ThePublishingSpot

Dueling Comments: Pop Will Eat Itself

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 01:23:38 -0700

The media blog Fimoculous has become one of my favorite reads lately.

It's easy-to-read, well-written and keeps all of Rex Sorgatz's webby projects together in one place. Every once in awhile, the comments section lights up with some glittering moments of webby theory and attitude.

Case in point, this post where he discusses his microfame article that was published in New York magazine. A great read, it generated some pithy meditations on the fleeting, self-referential nature of web production.

Our buddy Steve Bryant had this to offer: "Self-aggrandizement in the service of self-deprecation in the service of self-aggrandizement is...meta-propaganda? You're a nesting doll of solipsism, rexy."

And Kurtis added this zinger: "If you become microfamous for talking about microfame, does that make you metamicrofamous? And do you get to be in the next Weezer video?"

Welcome to Dueling Comments, where I print my favorite comments that I've spotted in publishing blogs. There are some smart people lurking in the comments sections of blogs, so I'm scrounging around the Internets to find the crazy, the useful, and the crazy-useful wisdom that they leave behind.

Zines! Zines! Zines!

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 01:23:47 -0700

Please tell me you've read at least one zine in your life.

Last week, GalleyCat published an essay by novelist Tim W. Brown about zines. That love poem took me back to my coffeehouse days in high school, paying a buck for a collection of poems, hardboiled stories and hand-drawn illustrations.

Check it out, and then follow the link for a mountain of old zines: "A list of publications from the 80s and 90s zine heyday ought to re-open the dusty accordion files stashed inside the brain of anyone remotely aware of publishing trends outside established commercial or academic channels..."

If you want more zine action, check out my interview with zine librarian, Jenna Freedman. Freedman opened a new archive for 1,500 zines at Barnard College--connecting to readers through a webpage, a MySpace account, and a Facebook space. She's making sure that these homemade magazines never die out.

Dueling Comments: To Blog or Not To Blog

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 01:29:45 -0700

I'm taking it easy this week, savoring a little time off at work and bowing to the inevitable summer traffic drop. I thought it might be a good time to test-drive a new feature.

Welcome to Dueling Comments, where I print my favorite comments that I've spotted in publishing blogs. There are some smart people lurking in the comments sections of blogs, so I'm scrounging around the Internets to find the crazy, the useful, and the crazy-useful wisdom that they leave behind.

Over at Gawker, Special K weighed in with these smart thoughts about blogging authors--something all fledgling writers and aspiring bloggers should take to heart. Check it out:

"some bloggers can't write coherently beyond an 800-word limit ... and, like writers-workshop dropouts, also make the mistake that general-audience readers give a flying fuck about their oh-so-unique personal experiences. But there's also this... good blogs tend to be funny, witty, snarky. And not ony is it hard to be funny, witty, snarky for extended periods of time, it can actually be hard to read -- well, snarky at any rate -- for extended periods of time."

On the other side of the coin, Jungle--purportedly a publishing insider--explains why they advise many writers not to blog.

Publishing Spotted: No Sleep Till Brooklyn

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 07:23:44 -0700

Feeling overwhelmed? Watching your writing free time get swallowed by life commitments? I have three bits of advice from working writers, just for you...

First of all, one of our favorite bloggers, Yen Cheong, is profiled in GalleyCat today. Here's her secret to keeping up with a blog and a day-job:

"My blog posts are almost always short and when I'm busy they're shorter. Although I virtually always post daily, on a busy day, a post might consist of three sentences. I do get in early every day to go through my RSS reader and pick out the big media/publishing stories ... this is something I've always done -- and it's one of the aspects of publicity I enjoy the most -- so I don't spend any "extra" time doing it."

Next, author Dave Eggers gives an engaging, hyper-speed account of writing his first book in Brooklyn. Writing from 12 AM to 5 AM can produce some great new ideas.

Finally, our special guest this week was novelist Ed Park, and he had this advice for juggling a blog, a novel and an editing career. Check it out:

"Discipline will take you a long way—if you set aside time every day to write, you will find something to write, even if you don’t know what you’re doing as you approach the desk. It’s too easy not to write. One other bit of advice, which I need to take myself, is to get offline as much as possible."

Publishing Spotted: Shots for Everybody!

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 08:23:28 -0700

I've been digging through the late George Carlin's vast trail of comedy clips all week, and I'll tell you what--that guy can teach you more about storytelling than an MFA program.

So I was happy to uncover this final interview with the man, conducted by my friend Jay Dixit for Psychology Today. Here's a classic description of A Great Writing Moment:

"Sometimes there’s a conscious heightening, you'll recognize you've just chosen an image to make a point. Then your mind will just suddenly throw something at you that's stronger—a heightening, to raise the stakes, a stronger word, a more visceral image, something that lights up the imagination, much better than the original thought."

Speaking of storytelling, if you are in New York and looking for some entertainment, come out to see our special guest Ed Park read in Brooklyn tonight. I'll be there...

