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- Conservatarian Press Launches as a Publisher for Cancelled Authors
- Denzel Washington Put Pleasing God First in ‘Journal for Jordan’
- ‘Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett’ Receives a Mixed Response
- Person of the Year Poll Quickly Shut Down as J.K. Rowling Was Winning
- MCU Shills & Mainstream Critics Can’t Understand the Failure of Eternals
- James Franco Responds to Seth Rogan Throwing Him Under the Bus
| Conservatarian Press Launches as a Publisher for Cancelled Authors Posted: 01 Jan 2022 09:18 AM PST
If you aren't willing to promote the Democratic Party agenda, you might as well forget about breaking into the legacy fiction-publishing industry. Progressives have tight control over it. And chances are, they'll do everything they can to see that your work never sees the light of day. The people who have launched Conservatarian Press are keenly aware of this. And it's why CP will specialize in publishing first-rate authors and novels (along with some nonfiction) that progressive cancel culture would otherwise crush. CP Executive Editor Jamie Wilson spoke exclusively with The Loftus Party about the goals of Conservatarian Press and some new titles the publisher has already acquired.
The Loftus Party: Why create Conservatarian Press and why right now? Who all is involved? Jamie Wilson: About a decade ago, I was involved in launching Liberty Island Media, which was, I believe, the first small publisher focused specifically on developing and bringing to the market fiction books by conservative writers. Adam Bellow, who was instrumental in bringing a lot of nonfiction conservative books to publication and the bestseller lists, believed—wisely—that conservatives want to read fiction. Executives in the publishing industry disagreed, many of them outright stating that conservatives don't read. Liberty Island proved them wrong, but due to split focus among the principals and editorial disagreements, it is preparing to shut down. I created Conservatarian Press from the ashes left by Liberty Island, and I plan to bring the same ethos to publishing. We are starting small, focusing primarily on epublishing in the early days, and plan to ramp up quickly as we gain resources. Our timing, I think, is crucial. We have reached a turning point in the culture wars, a place where logic and science seem to have no place in the mainstream zeitgeist, and more and more conservative voices are being shut out from both nonfiction and fiction markets. Worse, the mainstream has grown more strident and open about shutting us down, partly in response to our own counterattacks but largely because those shutting us out seem to think there is no drawback to doing so. I believe we need as many outlets for our voices as possible. None of us should be voices alone, crying in the wilderness—we should be able to find community, and we should be able to find writers that speak to us, and writers should be able to find and influence readers as well as make a decent living telling stories. Conservatarian Press will be doing everything we can to move toward this goal. My husband Clark Wilson is deeply committed to marketing Conservatarian Press and each individual book. David Swindle is starting his own nonprofit publishing company, tentatively titled PZAP, and he will be working to develop special projects that bridge the gap between his company and our more commercial titles. We have a number of editors who worked for Liberty Island who are staying with us as we move forward as well, and we are trying to use as many artists who share our political points of view as possible with the belief that a) every penny spent there amplifies our voices and b) conservative and libertarian artists are more likely to understand our overall vision.
