Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️

@sgwong

multi genre author weirdo • nerd of many things • disabled • demi • proud mum of 🏳️‍⚧️ darlings • space dust coalesced into dreams • cis she/her • BigVirgoEnergy™️ • Treaty 6 🎙️ @multitudespodcast.bsky.social rep: Lauren Abramo

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Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jul 11

HOORAY! lol I can’t reply or qt but I’m stoked!! Thank you @clairewillett.bsky.social and @romancingthevote.com 🙏✨

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jul 10

Wait wait wait wait wait so you're telling me the ucp government isn't all-in on hand-counting for important tallies... that it depends on what result they want from the vote or question at hand..? Isn't...isn't there a word for that...

from the quoted article, black text on white:

Elections Alberta says it verified the signatures on Lund’s petition using a two-part system. First, staff disqualified signatures that were duplicates or had incomplete information.

Then [pink highlight start] staff used a sample of 384 signatures [pink highlight end] on the list to get a result the agency said met the 95 per cent confidence level set out in the provincial Citizen Initiative Act.

People were contacted via phone, text and email over a three-day period. Staff left a message with a number to call if no one picked up.

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jul 4

This wee fella jumped up some other tree limbs before settling in to chomp a snack—while facing my kitchen window, watching me wash dishes like it’s a show 😂😅

A squirrel nestled atop an evergreen branch, staring at the camera.

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 29

Bread Cult keeps winning, high fibre edition

a sandwich loaf of whole wheat sits on a red cooling rack alongside a dark grey loaf pan. they’re just chilling together. the bread has two little depressed spots on the crust.

closeup of the funny little depressed spot on the crust. it’s a heart shape!

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 26

If you see this, post an archer.

Star Trek Enterprise Captain Archer mutated into an alien. Don’t worry, he got returned to human.

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 26

Our current activity lol

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 25

But also! I'm putting up 8 copies of DIE ON YOUR FEET as Buy It Now items during @romancingthevote.com 🀄 So watch out for those to pop up next week, a perfect chance to try (or gift!) an alt-history feminist hard-boiled PI series starter + boost voting rights! ✨Bidding opens JULY 1 / closes JULY 5

A print copy of DIE ON YOUR FEET by SG Wong laying on a patterned pink cloth with mah-jongg tiles, spent bullet casings, poker chips, and 6-sided dice sprinkled around it.

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 25

I ventured out today! Got to visit with friends over sushi during one of the two sunny days between lots of rain. #SmallJoys #yeg

Some pretty flowers in my friend’s front yard. I think these are russian irises; the blooms are white tipped with purple. I don’t know the small blue and blue-violet flowers though. This little flower patch made me happy so I thought I’d share

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 23

Though it's hard to know if the usual biases in publications and publishing will be replicated once again, let alone what I expect will be the store getting pummelled with review requests... let's choose optimism, shall we? #ShareGoodNewsToo

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 23

1. Celebrities/famous people, I don't wanna hear your dead voice 2. PL, sticking the landing on this piece: 10.0 3. folks, don't buy these "ai" slopbooks in any format 4. self-published author friends, please please please stop using "ai." you are literally devaluing books as a whole

from today's Publishers Lunch:

ElevenLabs Releases Showpiece 'Odyssey' Audio

AI voice company ElevenLabs has released an audiobook of the Odyssey, narrated by an AI version of actor Michael Caine. The audiobook is created with a cloned version of Caine's voice, which he licensed to the company, as well as 20 other AI voices, plus sound effects and music, the NYT reports.

Even with an artificial cast, it took four human producers six weeks to create the 13-hour audiobook. ElevenLabs created the audiobook to "showcase the creative potential of voice clones and A.I. narration," and timed it to coincide with media coverage of the upcoming film adaptation.

"The idea was, What would be an amazing piece of content, to show what’s possible in the responsible use of A.I. voice featuring an iconic voice?" Jack McDermott, who leads growth at ElevenLabs, told the paper. "On the one hand, it’s about great storytelling. At the same time, this has a really great effect of showing creators around the world, and authors, what can be done with ElevenReader."

On the larger question of how audiences will feel about AI narration, Dustin Blank, who oversees ElevenLabs’ talent and strategic partnerships, comments: "Audiences will decide, at the end of the day. It’s up to them. No one’s forcing this in our ears."

The NYT judges it as flat: "Some of the most dramatic and emotional scenes in the story — like the sequence in which Odysseus returns to Ithaca — fall flat. There isn’t a trace of rage in Odysseus’s voice when he warns the suitors who have been wooing his wife, Penelope, in his absence that they’re about to die. And when the terrified suitors respond, they sound more serene than scared."