Finally, check out Jeffrey Yamaguchi's hypnotic new video project, "Downing a Shot." It's like the films of Andy Warhol hooked up with the stories of Charles Bukowski at some imaginary YouTube bar.

The Publishing Spot Library: Novelist Ed Park

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 07:23:35 -0700

The Fine Art of Blow-the-Top-Off-Your-Head Writing

and then, How To Write Books-Inside-of-Books

and finally, The Life of a Working Writer.

If you want more Ed Park goodness, check out his blog The Dizzies, his interview with Ed Champion and his reading at Google--the video located at the top of this page...

"Discipline will take you a long way" : Novelist Ed Park and the Life of a Working Writer

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 07:23:38 -0700

"[I was] thinking about that E.B. White passage you once showed me ... the swooning bit where he says that it's the native New Yorkers who give the city its stability, and the commuters who give it a daily tidal rhythm or something, but it's those dreamers from elsewhere, the striving poets and wannabe circus performers and so forth, who power it with enough heat and light to dwarf the consolidated Edison company..."

That’s one of Ed Park's characters paraphrasing a famous line from E.B. White.

Park's new book, Personal Days, explores how that idealism gets wrecked on the shoals of Manhattan office culture. In addition to his fictional work, Ed Park is a founding editor at The Believer and literary blogger over at The Dizzies.

Welcome to my deceptively simple feature, Five Easy Questions. In the spirit of Jack Nicholson’s mad piano player, I run a weekly set of quality conversations with writing pioneers—delivering some practical, unexpected advice about web writing.

Jason Boog:
At the end of your book, you meditate on all the millions of pages of lost, dull prose produced by people in offices every year. When you worked in an office environment, how did you manage to stay creative and productive in your writing? Any advice for writers who feel dulled by their day-jobs?

Ed Park:
Discipline will take you a long way—if you set aside time every day to write, you will find something to write, even if you don’t know what you’re doing as you approach the desk. Continue reading...

How To Write Books-Inside-of-Books: Peeking Inside Ed Park's Literary Tool-Kit

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 07:23:15 -0700

"Yes, I Drank the Kool-Aid--and I Went Back for Seconds"

"Three Easy Rules for Impressing the Powers That Be (and Maybe Becoming One Yourself, A Simpleton's Guide)"

"The Pegasus Plan: How to Get the Job You Want, the Respect You Deserve, and the Employees You Need in Order to Succeed for Life"

Those are just a few of the imaginary self-help books that novelist Ed Park invented for his book, Personal Days. His office satire is jam-packed with exaggerated career advice from fictional gurus.

Today Park--a founding editor at The Believer and literary blogger over at The Dizzies--shows us how imaginary books can improve your fictional world. It's part of my deceptively simple feature, Five Easy Questions.

In the spirit of Jack Nicholson’s mad piano player, I run a weekly set of quality conversations with writing pioneers—delivering some practical, unexpected advice about web writing.

Jason Boog:
Your book also features one of my favorite literary tricks--satirical imaginary books-inside-the-book. How did you craft these hilarious faux-self-help books? Any advice for writers looking to add some fake-book satire to their work?

Ed Park:
I’ve always loved the vertiginous method of including fictional books within a work of fiction, whether the author provides tantalizing passages or just titles. Continue reading...

Revise Mercilessly

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 06:23:16 -0700

Are you afraid to revise mercilessly?

These are tough words for any writer to hear: "The agent was intrigued, but to his disappointment, he found the 195,000 word manuscript bloated and self-indulgent."

If you've heard something similar about your book, you should be cheered by the story of novelist Andrew Davidson. He did another year of revision (shaving off close to 40,000(!) words) after that initial rejection, and The Gargoyle is expected to be a big release this Fall.

Read his inspiring ode to revision at the Wall Street Journal. (Thanks, Galleycat)

If you're looking for more revision advice, check out some choice morsels from The Publishing Spot archives.

Ed Park and the Fine Art of Blow-the-Top-Off-Your-Head Writing

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 07:23:14 -0700

"I've been stuck in the elevator, suspended in utter coffin blackness somewhere between the third and fourth floors—listening to the cables quiver, and every so often hearing the distant shouts of emergency workers saying, Hang in there buddy! or what sounds like a very heavy wrench clanking on assorted beams as it tumbles into the abyss—and even though my laptop’s on, it sheds no light...”

That’s one of Ed Park’s ever-suffering office workers trapped inside an elevator and typing a long love-letter in the void. It’s a single block of text banged out on a busted laptop-computer, the breathless conclusion to his first-novel, Personal Days.

In addition to dreaming up this surreal fable about contemporary cubicle culture, Ed Park is a founding editor at The Believer and literary blogger over at The Dizzies. He’s our special guest this week, explaining how he wrote his this book and giving us a glimpse into the mind of an editor.

Welcome to my deceptively simple feature, Five Easy Questions. In the spirit of Jack Nicholson’s mad piano player, I run a weekly set of quality conversations with writing pioneers—delivering some practical, unexpected advice about web writing.

