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All I ask is...a...little...cooperation!!!
01/06/2008 . Source: Geoff Willmetts 
With the disasters in Burma and China compounded by the regimes reluctance for international help in times of crisis, it's sad, says Geoff, to report paranoia and mistrust still survives in this century. Then again, as with the case of Burma, as the country rarely enters the news, outside of some of the charity organisations, how many of you knew about its political regime until recently? Hello everyone
With the disasters in Burma and China compounded by the regimes reluctance for international help in times of crisis, it's sad to report paranoia and mistrust still survives in this century. Then again, as with the case of Burma, as the country rarely enters the news, outside of some of the charity organisations, how many of you knew about its political regime until recently?
Me neither I have to confess. That doesn't mean I don't think that far too many countries are led by dictators just the old adage, 'What you don't see or hear about, you just aren't aware of' or 'Out of sight, out of mind' unless you live there. The news services can't cover everything in the world and more so that most of Burma's population have never been on let alone heard of the Internet.
Much of the time the news services just targets the current or relevant hotspots. It's just a shame when it takes a disaster to hear about some country's population's woes or to realise we're far luckier than some parts of the world. It puts the current recession into a different context. At least we have something where other people literally have nothing.
What is more telling about any country and how its leaders serve its people or should that be the other way around? For any political system to work there is either enforced control or co-operation of the majority. When the system falls apart it is usually because of a lacking when it comes to looking after the people. If anything, it promotes change rather than stop it. Leaders in such a situation have to realise there is a need to serve their people not their own ends when such disasters strike.
All too often, it shows the failings and the worse in human character at the same time, the aid agencies willing to rush in shows the best of human nature. An unfair balance at the best of times when there is a lack of co-operation and common-sense in the former, especially with the way the world is acting this year. Natural disasters are not only becoming more common but unpredictable as to which country they hit next. There is a need for mankind to pull together as one, regardless of politics or religious persuasion if it is to survive as a whole.
The one thing Man is increasingly showing his aptness for is helping his fellow man when a true disaster occurs. Assuming, of course, that territorial boundaries are put aside for aid in a crisis. When they aren't, then the death toll grows and a feeling of helplessness that more can't be done.
In a perfect world, this would never be a problem. All countries would co-operate. Unfortunately, some regimes' leaders know that their power-base will fall apart when it shows that they are unable to look after their own people or their military forces are ill-prepared let along able to do anything. It is not a time for leaders to live in ivory towers no matter how rich they have made it for themselves.
This very much reflects how a school bully works. You fear the bully while you think they can hurt you but when its shown they are ineffective at scaring you, their own fears can work against them. In effect, they lose the power of control which frightens them. Applied to some countries' leadership, a tyranny can lose its power when there is nothing left to fear and especially when the military junta supporting it no longer has the will to support it. By doing nothing, such leaders are already showing a true lack of power in running their countries. By doing something, including allowing in international aid, then at least it shows them operating some kind of management level. Respect has to be earned not hidden away from.
In many ways, one can only hope some good will come out of this disaster for Burma. Certainly, its people needs something better than it has at the moment. No matter China's problems with Tibet, they did rush to the aid of their own people. It would be interesting to see them do the same should a similar tragedy affect Tibet itself.
An imperfect world at best but for every example of co-operation when disaster hits shows that Man can help Man far more than if he destroys. All nations need to remember this in the coming year.
Thank you, take care, good night and be safe
Geoff Willmetts
editor: SFCrowsnest.co.uk
A thought to ponder on: The recent Martian lander took a DVD to the red planet which contained amongst other things, HG Wells' 'War Of The Worlds' as transcribed by Orson Welles' radio play and 'Mars Attacks'. Assuming aliens will one day land on the rusty planet to look around and can translate this disk something will soon become apparent. Man had a battle with the Martians and won. An indictment for any friendly alien species to go in the opposite direction or a less-friendly one to come in loaded for bear.
A real Zen thought:Deeds not thoughts make the world go around.
Another real Zen thought but this time for potential writers: If you can express an opinion independently of others and aren't likely to bend to the masses then you might show potential as a writer.
Zen for those who are scared by all the instructions below: Many of the instructions are things you should be doing automatically if you're developing your writing skills. If you do them already then focus on the ones that you don't get right. They are there to help you as much as me to get the best writing from you. If you think you're 80% there then I'll help you get the final 20%. Trust me, I'm an editor and I can get things right.
BOOK REVIEWS
Do you love books?
Do you like curling up and reading a book?
Do you have a preference for fantasy, SF or horror?
Do you find it the greatest pastime you have next to being on your computer?
Are you very vocal about what you like and don't like in what you read?
Would you like to share your thoughts with others about books?
Would you like an endless supply of books to do this with?
Do you live in the UK?
Can you spare an hour every day?
Would you want something to do rather than watch the bad weather?