TLP: What kind of books will you be publishing and do you have any titles lined up for publication right now? JW: Conservatarian Press will be publishing commercial fiction of all genres; the main requirement, after telling a good story, is that the book be relatively unpublishable by the mainstream press because of the conservative or libertarian slant of the story or because the author is in danger of being "canceled" due to his or her politics. That being said, I have noticed that thrillers, action/adventure novels, and mysteries compose the majority of what we are sent—but those books are easier than most genres to publish with mainstream publishers even when there's a conservative angle in the book. For that reason, I am particularly interested in science fiction, fantasy, YA, children's, and women's fiction (including romance) novels. Our goal is not to ghettoize ourselves so that only people who already have conservatarian beliefs are interested in reading our books. Rather, it is to tell good stories that, because of the current political climate, are difficult to publish, and to have those stories appeal to all readers who like good stories. Our first round of publishing includes a Southern Gothic women's fiction novel; a nonfiction book that is essentially a drive through the South; a slightly cyberpunky thriller; and in conjunction with Deep Reef Books an ocean-themed action-adventure novel. I purposely chose a wide variety of genres, and our second publishing round will be similarly diverse (a Roman historical, an insightful post-apocalyptic novel, a science fiction novel, and a romance). My Life as a Dixie Darling, by Mark Goldblatt, is about a young wife and mother whose ne'er-do-well but charming husband convinces her to take nude pictures for a website similar to Only Fans, and the unexpected fallout in her life secondary to this. Neon Crosses, by Chris Queen, is a tour through the South along the route from roughly Atlanta to Disneyworld. It focuses on the real South as seen through the eyes of a native son. Kill Sequence, by Steve Griffiths, follows the story of a grieving husband avenging the death of his wife and discovering the startling powers of the artificial intelligence-linked cybernetic implant she invented. Razormouth, by Howard Butcher, will launch in January, slightly earlier than the other books because we are publishing it in conjunction with Howard's publishing imprint. It is about a pair of engaged grad students completing doctoral dissertations on an idyllic tropical island who become accidentally entangled with a drug cartel.
TLP: Will CP simply publish through Amazon (which any author can do) or is it a full publisher—ISBNs, paperback and hardcover options (as well as digital), available through other online and brick and mortar outlets, and so forth? JW: CP will publish through Amazon and Smashwords (which distributes to Barnes & Noble) as well as offer print-on-demand hardbacks and paperbacks with our own ISBNs. While we will not have the capacity for physical distribution at the outset, as we grow we plan to integrate the same superstructure as traditional publishers. Our ultimate goal is to ensure that conservative-leaning literature winds up on the same bookshelves as mainstream books, and we can't accomplish that if we are limited to epublishing and POD. However, we are starting with limited resources, and we must recognize the reality of that. We have unique value for writers. Our editors are skilled writers themselves who share right-wing points of view and will not dismiss a story because the politics are "problematic." (Again, we are looking for good stories first, with the understanding that the theme and politics will naturally arise from the writer's worldview.) We will also have dedicated marketing services, and over time we hope to remove most of the marketing burden from the writer. We will be promoting the company, genre imprints, and individual books using both traditional and social media marketing strategies with a special focus on the long tail. Since the center-right segment of the population has been ignored by the traditional major fiction publishers, but has myriad nonfiction outlets targeting them, there is a ready-made market waiting for the stories we will be publishing. Unlike traditional publishers, we know that conservatives do indeed like to read fiction. Though we will be marketing through primarily right-wing and center-right media, we will not neglect more traditional outlets. Our focus is on good stories, and we want everyone to read them. Our readers will enjoy the books we publish, regardless of their personal politics.
TLP: Are you accepting manuscripts right now and if so, how can people submit them to CP? JW: We are actively accepting manuscripts, and I would love to get my hands on a good fantasy series as well as some good YA and tween books. You can submit at submissions@conservatarianpress.com, or directly to me at j.wilson@conservatarianpress.com.
TLP: What else would you like to add and where can people follow CP online? JW: [Our social media accounts and website are as follows.]
We will also have an emailed newsletter, which you can sign up for at the website. We have some pretty exciting plans for the future.
Because the mainstream writing community has shut conservatives and right-leaning libertarians out of EVERY stage of storytelling, many of the writers who come to us have not had formal or even informal training in how to write. I am developing a program to address this for writers who are not quite ready to publish, but who show real promise and talent. Right now, I'm working directly with two writers, one of whom I expect to publish in October 2022. I want to build a virtual workshop that can handle six to ten writers at a time to develop their skills and prepare them for publication. You can expect to see that launch sometime in 2022.
