Comments & A Note Regarding Pirates in General
by Nita on July 30th, 2012
filed under Uncategorized
First the comments… I’ve received quite a few lately. I chose to ignore those that were hateful and ugly. (And yes, I enjoyed the ability to do that. lol) I also did not approve those condoning piracy. Tonight I decided it would be best not to post those who agreed with me or advised me to sue to the attackers. I would not be surprised if the attackers decided to target my friends, too.
I am hoping the attacks cease altogether. I think it’s a sad, sad world when people believe it’s okay to purposely try to harm someone simply because they do not like what was said.
I would also like to make this known: Not all people who pirate digital content are like those who attacked me. Several who emailed or posted replies were quite civil. Most seemed like good people regardless of their illegal activity. I’m sure hundreds more did not reply or post at all. I do not agree with or condone what pirates do, but neither do I think all pirates are horrible people.
I feel sorry for those who attacked me. I truly do. They must have really sad, lonely, meaningless, empty lives if they choose to spend their time posting lies in fake reviews with no other purpose than to hurt someone.
Nita
Agree to Disagree
by Nita on July 30th, 2012
filed under Uncategorized
I’ve read dozens of posts, emails, and comments defending piracy and claiming that it actually benefits authors. I still don’t believe it, but even if I’m wrong, it’s a moot point. It doesn’t matter. And I don’t care. Here’s why:
Copyright infringement is illegal. For those who apparently don’t understand that word, here is the definition from Dictionary.com
il·le·gal [ih-lee-guhl]
adjective
1. forbidden by law or statute.
2. contrary to or forbidden by official rules, regulations, etc.
For those who say that torrents and seeds are not illegal, that, too, has been decided in a court of law. Precedent has been set. Users implementing torrents as a means to share files were found guilty of copyright infringement. See this link for more information.
From Wikipedia:
Copyright infringement is the unauthorized use of works under copyright, infringing the copyright holder’s “exclusive rights”, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, spread the information contained within copyrighted works, or to make derivative works. It often refers to copying “intellectual property” without written permission from the copyright holder, which is typically a publisher or other business representing or assigned by the work’s creator. Copyright infringement is often associated with the terms piracy and theft.
The article goes on to say: “…the U.S. Supreme Court has even ruled that infringement does not “easily” equate with theft”
Note: The court did *not* rule that infringement is not or cannot be theft. Only that it does not easily equate with theft. To me, when my work is pirated, the pirates have stolen rights to distribute my work; stolen the right for me share it with only those I choose or those who consent to purchase it; and/or stolen possible royalties (even if only a few cents.)
In my opinion, it is theft. And whether we agree or not, we are all entitled to our own opinion.
Yes, I called pirates thieves. Again, the definition:
thief [theef]
noun, plural thieves.
a person who steals, especially secretly or without open force
The label fits perfectly if you believe, as I do, that theft has been committed. If you are offended by that label, there is little I can do about it.
Regardless of whether you believe piracy is theft, it is still illegal. It is still a crime. If you admit to having pirated copyrighted material, you have confessed to a crime. You are guilty of a crime. Would it be less offensive if I called the pirates criminals?
crim·i·nal [krim-uh-nl]
noun
6. a person guilty or convicted of a crime.
These are definitions, and were not intended as “name-calling” or “mud-slinging.” They are simply descriptive labels that fit the actions of those involved. If the labels are offensive to people, perhaps they should reevaluate the actions they have freely confessed and in some cases boasted.
For those who call me foolish and naive… I will concede that maybe it is naive of me to think that people should abide by the law. In today’s world it is obviously hoping for too much that people be honest and live within the law. This world has become a place where just about anything is accepted if you can get away with it.
Sorry… I prefer to remain naive. I prefer to stand by my morals. I am not perfect, nor do I claim to be. I have broken a few laws in my lifetime, but I am certainly not proud of it. And if I have ever broken a law that hurt someone in any way, I am sincerely sorry for it. If that is naive and foolish, then I will proudly wear the label.
I believe that piracy is wrong and is a form of theft. The pirates don’t. We shall have to agree to disagree.
Nita
IP Addresses Saved
by Nita on July 29th, 2012
filed under Uncategorized
I have saved the IP addresses and email addresses of those with hateful comments. I’m sure they can be compared to those Amazon has from all the fake reviews. I would not want to get a lawyer, but if the attacks don’t stop, I may have to.
Lawyers like to sue for mega bucks so that their portion of the settlement is nice and fat. Although it would start out as defamation suit or such issue, it would probably end up in a class action suit after subpoenas are issued for content on the computer of the individuals whose IP addresses are shown and an FBI investigation for copyright infringement. I seriously doubt they’ll find any of my books on these computers, but Hollywood, the music industry, and the big six publishers would LOVE to get in on the fun, I’m sure.
