h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Current and timeless woes in the pay-to-enjoy world of the music industry

I'm sorry, but in its current format, this entry isn't going to get into the Edited Guide.

First of all, you start by talking about Planet Earth as if it were somewhere else - which indicates you haven't really taken in the Guidelines (http://www.h2g2.com/Writing-Guidelines). Forget Douglas Adams' work for a moment - h2g2 is an all-Earth setup.

Secondly, you're coming at the subject from a humour/rant perspective. That works fine in stand-up but is really tricky to pull off in the written word. It becomes impossible to tell whether you're trying to make a genuine point, because it's hidden in all the jargony speech where musicians become "noisemakers" and so on.

The stylistic problems are compounded by the many asides. Don't try to define a "computer" here - it distracts without sufficiently entertaining the reader. Much of what's in brackets would be better as footnotes, if it's needed at all.

Finally, I'd disagree with your concluding paragraph. Music has never been free - from Orpheus via Blondin, rich men have paid for the best music.

If you want to address the subject, I'd recommend taking a deep breath and starting from scratch. Talk as you would to an intelligent and interested acquaintance. Explain your points in simple, clear English. There are genuine arguments here, and you clearly have passion - channel it, and an Edited article could yet be yours!

Editorial Note: This Conversation has been moved to the new 'Flea Market' Forum.

This is where we move any Peer Review, Writing Workshop or Alternative Writing Workshop Conversations where the original author has *not* posted to h2g2 for three months. This prevents the active Review Forums from clogging up with dormant entries, but in the Flea Market they can be picked up by others and polished off.