Ron

@Flip-Flop and to everyone else. As an example, concerning older stories: Years ago, I left comments for stories that DomLuka wrote even though they had stopped posting stories on GA years earlier. As new people discover those stories for the first time, at times I get thumbs ups and hearts from them because something I wrote resonated with them. So, I think you should absolutely attach an appropriate emoji of your appreciation or, even better leave comments to your heart's content on older stories. One never knows what comment you write will promote a response or cause another to think deeper into what they read. Maybe, your comment will be the reason a reader goes back and rereads a chapter based your thoughts. And, yes, I italicized older to make a point. There are no old stories, just some that you haven't discovered yet. And if you're going back and reading a story yet again... well, there's no friend like an old friend.

"If you guess smooth Corinthian Leather, you're wrong." The Chrysler Cordoba was loaded with smooth Corinthian leather, or so the advertising stated. My uncle had one when I was in high school, far too many years ago. No, that's not my uncle in the picture.

It's interesting that I got "Safari can't open the page. The error: "The URL was blocked by a content blocker"." when I clicked on this topic to read it. I tried linking in from Headstall's profile and Flip-flops and got the same message while using my iPad. Now, here using Google on my PC I ran into no difficulty. I had no issues with any other topic on the forum page while on my iPad. I get the need for ads. I subscribe to The Washington Post, and you can't read more than a couple of paragraphs of an article without running into an advertisement for something running across the page and dividing what you're reading or running vertically along one side of the digital page. We know what advertising allows for, but no one likes advertising except the advertisers and those making money from the advertisers, I guess. Other than by accident I have never clicked on any advertisement, so there's that. I've paid for premium access to support GA in the past and gladly, but my circumstances have changed dramatically so I must put up with the advertising. Although, I refuse to put up with it on my television and I can't afford to otherwise pay more so I've cancelled my month-to-month plans, and I will end up not renewing those streaming video apps that have an annual plan when they run out. It sucks to become poor people.

I absolutely made this comparison with the far more excellent movie, The Talented Mr. Ripley while watching Saltburn. I also agree that Jude Law was the cat’s meow, and even now there’s just something about the man.

Imperfection is a worldwide calamity.

Party of two! I wasn't the first one to lob entitled around.

It is helpful to include some sort of idea of what a word may mean, regardless of if some entitled individuals think they know best for everyone else. Point in fact I had considered the word pédé to mean pedophile until you said differently. Was I going to look it up? Not likely but I might have understood the meaning of the word in the context of your story. I think it best to assume correctly that your audience may not be as educated as some others and write accordingly. Readers for GA authors are a worldwide audience, and an author should keep that in mind when trying to reach them with their writing, although I believe the U.S. creates the largest number of visitors to GA if memory serves me well. Does that require information in the notes? or in a glossary? The answer to those questions is not definitive but should be dictated by the needs of the story and the author's desire for clarity.

Yes, putting the odd, needed explanation in the chapter notes is best -- like a glossary of terms. Someone will always either be this way or that way regardless of what you do, depending on how you do it with your writing style. Constancy of style is key within the same story. Write the story you want to tell with the best of your ability.

A long, long time ago in a far-off land... no, it was only a decade ago in fact, I asked the question in this The Lounge: Does writing reviews make you a better person? I felt then, (I still do) that this question was a justifiable one -- it certainly garnered a lot of comments at the time. Your question is a different one and far easier to answer. Yes! If you're an author interested in the nuts-n-bolts of writing, learning, and growing you will benefit from having a diverse membership and I dare say a discerning, often highly educated, audience of readers who are eager to be helpful to authors in one way or another. There are few authors here who have not benefited in some way from the things you have mentioned. So, I would say that you have answered your topic question by already providing the answers to your query in your post. Yes! Yes, to all of it.

You know what they say about versatile authors?

I do not remember seeing the button for either of these options.

Many writers work explanations into their work without seeming to be explaining things. It's perfectly acceptable to be different if that's what you're worried about. @Palantir includes in his writing many examples of Australian life, and this American has enthusiastically enjoyed what I've read.

On a Friday yet ... Who knew ... Flashback to the 'Olden days'.

There is a HGTV show called 'Battle on the Mountain' streaming on MAX which stars renovators Stephen and David St. Russel, a married couple from MA. The link takes you to a free article in The Boston Globe about the couple and the show.

I’m reading this on an iPad Pro 10.5” using Safari for webpage reading. The formatting looks good, the lettering is nicely legible (even in the colored status designations) but, I think, a slightly larger font size would be appreciated by many of us.

I skimmed through the posts, and no one has mentioned "House of Flowers" on Netflix. This series is hilarious, camp, full of stupid-funny intrigue, includes nearly the whole GLBTQ++ gamut, and is darn right fun to watch. The show has subtitles, and it is a comic soap opera (there's no getting around that fact), but I found it so enjoyable to watch. If you're looking for something in an everything-and-the-kitchen-sink vein it's must-see. There have also been two movies made after the series so, I'm guessing, it was a popular series with its intended audience (it was for me). Mindless comic entertainment of the highest order!! Edit to add: I'm watching the series for the second time, now, and I don't recommend watching the previews. I was going to include a preview for the first season, but it gives too much away, and it's confusing to watch without context.

I read about this in The Washington Post here in the states. Ever so often things like this crop up and it’s usually some sort of news media that breaks it into the open. That’s why we need strong investigative reporting. We all benefit from it, but so much of it is getting gobbled up by hedge funds and other conglomerates then milked for cash until there’s nothing left and then closed down and discarded. I like watching John Oliver’s show on HBO/MAX (he and the show just won yet another Emmy award), because he is both entertaining and hits hard on a variety of topics that people really should know about.

I don’t think much of this movie, it didn’t make a lick of sense. There were just too many ‘reveals’ at the end all in order to justify the actions of a disturbed individual. Watching Barry Keoghan dance around in the nude was mildly entertaining though — a small treat for having suffered through the febrile attempt at whatever.

Not only, but a lot of us are also men of discerning taste. I like to think of myself as being one of those discerning men, at least in public.

See, this is why I wondered if the series was worth watching. But, thanks to you and @Krista I am not going to waste time on it.

Have any of you watched 'Hit the Floor'? I saw a scene from the series, and it looked interesting.

"I've been doing this shit for forty fucking years." - Madonna And I've been along for the ride with her. Madonna has been headlining her 'Celebration Tour' here in Boston this early January, after having been sidelined by a serious bacterial infection late last summer. In her honor I have been listening to her CDs here at home. The last couple of days I've been listening to 2009's Celebration CD release of thirty-six remastered tunes, it's been a blast reliving great moments in time. The link is to a Boston Globe review of one of the shows.

Other than being a movie director are they know for enjoying sex?

Huh, what does five guys at one party equal then? If we’re to label a person because they are sexual beings there should be a good label ready and at hand, right? A word that just slips off the tongue?

There’s an article in the Boston Globe today about a startup news service called Channel One using avatars to give personalized news to viewers. The avatars are based in digital scans of real people. I’m guessing that they only scanned faces for appearances and expressions, because the picture of the avatar in the newspaper had a thumb but only three fingers on each hand. Edit to add: There actually was two pictures, a male and female avatar. The male’s picture was large and it was easy to see the finger configuration but when I pinched open the picture of the female to expand it the fingers were slimmer but they had the same configuration.