TAO LIN | BLOG

10/27/06

insect

insect who just learned it is a finalist in the american poetry review book contest

23 Comments:

Sawbuck said...: tao lin

will you contribute to my new magazine?

i like your poems.

sdw; 11:17 AM
Tao Lin said...: i will if i get paid otherwise i can just post them here, and then you can copy and paste them to your site if you want; 3:53 PM
Sawbuck said...: does elimae pay you?

they don't pay me.

unfortunately i'm poor and can't pay you.; 4:50 PM
Fran said...: I've created a very special portrait of you because you've been soooooo nice to me!

http://franswhatever.blogspot.com/2006/02/my-portrait-of-tao-lin.html; 5:32 PM
Fran said...: Tao, I'm sick of growling at you after you do these damn things you do. I don't understand why you do some of them and wish. you'd. STOP.

Can't you just remove my portrait from your damn book? Or email me a fucking copy of the drawings of me? Maybe they're not as bad as I think they may be. But I'm still superroyally pissed that you did this. You should have asked me first; that you didn't makes me think you've made fun of me.

I could have contacted eBay and complained. I still can.; 6:55 PM
Tao Lin said...: we drew gene morgan also and gene morgan is our friend, most of those people are; you can be our friend too

some people get angry at things like this, some people do not

just think about it, would the world be better or shittier if everyone got angry at things that might affect their identity (which is everything, everytime your name is mentioned) from the point of view of people they will never meet or will meet, then act accordingly; 8:01 PM
Tao Lin said...: elimae pays me $50 a month not to talk shit about them

i'm submitting my giant poem to chapbook contest, but if i win afterwards you can have online rights or whatever it is you get; 8:02 PM
Fran said...: You don't understand: I don't care about most people's opinions of me or if they make fun of me. Those things are ultimately irrelevant to me, they're separate from me, they don't affect me. I don't care so much that you drew those pictures, I care more that you're selling them. You have no right to make money off my likeness or where my likeness is involved. IIIII can't even do that, why the fuck should you?

I protect my appearance and I have my reasons why I do so and don't want attention drawn to it. I have never met or seen you in person and neither have you toward me. You must have drawn your pictures off my copyrighted Bio-page photos. The main page of my site clearly has a copyright notice on the bottom and mentions any photos and artworks posted as well as my writings. In my opinion, you don't have a right to create a derivative artwork like those portraits unless I give you that right, and you most certainly do not have a right to SELL those works without my permission. We're not even talking about my writing here or "mentioning my name" or something not a part of my physical person; we're talking about ME, Fran. You don't own me OR my appearance. I do. You really have some goddamn gall. I shouldn't even have to explain this to you; it should be obvious.

"some people get angry at things like this, some people do not"

--That's why you should ASK PERMISSION FIRST.

You're not my friend; I'm not your friend; I've tried to be, but you mistreated me. And you continue to do so. You're starting to sound and smell like members of my family: they neglected/abused me while insisting they loved me. If this shitty stuff you do is the way you treat your "friends," I want no part in being your friend.

And if you draw and sell pictures of your "friends," then maybe they gave you permission to do so, especially if those drawings were derived from their copyrighted works. All I know is: I didn't give you ANY permission. I had no idea you were doing this until you put the fucking thing for sale here.

So don't give me your fucking identity crap. Give me a fucking apology AT LEAST. But you won't even do that. You're forcing me to complain to eBay.; 8:44 PM
Tao Lin said...: fran, i apologize

i should have asked, maybe, no one knows what the best way to act is

i don't know if i should have asked or not

maybe you should change or i should change

that is the only question in situations like these, should i change or should you change?

i don't know, it is too complicated, maybe, maybe not, i already gave the scenario about identity and i don't know

no one knows, you don't know either

your drawing of me was right i think, all the things it said were right i think, i forget what it said; 11:36 PM
Sawbuck said...: $50 / month isn't bad for something like that.

i don't want any rights.

i just want some poems to put on the site.

i think it is very good that you post alot of your stuff here.; 11:57 AM
Tao Lin said...: just reprint poetry from print magazines

you should reprint 'mean free path' by ben lerner in soft targets first issue; 2:35 PM
Bryan said...: fran: "I care more that you're selling them. You have no right to make money off my likeness or where my likeness is involved."

i paid $.01 to tao. i will be happy to send you $.01 if you will shut up.

-bryan; 4:58 PM
Sawbuck said...: it was selfish of me to want your poems

i am sorry for imposing my desires on you

i am happy that i can read your poems

i will just link to your page instead

that will have the same effect; 5:57 PM
Tao Lin said...: thank you for being good sawbuck

bryan, you are being mean

thank you for being mean; 6:25 PM
Steve said...: Bryan, can I see me? You have the rights to the images. Thank you.; 12:23 AM
Tao Lin said...: everyone just wants to see themselves, besides dennis diclaudio; 7:25 AM
Steve said...: I want to see likenesses of myself, yes. I hope I looked attractive.; 10:00 AM
Steve said...: I should put a picture on my blog so people see me and think I'm a great writer because I'm attractive, like Zadie Smith.; 10:02 AM
Bryan said...: steve,

i'll post something on my blog about the portraits when tao sends it to me.

-bryan; 1:09 PM
Tao Lin said...: it is sending today; 2:04 PM
Richard Yates said...: FRAN; 7:31 AM
Richard Yates said...: a very realistic representation of tears. smart.; 10:41 PM
Tao Lin said...: the tears build up at the bottom of the eye like in real life; 10:55 PM