I have been nominated for this award by Inge. H. Borg, writer extraordinaire.
The rules are as follows:
– Each nominee must link back the person who nominated them (In this case me, jim-bennett.ca)
My nominees will be added here later. Meanwhile, on with the rules:
– Answer the 10 questions that are given to you by the nominator
(and don’t be shy). Scroll to the end of this post for your questions from me.
– Nominate 10 other bloggers for this award.
– Create 10 questions for your nominees to answer.
– Nominate 10 other bloggers for this award.
– Create 10 questions for your nominees to answer.
Let the nominees know that they have been nominated by going to their blog and notifying them.
* * *
Even though this might be a slight bow to Mr. Ponzi,
combined, we are a force, and we proudly acknowledge each other, our strengths, our genres, our very different approaches to writing. All are valid in their own right. All are commendable. All are to be celebrated.
Here are Inge. H. Borg’s questions for me:
1) Do you talk to your computer?
If you don’t count swearing, no. However, once in a while something really neat about my setup and/or a program’s function makes me smile and think, this is really neat. Examples: Spell Check (in Canadian English) in ThunderBird; my text editor (PE64) which I’ve customized over the years to do neat things, like tab word.
2) After someone introduces you as “an author,” people sometimes (mostly at ladies’ luncheons) dismiss your meteoric little moment by saying “Oh, I could write a book.”
a) What is your answer?
Go Ahead, it will be a positive learning experience for you.
b) What do you think to yourself? Remember, this is a GA-rated blog.
Maybe they could. Bet not. {8;^>}
3) If you use a pen-name, what was your primary reason?
I should have done this. One of my reviewees named himself Eusebius Clay. Unique. There are many Jim Bennett’s out there, also writing poetry. I’m not unique enough.
4) How lenient are you with people who answer their own questions?
This is fun. I see if the answer is correct, and then ask myself why they felt it necessary to bring a particular ‘fact’ up in conversation.
5) This is hard. Let’s see: Why don’t you get something off your chest.
No, it can’t be the cat, nor your Labradoodle or pet-elephant. It has to be about – your Love of MARKETING. That should open some floodgates.
I suck at marketing. I think most poetry editors only like their friends.
6) Did you ever change the original cover(s) on your book(s) and why? (I can answer that. Oops, it’s not my turn – but for Khamsin, it was Russell’s blog article even though I loved the other cover).
Only once, and that was to add an outline for online covers – there’s a lot of white on my covers and they bleed into the browser background. I have been a royal pain for Rory d’Eon, who does my cover images, and is frequently dragged through multiple iterations. But once done, they stay.
7) Someone of your not-so-good friends (at the ladies’ luncheon) insists that the lush in your novella “sounds like you.”
How do you tell them: Hell no! It’s a MADE-UP STORY
(as you order another glass of Merlot). Still, this pillar of the community righteously declares “The lady doth protest too much, methinks.” Note that I gave her credit to get it right (which she won’t).
I have other problems. In some of my poems there are extremely tough, personal occurrences. All of these are of course totally made up. If some of them weren’t, the police would be very interested.
8) The best advice you received from a successful colleague.
(Other than to get lost)
Expose yourself in the marketing sense. Every way possible. Every occurrence is an opportunity. I feel like a used car salesman working at a wake. But it needs to be done.
9) Did you have the fortitude (otherwise referred to as guts), and humility, to follow it?
To some extent, yes. As much as I should? Probably not.
10) Do you blog to get added exposure, or do you really feel a connection with your fellow-bloggers?
I started for dumb reasons. I have a list of sayings I’ve collected over years of work experience, and some of them are deep and some are funny. Once the website existed, I got much more interested in activism. I blog on current events, sometimes lauding or excoriating politicians and business leaders.
Whenever possible I connect to whatever I think will increase either my own visibility, or that of a colleague. (I didn’t say I was terrifically good at this, but I do try.)
And, I use the website as advertising (Available Now, Samples).
I think a poet should be known in some sense by his readers. The website overall should give you two insights: what sort of person I am, and what sort of poetry I offer you.
Feel free to have a look at www.jim-bennett.ca.
When/If I have ten nominees, I’ll put their names up top and their questions here. No point in warning them ahead of time, eh?