Intersex. Non-binary biology. DSD (Differences in Sexual Development). This condition used to be known as “hermaphrodite,” a term that today is considered neither technically accurate nor socially acceptable. The more I find out about it the more I understand why. I chose to give my protagonist intersex biology. Why? For...
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So, been using HootSuite for a while to help me centrally manage my social media postings. It’s tagline is, after all, “Manage all your social media in one place.” Thing is I have mixed opinions about this tool. It does enable me to organize my Tweets, Posts and Updates in...
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My initial #pre-marketing efforts are bearing fruit. As a novice novelist-in-process I consider Twitter a key social media property. @MarkDSwartz is gaining some traction. Here’s how I increased twitter organic impressions 2,000 percent over a 28 day period, May to June 2017. Not Starting From Scratch Note that I’d worked...
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I was visiting GoodReads the other day, updating my profile as I prepare to pre-market myself as a novelist-in-process. On a whim I checked out the page of a writer whose oeuvre, and reputation, has soared over the past two decades. It turns out her debut novel (Mouthing The Words)...
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Of all the pre-writing promotional tactics at my beck and call, deciding on my social media strategy tops the list. Which for me is kind of a shame, since I’m not thrilled about the constant self-boasting – and artificially polished imagery – that saturates the web. Is this something of...
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The debate about how to represent images of children with Down Syndrome on French TV rages on. “Smiling Down Syndrome Kids Banned from French TV in Case they Offend Post-Abortive Women” by Thomas D. Williams, Ph.D. Nov 24 2016. France’s Conseil d’État (State Council) has confirmed its ban of the award-winning...
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Down Syndrome Beauty Asher Nash is a beautiful 15 month old child. His parents felt he was so adorable they submitted his photo to a talent agency that was looking for kids to represent OshKosh in advertisements. The agency did not present Asher’s photos to their client. Emails appear to...
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And so it begins. The adventure I’d been forced to defer for years is upon me. My keyboard is getting a workout. There’s the 15 pages of “What If’s” to help spark plot and character concepts. Another 10 pages of “Starting Stuff,” in which I outline my idealized reader (curious...
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How encouraging to see that empathy – the understanding and sharing of emotions and experiences of another person (Merriam-Webster.com) – is a focus in the upcoming Netflix sitcom Master of None.
In an age of Twitter storms and social shouting, does it sometimes feel that listening-to-understand gets quashed?
I, for one, would love to see more time taken to learn where other people are coming from, before judging and responding. Empathy is a crucial feature of humankind. But it ain’t always easy. Winston Churchill said it well: “Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak. Courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.”
You go, Aziz!
See National Post article at http://news.nationalpost.com/…/can-you-hear-me-now-aziz-ans….
Keywords: aziz ansari sitcom empathy
According to an excellent Daily Beast article on intersex children and gender choice, “Even as transgender rights progress, intersex children are still left in legal limbo.” Here’s the crux of this piece, which deals with should parents choose the gender of their intersex children: ‘…left out of all this good...
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