May 23rd
10:12 AM PST
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"

“Amazon Publishing will acquire all rights to your new stories, including global publication rights, for the term of copyright.” What this means is that when you publish a story on Kindle Worlds, you’re giving Amazon the right to do whatever they want with your story, forever. They can sell it electronically, digitally, carve it into a rock, or give it away. It’s up to them, and you have no say. Ever.

“You will own the copyright to the original, copyrightable elements (such as characters, scenes, and events) that you create and include in your work, and the World Licensor will retain the copyright to all the original elements of the World.” Awesome! Exactly the kind of license I would want. Except …

“When you submit your story in a World, you are granting Amazon Publishing an exclusive license to the story and all the original elements you include in that story.” Want to publish your fan fiction on FanFiction.net? Tough. Amazon is the only entity legally allowed to publish your material. And if they decide that they want to stop publishing your material? Sucks for you. You have no other outlet.

“This means that your story and all the new elements must stay within the applicable World.” This is a huge, flashing warning sign, a big neon Danger, Will Robinson! When you submit a story to Kindle Worlds, you give Amazon all of the rights to your new ideas, even ideas that came solely from your head. Come up with a concept for an awesome new character who just happens to interact with a Salvatore Brother? You can never use that character anywhere except within a Kindle Worlds story.

“We will allow Kindle Worlds authors to build on each other’s ideas and elements.” This means that people get to write fan fiction about your fan fiction. Kindle Worlds is essentially a viral license. I don’t exactly have a problem with that. It would be cool if there was a way to be compensated when another author uses some or your original ideas, but I honestly don’t know how that would even be possible.

“We will also give the World Licensor a license to use your new elements and incorporate them into other works without further compensation to you.” One of the big issues authors have traditionally had with fan fiction is the possibility that a fan fiction writer would claim the original author stole the fan’s ideas and incorporated them into their work. This is why even authors who explicitly allow fan fiction almost never read fan fiction. This sentence does away with that fear entirely. If you submit a story to Kindle Worlds, the original creators can use it however they want. Just think! The next season of Vampire Diaries could be based on your story! Except you won’t be paid for it.

…

The exception is the license to new concepts developed within a Kindle Worlds story. That is uniquely the author’s own, and submitting to Kindle Worlds locks it up forever. Stories are an author’s lifeblood, and you should never give that kind of control over your ideas to someone else. Fifty Shades of Gray would have never happened under Kindle Worlds, because Amazon would own all of the rights to that story, not EL James. She wouldn’t have been allowed to change the character names, flush out the story, and publish on her own. Amazon would have owned that work, not her.

"

Pretty sure all the awesome fandom folks I know are smart enough to have realized what a steaming turd the new Amazon thing really is, but just in case you have to get into an argument over it with someone (yes, these are things I legitimately prep for) here are some clear talking points.

Also, no porn, graphic violence, crossovers or’excessive’ use of curse words. So, like, all the fun stuff about fanfic.

(via bewaretheides315)

#amazon      #amazon publishing      #signal boost     
May 22nd
1:14 PM PST
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donotchoosesidesyet:

amazonpoodle:

ROSA, WE HAVE YOUR BACK!

Hi everybody,

So I’ve been on-and-off Tumblr a lot recently, but for the last two weeks it’s been because of a family emergency. Rosa, my little sister (well, okay, she’s 23, but she’s little to me), had a serious fall while she was rock climbing with a friend in Moab. She fractured some ribs, got a concussion, and injured her spine really badly — she’s paralyzed from the waist down. I’ve been out in Colorado, first with Rosa at the hospital in Grand Junction to which she got coptered from Moab, and then to get her settled in for longer-term rehab in Denver.

My family and Rosa’s friends are running a fundraising campaign to pay for Rosa’s medical expenses (two months of inpatient spinal rehab alone is looking like it’ll cost us at least $40,000, and that’s even with insurance paying for 80% of the first month. Just the ambulance transport from Grand Junction to Denver cost $4,000); for my mom, my stepdad and me to take turns visiting Rosa at Craig Hospital in Denver this summer as all of us live 2,000 miles away on the East Coast; and to give Rosa some support post-rehab — accessible housing, continued occupational and physical therapy, the whole shebang.

Rosa is one of the most active, athletic, stubborn, badass people I know. She hikes, races, mountain bikes, skis, snowboards, rock climbs, and works as a guide for several different wilderness programs. Sometimes she does all of this at 10,000 feet above sea level. She’s got a ridiculous puppy named Hank that she’s training as a therapy dog. She’s in school for nursing. All of that stuff is what motivates Rosa and gives her joy, and all of it is still completely possible for her (she’s already got her eye on the Paralympics, not kidding), but she’ll need a lot of support to get there.

