Sustainability| More...
 

Fiction

Off the Shelf and on to the Big Screen!

Regina Brooks | Posted 11.06.2009 | Books

Read More: Young Adult, Writing, HUnger Games, Fiction, Twilight, Teen, Harry Potter, Vampire's Assistant, Movies, Books News
Regina Brooks

Hollywood continues to bring out the movies based on popular YA books, because the guarantee of an audience is just too good to pass up.

Read Post

Transcend and Include: Fictionaut and the Future of the Literary Magazine

Jurgen Fauth | Posted 11.05.2009 | Books

Read More: Fictionaut, Fictionaut.com, Publishing, Literary Magazines, Fiction, Electric Literature, Barrelhouse, Prairie Schooner, Flatmancrooked, Digital Revolution, Book Publishing, Future of Publishing, Books, Literary Journals, Online Magazines, Books News
Jurgen Fauth

It may be more productive to consider the changes roiling the publishing industry evolutionary rather than revolutionary.

Read Post

The Help: Kathryn Stockett's Controversial Hit

The Huffington Post | Jessie Kunhardt | Posted 11.05.2009 | Books

Read More: Fiction, To Kill a Mockingbird, Book Reviews, The Help, Dialect, Kathryn Stockett, Kathryn Stockett the Help, New Books, Books, African Americans, Bestsellers, New Authors, Books News

First-time author Kathryn Stockett's recent book, The Help, has risen quickly through the bestseller lists despite Stockett being previously unknown a...

Read Whole Story

This Writer's Life: Why Write Memoir When Fiction is So Much More Respectable?

Rebecca Walker | Posted 11.04.2009 | Books

Read More: Irene Vilar, Writers, Writing Memoir, James Frey, Writing, Authors, Alice Walker, Books, Memoir, Fiction, Memoirists, Books News
Rebecca Walker

I love the form and feel it is mine the way others feel poetry or the short story is theirs, but memoir is still seen as the first cousin of the tabloid, is it not?

Read Post

Why I Don't Want to Be the Next Amy Tan

Celeste Ng | Posted 11.02.2009 | Books

Read More: Book Reviews, Amy Tan, Ethnicity, Writing, Fiction, Chinese-American, Chinese Culture, Asian Americans, Race, Culture, Asian American Literature, Chinese American Literature, Books News
Celeste Ng

Let's focus on the writing itself: the characters, the language, the narrative style. Because if a review compared me to Amy Tan on those measures, rather than on just our shared culture, I'd be proud.

Read Post

Is 'The Help' More Than A Surprise Bestseller? Is It A New 'To Kill A Mockingbird'?

Jesse Kornbluth | Posted 10.26.2009 | Books

Read More: Fiction, Racism, Mississippi, Civil Rights, Bestsellrers, Bestsellers, Books News
Jesse Kornbluth

I first heard about The Help soon after it was published in February. But it's 444 pages. I put it off. Very quickly, it became the #3 fiction bestseller.

Read Post

Storytelling Lessons From the Boy in the Balloon

Celeste Ng | Posted 10.21.2009 | Books

Read More: Balloon Boy, Falcon Heene Balloon, Storytelling, Falcon Heene, Stories, Writing, Tim O'Brien, Fiction, Books News
Celeste Ng

I'm not sure what life-lessons we're supposed to learn from this whole crazy mess, but the episode of the boy in the balloon tells us a lot about what we want in stories, and how to tell a good one.

Read Post

The Last Poet To Win The Nobel Prize

John Lundberg | Posted 10.16.2009 | Living

Read More: Fiction, Prose, Nobel Prize, Poetry, Wislawa Szymborska, Literature, Herta Muller, World War II, Poet, John Lundberg, Living News
John Lundberg

I've been trying to track down English translations of poems by Herta Muller, the newest Nobel Laureate in Literature, but they are awfully hard to come by (if they even exist).

Read Post

National Book Awards: What Do You Think? (PHOTOS, POLL)

The Huffington Post | Jessie Kunhardt | Posted 10.16.2009 | Books

Read More: Book Publishing, Lorrie Moore, Books, Fiction, Slidepoll, Biographies, Dave Eggers, National Book Award Nominees, National Book Awards, Publishing, Darwin, University Presses, Book Awards, National Book Foundation, Vanderbilt, National Book Award, Bookslut, Gore Vidal, Non-Fiction, Booker Prize, Literary Prizes, Books News

The National Book Foundation rolled out the nominations for the 2009 National Book Award on Wednesday, and the winners will be announced November 18. ...

