Do you feel SHORTCHANGED with the ending?

leomom

Wed, Mar 24 2010, 11:58 pm

For those of us who have never read Binah and so have never read your stories (at least those that were published in Binah)... is there any way to ethically get copies of the installments of this recent serial?

For example, would it be allowed for me to get photocopies from someone? Or can reprints be purchased from Binah or directly from you?

I would love to know what everyone is raving about!

chocolate fondue

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 1:00 am

Another random question: Do you have red-heads in your family and do you come from a family of Kohanim? Just wondering because a few of your stories feature red-headed Kohanim.

Oh yes, and when you print Shortchanged, I'd prefer hard-back. A softback would fall apart in my house.

Scotty

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 1:38 am

Oy, I want to reply to everyone!
anyone I didn't refer to specifically: Sorry! I read every single post and loved it. I'm just not octopus-endowed, the minute I post I realize I've left someone out. Sorry.

Re: getting shortchanged... hopefully, b'eH it will be coming out in book format within the next year (I'd say summer or succos, but al tiftach peh, and all that.) Besides, I want to stock it with extra goodies, and that takes time...

Ayala Reich is a dear friend of mine, whose real name I was sworn to keep under wraps :-) I LOVE her stuff! Don't you?

Pink Fridge, I am still puzzling over your post. Sorry, no offense, just wasn't sure what you meant...

Momsprince: I think an extra two chapters might be out of my time league now, but I'm not against a few juicy bits...get back to me after Making of Shortchanged if you're still hungry....! Your interest is the best compliment possible!

Thank you everyone for making the effort to post such lovely letters. I so appreciate your wonderful compliments and feedback! (And suggestions - anyone have two cents they'd like to share?)

PS. No redheads in my family (I wish.) Though after I wrote the Chanukah story I did get engaged into a family of redheaded kohanim...believe it or not.

Scotty

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 1:39 am

chocolate fondue:
well spotted. Though I began it because it is a rather common trait for kohanim to be red-headed...

thanks for the HC/SC opinion! I'm still unsure there. I'd hate to charge so much money.

life'sgreat

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 2:01 am

Scotty, another fan here. Your stories are all very rich and real. It isn't just the writing/language itself, but the lives these people live, in whichever era it may be. G-d's given you a talent and you are utilizing it well.

My favorite was the Chanuka story. I had to translate it to my husband who's Israeli and doesn't read English. Every word was so rich and full. And sad. Yet it still made me yearn for that time, sad as it was.

Thank you

bashinda

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 3:01 am

I'm plotzing! First Riva Pomerantz and then EKS!

I'm a BT and I grew up reading classics and excellent writing in general. I've tried to limit my secular reading and it's been a real test over the years because of issues of writing quality and your writing has raised the bar tremendously and I hope the bar continues to be raised as authors, publishers and readers realize that not only is the message important but how it is presented also deserves importance.

I've been following your stories in Bina since your story about the disabled war vet and have been clipping and saving them.

I love your writing, whether it's your historical fiction (I never ever imagined what it would actually be like for a mother with a lot of children to actually do oleh regel and you make it sounds like it's happening today) or your story about tsnius in the future, or the outrageously funny summer spy parents.

I loved Shortchanged, not only because it was well written and engaging, but also because I could so very easily see my grandparents living similar roles, except, unlike Blanche, my grandmother and her siblings took the path too many children of that generation did, which was to leave behind a lot of Torah observance. Although their story took place in Milwaukee, and not the LES, it was probably a similar story with public school and after school talmud torah being the only thing available for girls back then. Your characters were true to life and amazing and I hope you find a way to incorporate them into more of your stories the way you managed to insert Emma into Shortchanged. The story might be over but I'm wondering what happened to the next few generations. The possibilities are endless for your Shortchanged characters.

I did find it frustrating that people can be so myopic as to not realize that life was different in the '30s, and wonder how much history people know about how dramatically life has changed for Jews in NY and other parts of North America. I hope it was a history lesson for them that the things people take for granted especially if you live in a large frum community didn't always exist.

Sorry for the tangent, my question is, are your short stories also going to be published? Otherwise I'm going to have to figure out how to staple all the stories I have ripped out of Bina.

Sudy

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 3:16 am

I think an anthology of all your articles is due. All previous articles together w/ a few new ones thrown in, would sell like hotcakes IMHO.