My family just started a fundraising website here. Any amount you could donate would be a huge help, and if you can’t donate money — believe you me, I understand being broke as a joke — I’d be so grateful if you’d give this post a reblog. Rosa and her girlfriend are reaching out to their network of people who also dig living at high altitudes; my stepdad’s got his academic peeps; my mom’s got her fellow social workers and therapists. I have you guys. <3

Thank you so much,

Z

Signal boost for an excellent person.

#signal boost     
May 16th
10:16 AM PST
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scifigrl47:

dr-kara:

Anime Boston 2013 Artist Alley!! 

Soltian and I are sharing a table at Anime Boston this year!  Come visit us! :D  <3 <3 <3 ahh so excited!!

Oh also!! The blue hearts represent Inappropriately Adorable and if you haven’t checked her out yet you def should! 

WHY LOOK IT’S MY TWO FAVORITE ARTISTS EVER IN ONE MAP!

Go, give them MONEY!  I’d like to point out that Kara has pictures of sexy Avengers and beautiful Marvel ladies in beautiful dresses and badass Coulsons, all of my favorite things in one place!

Nicole (Inappropriately Adorable) has a chibi of BREAKING BAD.  And it super adorable despite it being a very angry meth dealer about to soak a body in a drum of acid.  If she can make that cute, she can make anything cute.  

ANYTHING.

Also remember these? 

http://scifigrl47.tumblr.com/post/48495777514/pinstripesuit-buttons-i-will-be-selling-at-the

Limited edition buttons.  Incredibly limited.  And they are super cute.  YOu know you want them all. 8)

#signal boost      #anime boston      #artist alley     
May 11th
11:14 AM PST
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crablouse:

askthetwiin2:

sephiramy:

Okay guys.. I’ve never done this before. Please bear with me.

This is our family dog, Arnold! As you can probably tell, he is a pit-mix. While he has had a few health issues over the past few years, we have struggled through it with him - from tumors, to hernias, to arthritis, and then some - but today things really went from bad to worse. Arnie is suffering from paralysis of the larynx, and it’s going to require some emergency surgery, the price-tag of which is between $5,000 and $6,000.

We don’t have that kind of money… but I’m willing to work for it. I love this dog. He doesn’t even live with me, but let me reiterate, I love this dog. Our whole family LOVES this dog. He’s on the older side - or, well, WE THINK, due to the fact he was adopted out of a rescue program, we aren’t 100% sure how old he is, although those cataracts of his are tellin’ a tale - but he has a few good years left in him, and I’m not going to give them up without a fight.

We have to make the decision by TOMORROW, May 11th, if we are going to be able to pay for this. Apparently a payment plan is negotiable, but this is still a LOT of money as far as our family funds go. We are riddled with health issues on the human side of things, too, so our usual buffer for pet bills just isn’t gonna cut a few thousand bucks.

I have set up a little crowd-funding thing here, as the elegantly titled Save Arnie-Ru! There are more specifics to read about if you want to click it and check it out. If you show me a screen-cap of your receipt page, you can e-mail it to me, message me, whatever you prefer, I will draw you somethin’. It’s just that easy. Donate a buck? GET A SKETCH. Donate more? I mean, hey, it’s negotiable. I’ll see what I can do! And I will do my best. I will take requests! Let me know when you send me your receipt if you had something in mind and I’ll try to be flexible. I am also putting up a DONATION BUTTON on the front of my blog, which I have never done, before. If you want to send me a note through that saying what you would like, I can e-mail you the picture through whatever is listed on your PayPal.

I think that’s about it, although I am sure I am forgetting something. I feel pretty scrambled. This is a tough thing to do, in very little time - especially when you haven’t had to do it, before! REBLOGS ARE VERY APPRECIATED, thank you so much in advance for your consideration!

((Hey guys, please consider donating to my friend Amy’s cause or signal boosting this for me? She’s awesome and her art is fantastic. Thanks!))

precious baby! ;n; please donate aNYTHING please!

#signal boost      #dogs     
May 7th
7:59 PM PST
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IF YOU SIGNED UP FOR BABBLR THIS IS IMPORTANT

savedhaven:

drugniam:

babblr is hacking blogs right now so if you signed up you NEED to change your email for tumblr! They are hacking and even deleting accounts so what you need to do is go to the screw icon next to inbox and click on it then where it says ‘Email address’ change your current one to something else! Hurry before its too late also please spread the word xx 

THIS IS ACTUALLY TRUE MY BLOG IS FALLING APART AND MY EMAIL WON’T VERIFY 

#signal boost      #babblr     
3:47 PM PST
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Walt Disney Company: Stop their application for the trademark of "Dia de los Muertos."

sulitati:

