Category: words

Conventional wisdom has it that publishers are the ones most at risk in the e-book revolution. After all, why does a successful writer need an expensive publisher taking a cut, when the writer can take it to the net herself? But the Endangered Species List is longer than you think. – Salon

Salon and Slate, two of best political and cultural affairs sites on the Web, have had a healthy, erudite rivalry going for some time. But arguments turned personal in a recent volley of remarks between Salon editor, David Talbot, and Slate editor, Michael Kinsley. Talbot: “‘Mike Kinsley, if you’ve ever seen him, is not the sexiest guy in the world, and that’s reflected in his product.'” Kinsley (after calling Talbot’s remarks “moronic”): “‘How sexually appealing the editor of Salon finds the editor of Slate is of no practical interest to the editor of Slate — or, presumably, to the editor of Salon. The trouble with `editor’s sexiness’ as a metric is that it is hard to quantify objectively.'” – Chicago Tribune

As in Australia’s National Biography Awards. This year’s short list suggests that contemporary biographers have thrown out the old rulebooks on writing someone’s life. – Sydney Morning Herald

• The e-book is getting a lot of attention (and praise) at this week’s Salon du livre in Paris. The prestigious exhibition – the creme de la creme of European publishing events – attracts over 220,000 visitors and 750 exhibitors. – Wired

A decade after his creator proclaimed him dead, John Updike’s beloved character Harry “Rabbit” Angstrom will return – sort of – in a new work this fall. “Rabbit Remembered,” a novella to be published as part of the upcoming collection “Licks of Love,” begins where “Rabbit at Rest” left off, exploring the world of friends and lovers “Rabbit” left behind. “I thought somebody might be curious what happened to the people who knew him,” said Updike. – CNN

E-books are here to stay, no matter how much romantic gush you hear from the lovers of dead trees. Last week’s Stephen King success was only the first salvo of the mass-market revolution. – MSNBC (Washington Post)

Just when it seems modern literary standards are being dictated by Oprah, a thousand-year-old epic poem finds a surprising show of support. Seamus Heaney’s Whitbread Prize-winning translation of “Beowulf” is climbing its way to the top of bestseller lists. “It’s oddly fitting that “Beowulf” should go platinum. The poem describes a society utterly consumed with the idea of fame.” – Feed

“The print and hardcover market is drying up,” says an e-book publisher. “The cost of production is out of sight; the big companies are circling the wagons. If your name isn’t Stephen King, you don’t get considered for print. With e-books, we still have to pay editors and artists, but we don’t have to pay those print production costs.” – Hartford Courant

This year’s five candidates are: Frederick Busch’s “The Night Inspector,” Ha Jin’s “Waiting,” Ken Kalfus’ “PU-239 and Other Russian Fantasies,” Elizabeth Strout’s “Amy and Isabelle,” and Lily Tuck’s “SIAM Or The Woman Who Shot A Man.” – Chicago Tribune (Reuters)

Novelist Alain de Botton created a literary stir in 1997 with the release of his tongue-in-cheek philosophical musings in  “How Proust Can Change Your Life.” Readers praised his invention of “a new genre: part self-help, part ethics primer, and part confessional.” Now de Botton is back as host of a TV show in which guests are invited to share their personal problems – from broken hearts to road rage. Distilling 2,400 years of Western thought into an hour of advice, de Botton “seeks to show that Epicurus, Montaigne, and Schopenhauer have many sensible things to say to an anxious modern audience.” Good luck! – The Observer (UK)