The Odyssey audiobook uses the 1870s translation of the epic by William Cullen Bryant, which is out of copyright, the NYT reports. It is available for free on the ElevenReader app.

[continued in next]

[continued from previous; final sentence is highlighted in pink]

ElevenLabs primary business is creating synthetic AI voices and text-to-speech audiobooks. They have partnered with Spotify to produce audio for self-published authors, and digital distributor Bookwire. Their Iconic Marketplace allows brands to license famous voices for AI-created content, in partnership with the celebrity or estate. Currently available voices include Dr. Maya Angelou, Judy Garland, David Hasselhoff, Laurence Olivier, and Mr. Potato Head.

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 22

The accompanying photo says it all: our premier smiling like a blushing starstruck teen upon meeting the worse US president the world has ever been forced to endure; a trip she took, it's worth noting, using Albertan taxpayer funds

screencap from the beginning of the quoted article in Alberta Views:

Like many Albertans I’ve been struggling to keep pace with the rate at which the UCP has legislated since Danielle Smith took the helm in 2022, often in unconstitutional ways that target minorities and override treaty rights. They have passed legislation, often in the middle of the night, that will leave extraordinary impacts on citizens of the province, alter the nature of our democratic society and could ultimately see Alberta remove itself from Confederation. On four occasions they have invoked the notwithstanding clause to override Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Some people, such as federal justice minister Sean Fraser, have described this approach as a form of “democratic backsliding” designed “to cater to a unique political opportunity that may be a good fundraising email but will potentially violate constitutionally protected rights of vulnerability.”

Similar to our neighbours in the US, Albertans are in our own anti-democratic revolutionary political vortex, in which we’re being pulled into the unknown by a MAGA-adjacent far-right UCP government.

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 21

et voilà! Thank you, Bread Cult bible.

pepperoni pizza, sliced into 8, on a sand-coloured cutting board. at top right, someone works on a second pizza crust. at left, a santoku held flat on the board.

pepperoni black olive red onion jalapeno pizza. slightly blackened crust. on a dark sand-coloured cutting board. a santoku is partially visible laid down on the board to the right

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 21

Father’s Day shenanigans as per the husby

4 round white dough balls on a floured pan covered by plastic wrap
(by way of the Bread Cult bible of course)

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 21

Who needs some gentle bun content?

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 20

Dinner. with oven-fried chicken wings and roasted broccolini. Weird combo but it works somehow

a golden brown loaf of home-baked white sandwich bread on a wooden cutting board, with four slices splayed one atop another. a silver knife lays alongside

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 20

Skived off writing today to cook I guess… Now about to start oven-fried chicken wings with my house blend of 8 herbs & spices

a big red mixing bowl filled with raw chicken wings; small white bowl holding 6 spices/dried herbs; coarse salt and a wooden pepper mill

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 19

Look, @mostlybree.kitrocha.com! My very first sandwich loaf 😊

a golden brown loaf fresh from the oven
(on a red cooling rack alongside an empty loaf pan and butter knife)

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 19

Tell you what, my carpal tunnel syndrome is immensely grateful for stand mixers and dough hooks

a pale green stickie with handwriting in fuchsia sharpie that reads “dough proofing [smiley]” is on a beige tea towel covering a bowl. blurred in the foreground rests the Bread Cult bible aka 3 Doughs 60 Recipes by Lacey Ostermann, open to Sandwich Bread

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 14

A tale of two skeets

1: Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani
HISTORY

2: Dave Karp: Look what Mamdani had [sic] done to this city.

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 14

my earlier skeet
“So funny that a double-digit Spurs lead in the first quarter is in no way meaningful as a predictor of game outcome”

with “first” crossed out and “4th” written in

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 13

Has anyone offered to accept on behalf of Canada yet? I can make myself available. I mean, if you want.

