On how we set high standards and other writing links (#SFWApro)

This blog post by Scalzi is kind of amusing. He assures readers that yes, he does have three TV series in development based on his books but none of them may come through, or one “may not survive past the first season.”
Yes, that would totally suck. Imagine having a book made into a series that only lasted one season. How pathetic.
This is a common issue for creative people. In an interview, Angela Lansbury some years back discussed her disappointment that her Murder She Wrote had been canceled after a mere 12 years, and how rough it was always missing the brass ring. Because, again, a series that only lasts 12 years is just soooo pathetic.
Likewise, at my much lower level of the game, I rarely sit back and think about the fact I’m a full-time freelancer with more than two dozen published stories. I think of how much I wish one of my novels had sold, how much more I want to do … I think it comes with being a creative person. The sky’s the limit (at least in theory) so it’s easy to be dismayed (at least for me) when I haven’t hit the limit yet.
And, of course, when I got my first story published, it felt like my world had changed. Now, while it feels wonderful, it’s just one more story. I want more!
Which is cool, because that’s what makes me push myself. It’s only bad if I forget that what I’ve already done is already pretty cool (I should add that Scalzi’s post makes it quite clear he’s in no danger of forgetting that).
•Like coffee? The world’s most expensive coffee is marinated in elephant dung.
•Lev Grossman discusses fantasy’s current high profile in pop culture. Of course, only time will tell if fantasy’s really gone mainstream or if Harry Potter and the LOTR movies are exceptions, the way Michael Crichton’s SF made the bestseller mainstream lists when nobody else’s did.
•I linked some time back to a post by a couple of YA writers who say they got a book turned down because the lead was gay (but I don’t have the link handy). Came across this 2011 declaration that the authors got the facts wrong. And a fuller response defending the agents here.There’s a good, even-handed overview here.
•A look at the 19th-century ghost story.
•Author Jim Hines on moments of despair. Good post.
•A guide to finding sources for nonfiction writing and reporting.
•How to submit a non-fiction query to an editor you don’t know.
•Years ago, I read articles about how having a website made book tours obsolete. John Scalzi says no, tours and signings still matter.
•I do not think I’d accept a $5 writing gig.
•Are most of the people who “transcend genre” white and male? Foz Meadows wonders.
•If you’re writing anything set in the 1970s, here’s some cool apartment designs.