International Pixel-Stained Technopeasant Day, April 23

MarkButler · Apr 18, 2007

Anyone going to post anything for International Pixel-Stained Technopeasant Day?

If you are unfamilar, Dr. Howard Hendrix - current VP of the SFWA, wrote a blog entry where he spoke out against modern inventions such as Blogs and Wikis and said (among other things):

I'm also opposed to the increasing presence in our organization of webscabs, who post their creations on the net for free. A scab is someone who works for less than union wages or on non-union terms; more broadly, a scab is someone who feathers his own nest and advances his own career by undercutting the efforts of his fellow workers to gain better pay and working conditions for all. Webscabs claim they're just posting their books for free in an attempt to market and publicize them, but to my mind they're undercutting those of us who aren't giving it away for free and are trying to get publishers to pay a better wage for our hard work.

and also

Since more and more of SFWA is built around such electronically mediated networking and connection based venues, and more and more of our membership at least tacitly blesses the webscabs (despite the fact that they are rotting our organization from within) -- given my happily retrograde opinions, I felt I was not the president who would provide SFWAns the "net time" they seemed to want at this point in the organization's development, or who would bless the contraction of our industry toward monopoly, or who would give imprimatur to the downward spiral that is converting the noble calling of Writer into the life of Pixel-stained Technopeasant Wretch.

As a result, Papersky is trying to get the 23rd as International Pixel-Stained Technopeasant Day and get writers to publish something online. I think it is a good idea, and quite frankly am surprised at the Dr. Hendrixs viewpoints. I am not a expert but I don't see the connection he feels is obvious.

BTW - a well-written rebuttal is here

badducky · Apr 18, 2007

i update my blog quite nearly everyday with writing that borders on cyberpunk and fantasy more often then not.

i agree with cory doctorow's notion that the problem in scifi isn't theft, but exposure. getting the word out any way we can is good for us, in general.

i won't do a creative commons license at this time, but i can do this little thing on april 23.

heck, i already do something quite similar daily in my blog, and i've already seen the numbers on that sucker go up so i don't see what's wrong with that at all.

Deleted member 42 · Apr 18, 2007

Shakespeare would be delighted.

xanthalanari · Apr 18, 2007

I'd be tempted to do it just for the name....

MidnightMuse · Apr 18, 2007

As a very succesful and popular "webscab" myself, I'm both offended by Dr. Hendrix's views, and glad to read that very well-worded rebutal by Mr. Wellington.

He said it so well, I can't think of more to add.

Thanks for the heads-up, Mark.

Variant Frequencies · Apr 18, 2007

Another thoughtful commentary here.

Also, you can buy t-shirts here and here.

They've been busy over at Making Light.

Jamesaritchie · Apr 18, 2007

Webscab

I don't think posting material on the web for free is harming many people at this point because the web is still large and unorganized. But at the same time, I have zero respect for any of the "free" writing I've found out there so far. Someone should be paying people to read it. "You get what you pay for" is exactly the right phrase for this stuff.

Most of Cory Doctorow's views are completely idiotic. Even if underexposure is one of the problems, his way is about as stupid a method of solving the problem as could possibly exist. In truth, I don't think he gives a damn about exposure. It's simply another excuse to push his no copyright agenda forward. The man is a lunatic.

Anthony Ravenscroft · Apr 18, 2007

I'm a union man (a couple times over, now) & inordinately damned proud of it.

But I hear Hendrix talking through his (to be polite) hat.

As usual, some half-assed hack sells a few books & gets into a position of illusory power in a classic example of "Big Frog, Little Pond Syndrome," which is how SFWA has been trending for the past decade or so. I mean, c'mon -- Dr.?? How contextually pretentious can someone be?

My attitude: if someone would rather read abject crap on-line because it's freakin' FREE, then they're such utter morons that I doubt they'd be able to parse every fourth word of my own writing even if they're allowed to sound it out & use a dictionary, so I'd just as soon there's plenty of rancid bait to lure them away.

And don't even get me started about Cory Doctorow (who I'll get around to consider taking seriously when electronic versions of his works including WIPS are available downloadable 24/7 online FREE in both textfile & PDF versions, & also fed via RSS & Creative Commons rules to whoever wants to offer the info because Knowledge Wants To Be Free, eh?) -- I've been a Trotskyite since he was in Pampers, & have a deep dislike for someone who demands effort & risk from others while quietly cashing his own checks.

badducky · Apr 23, 2007

i posted some fiction for free on my blog.

anthony, james, i think you guys are channeling a different forum. i happen to like cory doctorow, and what he does. i think it´s important to have moderate activists that are both pushing human discourse and working within the system. don´t be so binary, antony. being a total purist outlier will alienate the agenda more than working on the agenda from the inside.

James, i blog regularly, and i have found blogs that i read regularly. you do get what you pay for. it takes time to sift through the bad blogs to the good ones. thus, i invest a little time to derive a lot of pleasure from what i discover.

for instance, fellow AW´er Shapesphere blogs about his time in Japan. he doesn´t update much, but everytime he does it´s well-written, quality, enjoyable stuff. neil gaiman´s blog is also a masterful demonstration of a fireside chat with the masses.

but, if you don´t take time to find good blogs, you are better off just buying writing for yourself.

also, happy international pixel-stained technopeasant day, everybody!

C.bronco · Apr 23, 2007

I feel that I could benefit from extra pixels, but I don't know if I could go through with the procedure.

Anonymisty · Apr 23, 2007

I posted a story on my site. It's a short one, but it's there.

http://www.mistymassey.com/King_s_Left_Arm.html

Happy PSTpW Day, everyone!

Nakhlasmoke · Apr 23, 2007

There's a collection of links to free work here: http://community.livejournal.com/ipstp

As with all on-line collections, some stuff is great, some good, some no-so. I like Lisa Mantchev's stories, so I'd recommend those.

and mine is in there somewhere. Here's the direct link.

*is shameless, apparently*

http://cathellisen.livejournal.com/142746.html#cutid1

International Pixel-Stained Technopeasant Day, April 23

MarkButler

Part Time Fool

badducky

No Time For Chitchat, Kemosabe.

Deleted member 42

xanthalanari

MidnightMuse

Midnight Reading

Variant Frequencies

Podcaster

Jamesaritchie

Anthony Ravenscroft

Scribble, scribble, scribble

badducky

No Time For Chitchat, Kemosabe.

C.bronco

I have plans...

Anonymisty

Nakhlasmoke

yes