Read Whole Story

Philip Roth's The Humbling Is, At 140 Pages, His Best Book In Years

Jesse Kornbluth | Posted 10.08.2009 | Books

Read More: Theater, Fiction, Aging, Philip Roth, Ian McEwan, On Chesil Beach, The Humbling, Goodbye Columbus, Simon Axler, Books News
Jesse Kornbluth

Roth is 76 now. He's outlived all of his rivals. He's our most prominent novelist. And over 30 books, he's learned how to disturb us -- and keep us reading.

Read Post

Why Anyone Can Publish On Fictionaut

Jurgen Fauth | Posted 10.08.2009 | Books

Read More: Fiction, Publishing, Books, Poetry, Writing, Self-Publishing, Authors, Fictionaut.com, Fictionaut, Books News
Jurgen Fauth

Fictionaut offers all the tools of a social network, but the real focus is on the actual writing: any member can post fiction and poetry to the site.

Read Post

I Want To Date Your Family

Caprice Crane | Posted 09.29.2009 | Comedy

Read More: Marriage, Caprice Crane, Family Affair, Pets, Relationships, Football, Thanksgiving, Fiction, Dating, Family, In-Laws, Comedy News
Caprice Crane

I'm not looking for "tall dark and handsome." My package comes with a family -- complete with parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents -- maybe even throw in a dog for good measure.

Read Post

Making It Up

James Grady | Posted 09.24.2009 | Politics

Read More: Three-Days-of-the-Condor, Politics, Richard Thompson, Bruce Springsteen, Fiction, Politics News
James Grady

Political fiction works when it makes its consumers feel like they are not alone out in the dark heart of the murderous maniacal mob -- when it makes you feel like you can do something.

Read Post

Destroying the Pope in Fiction

Carol Hoenig | Posted 10.22.2009 | Media

Read More: Pope John Paul I, Last Pope, Facebook, Holy Bullet, Fiction, Luis Miguel Rocha, Putnam, Media News
Carol Hoenig

I knew upon cracking open this novel, The Holy Bullet wasn't going to offer any proof about how Pope John Paul I actually died; what I didn't expect was that a work of fiction would make me apathetic to his demise.

Read Post

Sri-Lankan American Writes Disobedient Girl Reflecting Life Down To Its Smallest Details

Naazish YarKhan | Posted 10.20.2009 | Books

Read More: Women, Srilankan-Journalist, American, Srilanka, Literary Fiction, Fiction, Books News
Naazish YarKhan

Freeman said aspiring writers need to first, put a check mark next to "have burning desire to write." Not "burning desire to be a writer" but to write!"

Read Post

Friday Talking Points [90] -- Obama To Switch Parties

Chris Weigant | Posted 09.21.2009 | Politics

Read More: Daisy Dukes, White House, Table, Medicare for All, Legalize, Barney Frank, Progressives, Fiction, Reform, Catnip, Rube Goldberg, Blackwater, Midotw, Nancy Pelosi, Assassination, Most Impressive Democrat of the Week, Health Care, Budget Reconciliation, Reid, Nancy Reagan, Reconciliation, Vonnegut, Kurt Vonnegut, Terrorism, Mexico, Shorts, Terrorist, Massachusetts, Democrat, Kathleen Sebelius, Congress, Planet, Democrats, Lie, Ted Kennedy, Barack Obama, Decriminalize, Mddotw, Health, Blue Dogs, Harry Reid, Vacation, Falsehood, Healthcare, Senate, George Bush, President Obama, Central Intelligence Agency, Ronald Reagan, Senator, Tom Ridge, Cia, Kennedy, Cat's Cradle, Drugs, Decriminalization, Iraq, Obama, Democratic, Dining Room Table, Media, Truth to Crazy, Media Catnip, Friday Talking Points, Republican, Bush, Pelosi, Edward Kennedy, Most Disappointing Democrat of the Week, Obama Switches Parties, Speaker, Sebelius, Ridge, Two Bills, Michelle Obama, House, Aides, What Planet, Terror Alert, Obama to Switch Parties, Teddy Kennedy, Mainstream Media, Progressive, Grand Canyon, Chris Weigant, Naked Guy on a Plane, Senator Kennedy, Afghanistan, George W Bush, Healthcare Reform, Nazi, Politics News
Chris Weigant

Ted Kennedy is putting both his legacy and his sense of entitlement to his office before the interests of his constituents.

