August 8

Hadleyville, U.S.A (AP)–An ongoing conflict between the Federation of Feline Familiars (FFF) and the Alliance of Alligators Overhead (AAO) has come to a head. Both sides have agreed to negotiate with the author, C. Lee McKenzie, and those negotiations continue behind locked doors.  Thanks to supporter Alex Cavanaugh and E. J. Wesley, she is now in communication with the K-9 Collective; however, only the Malamute chapter has responded to lend a hand. They’ve sent contributions of three doggie rawhide bones and one ball with bell. The alligators ate them.  She asks that any other contributions be sent the local animal shelter in the name of the cause.

Malamute Chapter sends donations, but remains Switzerland in negotiations.

The story unfolds here: August 3. August 6. August 7.

C. Lee Tries to Reason with Negotiator

In the meantime, C. Lee has taken her case to the bloggers in hopes of stirring interest in her newly released middle grade novel, Alligators Overhead. At this time, she has refused to rewrite the story, replacing cats with alligators. As she said during a brief recess earlier today, “I have artistic control over this project, and I refuse to allow any of that control to slip through my fingers . . . even to those cuddly FFF members.”

When asked how she plans to deal with her book launch and these negotiations, she replied, “Very carefully. However, I will proceed with my book launch as planned and I hope followers will be able to get beyond the ugliness of the situation and stop by the different bloggers to add their support at sites I visit.”

Catherine Stein, author of FireSee One support beleaguered author.

C. Lee will be at Catherine Stein’s IDEA CITY today and, as she told this reporter, “. . .carrying on as if nothing is amiss. I hope my readers will stop in to leave a comment and forget that I’m embroiled in a nasty dispute about rewriting and threats of book banning.”

We contacted the FFF and the AAO, but lawyers for each side have asked that neither side speak to the press.

August 7

Author Prepares for Negotiations

Hadleyville, U.S.A. (AP)– In a surprise move, author, C. Lee McKenzie offered to come to the table and negotiate terms with the Federation of Feline Familiars. (Follow previous stories leading to this latest development. August 3 August 6)

Townspeople are now bracing themselves for protracted negotiations between the two sides and hoping that the conflict can be resolved peaceably.

When the leader of the Alliance of Alligators was interviewed, he stated “The Ornofree alligators want the two parties to come to an amicable agreement; however, should the author succumb to the feline demand for a rewrite and a replacement of alligators in the leading role of this story, she should be prepared for a law suit. We’ve already made our position very clear and Ms. McKenzie knows we are firm in our stance on this matter. We have 65 million years of endurance to call upon. And thick hides.”

Cenozo Gator, tribal leader,  certain McKenzie won’t buckle.

The Federation of Feline Familiars claim that Alligators Overhead threatens a way of life for future generations of cats. “We cannot allow our jobs to go away, and that is exactly what will happen if we allow this crack in the door.”

Federation of Feline Familiars bring out youngster to add clout to their demands.

C. Lee McKenzie is now in seclusion; however she has promised a few interviews in the near future. “I’m in shock,” she told reporters today. “Cats on one side. Alligators on the other. I hope you’ll understand my need for privacy at this time.

August 6

“It’s a ‘rent-a-cat’ strategy, pure and simple,” the mayor declared. “And it must end.”

Albert Wisecat seen here with his chief consort, Mitzi French in a more relaxed moment.

Albert Wisecat refuses to back down in his demands for a complete rewrite of Alligators Overhead. He went on record as saying, “Either she does a rewrite or we continue in our demands for this book to be banned.”

Champion of the Undercat might be amenable to author’s tuna offer.

The author, C. Lee McKenzie is holding her ground and refusing to bow to the pressure. “I’ve featured cats in both of my previous books. It’s time for a change. I will not give in to their demands.” She did offer to ease their pain and suffering by donating a case of dolphin safe tuna to the next Feline Familiar Conference. Champion of the Under Cat, aka Sly, agreed to take the offer to his constituents.
Meanwhile, the author is continuing in her book launch. She optimistically stated, “I’m sure the Feline Familiars will come to their senses and agree to stop this protest.”
In an effort to overcome the mounting negative publicity, C. Lee Mckenzie is posting helpful hints on things she learned while preparing to launch this most recent and most controversial book.

“One thing about doing a book launch is you learn a lot and meet a lot of people who are willing to help you out. Here are a few things I’ve learned,” she said during our interview.

• Ask for “help-advice”when you need it.
• Listen and take any ‘help-advice” from those who are successful launching their books.
• Don’t rush. You’re going to make a lot of mistakes anyway and rushing only increases the number of mistakes.
• Organize your hop or your tour or your whatever. Linky is a good way to do that. It collects all the participants and their contact information in one place.
• Have all your links and your posts as complete as possible, so you don’t have to send additional information later. I know I like setting my posts up ahead of schedule, so it saves time if I only have to do that once for each post.
• Remember, this is a network, so help others when they need it. 
• Once your guest post is up, visit that page, tweet, post the link on fb and respond to the comments. That interaction helps you and your host. It widens your network of bloggers and readers.
• Above all, enjoy the beejeebers out this event.