Published Authors Only: Perils of the 'Net?

I will admit I check Fictionwise regularly to look at the ratings because that gives me a rough estimate of what readers are looking for since the books of mine that Fictionwise carries are mostly different from each other in content and style. For instance, a book that a critic felt was silly seems to be my highest rated book with the public. My only self-imposed rules have been that I don't complain about ratings or critiques.

I have Googled phrases in the past because of piracy. A short non-fiction story of mine was taken about a hundred times. Probably getting time for me to search on that again to identify further "borrowings" of it since most were without my byline so I can ask them nicely to restore that.

For the most part, I find myself spending my Internet time doing actual research for publishing outlets, story ideas, and background details. However, I always set aside some time for writing, whether it's working out plot details or actually putting the words down.

Not sure I fit your criteria - I've written a couple of books, but before the web existed. Both were on troubleshooting computer systems. These days, I write for trade publications, mostly reviews of computer equipment, and a few features. Haven't had any fiction published. I never check web sites to see if an article has hit the wire yet, unless a magazine is late paying me. ;-)

Since the magazines tend to buy all rights, I usually loose interest once something is submitted. I don't even usually read the finished article in print. I've also never had a problem with editing, unless the editor doesn't understand what I'm trying to say and changes the meaning.

Hope this is useful.

Logan Harbaugh
google name for articles, or see www.lharba.com

Maybe I'm weird, but when its done, its done. Eventually I get royalty statements, but I'm too busy with the next project to obsess about ones coming out. Its like sending your kids off to college. Sure, you want to check in with them every so often, but you don't want them to dominiate your life any more.