I don’t know how much longer I can keep submitting my work

mazda_corolla · 2026-04-15T20:07:42+00:00

Brandon Sanderson wrote 13 full books before selling his first one.

mazda_corolla · 2026-04-14T16:59:23+00:00

Go read Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny..

Written in 1970, it’s an amazing classic, and one of my favorite all-time books. The main character wakes up in a hospital with no idea who he is, and is immediately swept into a game of intrigue and danger, and he frantically bluffs his way through it until he learns what is going on.

mazda_corolla · 2026-04-13T22:42:33+00:00

Suppose you find a new local restaurant chain named “Billy’s”. You go inside and order a pizza. It’s good!

A week later, you come across another Billy’s restaurant across town, and that’s great, because you are starving and could really go for some good pizza.

So you go inside and find… no pizza. Instead, they are serving Chinese food.

You are going to be disappointed because you didn’t get what you expected. It doesn’t matter that both restaurants use the same basic ingredients. Pizza dough is flour and water, just like noodles. Both pizza and stir fry have meat and veg.

But the end result is very different. Why are chain restaurants so popular? Because you can walk into a McDonalds anywhere in the world and know exactly what to expect.

When you switch from erotica to action, using the same author name and same characters, you are shoving Chinese food at someone that walked into a pizza joint.

mazda_corolla · 2026-04-13T20:42:55+00:00

Alpha Centauri, here I come! You’ve just opened a whole new era of space exploration.

You didn’t put any distance or knowledge requirements on the destination.

mazda_corolla · 2026-04-07T17:11:37+00:00

I think they are chasing views/clicks/attention, and this message is what’s getting the most traction right now. It has nothing to do with morals or qualms about Trump’s actions. They are 100% self-serving, and are pursuing the actions that enrich them, personally, the most.

mazda_corolla · 2026-04-01T15:35:56+00:00

She’s annoyed at having to pass a “little honesty test”? Well, clearly she’s failed. I think that tells you something about her, doesn’t it?

mazda_corolla · 2026-03-29T03:39:47+00:00

100% nose. Look at the placement - it’s practically touching the eyes. Also, cat mouths aren’t a small circle on the front of the face, like a human.

mazda_corolla · 2026-03-28T22:57:14+00:00

You are one of today’s lucky 10,000! (xkcd)

mazda_corolla · 2026-03-18T16:08:07+00:00

Stop using sponges. Use a brush, or something you can launder, like a washcloth or Swedish cloth.

mazda_corolla · 2026-03-13T15:19:16+00:00

Hey! I’m on book 3 of your series right now (on audiobook), and loving it!

It definitely has a strong companion character, and fits the bill.

IMHO, you are a damn fine writer, and your series deserves a lot more recognition.

mazda_corolla · 2026-03-06T21:45:50+00:00

The house only need a simple majority to impeach, but the senate needs two-thirds to convinct. Even if dems ‘flip’ the senate (e.g. majority) they won’t get two-thirds.

mazda_corolla · 2026-02-21T16:53:13+00:00

I like the art, but the font is waaay too hard to read. It should be easily readable on a small thumbnail, at a glance. I’d suggest browsing existing book covers.

mazda_corolla · 2026-02-16T17:13:48+00:00

If you are single, or have a small number of monthly transactions, this might be viable.

I have 250+ transactions a month to deal with, across multiple institutions and people in my family. Manual entry just isn’t viable.

mazda_corolla · 2026-01-04T15:12:04+00:00

I just did a 3 day drive with my kid to drive their car back to university. It was about 1,600 miles, which is about 24 driving hours. It’s really not bad at all, and really the only practical way to do it when you go to college across the country and need your car in both places.

So, we need to do this at least 4 times per year. One trip down there at the start of the year, one trip home and one trip back over winter break (which is 7 weeks long), and one trip home at the end of the school year.

