(no subject)

Dear Raymond L. Schults,

It is my opinion that your biography of Stead, A Crusader in Babylon: W.T. Stead and the Pall Mall Gazette, has been consigned to obscurity for two reasons. They are, in order of importance, as follows:

1. You really didn't contributed anything new to the historiography of Stead. Your book is little more than an abridged re-writing of Frederick Whyte's 1925, two-volume work. You draw the much the same, and in my opinion erroneous, conclusions about Stead's character and motivations. You focus, not only on the same episodes of Stead's life, but the same aspects of those episodes. Given that, anyone interested in Stead is likely to give your book a pass in favour of the much more detailed Whyte biography.

2. YOU FOOTNOTE LIKE A FIRST-YEAR SCIENCE MAJOR OMG.

I could forgive you the first, but the second one is going to get you beaten with a very large stick or shoe or book or whatever else is at hand should ever I meet you. It is not sufficient to say "according to Stead's own account" before a block quote that takes up half a page and leave it at that. Stead was a professional journalist and editor. He published any number of "accounts" in his life and produced, what's more, ten times as many "accounts" that were never published but may be found in various archives around Britain. It is absolutely necessary to be MORE BLOODY MOTHERING HELL SPECIFIC IN YOUR GODDAMNED CITATIONS, YOU COMPLETE AND UTTER WANKER.

I do hope that my feedback has been helpful to you.

Yours,
d_v_8

(no subject)

Microsoft Word is fine with procure, procures, procured, procuring, procurer, procurers, and procuress, but it draws the line at procuresses.

One step too far, apparently. A two or more female procurers? Oh, no, indeed. None of that now.