If you've been nodding your head up to this point then link in below and see if you have what it takes to be a reviewer at SFCrowsnest. If you have that special knack to read and write or want to develop said skill then the only way you're going to find out is to take the plunge yourself rather than wait for others to do it first. Reading a lot of books is a requisite for any writer. Being able to say what makes them good or bad hones your own skills. Even if you're just happy with reading with a little writing on the side then this might be for you. It's got to be better than waiting for the sun to come out in this weird summer. It's also amazing how much you can read in an hour a day.
If you've survived this far in the editorial, let me reiterate something from the website newsletter and the above editorial. As you can see from the main page, we have one of the biggest SF/fantasy/horror monthly reviews columns on the Net. Our success has increased the number of books that comes in and our policy is to read everything and give it a roadtest before giving a review so you have some idea of what you're letting yourself in for. You want the bottom line about what you're going to choose to read. That means we need people actually willing to read the book and tell others they're opinion in reviews. For that, we're always on the outlook for more reviewers.
Do you think you have what it takes to review a book? It's a skill that can be easily mastered and we need a few more. If you love fantasy, we have more than enough to keep you busy for instance.
Apart from the ability to put words into sentences, you also need to know how to précis, do a little research on associated subjects and can express opinions constructively about the good and bad points about the books you read. We even let you choose from our pile of received books rather than foster something on you that you wouldn't normally read. You'll even get a little editorial help in how to write good copy and that can always lead to other things. I'm not as scary as I sound editorially and its better to do the test review and see how you fare than not attempt to see how well you did. I did say you have to love books and willing to read beyond your favourite authors, didn't I?
If you like reading books in the genre and can average two or three a month, can really think and show you can write a decent review and, most importantly, live in the British Isles (sorry, expense, time and distance travelled mostly prohibits elsewhere), then use the link below and see our requirements. We can't pay you but a review for the price and regular supply of new books, this has to be a good incentive to see if you have what it takes.
Do you think you're up to writing a review? If you think you can, then you're really going to think you've landed your hands in the biscuit tin. It won't hurt to try and see if you have the right stuff by sending me a sample review to show me you can write. If you want an added incentive, it can also be good for your CV.
Look up the Review Guidelines by linking here: with a press of a mouse button.
SHORT STORY SLUSH PILE
We always have an interest in short stories which can be anything from one to thirty or so pages long. We're always willing to give short story writers a chance to be seen if they can withstand my scrutiny even if we can't pay for their efforts, your material will be seen by a lot of people. If you can get a short story written well then it'll make it easier to move up to novel-length.
Look up the Short Stories Link by linking here with your mouse.
FLASH OR ONE-PAGE FICTION
We've also a teaching ground of one page stories, so check out the rules elsewhere on the website. It's far too easy to just write and write and hope something good comes out of it. What writing a one page story does is test your ability to control your word count and still tell a story in a concise way. This doesn't mean we don't accept stories of different lengths - a short story can be anything up to 30-40 pages long after all - but opens up the means for really short stories from ideas that don't need as much space.
Flash fiction stories by linking here: with your mouse.
NOVEL-LENGTH SAMPLES IN THE FIRST INSTANCE
For those keeping track, I'm actually now caught up but don't tell everyone as I'm undecided as to whether to keep looking at novel-length story samples, move over specifically to short stories - which we do anyway for the website - or get a couple of my own book projects completed. The latter, I still intend to do anyway.
They are there to help you do some of the right things and reduce the number of times I'm repeating myself over silly grammatical errors and spelling mistakes that you shouldn't be making if you're serious about becoming a writer. It makes editing a lot easier if any editor has less work pointing out poor English which you should have been sorted out in the first place and more focused on other areas of your work that deal with plot and the other serious elements of storywriting. As a writer, it is your command of the English language and its grammar that will show how serious you are about writing.
There might not be much of a wait unless I get a deluge, however those sending in ebook samples, please read the Guidelines by linking here with your mouse here or through the bottom line menu on the opening page of the SFC website.
EVERYTHING YOU WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT WRITING BUT AFRAID TO ASK
General advice for those who want to become writers of any sort: There's an old editorial adage, if you can't aim for perfection why should an editor nurse-maid you to that state? Nominally, my job is to catch minor glitches not total mishaps. If you're a writer, then you should understand the words, sentences and grammar of the job you're supposed to be writing or are you considering it as mundane and boring as any other job to get right? Fall in love with making every sentence the best you're ever written, read up and understand the rules of grammar. Put the time in researching any subject you're using in the story. Be prepared to put a story away for a few weeks and go back to it for a self-edit. Even I do that. You look good. I make you look better but you have to start off with good.
A lot of the time, errors will just stare you in the face when you didn't see them the first time round. Once you know where your weaknesses are, they can be sorted out and allow you to move a little higher up the ladder towards making your material look its best and more importantly, getting your material seen by readers.
The link here will show you the Common Problems Link page and what I see mostly with your mouse. It's the smart writer who doesn't get caught out with these.
Good luck. Geoff
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