RIASS stuff:
A review of'Free-Falling'by Nicola Moriarty'(a page-turning chick lit debut from this Aussie author).
A review of'Games'by Robin Klein'(a brilliant YA thriller that will give you chills)
Coming up: a review of'Bunheads'by Sophie Flack, an'interview with Margareta Osborn, a guest post from Nicola Moriarty, and an interview with Joel from'Momentum Books, Pan Macmillan's new digital-only imprint.
Just a note that I'll be tango dancing my way through Argentina in April, and would love to receive some guest posts to feature during that time. Feel free to drop me a line at readinasinglesitting@gmail.com.
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Other bookish stuff:
Author Gary Corby on the books that changed him:
Imagine a magical world where a boy goes to a school for wizards, where he must learn to control his enormous talent and come to terms with his own mortality. No, its not Harry Potter. Its'A Wizard of Earthsea, written 25 years before J.K. Rowling put pen to paper.'Earthseas'worth it for the beautiful place names alone, and the gorgeous map of the archipelago, where an arrogant young goatherd grows up to become the humble Archmage of all the isles.
Author Deborah Robertson on turning to writing:
In my first class, a big ray of sunshine came through the window and struck me and I thought, god, the way theyre talking about life, this is what I want to do. But I didnt have anything to write about because my childhood was so buried. It took me some time to burn away sophistication and get back to honesty.
Derek Landys top ten literary villains:
Theres a largely inescapable rule about storytelling: the better the villain, the better the hero. Theres a reason why Batman needs the Joker, or Indiana Jones needs all those Nazis its because without them to truly test his or her resourcefulness and skill, the hero would face a new adventure, stroll through that new adventure, and would probably be texting his mates the whole time.
Why its so hard to get your Australian novel published:
If every person who is writing an Australian novel (regardless of genre) would simply buy one Australian novel a year (regardless of genre), the sales figures would look a lot healthier, and publishers would think that theres a more robust market for it. (This being a capitalist economy, theyre quite interested in the whole supply-and-demand caper.)
Jennifer Crusie on juice vs craft:
I read an interview with three screenwriters once who were decrying the three-act-structure, saying that there were so many dull, conventional screenplays out there written by plugging story into the three act diagram. And my thought was,Yeah, but without the three-act structure you'd have had a conventional story that was all over the place.'Craft is not the enemy. Craft doesn't kill juice. Craft shapes juice.
Alex Johnson reflects on bookshelves:
With the advent of the e-book, one might have thought the days of the bookshelf were numbered, but if the titles in your collection are a reflection of your personality, then so too is the design of your bookshelf.
Kids really are the toughest critics:
When Diary of a Wimpy Kid beat Harry Potter to be named the best children's book of the past decade, author Jeff Kinney was delighted.'His nine-year-old son was less impressed.'I think my son really put things in perspective for me,' said Kinney. 'My nine-year-old has read all the Harry Potter books and I said, 'Well, my book was voted the best book of the past 10 years in the UK'.''And he said, 'Was Harry Potter published in the past 10 years? Because those books are'way'better than yours.'
Flavorpill offers up 10 strong female characters in literature
Australian Living Treasures: where are all the women writers?
Ursula LeGuin on Google Goggles
The 10 Best Fictional Bookstores in Pop Culture
Jose Saramago novel finally published after 59 years
Awesome Seuss/Shakespeare mashups:'I will not kill him with a sword. I will not kill my Scottish lord. I will not stab him in the back. I do not want to, Lady Mac.
Cupcake books!
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