The conservative storytelling community has little or no outlet for short-form fiction. We will be launching a magazine to address that in July 2022. Alongside fiction, you can expect to see book reviews for independently published books (not our own—that would be cheating!), essays, cultural criticism, comics similar to those run by Dragon Magazine back in the day, and whatever other fun things we can come up with. The magazine will encourage themes with every issue, but we will not reject stories that do not follow the theme. (Our first theme will be family.) While we will probably pay very little for the first few issues, the goal here is to create a print subscription magazine that pays professional rates. I like the idea of our writers being able to join professional organizations on the strength of publishing with us!
You can start looking for us next year at conventions as well, both mainstream and the small conventions that are springing up around our own writers. When I started the little email list over a decade ago that ultimately grew into the [Conservative-Libertarian Fiction Alliance], my goal was to find those voices who thought they were all alone. This goal has not changed. I am hoping that by our attendance at conventions as an openly conservative publisher, some of these voices will find their way home.
Originally published here. The post Conservatarian Press Launches as a Publisher for Cancelled Authors appeared first on Bleeding Fool. |
| Denzel Washington Put Pleasing God First in ‘Journal for Jordan’ Posted: 31 Dec 2021 01:15 PM PST
When Dana Canedy gave Army 1st Sgt. Charles M. King a journal in late 2005 to write a few words of advice to their unborn son, she said she expected only a page or two from her shy, reserved fiance. King, a nearly 20-year veteran of the force by this time, was heading off on yet another overseas deployment, his last before retirement. Canedy, who was a few months pregnant, wanted to have the words “I love you” written on a page beside King’s name, just in case something happened. What Canedy got was page after page of loving insight that she and their son, Jordan, would hold dear for the rest of their lives.
King’s words went on to inspire a bestselling book called “A Journal for Jordan,” with a movie of the same name that was released for Christmas 2021 and was directed by Denzel Washington, who said he hoped to “please God” with the project. Speaking to the Religious News Service, he said the following:
"The spirit of God is throughout the film," Washington told RNS after admitting that he often led prayer circles on the set. "Charles is an angel. I'm a believer. Dana's a believer. So that was a part of every decision, hopefully, that I tried to make. I wanted to please God, and I wanted to please Charles, and I wanted to please Dana." The movie stars Michael B. Jordan as real-life Iraq war veteran Army Sergeant Charles Monroe King, who was killed in action in 2006. His wife, New York Times writer Dana Canedy, wrote an article about a journal King wrote that he left behind for their son that detailed the fallen soldier's deep faith. Canedy's article was eventually reworked into the book that forms the basis for the film that Washington signed on to direct.
The 67 year old actor also added that the "spirit of God" is an important part of the film. The director also helped build the West Angeles Church of God in Christ in Los Angeles, and is very mindful about putting God first in his life and work.
"I try to make sure I try to put God first in everything. I was reading something this morning in my meditation about selfishness and how the only way to true independence is complete dependence on the Almighty".
Washington has been increasingly outspoken about spiritual issues in recent years, most recently telling men at a Christian men's conference to pray daily, "listen to God," and remember that "strength and leadership" are "God's gift to us." The post Denzel Washington Put Pleasing God First in ‘Journal for Jordan’ appeared first on Bleeding Fool. |
| ‘Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett’ Receives a Mixed Response Posted: 31 Dec 2021 10:55 AM PST
The long-awaited Book of Boba Fett, the standalone series from Disney+ that focuses on the bounty hunter first introduced in 1981’s The Empire Strikes Back. While it should please countless Star Wars aficionados, it never manages to do anything too surprising or original. Overall, there was some good action, although a lot of it seemed poorly choreographed, and there was a decent tease for what’s coming, but some fans simply were not impressed.
The Book of Boba Fett has a seven-episode first season, so some of these opinions may change. Chapter One only sets up the primary story arc.