PinkFridge

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 9:51 am

Just wondering, to all you English majors out there: is it more correct (or as Mr. Language Guy might say, correcter) to say "besides" or "besides for? Is this a tristate thing? Was I taught incorrectly?

merelyme

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 9:56 am

PinkFridge wrote:

is it more correct to say "besides" or "besides for? Is this a tristate thing? Was I taught incorrectly?

It's either "besides" or "except for."

rowo

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 9:57 am

I have to admit I was also upset when I saw shortchanged had ended!
I was really enjoying it. I love historical novels, and you did it really well!
I'm so happy to hear that it's coming out in book form. I don't get binah regularly, so I didn't read every installment, it will be great to read it in one go.

one thing I'm not sure if anyone mentioned yet - often serialized stories are quite short each week, I loved that each installment of shortchanged was a good few pages long!

can I ask a question? I've always wondered, do you have a whole novel written out and then divide it up to print in serial form? or did you write it week by week? in which case did you have the plot mapped out from the beginning, or just flew with it? (you don't have to answer, I'm just curious...)

and another vote for soft cover. cheaper and lighter to hold while reading in bed Smile

rise above

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 10:13 am

merelyme wrote:

PinkFridge wrote:

is it more correct to say "besides" or "besides for? Is this a tristate thing? Was I taught incorrectly?

It's either "besides" or "except for."

My mum is a english professor and this is one of her pet peeves- it is incorrect english to say besides for- the for is superfulous.

--EK, I forgot to mention how I really liked how you put in the himmelsteins and emma into shortchanged. Firstly, it gave me a glimse at some oldie but goodies characters, and I like to check up on them! Secondly, it added another real life dimsension to the story (not to mention that those people are not real life, but they're real enough in my imagination!)

PinkFridge

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 3:24 pm

Sorry, I didn't mean to go off on such a tangent but I'm glad to have a definitive answer (without having to look it up myself Twisted Evil

).
Which reminds me, what's up with my other pet peeve that I often see, where tenses go crazy, e.g. he was wondering if he will do it or not. NOT will, WOULD!!!

ILOVELIFE

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 7:33 pm

EG- so what's the scoop-- how'd u get into writing? How'd u do that by mistake Smile

Also, when do we get a collection of your short stories? I wld love the one that the women still talk about a Tisha B'av pc for Hamodia? Any recollection? I don't remember reading that.

ILOVELIFE

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 7:35 pm

oh and here's another question: what'd your husband think about dating a writer who was all over the place already? People were shocked when they realized you'd been writing all this time as a single girl. I dunno why it's so out-of-the-box for talented single writers to write. If they're talented-- let them write in high school for all I care!

blossoming flower

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 10:17 pm

Oh Scotty (short for biscotti or s/t?), I can't believe you're actually introducing yourself. I totally bought the Binah every week soley for the purpose of reading shortchanged. When it first started I thought it would be quite boring as most historical fictions are (other than yours) but boy was I in for a shock. I even found a store who started selling it on Sundy night rather than Monday, and I would run there to buy it.
When you publish the book, can you PLEASE add a lot more chapters to your fabulously juicy story? I just couldn't get enough of it. Oh please please... you'd make a lot of ppl. sooo happy.

Keep up the stupendous work, and just keep knowing that you have many fans devouring your work.

Beauty and the Beast

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 11:18 pm

I AM FUMING AT BINAH. SHORTCHANGED WAS THE BEST PART OF MY READING MATERIAL ALL SHABBOS.
How can they "shortchange" me like this and end it so abruptly? was this how u planned it?? or was this an order from them?

another question: how did u know to sign up on imamother? did someone let you know you were being spoken about?

next question: same as another poster: did u write lots at one time, or go from week to week?

you cannot even imagine how upset I am about the story ending. It was good. so, I thank you.

I also loved how SHORTCHANGED was the only serial in all the mags that was actually long enough for me to finish my coffee and slice (or 2) of cake.

gp2.0

Thu, Mar 25 2010, 11:48 pm

Scotty wrote:

Can I admit that I don't have a subscription? (horrors!) I buy it every week....

Binah used to mail free copies to the writers they publish. Don't they do that anymore?

I love your writing. It's just gorgeous. And you always have really interesting plots. I never used to read Binah until I realized they sometimes include gems like your stories in between the mediocre stuff. Very Happy

You're definitely doing your part to help raise the standards of frum lit. Thank you for that!

Scotty

Fri, Mar 26 2010, 12:06 am

Oh, wow! So many lovely replies! Being lured away from my Mac all day by Pesach does have its compensations: a whole page of marvelous imamother juiciness to address!