THE MALEFACTORS
June 12,2026
Johnny Marr, Princess Diana, Keir Starmer, Anthony Kiedis, Elton John, Aubrey Drake Gra-ham, Lisa Simpson, Donald Trump, Thom Yorke, Damon Albarn, Taylor Swift, Zendaya, Katy Perry, Jack Black, Machine Gun Kelly, Edward Cullen, Popeye, A very judgemental garden gnome named Clive, Jamie Oliver, Keanu Reeves, Ryan Reynolds, Snoop Dogg, Bruce Springsteen, Willem Dafoe, Brian Cox, MertSteep, Bigfoot, Madonna, Kulie Minogue, Kate Bush, Duran Duran, Noel Gallagher
Canada [circled in orange], Lucio, Nigel Farage, Coldplay, Johnny Marr,
Ronald McDonald, Alex Turner, John Cena, David-Affenborough, Paul Rudd, Stephen King, Cher, Rowan Atkinson, Stevie Nicks, Jeff Goldblum, Gordon Ramsay, Stanley Tucci, Björk, Donna Noble, Mitski, TV Girl, Tame Impala, Alex G, Chris Pratt, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jennifer Coolidge, Tilda Swinton, Peter Hook, Mike Mills, Elon Musk, Justin Bieber, The Blue Album, John Gilman, Steven Patrick Morrissey, Charli XCX, Johnny Marr, Sam Browne, Elijah Wood, Siouxsie Sioux, Sam Altman, J.K. Rowling, Coleen Hoover, David Tennant, The Guardian, C418, Russell T Davies, Stanley Kubrik, Joaquin Phoenix, Ross Geller, Chappell Roan, Miley Cyrus, 50 Cent, Tom MacDonald, Ulfric Stormcloak, Ben Shapiro, Mark Fis-chbach, Joe Talbot, Nicholas Cage, Sam Levinson, Mo Chara, Margaret Thatcher

[photo of a frowny white man aka Morrissey]

NEWS
>>>>
MORRISSEY RELEASES LIST OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE WRONGED HIM ON HIS PERSONAL WEBSITE
The list of nearly 100 names contains the likes of Princess Diana, Johnny Marr and even himself?

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 11

And this is the take in today's Publisher's Lunch. Anyone who wants to argue authors' income is primarily impacted by readers' borrowing from libraries is more likely to be aligned with corporations than authors. The current publishing industry's profits _rely on_ taking advantage of authors.

An Authors Guild Survey Actually Shows A Diverse, Robust Market for Books

An interesting Authors Guild consumer survey sheds light on the true size and richness of demand for books, reminding us that the market may be far larger than what common sales statistics reflect. Unfortunately, the headline—"Only 25 Percent of Readers Paid for a New Copy of a Print Book or Ebook Read in the Previous Month"—positioned the results as suggesting that authors are getting cheated by the many legal ways in which books can be acquired and read, and seemed to criticize people who love their local libraries. ("The study upends a common assumption about library borrowing: the readers most likely to borrow rather than buy are college-educated, employed full-time, and earning over $75,000 a year.... Active library members read 16 percent more books than non-members—but bought 42 percent fewer new ones.) And it judges people at that income level as "not generally those who cannot afford to buy books," carrying all manner of aspersions about those who use libraries as a resource. Plus, it does not properly recognize libraries as large, valued, accounts that pay for the books they share, promote books of all kinds, and evangelize for the value of reading in any form.

While the AG's goal of defending authors' earnings is noble, being surprised at and blaming a healthy, (mostly) legal ecosystem of reading is not: the study "indicates yet another likely cause that surprised us: not as many active readers actually buy the books they read today. Instead, almost two-thirds of readers obtain books for free – whether from friends, personal collections, libraries, pirate sites, or other free sources." At the same time, the study itself says that the biggest, richest authors are actually the ones who get borrowed the most, which weakens the argument that this anti-library positioning is needed to defend the earnings of low-paid authors. ...

[con't in next image]

At the same time, the study itself says that the biggest, richest authors are actually the ones who get borrowed the most, which weakens the argument that this anti-library positioning is needed to defend the earnings of low-paid authors. ("The authors with the highest name recognition—and whose books libraries stock most aggressively—see the greatest substitution of borrowing for buying.")

The survey focused on "regular readers"—people who read at least one book in the last month and four books in the last year, which is only a portion of the marketplace—"where they obtained the books they read or listened to in the prior month." By their count, traditional statistics—which remain near record levels—are accounting for a little over a third of the demand: "Only 36 percent of people who read a book or listened to an audiobook in the last month bought a new book or audiobook (or obtained one through a paid subscription service)."

For print and ebooks, 25 percent of the reads came from purchases and 29 percent came from library borrows (also legitimately purchased). So actually over half of those reads were paid for and yield royalties to the author.

Sixteen percent were borrowed "for free from other sources (including piracy)"—we share books in my household, don't you?—and another 19 percent were from personal collections (which presumably somebody bought). And 10 percent were bought used, which is fully legal, and modest next to the other slices.

For digital audiobooks, 36 percent were purchased new or listened to through paid subscriptions, and 37 percent were borrowed from libraries. So in the fastest growing segment of the market, a full 73 percent of books consumed were paid for.

Also bear in mind that internet-based consumer surveys are notoriously poor at reflecting actual sales and market shares. People don't necessarily report their actual behaviors, and in the past small survey results have never corresponded particularly well with hard data.

Also bear in mind that internet-based consumer surveys are notoriously poor at reflecting actual sales and market shares. People don't necessarily report their actual behaviors, and in the past small survey results have never corresponded particularly well with hard data.