Robert Rodriguez signed on to executive produce “The Book of Boba Fett” starring Temuera Morrison and Ming-Na Wen. Following Fett and Fennec Shard as they take over the crime syndicate formerly run by Jabba the Hutt on the treacherous planet of Tatooine, this series is set up to fill in some major blanks for the mysterious fan-favorite character.
In “Chapter 1: Stranger in a Strange Land,” we see Boba Fett and Fennec Shard address the public that has come to pay their respects to the new crime lord on the block. The once-ruthless bounty hunter is determined to rule by respect rather than fear like his predecessors. That’s why he spares the lives of the Gamorrean guards that served under Jabba and Bib Fortuna.
Another visitor is Dokk Strassi. He is the leader of the Trandoshan family who protects the city center and its business territories and a former employer to Fett during his work-for-hire days. Strassi wishes a thousand tidings to the new Daimyo of Mos Espa, saying, “May you never leave Mos Espa.” While this sounds more like a threat than a greeting of good faith, Fett accepts the tribute before welcoming the mayor’s Majordomo to the throne room.
And there he is. While Stephen Oyoung is credited as the performance artist for Dokk Strassi, Robert Rodriguez is credited on the cast list as Dokk Strassi. Based on the way it’s laid out in the credits, this probably means that the director just provided his voice to the character in post. This makes sense since he probably had more things to worry about behind the camera on the day of shooting.
via SlashFilm
The post ‘Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett’ Receives a Mixed Response appeared first on Bleeding Fool. |
| Person of the Year Poll Quickly Shut Down as J.K. Rowling Was Winning Posted: 31 Dec 2021 08:25 AM PST
One of The Guardian newspaper’s recent online polls was seeking nominations for “Person of the Year,” but it was suddenly switched off, leading to speculation that it was shut down because author J.K. Rowling quickly and handily grabbed the lead. On December 15, the poll was released with a basic question: "Who would be your 2021 person of the year, and why?"
But by Wednesday the poll was closed, prompting speculation from a number of outlets that because author J.K. Rowling was such a popular pick, the the Guardian had no choice but to lock it down. It still exists, but has been disabled and is no longer accepting entries.
Online reactions were brutal.
Trans activists attacked Rowling last year when she warned that youngsters who are suspected of being “trans” should not be “shunted into hormones and surgery.” She was previously labeled a “TERF” — “Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminist” — for supporting the freedom of a woman to refuse to refer to someone who is not biologically feminine as a woman. The suggestion that biological sex distinctions maintain some relevance independent of “gender identification” has enraged the left.
While many in Hollywood and those involved with the Harry Potter film series denounced Rowling, some franchise stars such as Ralph Fiennes and Robbie Coltrane, have both defended Rowling. Rowling eventually wrote a response describing her personal experiences as a survivor of sexual assault and violence where she defended her belief that the concept of men becoming women erases womanhood entirely.
In spite of being uninvited to the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter, the doxing, and the death threats from the "trans community," Rowling remains firm and defiant, telling trans activists that the best way to "prove your movement isn't a threat to women, is to stop stalking, harassing and threatening us."
Now it appears that any evidence that normies, or Muggles, still heavily support the author must be kept under wraps, at least according to The Guardian.
The post Person of the Year Poll Quickly Shut Down as J.K. Rowling Was Winning appeared first on Bleeding Fool. |
| MCU Shills & Mainstream Critics Can’t Understand the Failure of Eternals Posted: 31 Dec 2021 06:15 AM PST
We’re about two months or so already from the time the Eternals movie became the most notable Marvel film production to tank at the box office. As expected, some film sites just won’t admit why. One of those is Film Daily:
You’d think they might be willing to acknowledge the concept of “progressive” ideology can be very alienating, but no. Nor do they consider the wider audience doesn’t want to see these movies for the sake of seeing 2 homosexual men engaging in the practice. I may not agree with everything entertainment writer John Nolte says, but he’s got a point, that it’s just so embarrassingly bad.
