This first week of 2008 in Publishing:
Esteemed fellow agent and intellectual property lawyer Jonathan Lyons is going to be giving a Mediabistro course on negotiating book contracts, so if you are going to be in the New York area on March 27th, definitely, definitely check that out. Your future book contract will thank you.
Central Connecticut State University released its rankings of the most literate cities in the US, and coming in first place is San Franc…. uh.. Minneapolis, Minnesota. San Francisco came in 7th. Behind St. Louis. The study’s methodology? QUESTIONABLE.
Via GalleyCat, Business Week has an article about the self-publishing boom (Lulu in particular) and benefits and shortcomings thereof. Pros cited in article: Low cost, easy to get published (and then some!), ability to market on Internet. Cons: Lack of professional editing, distribution. Carry on.
Who says publishing closes down over the holidays? Um. Besides me? While we were all sipping egg nog, Santa brought Karl Rove a book deal! Yes, Rove inked a book deal with Threshold, a conservative imprint at Simon & Schuster, for a reported $1.5 million. I would make a joke… but I’m too scared of Karl Rove.
Via Shelf Awareness, not only are the kids not reading, they are BREAKING INTO DEAD WRITERS’ HOMES. According to the AP, a wild pack of teenagers broke into former summer home of Robert Frost, destroying furniture, puking in the living room, and discharging fire extinguishers. Then again, maybe the teens had just read AN ARSONIST’S GUIDE TO WRITERS’ HOMES IN NEW ENGLAND. Who says literacy is dead??
And finally, the first episode of Season 5 of the Wire airs on Sunday! I’m extremely excited (because IT’S THE WIRE), but terribly sad, because it’s the last the Wire season ever. My prediction for the final season? David Simon gets Shakespearean and EVERYBODY DIES.
Have a great weekend!
Sleepy Writer Ada says
My dad went to UConn and my twin sister and I were born i Conneticut (Fairfield County to be exact). I love the place and I drive in often. Too bad I will be smack in the middle of ‘near end’ term work, so unfortunately, I’m out.
I detect some disappointment, and it appears a demand for a recount on your end Nathan, am I correct in this assessment?
So sorry about the Wire, but as I always say with Sex and the City; you’ll all ways have reruns.
Ada
Michael Reynolds says
I used to live in Minneapolis. Of course they read. The sunbathing alternative has limited appeal.
Tom Burchfield says
Aha. I just bought “The Arsonist’s Guide . . . .” and will read it after I’m through with Ramsey Campbell’s “Grin of the Dark (very very good) and get through a little number called “Don Quioxte de la Mancha” by some dude named Cervantes. My wife bought me for Xmas another quick read: the new translation of “War and Peace.” I may have read the Classics Illustrated version of that one . . . .
Jay Montville says
Oh my god, I just finished the last episode of the fourth season of The Wire last night and I’m seriously considering getting HBO just to watch season five.
Instead of writing my book.
*damn* Stupid Goals and Dreams. Why can’t you just die, so I can watch more tv?
On a more serious note, I’ve seen The Wire compared to a novel in about a zillion reviews. But I think the truth is there’s just no way to describe how complicated and intricate and affecting The Wire is in relation to other (mostly lame) television shows, so the critics are reverting to other genres in desperation. The Wire – So Good You Might Mistake It For Literature.
Keigh says
Newbie alert, please be gentle. Actually, never mind the gentle.
Anyway, I love The Wire. I found out about it in my screenplay writing class when a guy mentioned it as an example of superb writing.
I saw one episode and was hooked. Not to mention Idris Elba brought his A-game.
Aimless Writer says
I see most of the most literary cities are cold weather places….maybe all they can do when they’re snowed in is read??? (or maybe procreate? I wonder what the average family size is in those places? Where’s the study on that???)
LindaBudz says
Nathan, you can watch the first episode of The Wire now (as of last Saturday night, actually) if you have HBO on Demand.
My husband and I have watched it twice now … I wanted to watch it once just to get absorbed in the story and again to marvel at the craft. It’s going to be another amazing season.
Maripat says
Comcast on demand already aired the the first episode of The Wire. Yeah…it will be interesting to see who lives.
David Thayer says
Bainbridge Island lies west of Seattle, a reading town. Trees were down, roads washed out but the bookstore was mobbed.
Sam says
Rove got a million dollar book deal?
I just threw up all over my keyboard.
Erik says
Tom:
I’m re-reading Don Quixote as well. I was in a deep “all writing is inadequate” funk, and it is curing me of it nicely. Ah, the surreal. Much more real than what most people call reality, if you ask me.
As for the ranking of cities, these are all bogus in their own ways. However, Saint Paul did come out third, which I happen to appreciate – mostly because they didn’t lump us in with our younger sister to the West.
Lupina says
Nathan, as a direct result of reading your blog, DH and I are now both hopelessly addicted to The Wire after watching only the first 5 episodes of Season 1 on loan from the library. We do not have HBO so will not be able to watch the 5th season until the DVD comes out. This will undoubtedly cause us great anguish. But so far you have scored 10/10 on recommends for both “Spin” and “The Wire.” Thank you!
annawritedraw says
I’m hoping the Karl Rove deal isn’t a children’s book. “Running for Class President: How to crush your opponents.”
Calenhíril says
Don’t knock the literacy of St. Louis. We have two spiffy universities with huge libraries and both a city and county library system…and fewer hills…
and a few people who read 10 books a month. *whistles innocently*
Eh. Who knows how they figured it out?
You make me miss cable.