[following conclusion paragraphs are highlighted in pink]

We should be celebrating the broad interest in books and reading, and the many ways in which readers can and do get their fix. The enemy is obscurity or irrelevance—if readers aren't interested or have limited ways to access reading the paid marketplaces will wither--and first and foremost authors want to be read. Any dispute over authors' earnings should be focused on publisher and vendor splits, not stigmatizing eager and regular readers.

Just as there should be no real dispute between libraries and publishers, who are allies in common cause. Patrons who love and rely on their libraries should be making that known to their legislators and asking for more funding for these resourced-starved institutions.

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 9

Nighttimes in June at latitude 53° are somethin’ else. #yeg

screencap of The Weather Network sunrise/sunset times for Edmonton with “Sunset 9:59pm” circled in orange

photo facing south taken at 10:32pm: a green space and trees and pale blue sky with wispy lilac-coloured clouds. it honestly looks like day time.

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 7

Grinning with delight because I just finished this beauty. Veronica and Stoker never disappoint 🦋✨

Hardcover edition of A Ghastly Catastrophe by Deanna Raybourn

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 6

We have a family Discord and one entire channel is dedicated to funny animal memes and GIFs. Herewith, a sample

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· Jun 4

Text screencap:

The husby: Heading home. No overtime, huh?
Me: ☹️

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· May 27

Oop my bad. It’s actually Skeletor’s glazed side hole. No sprinkles there.

screencap from @/spider.gay:

[eedacted poster, crossed out text]: ~~skeletor’s donut seems to not be the sort with a hole, nor is it glazed~~

Spider (he/they) at 7:52AM:
It has a hole on the side where the chocolate custard goes in and do you PREFER being told you can lick Skeletor's chocolate custard filling out of his unglazed hole?

[redacted poster]:
You make a fair point

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· May 22

Lots to note here but two things jump out for me: 1 Publisher's Lunch bringing the snark as usual, well done 2 Kudos to HarperCollins for their consistent willingness to publicly be first among the Big Five to find yet another avenue for "ai" to undercut creatives

from today's Publsher's Lunch:
Spotify's Audiobooks Add-On Is Driving Real Sales, As They Announce AI-Narrated Audiobook Tool; ElevenLabs Offers 200k Publisher Audios

At Spotify's investor day presentations, global head of audiobooks Owen Smith said that the company's program that sells subscribers an additional 15 hours of audiobook listening a month (Audiobooks+) for $11.99 is "on track to reach $100 million in annualized recurring revenue this July." (Financial translation: The means that by July, they expect monthly sales to reach $8.33 million.)

To further that growth, they will be adding a higher tier for "power readers" as well as "Family and Student plans."

Smith underscored that, "Almost half of our audiobook listeners are under 35—meaningfully younger than the broader market—and we’re helping publishing unlock one of its hardest-to-reach demographics: young men. Listening hours grew 60% from 2024 to 2025, with nearly half of audiobook consumers having started listening within the last twelve months."

Among other new initiatives, in June, Spotify will allow self-published authors to create their own audiobooks, in partnership with AI voice company ElevenLabs. An "invite-only" beta version of Audiobook Creation Tools will be available in "select markets" to publish audiobooks in English.

"Built directly into Spotify for Authors, and powered by ElevenLabs’ digital voice technology, authors can now access seamless audiobook generation and publishing without exclusive contracts," the company noted in a release. "It’s one more way we’re helping more books reach listeners. At launch this will be in English language only, and available in select markets."

Early last year, Spotify began accepting synthetic audiobooks created through ElevenLabs by self-published authors, so this is an expansion and more formal integration of that earlier effort.

[con't in next]

text in an excerpt of full piece, highlighted in pink:
(which is an oxymoron, but they learned it from us). Listeners can chose their own robot narrator

excerpted from last line, text highlighted in pink:
Harper Collins is also participating

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· May 21

What in the neoliberal bullshit—

screencap from the article:

What this legislation does is force electronic service providers to build and maintain systems that store the metadata of the providers’ customers for up to one year, regardless of whether that person is under investigation. According to the CBC, Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree likened these new requirements to accessing an office cabinet: “like a filing cabinet, where certain types of information would be available with legal authorization.” The legislation would provide the legal authorization, which requires very little evidence and little judicial oversight. This is circular reasoning.

Sandra says, がんばろう！🙂‍↕️@sgwong· May 15

I write in multiple genres, so my books page links to 3 alt-history Lola Starke novels + 1 contemporary suspense/psychological thriller novel (⤵️)+ various short stories in anthologies. Purchase not required. Library borrows & requests to be added are very much appreciated! 📚🔗: sgwong.com/books/