STOP DISNEY FROM TRADEMARKING DIA DE LOS MUERTOS! I am signing this petition to stop Walt Disney from appropriating and exploiting Mexican religion and culture.
Dia de los Muertos is a religious observance during which people, and particularly native peoples, in Mexico, the United States, and abroad, honor ancestors and loved ones who have died. This important religious, spiritual, and cultural observance pre-dates the invasion of Mexico by the Spanish. We celebrate and honor our deceased loved ones by making altars and placing offerings of food such as pan de muertos baked in shapes of skulls and figures, candles, incense, yellow marigolds known as cempaxochitl, and offering prayers and the smoke of copal. 
#signal boost      #fuck you disney     
April 30th
11:39 AM PST
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rarely-pure-never-simple: thecornercoffeeshoppe: hickshannary: small-and-misunderstood: Saw this somewhere else and felt the need to post it cause no one else ever really tells you this stuff My mom never really noticed. She noticed when she was breast feeding my little brother and blood started coming out instead of milk.  My mom said she felt and saw a little lump in the shower. She was lucky enough she found it at stage 2 My mom had a mammogram. The radiologist thought the spots were just regular calcium deposits.  Turns out it was triple negative breast cancer that had spread to her lymph nods. Mastectomy, radiation and chemo saved her life. This could SAVE a life.

rarely-pure-never-simple:

thecornercoffeeshoppe:

hickshannary:

small-and-misunderstood:

Saw this somewhere else and felt the need to post it cause no one else ever really tells you this stuff

My mom never really noticed. She noticed when she was breast feeding my little brother and blood started coming out instead of milk. 

My mom said she felt and saw a little lump in the shower. She was lucky enough she found it at stage 2

My mom had a mammogram. The radiologist thought the spots were just regular calcium deposits. 

Turns out it was triple negative breast cancer that had spread to her lymph nods. Mastectomy, radiation and chemo saved her life.

This could SAVE a life.

#breast cancer      #signal boost     
April 29th
12:43 PM PST
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You Were Born in a Terrible Storm: hi guys, I’m currently in dire straights when it comes to making my...

uro-boros:

hi guys, I’m currently in dire straights when it comes to making my rent

I can pay back anyone who donates to me in August and I’m even willing to sign a legal contract if need be as proof.

Donations and contributions would be much appreciated. My paypal is brianasantos13@gmail.com. I need around 1000 dollars total, with my family being able to hopefully contribute 500 (although this is iffy but I also don’t want to ask for more than people are willing to donate), so I’m setting my need at 500.

thank you so much

#signal boost     
April 27th
1:05 PM PST
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how to decode a person with an anxiety disorder

timelords-sherlock-andmusic:

things we are trying to do all the time:

  1. be safe

things we can’t help but do all the time:

  1. second-guess ourselves
  2. behave impulsively and reactively
  3. take everything personally
  4. worry
  5. worry
  6. worry
  7. have difficulty accepting compliments
  8. have difficulty reciprocating friendly gestures
  9. have difficulty finding the courage to respond
  10. have difficulty not being suspicious of others’ intentions
  11. make a huge deal out of the smallest thing

things you should keep in mind:

  1. we’re scared of everything
  2. pretty much all of the time
  3. it’s an actual disorder
  4. it manifests as impulsive behavior
  5. you can’t fix us with words
  6. telling us “worrying is silly” won’t make us stop worrying
  7. it’ll only make us feel silly
  8. and then we’ll worry even more
  9. “oh god, am i worrying too much? what if they call me silly again?”
  10. like that
  11. also, we wear a lot of armor
  12. cold, heavy, affection-proof armor with spikes
  13. we constructed this armor as children
  14. we’re fairly certain you will never be able to pry it apart
  15. but there is a nice person under there, we promise

things you can do for a friend with an anxiety disorder:

  1. stick around
  2. ask them if they’re comfortable in a place or situation
  3. be willing to change the place or situation if not
  4. activities that help them take their mind off of things are good!
  5. talk to them even when they might not talk back
  6. (they’re probably too afraid to say the wrong thing)
  7. try not to take their reactions (or lack thereof) personally
  8. (the way they expresses themself is distorted and bent because of their constant fear)
  9. (and they knows this)
  10. give them time to respond to you
  11. they will obsess over how they are being interpreted
  12. they will anticipate being judged
  13. it took me four hours just to type this much
  14. even though i sound casual
  15. that’s because i have an anxiety disorder

things you shouldn’t do:

  1. tell us not to worry
  2. tell us we’ll be fine
  3. mistake praise for comfort
  4. ask us if we are “getting help”
  5. force us to be social
  6. force us to do things that trigger us
  7. “face your fears” doesn’t always work
  8. because—remember—scared of everything
  9. in fact, it would be more accurate to say we are scared of the fear itself

emergency action procedure for panic attacks:

