Skip to main content

Standing On The Soapbox

There comes a time in each of our written lives when some injustice occurs that is just so outrageous that we are beside ourselves with emotion.  Be it rage, sympathy, hope or disdain; we writers deal with things in our own way.  We don't tend to go picketing and shouting in front of high-rise buildings, we don't raise our fists and aim for the chin, and we typically aren't found screaming red-faced at clerks or managers.  No, we writers take a different approach: we write.

Somewhere along the way we discovered that the written word can be even more crippling than a well-placed throw of the fist.  We understand that we can sometimes bring more awareness and help to a cause we feel is worthy simply by writing our feelings out on paper and sending it out into the world to take on a life of its own.  And often, far more often than losing our tempers and telling the S.O.B. behind the counter just what we think of him, we feel relief and vindication as throngs of readers grasp to our words and make them their own.  It is satisfying to know that a well circulated comment can (and will) eventually hit our opponents where it hurts the most - be it their pride, their reputation or their bank account.

This revelation has crept upon me these last few days in an occurrence that has made my inner Customer Service Representative cringe and left me with my hands flailing above my head in a rare moment of complete and utter exasperation.  It is appalling to me that even in a time of dire economic straights, big-name corporations still look down on us "little guys" as if our feelings, opinions and wallets don't matter.  Well, I have had enough of being cast aside as just another random soul marching towards the register.

I don't enjoy writing negative reviews, and rarely have ever had a business transaction go so far south that I felt it necessary to write a letter of complaint.  I do my best to work any issues I may have out with the staff and management of any establishment, and typically we part from the transaction as friends and with continued patronage.  However, lines in the concrete have been crossed and I finally had to put my frustration down on paper if for no other reason than to let other consumers know that they too may be in the process of being had.

Wyndham Garden Hotel Sells Property and Leaves Travelers Without a Bed is an article I wrote based on my experiences this week with Wyndham Hotel Group.  I still, even after submitting a letter of complaint and informing Wyndham that I would be writing an article reviewing them, have not received any response from the staff or management of Wyndham Garden Hotel, or Wyndham Hotel Group (corporate offices).  I ask that you pass the article link on to friends or family who may be travelling in the Atlanta area after August 16th, 2010 so that they do not end up in a situation of arriving at the hotel only to find that it is no longer open and so that they have the time they need to make other lodging arrangements.

I don't typically plug my paid works on my blogs and I will state here so that there is no confusion that yes, I do get paid by Associated Content based on the number of page views an article receives.  However, I did not write this article to get rich quick (any writer can tell you that writing anything for publication does not typically bring you gold-lined pockets).  I wrote it to inform readers and travelers of the pending closure of the hotel since Wyndham has not seen fit to notify lodgers themselves.

Thank you for taking the time to read my rant and share in my frustration.  Here's to us "little guys"; together our voices do count!

Currently Reading: 
He Crashed Me So I Crashed Him Back: The True Story of the Year the King, Jaws, Earnhardt, and the Rest of NASCAR's Feudin', Fightin' Good Ol' Boys Put Stock Car Racing on the Map

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

S.E Anderson's Celestial is here!

I am so excited to tell you guys about a series I've been reading! The Starstruck series follows a rather disorganized mess of a girl as she traipses across the multiverse with aliens. Sally gets into SO many interesting situations, and these novels are packed with snark and wit that keep you turning pages and wanting more. Celestial, Book Four in the series will be released October 9th, and I'm SO blessed to be a part of S.E. Anderson's launch team! In Celestial, Sally is still trying to get back to earth with her friends Zander, Blayde and Nim but something goes horribly wrong and they end up lost on a strange world where Sally is mistaken for the local's goddess! I can't wait to read and review this latest installment in the Starstruck series. S.E. Anderson is a young writer brimming with charm, and I know if you pick up her books you'll fall in love. Get more information on these amazing books by visiting the author's website at:  http:...

Books, Babies and More!

Life in the Kawaii household has been a maddening whirlwind of changes, events, growth and expansion. Age/Sex/Location is now deep within the publishing process, and I am very excited that Brighton Publishing is handling the grunt work in making the novel ready for the commercial market.  Right now it is being combed over by an editor or two, and I look forward to getting recommended edits back in the next few weeks. Along with the new novel in my life, it appears that there is a new reader on the way too!  Mr. Kawaii and I are expecting our first little reader, and he/she should arrive sometime mid-May.  Trying to figure out pregnancy, what kind of parents we want to be, and how we are going to juggle kids and managing our own businesses adds a new set of weights to an already delicate balancing act.  Hopefully we'll figure things out and come out the other side no worse for wear. I hope that all of you are doing well in your own lives and that you are growi...

Traffic and Triumph

The spring and summer are always really hectic for our family. We own an outdoors-focused business, and unfortunately that means that when the sun is out there is hardly time to write anything. My neighbor yesterday asked how "that journaling stuff" was going, and I must have looked absolutely dumbfounded. "Journaling?" I asked. "Yeah, you know, writing in books or whatever." Long story short, it gave me instant lessons about two things. First, that my neighbor doesn't really pay attention or remember the details of any conversations that we've had over the years. And second, that I need to find the time, no matter how crazy life is, to put some focus back on my writing. My third book has been sitting, half edited, since March. It's about time that I got back at that monster, and what better way to do that then to do what all great writers do when they have a project looming... procrastinate by updating this blog. I'm glad I did log...