RIASS stuff:
Interview:'Steven Lochran: Action books give young readers a sense of agency
Endings that subvert reader expectations and Cary Fagan's Master Melville's Medicine Show'Can I just say that I kind of loved this ending? It's the anti-ending of MG books. Very gutsy indeed.
Veronika Carnaby: Audiences are wary of new concepts and techniques in fiction
Business casual in business books: is Velocity trying too hard to be cool?'(a guest review from my husband)
Other bookish stuff:
Joe Queenan on his voracious reading habits'Queenans reading habit started during his middle years at uni, and since then hes arranged his days around reading. He estimates that hes read some 6,000 books since then. I expect that a few of my readers might identify with this: My reading habits sometimes get a bit loopy. I often read dozens of books simultaneously. I start a book in 1978 and finish it 34 years later, without enjoying a single minute of the enterprise. I absolutely refuse to read books that critics describe as luminous or incandescent. I never read books in which the hero went to private school or roots for the New York Yankees.
Small publishers in the US are having the time of their lives'Small presses are benefiting from awards recognition, collaboration between houses, the prevalence (and affordability) of social media, and the fact that theyre often getting their hands on the great literary books that slip through the cracks at larger houses.
The best James Bond novels: ranking the originals'Ill admit a gap in my reading here and note that I havent read any Ian Fleming, but Im sure some you lot will get a kick out of this.
Five great overlooked lesbian books from 2012''A timely reminder that I read far too little queer fictionand that I also see far too few queer characters in the books that I do read.
Publishing is dead. No, wait, hang on. Itsnot? An article is saying that its not?'The author says that the publishing industry is managing a difficult transition pretty well, actually. But even in the midst of so much change, the main challenge of publishing remains the same: finding and supporting good books and then working closely with authors to identify and reach their readers through every way possible.
Hmm, eight in ten Americans aged 18-30 have read a book in the past year. I guess thats better than none, but A book? Just the one? That said, its a higher number that those over 30, where only 7 in 10 have read a book. I do completely agree with this, though, and can say that it also applies to my own reading habits:'We heard from e-book readers in general [that] they dont want e-books to replace print books. They see them as part of the same general ecosystem; e-books supplement their general reading habits. And we heard from a lot of younger e-book readers about how e-books just fit into their lives ' how they can read when theyre waiting in line for class, or waiting in line for lunch.
Writing tips from RL Stine'I agree with some of these, but not all. (Adverbs! I know its wrong, but I love me some adverbs!) I do think that knowing what youre going to write helps with productivity, but Im not necessarily certain that its something required. I think I write much more organically and creatively without a plan, but certainly more tidily with one. If I do have some idea of what I want to get out on the page, though, I tend to write a lot faster. (True for reviews as well)
The 100 Story Building project will help support marginalised young writers between the ages of 6-17.'It will involve free creative writing sessions, publishing projects and after-school projects for disadvantaged kids in the citys west. The project launches next Tuesdayswing by the Wheeler Centre if you want to get involved.
Ooh! An ambiguous sentence! I love this stuff.'What would you take the meaning of Im a good tennis player, if not a great one to be? A good tennis player, though not a great one? Or a good tennis player, and perhaps even a great one? I think Id go with the though usage.
Eight simple tips for better writing'I think the one about learning something new or visiting somewhere unfamiliar is a good one. Its very easy to keep reprising the familiar if you dont expand your own personal world, I think. And that also includes exposing yourself to new ideas or new mindsets.
An excellent blog post on the difficulties of translation, and one readers response'I was intrigued about her summary of Ignat Averys thoughts on translation: He argues that 'the translation has to be'the'authentic experience.'It, and not the original, becomes the'original'' the'de facto'original. Indeed there is no reason why the translation cannot surpass the original. The issue of poetry in translation is interesting, too.
This blog is the coolest thing ever. A mother and her son talk back and forth about books.
The winners of the 2012 Inky Awards, a childrens literature award judged by young readers, have been announced.'Congrats to John Green and Em Bailey!
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