Bigger Things
Today I was calculating how many hardcover copies of books I need to sell to earn past my advance. It felt as if I were transported back to math class. If the royalty rate for 1-5,000 copies is 10% and...you get the picture. That made me think. Then things at work went hell in a handbasket. The man from Apple computers tried to explain the delayed delivery of two machines by saying "Apple's success often creates backlogs of hot products." Wow. Good business plan! And excellent customer service. I won't even go on about his suggested 'fix' for my problem.
So later, to unwind, I visited the smart bitches at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books. And that's when I stopped feeling sorry for myself because ship dates were postponed and I'd have to work really hard to promote my book. That's when I got sad and angry because I'm a woman and nothing gets at my core of emotions like a tale of abuse against a woman.
I'm not sure how I missed the story of Dua Khali Aswad's death. It happened in April. The 17-year-old Yazidi Iraqi girl was set upon by a crowd of men, some family relatives, and beaten and stoned to death. Armed policemen stood watch and did nothing. She died on the ground at the mob's feet. Cause of death: fractured skull and broken spine.
Someone videotaped the murder on their cameraphone. You can watch the video. I will not.
Is it important that the reason she was attacked was because she had been seen in the company of a Sunni Muslim and this was an 'honor killing'? Inasmuch as horrific practices exist and need to be outlawed, yes. Inasmuch as the motive can never excuse this atrocity, no.
Courtesy of Smart Bitch Sarah: "A month later, Joss Whedon wrote about Khalil on Whedonesque, and his entry inspired a group of people led by Skyla Dawn Cameron to put together “an anthology of responses to Khalil’s death and the issues Whedon raised in his original essay ([the] culture of misogyny, violence against women, and the need for equality). It will be printed through Lulu.com, with all proceeds going to charity.” The planned release date is the one year anniversary of Dua Khalil’s death, April 7, 2008.
The book, Nothing But Red is seeking writers and artists to participate - and all formats, media, and genres are open - as well as volunteers to help put the book together. The first article will be Whedon’s original post, though the organizers are looking for anything that serves as a response to Khalil’s death. Submissions are being accepted from 1 August 2007 until 1 November 2007.
You can find out more at the Nothing But Red site, or email Skyla Dawn Cameron directly."
For me, violence against woman touches a nerve that reverberates without end. I shake in anger at these stories and at knowing so many more go unsaid, unwritten, and unknown.
I think I'll submit to Nothing But Red the one story I've written about this topic. It's called "Only Girls Know" and was published in the May/June 2006 issue of Ellipsis:Literary Serials and Narrative Culture. I wrote that story because I was trying to explain how it feels to be a girl and know that violence hangs over you and touches, if not you, your sisters and mothers and friends. It is a constant threat.
I'll also be spending quality time scanning Equality Now and doing what I can to promote the passage of good laws (like those that convict sex tour operators of, you know, doing something wrong--yeah, Gunter Frentz of Fort Worth, TX, I am looking at you.)
Thanks to Sarah for reminding me that there are bigger, more important things than book royalties and shipping deadlines. And thanks to all the men and women who continue to fight on behalf of women the world over.