NewsFreed

6th September 2021

Hay (YouTuber),

A funny thing happened the other day and you popped into my head. It started with a cat crying. I thought it was one of mine and went to investigate only to find after some real dirty work that I was dealing with a kitten. This reminded me of the videos I made with kittens and that was back when you did the (YouTube Segment).

I have to admit if I had it to do over I would not have done those videos. I ran into too many internet stalkers that way, but one of the things I brought up back then was your (YouTube Program)  friends making a movie.

Yeah, I need to get that idea out of my head so I can move on to better things. Truth be told, I know you wouldn’t start a kicksstarter for it, but some of your friends may. It’s just an idea, and a lot of famous people do it now.

You can’t use the name (YouTube Program) for copyright reasons but let’s say you make a comedy horror film about a defunct YouTube channel named NewsFeed, or NewsFreed, something like that. It’s not important. What is important is that everyone is getting back together for a reunion in the middle of nowhere for no good reason.

It would be fun, and I’m sure there would be public interest in the large number of folks who worked on the show. Anyway, (YouTube Mascot) could be News Fiend and in the end he, the puppet, could be the killer after being left in a box alone for so many years. It would be funny. You’d have a good time, and you may just forward this email to a few folks and see what they think.

Just a thought,


Richard Leland Neal

Writing Like Life

I got this as a reply to a forum post on a now defunct publishers webpage. I wish I could find out what I said to this person, but that is lost in time. I hope you all like it. 

Forum reply from unknown author:

I just recently noticed you replied to my post, so my apologies for the length of time in between. Your response made me smile. The thing is, this hasn’t been an easy road to publication, but it has been an interesting one. I have worked my way through multiple review sites with my manuscript (Book Country, Critique Circle, Scribophile, etc.) before it was ready to be read by another human being, let alone read by a potential publisher. The general public, or at least the members of it willing to read my work, have been the greatest help to me. Everyone noticed something different, good and bad, about my manuscript, and helped me to develop my skills as a writer. Once I determined the critique material was valid, I made my way into doing research on the specific topics, essentially studying until I understood the material, and then moved on to writing and re-writing where needed. I’ve been through everything from proper comma placement to the intricacies of emotional expression in writing, with volumes in between. I go about my writing with no expectations…but as long as I’m writing, I have hope. I write because I love it, because it makes me happy (and frustrated, and sad, and overjoyed). I don’t know if ‘fight’ is the right term for me, but I think if someone wants it, if they want to work toward publication, it involves continual effort to learn and grow as a writer. They must be open to criticism and praise, all while maintaining a solid core of belief in themselves. I’ve been turned down by agents, I’ve been turned down by publishers, and I think much if it had to do with the fact that I simply hadn’t done enough work. Rejections never kept me down very long (at least not for more than a day), because I just dusted myself off and started writing again. I believe editors have a vital role in the success of the author, but the biggest role is played by the author themselves.