Earlier, even Clout News went a predictably fuzzy route, and wouldn’t be very objective. What they say here is stunningly laughable:
What’s that? Because it’s bold?!? Where have they been all these years? There have been LGBT characters in mainstream TV and films for years now. Why do they think that’s anything new, if that’s what they consider bold? If they were serious about boldness, they’d come up with a meaty metaphor for battling Islamic terrorism. They’d even put an emphasis on Ukranian culture. Or Armenian. Instead, we’re told that homosexuality, if anything, is “bold”. I’m sorry, but emphasizing gay characters who basically shun the opposite sex, along with marriage to the same, is hardly what one could call bold these days, so much as it’s pathetically cheap.
Yawn.
This would be far more convincing if the producers stated clearly they were interested in ethnicities/nationalities as much as they are in LGBT ideology and skin color (and, as the Muslim Ms. Marvel TV show hints, the Religion of Peace). But they never seem to mention ethnicity/nationality, and that’s the most telling hole in their defense, big enough for a fleet of 18-wheelers to drive through. Her response reads like this:
Forget it. You’ve been shoving these ambiguous concepts down everyone’s throats for over a decade now. It’s nothing new, and the way they’re doing this is alienating, to say nothing of oblivious to the vitality of story merit. Besides, the part about “every kind of human” is also pretty unclear. Oddly enough, Clout News actually brings up the details I did more clearly:
But the smart person also expects merit to the story. Do these apologists really think those who’d like to see ethnicity in exploration want the story to be boring, dull and badly acted/directed/scripted? All that aside, funny they don’t point out the producer didn’t seem to put any clear emphasis on nationality/ethnicity, let alone say, the food recipes you could find in any of these foreign countries, or the “folk outfits” they’ve worn past or present (I think Mexican women’s folk dresses from Tabasco and Chiapas are some of the most wonderful clothes inventions in history, along with French bikinis). Instead, we have a film where the characters wear these absurdly modest costume designs that’re actually rather dull, to say nothing short of PC. And does the Eternals movie even so much as honor Kirby’s art and memories? Hardly. So what’s their point? Isn’t it the studios who must acknowledge whether improvements will be made?
On the other hand, the Indian Express is willing to discuss some of the issues more objectively, though even they shy away from challenging queries like whether it was truly such a big deal to emphasize LGBT issues:
Including, in their view, WandaVision. Maybe because it looks like it’s an excuse to continue Scarlet Witch’s situation into the next Doctor Strange movie. But they don’t get into serious questions of whether promoting identity politics damaged the entertainment value of the Marvel-based movies. How then do they expect them to improve? Without objective criticism and taking hard looks at their mistakes, nothing will improve. They do, however point to the latest Spider-Man movie:
Surprisingly, it has, because as some critics point out, it avoids wokeness, putting a far more serious emphasis on entertainment value. (Though it’s distributed more by Columbia/Sony, so it doesn’t quite count as a MCU film proper.) But, even this has an unfortunate downside, if you consider Tom Holland’s made pandering statements about the desperate need for a non-white Spidey, even as his suggestion there could be female variations on the role has a valid history:
First, there was a plausibly created Spider-Woman, Jessica Drew, in the late 1970s. There was even a later successor, Julia Carpenter. But the difference is that they weren’t created out of political agendas. Unlike what the later Miles Morales became, when the mixed race character who was introduced as a survivor of the Ultimate universe went on to become an identity politics token (and in that time, who knows? They’ve probably established Miles as a LGBT token too). What Holland’s telling was entirely unnecessary, and clouds the scene with yet more political pandering, emphasizing stuff that’s already been apparent for decades on end. It’s all just an excuse to obscure the importance of entertainment value, of course, which these actors remain very evasive on. Speaking of which, Henry Cavill, who played Superman in just one stand-alone movie nearly a decade ago, made similar statements too:
So Superman has no skin color or gender? That’s what both actor and news site make it sound like. In any event, lest we forget what the real problem is:
Any movie with such an anti-American ideologue as Coates on board only spells trouble and worry, as noted earlier this year. Skin color and even ideals alone do not guarantee the finished product will be engaging, let alone thoughtful, considering the highly probably chances Abrams’ project will be more about agendas. Wow, if this is what an actor whose 2013 stand-alone film never led to any direct sequels, and only continued the character in two more films versus Batman and later teaming with the Justice League, thinks of the material, then maybe it’s best not to miss him at all. Though I wonder if big-time fans of Zack Snyder are disappointed Cavill’s basically dumping the role without much caring to show for it. As of now, Cavill and Holland have something in common: they’ve both made divisive statements without putting much emphasis on the importance of entertainment value. Something tells me they don’t commonly read the old or new comics either. What a depressing situation it is when Hollywood makes a farce worse than need be.