Nita
BitTorrent Users Lose in Court
by Nita on July 29th, 2012
filed under Uncategorized
To all the people who’ve been claiming that torrents are not illegal… Read this post.
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/john-wiley-and-sons-wins-7000-for-pirated-book_b53999
Pirating copyrighted material is wrong. No matter what method you use. It’s illegal. You can be sued. And you will lose.
Nita
Enjoying the Fight
by Nita on July 29th, 2012
filed under Uncategorized
For those of you not aware, I had a book pirated at Demonoid. I sent 8 take-down notices. All were ignored. So when I heard that Demonoid was down, I rejoiced. I did a Google search for “demonoid hit by ddos” to see if I could verify the information. I found a couple of sites that confirmed it. I did not look at any of the other posts to see what kind of blogs these were. But I did post comments like “Hallelujah!”
Well… Apparently I stumbled into a nest of vipers and thieves. LOL They’ve been attacking me ever since.
I’m going to respond here to some of their asinine replies and questions:
- Several accused me of being a Demonoid user myself because, with their limited brain capacity, they believed that I couldn’t possibly know about the site if I wasn’t a user. Wrong. I have Google Alerts set up for all my books. I received a Google Alert for my book with the link to the site, to the exact torrent containing my book. Until that day, I was not aware of Demonoid, but I later learned that many, many other authors were all too familiar with it because their books were being pirated, too.
- I’m not sure what part of ILLEGAL these people do not understand. My book and most books published by professional publishers include wording such as this:
ABOUT THE E-BOOK YOU HAVE PURCHASED: Your non-refundable purchase of this e-book allows you to only ONE LEGAL copy for your own personal reading on your own personal computer or device. You do not have resell or distribution rights without the prior written permission of both the publisher and the copyright owner of this book. This book cannot be copied in any format, sold, or otherwise transferred from your computer to another through upload to a file sharing peer to peer program, for free or for a fee, or as a prize in any contest. Such action is illegal and in violation of the U.S. Copyright Law. Distribution of this e-book, in whole or in part, online, offline, in print or in any way or any other method currently known or yet to be invented, is forbidden. If you do not want this book anymore, you must delete it from your computer.
WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.
Clearly, you do not have the right to share this book. Period.
- They try to justify the theft saying that Demonoid is good exposure for the author. One guy told me that he pirated his own book there. Let’s examine this statement. 1. If you self-published that book and wanted to give it away on Demonoid or any other file sharing site, you have every right to do that. If you are the copyright owner and the book is not under contract with a publisher, what you did was not piracy. Alternative means of distribution, perhaps. But it’s not piracy if you have the right to distribute it. 2. If you did have a publishing contract for the book, and you posted it on Demondoid, you violated your contract. You could be sued for damages and fined up to $250,000 even if you didn’t make a dime from the distribution. And if the publisher finds out, you will likely never be offered another publishing contract again. From any publisher.There are many, many other comments and statements trying to justify piracy. Perhaps these are an attempt to soothe guilty consciences. Some apparently don’t even understand the difference between right and wrong, so they feel no guilt.
- The covers for my books have been viciously targeted. Hateful, ugly stuff. 1. The publishers hire the cover artists, not me. 2. Some of them I love, some not so much. I didn’t get to choose them. But the bottom line is: I really don’t care what the pirates think of them. LOL
- Yes, I also posted at one blog under my real name– or rather my nickname– Missy. All my friends and family know me by that name. Here’s a newsflash for you: Most authors use pen names! On one site I logged in with Facebook. On another I logged in manually using my personal email address, etc. It wasn’t an effort to hide anything. Pfft… These people think everyone is as underhanded and dishonest as they are.
The pirates have taken a personal vendetta against me. They have even stooped so low as to post fake reviews at Amazon. Doesn’t surprise me. Thieves and low-life scum do that sort of thing. They lie, cheat, and steal. But the reviews show their lack of intelligence. LOL
One guy said he purchased the book at a local bookstore for his wife. Apparently the idiot doesn’t realize my books are not on the shelves at bookstores. I wish they were. He went on to say that he used it for kindling in his fireplace. Really? The country has been blanketed by a massive heat wave with temperatures in the 100s, and you’re using your fireplace?
Another woman said she borrowed my book from the library. Honey, if I was an author with a big enough name that libraries carried my books, I would be ecstatic. But currently? Sadly, no. They are not available at libraries.
Amazon has already confirmed for me that they will delete the fake reviews. May take them a few days. So they are wasting their time with the attack. Guess they don’t have anything better to do, though. They should really get a life.
In the meantime, I am enjoying the fight. Receiving lots of emails from people with kind words. Some have even told me that they bought my book just because I was brave enough to speak out against the piracy.