  1. be calm
  2. be patient
  3. don’t be condescending
  4. remind us that we’re not “crazy”
  5. sit with us
  6. ask us to tighten and relax our muscles one by one
  7. remind us that we are breathing
  8. engage us in a discussion (if we can talk, then we can breathe)
  9. if we are having trouble breathing, try getting us to exhale slowly
  10. or breathe through our nose
  11. or have us put our hands on our stomach to feel each breath
  12. ask us what needs to change in our environment in order for us to feel safe
  13. help us change it
  14. usually, just knowing that we have someone on our side willing to fight our scary monsters with us is enough to calm us down

if you have an anxiety disorder:

  1. it’s okay.
  2. even if you worry that it’s not okay.
  3. it’s still okay. it’s okay to be scared. it’s okay to be scared of being scared.
  4. you are not crazy. you are not a freak.
  5. i know there’s a person under all that armor.
  6. and i know you feel isolated because of it.
  7. i won’t make you take it off.
  8. but know that you are not alone.

♥

God Bless this post. Please take note, everyone. 

#anxiety      #reblogging again      #I don't have it but I know ppl who do      #signal boost     
April 24th
8:24 PM PST
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shions-cardigan:

shions-cardigan:

shions-cardigan:

This is Micah. He needs a new home. I’m getting kicked out of my house so I need someone to adopt my cat. Otherwise he won’t have a home at all.

He just turned nine. He’s fixed, declawed, and litter trained. Micah is shy and defensive when he first meets someone, but he’s back to his normal self after about a week. Then it’s all love and cuddles from him! He’s very affectionate once he warms up to someone. He likes snuggling up in bed and being held like a teddy bear.

We’re in the Albuquerque area. I’d be willing to take him anywhere in New Mexico. If you’re interested in adopting him, please message me. Even if you can’t adopt a cat, please reblog so someone in the state can see this and help us!

image

image

Also photographic proof that he is the most lovey cat.

Please please PLEASE, everyone! I’m running out of time!

#signal boost      #cats     
April 23rd
5:27 PM PST
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Stop threatening the HIPAA rights of people with psychiatric disabilities

crown-of-weeds:

Imagine the federal government holding conversations about your privacy - except yours is the only voice not at the table. This is what people with psychiatric disabilities are facing as the House Energy & Commerce Oversight Subcommittee takes up the issue of mental health and privacy rights under HIPAA.

Rep. Tim Murphy, Chair of the House Energy & Commerce Oversight Subcommittee, is holding a hearing this Friday to try and argue that the HIPAA protections that protect the privacy of people seeking mental health services are unnecessary and a threat to public safety. Regrettably, Chairman Murphy has a  history of threatening the rights of Americans with psychiatric disabilities. This Friday’s hearing is a continuation of a roundtable Rep. Murphy organized last month to try and showcase the inaccurate idea that people with psychiatric disabilities are more likely to commit violent crimes. Although empirical evidence shows no such link between psychiatric disabilities and violence, the roundtable made no acknowledgement of this simple fact. Furthermore, of all of the many witnesses called to testify, not a single person with a psychiatric disability was invited to share their perspective.

When a caller on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal program asked Rep. Murphy to explain his rationale for excluding the voices of people with psychiatric disabilities from the witness panel, he dismissed the need for the voices of people with disabilities themselves, claiming they would be incapable of testifying and that the most important conversation is one about parents and families’ experiences!

There is a time and a place for discussing improvements to the availability and quality of mental health services. A conversation about violent crime is not that time nor that place. It is inexcusable for public officials to use public safety as justification for an attack on the civil rights of an already marginalized and stigmatized population. Tell Chairman Murphy and Ranking Member DeGette of the House Energy & Commerce Oversight Subcommittee that the disability rights principle of “Nothing About Us, Without Us!” apply in mental health policy too. Don’t let our voices be forgotten.

Sign the petition and shut this shit DOWN.

#mental illness      #ableism      #signal boost     
9:26 AM PST
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theladysilvertongue:

vampyresproductions:

preservedcucumbers:

beefykunoichi:

BeefyKunoichi: Please take the time to call your local representative regarding this bill. Protect expression. Protect the internet.

the-paranoid-humanoid:

milojamesthatch:

(ooc) GUYS THIS JUST HAPPENED TO MY DASH. Yesterday I was was wondering what all this talk about the Internet bill was, and I thought it was small - BUT GUYS, TUMBLR STAFF IS NOW ASKING FOR OUR SUPPORT. SO…. I’M OFFICIALLY FREAKING OUT.

((Followers, you know what to do. Go, my legion!))

Do not ignore this. Do not scroll past. Take action.

PLEASE JUST DO IT.

DONE!

#signal boost      #SIGNAL FUCKING BOOST     
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