THE THIEVES AMONG US
I was looking at a printout of my collective works for the writing site HubPages, and in particular I was looking for the little red C symbols which mean an article of mine has been plagiarized by some other person.
I found seventeen with that symbol. That was both good and bad news.
The good news is it’s only seventeen out of eleven-hundred, so I feel pretty good about that low percentage.
The bad news is it’s seventeen articles I worked hard to produce which were stolen.
Welcome to the online world of writing!
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Stealing is stealing. I don’t care if it’s on the Internet or you’re breaking into a warehouse somewhere – it’s theft.” Patrick Leahy
THOUGHT OF THE DAY
So here’s the thing: how can anyone who steals look at themselves in a mirror? I simply don’t understand….okay, let me amend that….a person starving who steals eggs from a barn so he can have a meal to eat, that I understand to a certain degree….but
A person who steals an article and then posts it with his/her name attached? How can that possibly be justified?
But then I say the same thing about people who steal packages from doorsteps or people who swindle the elderly out of thousands of dollars….how do they justify that at night when it’s just them and their thoughts while in bed?
REALITY OF THE DAY
It’s going to happen to you. It’s unavoidable, friends, so get used to that reality. There is no way to stop this sort of thing from happening if you are posting your work online. Sure you can fill out forms and report the thefts, but while you are doing that millions of other articles are being stolen by cyber thieves who have zero conscience. That’s just the way it is.
SHOUT OUT OF THE DAY
I have to give another shout out to Mike Friedman for the wonderful work he does on my book covers. If you need a book cover at a reasonable price, hook up with Mike. And check out his ebook “The Carriage Driver” on Amazon.
SELF-PROMOTION OF THE DAY
My latest in the Billy the Kid series, “Home is a Dangerous Place,” will be released in June. This is a brand new Billy the Kid installment, never before seen in short story form on HubPages. I hope you’ll check it out for your summer reading list.
NEW WEBSITE FOR WRITERS
My buddy John Hansen is involved in a new website for writers….here it is….please take the time to check it out and sign up for his newsletter.
THOUGHTS ABOUT STAYING FOCUSED
Each week I publish an article called “The Writer’s Mailbag.” In it are questions other writers ask me and my sloppy attempt at answering those questions. One question that keeps popping up with great regularity has to do with how I stay so focused. Evidently there are a lot of writers and wannabe writers who have a very difficult time sticking with it and actually accomplishing anything because they are so easily distracted.
I’m probably the last person on earth to give advice about this topic. I’m about as anal and organized a human being as you are likely to meet, and I’m married to one of the most distracted human beings on the planet. This question directly relates to Bev and she really does struggle with it.
I wish I could help her and I wish I could help all of you who have similar problems. There are a number of great articles online written by behavioral experts and I suggest you read some of those articles. I recognize it as a real problem for many of you. I just don’t have a good answer for you.
MORE NEXT WEEK
Busy times around here with the quail and gardening and writing and on and on and on….and that’s all good because it’s life and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Have a great week of life and thanks so much for taking the time to read my ramblings.
Bill
“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”
Billybuc
Artistry With Words 