To all the pirates: I appreciate the extra exposure you’ve given me with this public attack. Loving the extra sales. It’s so satisfying to know that I have benefited from the piracy only AFTER Demonoid went down.
Nita
To: syevans21 – The Pirate
by Nita on May 21st, 2012
filed under Uncategorized
I want you to know that it took me nearly 9 months of work in the evenings and on the weekends to write Designs on Haley. Then I worked another week and a half during edits for it.
Although I would like to write full time, I must work a day job because my royalty checks won’t even pay the electricity bill. I only earn $1.50 per copy sold. This month that’s a little over $50. That’s right. BIG bucks!
And people like you think it’s okay to cheat me out of that measly royalty check by pirating my book. Nearly 800 people have downloaded my book from where you uploaded it. That’s almost $1200 in royalties I *should* have received. Even that would be only be about $1/hour for my labor.
Many authors stop writing because it pays so little. And it pays even less when pirates steal your work.
You think you aren’t hurting anyone. You think it’s no big deal.
Think again.
Nita
Proud Mom
by Nita on May 7th, 2011
filed under Uncategorized
I couldn’t ask for a more satisfying Mother’s Day gift. My daughter graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga today. For those of you that are like me and didn’t know for sure what that means… {LOL} Here’s the details:
Many institutes confer three levels of Latin honors, although some eschew the third, namely:
cum laude, meaning “with praise”
magna cum laude, meaning “with great praise”
summa cum laude, meaning “with highest praise”
As a mother, nothing can be more gratifying, more fulfilling, more joyous than seeing her children succeed. My daughter may have been the one to receive her degree today, but I’m the one who received a gift.
To my daughter: Thank you, Charity. I have always been so proud to be your mom.
To everyone else: I have the best children! Mother’s Day may be a day where the rest of the world honors mothers. That’s wonderful, and I agree that mother’s everywhere should be appreciated for everything they do, all the sacrifices they make for their children. But for me, Mother’s Day is the day I can shamelessly take pride in my children.
I thank God for them every day. And I’m proud of them every day. But on Mother’s Day… Hey. That’s the day I get to say, “My kids are the best kids in the world. I’m the luckiest mom ever.”
Nita
My first book signing!
by Nita on September 29th, 2010
filed under Uncategorized
I’ll be participating in my first book signing event this Saturday! I’ll be there along with 36 other authors! Here’s the info:
Georgia Romance Writers is hosting a Book Fair & Author Autographing for Literacy, featuring 37 authors representing a variety of romance and other genres, as part of its Moonlight & Magnolias (M&M) 2010 Conference October 1-3, at the Holiday Inn® Conference Center in Historic Downtown Decatur. The book fair is free and open to the public and a portion of every book sale benefits Georgia Literacy.
Date: Saturday, October 2
Time: 4:30 to 6 p.m.
Location: Mary Gay Ballroom (C and D), Holiday Inn Conference Center (Decatur)
130 Clairmont Avenue, Decatur, Georgia 30030 (404-371-0204)
Buy some great reads and purchase tickets for author baskets with proceeds also going to literacy.
Eagle Eye Book Shop, which will be stocking many of the titles, will be open for business at the Georgia Romance Writers M&M Conference selling books on the craft and business of writing, books by this year’s conference speakers and books to be signed at Saturday’s Book Fair.
Hope to see you there!!!
Nita
I’ve Been Interviewed!
by Nita on July 19th, 2010
filed under Uncategorized
Jennifer Hart, a fellow romance writer, has interviewed me and posted the interview at her blog, The Laundry List. I’ll be giving away a free pdf copy of A REAL HUSBAND, my latest historical release, to one lucky commenter. So stop by and post a comment for your chance to win.
Good Luck!!!
Nita
Long Time, No Posts
by Nita on March 23rd, 2010
filed under Uncategorized
Life has been pretty busy lately. I had an auto accident in January. Here’s a lovely picture of my car.
A guy ran a red light and hit me. 
Luckily, I wasn’t seriously
hurt, but I’ve started physical therapy for my neck and shoulder. Another 2 hours out of my day twice a week. (As if I have time for that. LOL) It’s not difficult. Just time consuming.
I’ve also been going to the gym almost every night. I’ve lost 25 pounds this year. Added to the weight loss of last year, I’m 46 pounds lighter that I was at the beginning of 2009. 
The exercise? Now that’s been far more difficult than the physical therapy. And just as time consuming. But it’s worth it. I sleep better, feel better, and look better.
And now for the real news. drum roll please….
I’ve signed a contract with Passion in Print for my historical romance novel, A REAL HUSBAND. I’m really excited about it. They’ve already got some preliminary artwork for the cover. I can already tell you that I’m going to LOVE it. It has the look of the quintessential historical romance. If all goes well with the edits, it should be available this fall.
I’ll post the cover as soon as I have the final draft!
Hugs,
Nita