a small but potent check on the misbehavior that big media used to monitor…but if bloggers become too frightened by the risk of being sued, then we lose them too. And that would be bad, not just for romance readers but for everyone.
So the answer is that anyone should be able to say anything, regardless of the damages caused by their speech?
Bloggers can certainly be an important check on the unwillingness for the mainstream media to do their job objectively, or a check on corporate/industry misbehavior, etc.
But what keeps journalists and bloggers both honest is that there is always the potential they can be sued for what they put out there. That’s why there are certain standards regarding what anyone can publish.
My favorite hard news sources are blogs. However, the blogs I follow adhere to very strict standards, and they don’t publish exposes in which every single fact, assumption or insinuation has not been backed up with more than one documented source.
Also, bloggers who write about specific industries, or who enjoy writing critical pieces about other entities or individuals should probably invest in liability insurance. Media outlets are insured for a reason. It’s because they can be sued. Instead of whining about the fact they live in a free nation in which people can sue them, they protect themselves through specific protocols and insurance.
The reality is that while anyone can write or say what they want, free speech does not extend to freedom from repercussiona and consequences. So exercise your free speech all you want, just think it through first.
And sometimes you’re gonna get sued unfairly. Shit happens. That’s what lines the pockets of so many lawyers. Which is whyI think it’s kind of funny this is happening to a person who makes her living by pursuing alleged personal injury suits.
Yeah, it’s fucking hilarious. Like a fireman dying in his house burning down.
Christ, you’re a piece of work.
And a coward. Spewing nasty shit here and at DA while hiding behind a fake pseud.
I wonder which disgruntled commenter you are. I can make some informed guess. But it doesn’t matter. You’re all cowards and you’re all on the wrong side here.
Oh yeah, I’m real secretive.
Your name links nowhere because you’re a nothing. And your opinion is less than nothing. Go away.
“Oh, and have you ever heard of auto type on cell phones?”
Ever heard of spelling someone’s name right when it’s right there on the page you’re looking at?
Oh, fuck off and die, Ann. You’re nothing but a disgusting, bloated, putrid old degenerate who has no life whatsover. So sorry you’re gonna die all alone and unloved. Oh, wait…no I’m not.
“You’re nothing but a disgusting, bloated, putrid old degenerate who has no life whatsover. “
Ladies, I present to you the principled opposition to Jane Litte and Dear Author.
Ain’t they nice?
What opposition to Jane Litte and Dear Author, you freakin’ idiot?
And you’re a fine one to start whinging and whining and hand-wringing over my comment. Are you freakin’ serious? The entire cosmos just started howling with laughter at the thought of widdle Annie Somerville having a fit of the vapors over someone telling her to FOAD, or calling her hames. Poor baby. Boohoohoo. Cry me a river. I don’t care about you at all.
@AnonMK, time for you to stop. Thank you.
AnonMK:
Oh well, then as long as we entertain the guys, all is well in the world.
Of course, then you go on to expound at length on poor understanding on what freedom of speech is, what it means, and why it even exists to begin with.
I thought you were flouncing from reading romance, what with the “mean girls” and all the other tripe you spewed upthread? Wonder what’s making you come back here…
Y’all, time to stop feeding the troll. If it were a discussion of opinion, that’s one thing, but flounce-without-departure ends the conversation pretty much.
Unless you have recipes. Good recipes. Feed the rest of us! Here’s one:
Dinner Tonight: Roasted Bone-in Chicken Breast
I don’t like chicken skin as a rule but oh, holy smoke, it was delicious.
I would pout, but when you are right, you are right.
@Azteclady:
Here is another recipe to make you feel better: Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies. I make these every year. 🙂
As a putrid old degenerate (I wish!) I have to watch my weight, so this low fat custard came in handy at Xmas. It’s really yummy and no harder to make than the stuff made on custard powder:
http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/448009/Low-fat-custard
Of course, pouring it over super rich Heston Xmas pudding probably made the low fat aspect of it moot, but what the hell 🙂
I’m also always on the lookout for good pumpkin pie recipes made from real pumpkin – and pumpkin recipes of any kind. Pumpkin and fetta salads are very popular here. Any other ideas for my favourite veggie?
I know you’re right, Sarah. I KNOW. But as God is my witness, some trolls look like kettle fried potato chips and I just can’t say no.
@Kinsey:
KETTLE FRIED POTATO CHIPS. HA! I just snorted my coffee.
Just for you, here’s a kettle corn recipe.
@Ann:
For pumpkin, here’s pumpkin bread, which I make constantly during fall/winter. (Apologies for the fact that it’s in imperial measurements.)
@Ann: If you’re on Facebook, check out this photo album. Each picture has a link to the website with the recipe. I started following this page simply because of the pumpkin recipes, especially this time of year. One of the page’s admins loves pumpkin.
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.333333190146132.1073741886.162261050586681&type=3
@ Ann Sommerville – best recipe for Pumpkin Pie can be found in Food that Really Schmecks by Edna Staebler (they have created an app for the book). She also has a Pumpkin Whisky Pie in that book, but I haven’t made that one yet
Thanks, Miranda, LynnD!