We arrived at Tokyo-Haneda airport at 10:30pm on June 6 and spent the night at the Royal Park Hotel, which is conveniently attached to Haneda airport’s international arrival terminal–about a five-minute walk from the customs windows. You can’t see much of Tokyo’s skyline from the hotel, but that didn’t matter. Any view would have been exciting, because it meant I had reached Japan. Matcha is a finely ground powder made from the leaves of shade-grown, high quality tea. Unlike most tea, matcha isn’t steeped and removed, it’s whisked directly into the water, where it forms a suspension. Matcha is an extremely popular flavor
Read moreMonth: June 2015
Walking the (Writer’s) Sacred Mountain
On my recent trip to Japan, I visited Fushimi Inari Taisha, the primary Shinto shrine for worship of Inari Okami (one of the principal Shinto deities). I’ll write about that experience in more detail in the weeks to come, but today I’m riffing on the theme in a different way. On days like that, it seems we’ll never clear the bottom, or reach the rarefied air that other successful writers seem to enjoy. Even after publication, sometimes the writing path seems insurmountably steep, and the obstacles we thought we left behind us…well, they keep cropping up in unexpected places. There’s no view out from
Read moreThe Importance of Agency Contracts
Today’s post takes a look at agency contracts, and why it’s best for the author-agent relationship to be documented in writing. There are many reasons why it’s important to have a written contract with your literary agent. We can’t cover all of them in one day, but let’s take a look at some of the most important ones: As a matter of law, some contracts must be in writing to be valid. The “statute of frauds” is a type of law which requires some contracts to be made in writing. Both the statute of frauds and agency laws often require a literary agency
Read moreThe Giant Salamanders of Japan
On my first morning in Japan, I woke up at 4:30am to catch a Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo to Kyoto. Upon arrival, I went with my son and one of his friends to the Kyoto Aquarium, where I immediately discovered a major difference between a Japanese aquarium and the ones I’ve visited in the United States. The marquee creature. Aquariums usually place a large-draw creature close to the entrance, because the visitors want to see the animal as soon as they enter. Other “big-ticket” creatures may be located far from the entrance (ensuring that guests stay long enough to make the full circuit) but there’s
Read moreOn a Japanese Toilet
My friends and I have a running joke that every novel I write ends up in the latrine. Sooner or later, my characters always seem to end up in a potty somewhere. It’s not intentional (not consciously, anyway) but it happens nonetheless. In light of this, it seems only fitting that my first set of photographs in Japan were taken…in a toilet. I’d like to defend this by pointing out that Japanese toilets are somewhat different than the ones we’re used to in the States. The Japanese adopted the western-style toilet quickly, and then improved upon it in ways that almost have
Read moreShinobi Shuko: the Ninja’s Claws
Ninjas are famous for climbing walls with the ease and grace of a spider. According to legend, ninjas could scale even impossibly high, completely polished surfaces with ease. Some myths even claimed they could fly. In reality, ninjas were highly trained assassins and spies–not supernatural beings with magical skills. They couldn’t fly, but they did possess the ability to scale walls that would stop most people, partly due to a set of metal claws called shuko (or shinobi shuko–since shinobi is the more traditional Japanese word for “ninja”). Traditionally, shuko were made of metal. They consisted of metal bands
Read moreBeware of Copyright Grabs in Publishing Contracts
Today’s post takes a look at some dangerous copyright pitfalls authors need to be aware of – and avoid.* Beware of Losing Your Copyrights Through a Contract. The most dramatic copyright danger is loss of the author’s copyright through contract. No “standard” publishing contract should ever contain a grant or transfer of the copyright to the publisher. A contract which contains a transfer of copyright is essentially a “work for hire” agreement, where the writer retains no rights to the work. By contrast, a standard publishing agreement–traditional OR self-pub–is not a work for hire arrangement. I see a surprising number of contracts in which
Read moreKnow Your Ninjas: Shinobi Spies of Medieval Japan
Ninjas are a popular part of 21st century culture. We see them in films and on television, in Internet memes, and even on chocolates and coffee mugs – …but how much do you know about who ninjas really were? In medieval Japan, ninja assassins represented a very real, and dangerous, threat. Ninjas – also called shinobi (“ninja” is based on a Chinese pronunciation of the characters, whereas “shinobi” is the more accurate Japanese term) – were highly trained spies and assassins. The word “ninja” translates “shadowed person” – and like most spies, real ninjas knew how to use the shadows to their
Read moreWhy *Not* to Use Trademarks in Fiction*
Today’s post takes a look at the use of trademarks and “brand names” in fiction.* For the most part, I advise clients not to use trademarks in fiction if an alternative will do. If use of a trademark or brand is unavoidable, the author needs to be certain the trademark is used in a legally-permitted way. Otherwise, the author risks a trademark infringement–or “trademark disparagement” lawsuit, both of which carry substantial legal penalties. The benefits of “fictitious branding” and generics usually outweigh any benefit the author could obtain from use of a real trademark. Authors have two relatively simple alternatives
Read moreIn Japan, the Floors Can Sing
In medieval Japan, some castles (and other buildings) were constructed with special floors that made a squeaking or chirping sound to alert the residents to intruders (or anyone else) walking across the floorboards. Visitors can still see and experience these “nightingale floors” at a number of Japanese landmarks, including Nijo Castle in Kyoto. In fact, that’s where I’m headed today (remember…I’m in Japan!). I’m planning to get some photos and, hopefully, video to share here on the blog when I return. Modern myths claim these floors were designed to prevent shinobi (aka “ninja”) assassins from harming the occupants. If a ninja tried
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