Thanks loads, everyone. This is really so nice and such a gift.

Life'sgreat: I can't believe you translated it! Wow. That speaks volumes (no pun intended.) Wow. I don't know if I'm right in believing so, but I like to think that the fundamental human behaviors haven't changed since days of yore and today - certainly it makes our historia become more immediate. I'm so glad you felt that.

Bashinda - just so you know, I've been following your posts on the threads here, so I guess we've been following each other :-)

I am so honored! There really is great importance in presenting important material properly. I, for one, can't respect even the most inspiring thought if it's presented in mangled English - maybe it's a fault of mine, but there it is...
So glad you remember the Iraqi story! It's my favorite. Binah. Story. Ever. Period.
(I'll still pull it out and reread it once in a while.)

and the futuristic one - ditto there! If you still have interest in those characters, all I can say is keep an eye out in the Hamodia magazine for a Perri tie-in... Binah's a bit leery of sci-fi and the moment, but Hamodia was amenable B"H. And I'm glad you 'got' the spy one. I found readers divided into two distinct groups: either you thought it was screamingly hilarious OR you had absolutely no clue why it was even put into the magazine....

Re: SC...I would love to hear your grandparents' memories. It is so FASCINATING - especially since it is truly a forgotten period in history...

OH THIS IS SO GREAT - everyone keeps on touching on stuff that will be in the mag on Sunday.... *squeezes self in glee*

Re: publishing.... oh, you are so kind! I really would love to begin publishing. Imy"H SC is on for tentative publication either this summer or Succos (contractual delays plus depending on whether I can squeeze it in on top of Binah work). Other hopeful projects? Imy"H we plan to release a super-expanded edition of the Chanukah story, full of MUCH more 'juicy stuff', epilogues, content, and storyline (and yes, you'll finally find out what happens to Xanthippe, any readers who still remember her.) Plus, I'd really love to release two collected editions of stories: one of historical fiction, arranged so that it makes a great textbook, Tisha B'Av reader, or Yom Tov inspiring read; the other, general Binah stories arranged by theme, or something. But we'll see... thanks for your interest. It is really encouraging. Stay tuned...
Ditto m23!

PinkFridge: I am melting from curiosity: what jumpstarted this grammatical discussion?

rowo: I am very, very tempted to answer you, but then you won't enjoy the piece on Sunday :-) (and I worked so hard writing it :-)) If you still have this question next week, let me know....

rise above: Oh my goodness the Himmelsteins! Ultimate fan moment. I was in seventh heaven when the Kundas gave me permission to "borrow" them. It was like talking to the President. I am SO GLAD you enjoyed that - some (poor, deprived) people didn't know who the Himmelsteins were.

PinkFridge: TENSES!!! Possibly the most important set of rules (well, after punctuation and spelling, I guess.) I think every writer (me included) should practice every so often by taking a piece and CHANGING THE TENSES THROUGHOUT to exercise those muscles. (And I really wish I would know the codified versions of these rules. But I digress.) Another annoying thing? when an author wanders from a tight POV (point of view) of one character to another mid-story - ie, we're privy to Moishy's thoughts, then Ari's, within a paragraph of each other. I know the omniscient POV exists, but I think there needs to be a sense of distance when writers do it. Maybe I'm totally off the mark on this, and it's just my own personal peeve (a very buzz word today on this thread, it seems) but I can't concentrate on the narrative when a story does that. Am I crazy? Does this bother anyone else? (Alternately, am I explaining myself or is the previous paragraph incoherent?)

ILoveLife: well, obviously, nothing is a 'mistake' per se, but I absolutely did not get into Binah through regular channels... I'd written a couple of things over the years for Hamodia (the newspaper, that is) just for kicks (ie, no moola involved, just the thrill factor of seeing my name in print NOT misspelled) - a September 11th poem, a succos shlock thing, Tisha B'Av piece...and was incredibly fortunate to have the then-beginning Binah ask me if I was interested in submitting further pieces. Feeling honored, I put the phone number of the editor into my to-do pile for the next year or two. (Hey, I was busy.) About a year or two later, I sent in another Tisha B'av piece, and was doubly lucky to be offered the opportunity AGAIN. (Who says lightning doesn't strike twice?)
This time, I had a story 'hanging around' - an odd thing that had blurted out of my brain when I was trying to write something else completely - and I gave it in. That story eventually was published in Binah as...erm...I don't recall the title they gave it, Account Assessment, maybe? In any case, I was fabulously excited to hear that Binah was interested in more pieces...and so it began!
People tell me that their stuff isn't accepted, or that they're embarrassed to have it printed only in the "Letters to the Editor" part of Hamodia - and I laugh, because that's where I started. Relax! Editors are so busy nowadays they forget to eat lunch! They probably read submissions (if at all) at 3 am, when it's hard to appreciate ANYTHING - I always wonder if I'd be accepted now if I submitted through the 'front door'. Aim high, but relax: get printed anywhere you can, get your name out, and KEEP WRITING.