And why must we be told the Joker film is such a big deal, now that I think of it? That’s only putting another emphasis on villainous spotlights, something else that’s dumbed down entertainment a long time ago.
Originally published here. The post MCU Shills & Mainstream Critics Can't Understand the Failure of Eternals appeared first on Bleeding Fool. |
| James Franco Responds to Seth Rogan Throwing Him Under the Bus Posted: 31 Dec 2021 04:45 AM PST
After two decades of close collaboration in Hollywood, James Franco and Seth Rogen have publicly parted ways. All of this derives from claims of sexual misbehavior against Franco, about which he has mostly remained silent in public.
In a snippet released online, Franco explains how he considered Rogen his closest work friend and still has a lot of love for him. Franco will be telling his side of the story from beginning to end in a lengthy interview for The Jess Cagle Show on Thursday, and in a snippet released online, Franco explains how he considered Rogen his closest work friend and still has a lot of love for him.
“He was asked about me, and I just wanna say I absolutely love Seth Rogen. I guess I’m going to talk about it because a lot of people come up to me. I love Seth Rogen. I worked with him for 20 years. We didn’t have one fight for 20 years. Not one fight. He was my absolute closest work friend, collaborator. We just gelled.”
In October 2019, two women filed a civil suit against the 'Pineapple Express' star, accusing him of exploiting aspiring actors at his now-defunct school and duping young women into shooting explicit sex scenes. Franco said he developed a sex addiction after he became sober from an alcohol addiction he developed at a young age.
In the aftermath of the charges levied against his Pineapple Express co-star, Rogen initially stood by him. Rogen had even made a joke about it when hosting Saturday Night Live, which sparked anger against him. Rogen then changed his mind, and walked back his supportive stance of Franco and began saying that he will no longer be working with his old pal on any future film ventures. Franco confirms this, and while he acknowledges that it has been “hurtful,” he also acknowledges that he fully comprehends the situation.
“What he said is true, you know, we aren’t working together right now and we don’t have any plans to work together. Of course, it was hurtful, in context, but I get it. He had to answer for me ’cause I was silent. He had to answer for me, and I don’t want that. So that’s why, that’s one of the main reasons I wanted to talk to you today: I don’t want Seth or my brother or anyone to have to answer for me anymore.”
Franco does admit in his new interview that he’s struggled with sex addiction. He also admits that he “did sleep with students and that was wrong,” something he says he justified at the time because the relationships were consensual.
“I suppose at the time, my thinking was if it's consensual, OK. Of course I knew, you know, talking to other people, other teachers or whatever, like, yeah, it's probably not a cool thing. At the time I was not clearheaded, as I've said. So I guess my, I guess it just comes down to my criteria was like, if this is consensual, like, I think it's cool. We're all adults, so…”
Franco agreed this year to pay $2.2 million to settle the 2019 civil lawsuit, according to documents filed in Los Angeles Superior Court.
The post James Franco Responds to Seth Rogan Throwing Him Under the Bus appeared first on Bleeding Fool. |
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