Read Post

Age, Writing and Workshops

Marcia DeSanctis | Posted 08.30.2009 | Living

Read More: Literature, Tin House Books, Portland Oregon, American Literature, Media, Tin House, Career Change, Oregon, Writing Tips, The Balanced Life, Literary Culture, Fiction, Poetry, Living News
Marcia DeSanctis

Any idea that I was still a young woman was temporarily dispelled the first few days of the annual Tin House Writers Conference at Reed College in Portland Oregon.

Read Post

Please, Dear Novelists - Get Real

Johann Hari | Posted 08.24.2009 | Media

Read More: Fiction, Novels, Tom Wolfe, Dave Eggers, Aravind Adiga, Slumdog Millionaire, Journalism, New Journalism, Between the Assassinations, Booker Prize, Media News
Johann Hari

The Slumdog Kill-ionaire is back, and he is reminding us how exhilarating fiction can be when novelists finally leave their seminar rooms and dive into the real world.

Read Post

Why I Love Self-Help Books (Even Though They Don't Work)

Christina Patterson | Posted 08.18.2009 | Living

Read More: Health, Fiction, Healing, Psychology, Beauty, Poetry, Relaxation, Self-Help, Jerry Springer, Living News
Christina Patterson

Don't you just love those exclamation marks? Well, maybe you don't, but I do. I love the perkiness. I love the confidence. I love the lack of ambiguity.

Read Post

Curry is Thicker Than Water Says Canadian-Indian Author, Jasmine D'Costa

Naazish YarKhan | Posted 08.12.2009 | Living

Read More: Indian, Fiction, Jasmine D'Costa, Canada, Books, Summer Reads, Author, Living News
Naazish YarKhan

A book of short stories allows for variety, completion in short bursts of creativity and also captures thoughts between times of writing a novel.

Read Post

The Shelf Talker: Ramen Noodles, Harold Bloom, and Poisonous Plants.

Kevin Smokler | Posted 07.04.2009 | Media

Read More: Scribd, Literature, Writing, Books, Fiction, Andyraskin, Journals, Elizabeth Berg, Media News
Kevin Smokler

Home Safe, is by Helen Ames who is recently widowed and having a tough time with her daughter, her missing retirement money and herself. It doesn't scream originality to us.

Read Post

The Eroticization of Equality and Social Justice

Hillary Rettig | Posted 06.11.2009 | Politics

Read More: Hillary Rettig, George Lakoff, The Lifelong Activist, Romance, Love, Fiction, Freedom, Politics News
Hillary Rettig

What do conservatives -- and repressive regimes and ideologies the world over -- have against romance, love and sex? Why do they need to control them so much?

Read Post

Moonshadows: Part 2

Grant Whitney Harvey | Posted 06.06.2009 | Living

Read More: Nevada, Fiction, Sigma Nu, Sailing, Grant Whitney Harvey, Malibu, Moonshadows, Billy Gladsten, Usc, Reno, California, Western Literature, Novelette, Living News
Grant Whitney Harvey

All day he had been readying himself for an encounter with her. But now, in the suddenness of it all, every bit of preparation was out the window.

Read Post

Moonshadows: Part 1

Grant Whitney Harvey | Posted 05.30.2009 | Living

Read More: Fiction, Sailing, Grant Whitney Harvey, Malibu, West Coast, Billy Gladsten, Hollywood, Usc, Mammoth, California, Reno Nevada, Books, Moonshadows, Living News
Grant Whitney Harvey

I Never in his twenty three years of life had Billy Gladsten made so much money. It afforded him a roomy one-bedroom apartment in Westwood, of all p...

Read Post

Can Movies Save the Day?

Dan Glickman | Posted 05.22.2009 | Entertainment

Read More: Summer, Fiction, Spring, Action Movies, Summer Blockbuster, Film, Movies, Truth, Entertainment News
Dan Glickman

I'm proud of the starring role that movies play bringing joy and inspiration to people worldwide. The real-world role we play at the heart of our modern, creative economy is often overlooked.

Read Post