But really, the above is all superfluous, because it was all bashert.
Which leads me to -

(Is anyone still reading this? I am going on and on.)
About single girls being paranoid...Oy, BIG PEEVE.
Why are single girls embarrassed to write? Are they writing anything inappropriate? Are they doing anything wrong that will cause Hashem to take away their basherte? My own philosophy was always 'do the best you can, make sure you're doing the right thing, and don't be stressed about what 'everyone thinks', because usually there isn't any thinking in the 'everyone' process'. Honestly, it never crossed my mind to write pseudonymously. All you single writers (who aren't on imamother cuz you ain't married, supposedly) - WRITE! Stop being embarrassed! Your bashert will still come to you exactly when he's supposed to and not a moment later!
As for my husband dating me, he kindly read one of my articles before meeting me (which was nice preparation, I think. Don't you?) He saw the mention of "red headed kohanim" and thought I was referring to him - an erroneous but cute assumption!

Blossoming flower - *grins*
*blushes*
I really would love to add features on to the SC book. Maybe an additional short tie-in...we'll see. it might delay the book too much. But I'm so glad you liked it enough to want it!

Beauty and the Beast: Wait! Wait! Don't get upset at Binah just yet! No, absolutely no - I planned it to happen EXACTLY this way. On the contrary, they gave me two extra chapters than I was commissioned for! And don't despair. Trust me, there are A LOT more goodies coming down the pipe, Im"yH, including a six-part novella starting right after Pesach that I'm afraid might have me hunkering under my dining room table as people throw tar, feathers, and tomatoes (c"v but hey, it ain't paranoia if they're after you, right?) As far as Imamother...I must admit, Google gets the credit on this one. All hail the mighty Google.

As far as the SC planning...again, if you still have this question after next week, give me a holler! :-)))
I am so tickled you feel this way about the story! And yes, it really was so nice of Binah to give me 3000 words instead of the standard 1000 or so. It really gives you time to put in some 'meat'...

I see Binah is a popular accompaniment to coffee! Any tea drinkers out there? Raspberry Zinger, for instance? Or Bengal Spice?

Scotty

Fri, Mar 26 2010, 12:15 am

PinkFridge, don't jump yet, I spotted some sentence structure errors in the previous post. Oops....such is the fate of post-midnight posts.

realeez: never thanked you for your lovely words. THANKS!

gp2.0 - free copies...ah, hummm...I should talk to them about it. I keep getting distracted. Thanks so much for your lovely note - but you flatter me too much :-) I love so much of the Binah stuff - Judy Brown is an absolute master of the craft, and a Yael Mermelstein or Sara Weiderblank is always a treat. Not to mention Esti Kafra's section and Sora Boksin's brilliant setups. And a million other things that my partially-offline brain is refusing to remind me of at the moment - oh, and I love Chani Kurtz's pieces (I met her in real life! She's so great! I was so excited to actually meet her! How cool is that?) and Rabbi Burham's pieces...oh, I'm leaving everyone out. (I hope no one sees this, because they'll think I don't like their work when I just can't think straight anymore.) And SR Kohn's stuff is always hilarious. Somehow it just has..verve, I dunno. But thank you for your fantastic compliments!!!!

life'sgreat

Fri, Mar 26 2010, 12:20 am

Scotty wrote:

Oh, wow! So many lovely replies! Being lured away from my Mac all day by Pesach does have its compensations: a whole page of marvelous imamother juiciness to address!

Life'sgreat: I can't believe you translated it! Wow. That speaks volumes (no pun intended.) Wow. I don't know if I'm right in believing so, but I like to think that the fundamental human behaviors haven't changed since days of yore and today - certainly it makes our historia become more immediate. I'm so glad you felt that.

I see Binah is a popular accompaniment to coffee! Any tea drinkers out there? Raspberry Zinger, for instance? Or Bengal Spice?

Mac -

Yes, translated it. It was an awesome Friday night for both of us. He loved it and was fascinated by it.

Earl grey.