Bookish News and Publishing Tidbits 6 April 2012 (honeymoon edition!)

(photos by Pat Foley from Dremt Photography)

RIASS stuff:

I'm off on my honeymoon tomorrow morning, but theres plenty of good stuff lined up from authors, bloggers, readers & more, so stay tuned! Ill also be popping in with bookish updates from Argentina and Chile. If youd like to contribute something while Im away, drop me a line at readinasinglesitting AT gmail.com

An interview with Michael Grant, author of the'Gone'series

A review of'Dead Heat'by Bronwyn Parry: a high-action romantic suspense novel set in rural NSW

Is Amazon the new Google? Thoughts on Amazon SEO

Other bookish stuff:

Jodi Picoult Interviews Sarah Pekkanen About Writing, Motherhood, and the Magic of Female Friendships'Female friendships are vitally important to me, which is why I dedicated'These Girls'to my girlfriends I'm surrounded by wonderful guys ' I have two brothers and three sons ' and I adore them. But female friendships nurture and uplift me, and I find them so textured and fascinating, which is why I'm drawn to writing about them.

Juliet Marillier interviews Kate Forsyth about Kates new Rapunzel retelling Bitter Greens:'I first read the Rapunzel fairytale when I was a young girl in hospital, suffering a series of treatments and operations for a damaged tear duct. I was given a copy of Grimm's Fairy Tales and the stories in that little leather-bound book have been my favourite fairytales ever since ' among them, of course, Rapunzel. I felt a great affinity with that other young girl, locked away alone in a tower as I was confined alone in my hospital ward. I loved the fact that her tears had the power to heal the Prince's blindness and wished that my own tears, weeping constantly from the damaged tear duct, would heal mine. (Stay tuned tomorrow for a guest post from Kate!)

Melody Holliday talks her love of books over at the Walk a Book blog:'Reading has been and always will be a big part of my life. Waiting on my bookshelf, inside the pages of my favourite books, are adventures waiting to be taken, love stories ready to break your heart, and a vampire-infested town that needs to be escaped. I am addicted to reading and it's not something I ever want a cure for.

Theres a Book interviews Barry Wolverton

M&B author Louisa George talks about what shes learned from working with an editor: Wherever you choose to set your story the place should be aspirational- the reader'wants to step inside the heroine's world.

Viewing the world through wolf eyes:'a review of White Fang (see also our review)

An Interview with'Little House'Enthusiast Wendy McClure: I also think this kind of fandom, this all-out total enthusiasm for a series of books or movies or a TV show, is becoming increasingly common. The Harry Potter series created this massive blockbuster model for books and movies, and now it seems like everyone ' the publishers, the studios, the readers and viewers ' all really want to keep creating that kind of experience, because it's fun, and because it sells.

Are apps the future of book publishing?'''The issue is: do these new apps make people happy when they read their books? If they add value in the sense that they're getting more, then I don't think there's a problem. If it gets in the way of enjoying the book, that's no good. That will draw people away from the books. It's like the movies. If 3-D is done well, people get into seats. But if it's like'Clash of the Titans,'you just sit there asking 'why did I spend the extra 5 dollars?'

In the first three days after launching on March 27, JK Rowlings web site Pottermore sold over ?1 million worth of ebooks

A camera for booklovers

Book trailer for Immortal City

Google Cancels eBooks Reseller Program, Dropping Indies

Whats your take on Babylit?

Download a free Childrens Book Week Its A Bookmark by Lane Smith

Gabrielle Prendergast is creating a TumblR of YA book covers that go beyond the white, submissive teenaged girl

Yay for Pulitzer winners

Small lit mag reviews 2008 self-published novel, leads to 2012 trade book deal

Events:

A book blogger unconference in Manhattan

Melbournes Emerging Writers Festival will be running from May 24 June 3.