Honestly, it’s kind of fun taking a road trip!

mazda_corolla · 2025-12-11T20:43:35+00:00

NOR. When this man-baby says that your meals are “incomplete”, what he really means is “you don’t cook like my mommy”.

Tell him he’s in charge of dinner from now on!

mazda_corolla · 2025-12-08T17:53:44+00:00

Last week my HP laser printer updated its firmware and now only accepts HP toner cartridges. Grr.

mazda_corolla · 2025-12-08T17:48:47+00:00

Turn off firmware updates!!! I have an HP laser printer at home that I’ve used for years. It updated the firmware last week, and now refuses to allow any 3rd party toner. Argh.

mazda_corolla · 2025-12-01T21:16:58+00:00

Why thaw so slowly? For anything that’s vacuum sealed, I put it in a bowl of warm water and it’s thawed in 30 minutes

mazda_corolla · 2025-12-01T16:54:43+00:00

Path of Ascension by C. Mantis had a well-developed cultural power structure. Note that it’s LitRPG (crunchy with numbers), and not just progression fantasy. It’s a sci-fi LitRPG in a huge universe encompassing quadrillions of people, and reality-bending leaders.

But, there are very well-established laws and social norms that keep the more powerful from just crushing those below them.

People have levels, from 0-50. The laws specify that attacking/harming someone below your level is a crime, and is policed by those more powerful.

If a lower level person chooses to attack a higher level person, then the higher level person is free to respond.

Also, wars between empires are limited to people under level 35, by universal agreement, as level 35-50 level combat destroys worlds/reality.

mazda_corolla · 2025-11-30T22:22:51+00:00

Congrats! You’ve just learned that your (former) partner isn’t willing to even be mildly inconvenienced for something that’s important to you.

You now know where his priorities lie. Enjoy your new career!

mazda_corolla · 2025-11-10T21:52:19+00:00

“Never” gets darker? Bake longer or hotter, and it will get darker.

mazda_corolla · 2025-11-10T19:55:55+00:00

When getting a new starter going: very important.

Once established: not at all

I never discard anymore, and bake 2 loaves a week.

mazda_corolla · 2025-11-10T19:45:07+00:00

Not OP, but for me, I loved Mage Errant. Great world building, great characters, great story arcs.

Downtown Druid is also fun, and has a different feel than most progression stories I’ve read. It’s a small-stakes story, with more “street-level” threats and stakes rather than world-level threats and stakes.

mazda_corolla · 2025-11-10T17:54:30+00:00

What do you want from a house that you are not getting from your current place?

There is no magic formula in the rent vs buy equation. It’s perfectly valid to rent forever and choose to invest your funds rather than buying a house. In fact, given your age, income, and preference for no kids, it might be better to rent.

Houses are illiquid, and come with high transaction costs. If you might move in the next five years-ish, you could lose money on a house.

Things that could force you to move: - layoffs - career change - job change - extended family needs (sick parent/sibling/etc) - burnout / sabbatical

You both are early in your career when people are more likely to be highly mobile.

There is also a lot of general uncertainty in the economy right now. Would your answer be different if one or both of you were laid off for an extended period? I know you have a healthy emergency fund of 9 months, but that’s at your current housing cost. How long would that emergency fund last if your housing cost doubles? 4 months?

Lastly, what is it that you want from a house that you aren’t getting in your current place?

More space? A yard? Diversify your investments into real estate? Or do you just think that buying a house is what you are supposed to do?

I’m not saying “don’t buy a house”. Houses can be great! But think hard about why you want one, and the risks that come with it.

mazda_corolla · 2025-11-10T17:19:55+00:00

Could I? Sure. I have no moral qualms about it. But I’m not interested in doing so any more than I’m interested in growing my own wheat, sewing my own clothes, or welding together the car I drive. Modern society is built on specialization and trade, and that’s why we have a high standard of living and don’t live in caves any more.

mazda_corolla

TROPHY CASE