Jason Boog:

The final third of your book makes use of one of my favorite literary forms--for a lack of better term, I'll call it the long, one-sentence stream-of-consciousness slam-bam prose style. As far as I know, no writer has ever given specific advice about how to handle this tricky form. How did you do it?

Ed Park:
The final section is both my favorite part of the book and the one that caused me the most agony. I knew, relatively early on in the composition process, that the final portion of the book would be, at last, in the voice of a single, identifiable character. Continue reading...

Rachel Shukert on Learning How To Love Public Readings

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 07:23:10 -0700

“The cold-war era was a very special time to be a child. We were appreciated. World leaders hell-bent on universal destruction might be accumulating nuclear armaments like the lucky winners of a Nickelodeon-sponsored Toys 'R Us shopping spree, but even the homeliest child could send a hand-letter plea for peace … and land herself a spot on the evening news.”

That’s my favorite passage from Rachel Shukert’s new memoir, Have You No Shame? It’s a dark and comic look at my generation, a little bit of history spiced with deeply personal insights—exactly what a good memoir should be.

Today, Rachel explains how she takes these sparkling paragraphs on the road, giving us tips for building a better public reading.

Jason Boog:
What role will readings play in your book promotion process? What's your advice for writers who want to engage the audience and read in a more dramatic style?

Rachel Shukert:
I'm a total exhibitionist, so I love doing readings! I have several more lined up this summer and am hoping to do lots more this fall. Continue reading...

Funny Influences: Rachel Shukert's Reading List

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:23:50 -0700

“The American voice of the sixties I most identified with turned out to be less Ken Kesey and more Philip Roth. I didn't want to take peyote and have visions in the desert; I wanted to marry a nice psychoanalyst or film critic, live in a brownstone in Park Slope with books and really nice rugs, and send checks to progressive political causes. I didn't want to die young. In fact, I wanted to put off dying as long as possible.”

That’s author Rachel Shukert meditating on what the rock star Jim Morrison taught her about literary taste and her own life in high school, in an essay for Nerve. That teenager is all grown up, and just published her first book, Have You No Shame?.

Today Shukert takes us through her real-life influences, the writers who helped her shape her laugh-out-loud memoir. It's a hyper-linked reading list that will keep you busy all summer.

Jason Boog:
You are a bit coy in your book, but you have some very literary influences--mixing up everybody from Joan Didion to the Torah. Who do you read for inspiration? What's the reading list you would give to an aspiring memoirist?

Rachel Shukert:
Well, certainly Joan Didion. Also, David Rakoff, David Sedaris. Follow this link to continue reading...

Publishing Spotted: Who Paints Romance Novel Covers?

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 06:23:54 -0700

Ever since I saw my first stack of romance paperbacks at a garage sale as an impressionable Midwestern kid, I've always wanted to know who in the heck made them. Today, Barnes & Noble showed me.

Romance and fantasy illustrator Judy York gives these mass-market paperbacks that extra fantastical twist that makes you want to buy the book. Watching her in action, I thought about how novelist Jonathan Lethem wrote about a science fiction novel illustrator in The Fortress of Solitude, mining pop culture ephemera for literary gold. Thanks to Virginia Heffernan for the link.

As long as you're watching videos, Conversational Reading spotted this super-cool documentary about one of my literary heroes, Jorge Luis Borges.

Finally, Wyatt Mason wrote another thought-provoking post about book reviewing, asking a deceptively simple question about the great Philip Roth:

"I am curious over the methodology of its future reader-evaluators. How much of Roth’s prior work they will feel they should read before passing judgment on his latest effort?"

How To Write Funny: Author Rachel Shukert Enlightens Us

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 07:23:08 -0700

"Ah yes, the noise-canceling headphones. You could lock Rush Limbaugh, Phyllis Schlafly and Mullah Omar in a room together with a stack of Hustlers and 10 ounces of meth, and they couldn't come up with anything more misogynist. I storm back to my desk and type the phrases "my husband" "addicted" "video games" "HELP" into the search engine. Hundreds of links appear."

That's author Rachel Shukert turning her husband's videogame addiction into comedic gold on the pages of Salon.

In her new book, Have You No Shame?, Shukert takes that same exaggerated style to a variety of queasy topics--I found myself laughing out-loud at things I never in a million years imagined laughing about.

Today, she teaches us how to write funny, part of my deceptively simple feature, Five Easy Questions. In the spirit of Jack Nicholson’s mad piano player, I run a weekly set of quality conversations with writing pioneers—delivering some practical, unexpected advice about web writing.

Jason Boog:
You take topics that nobody ever dreamed of making jokes about (the Holocaust, STD's, anorexia and religion), and make us laugh. What kind of writing process do you follow to take this serious material and make it laugh-out-loud funny? Any advice for making our prose funnier?

Rachel Shukert:
This reminds me of something: I had this teacher that told us once, when we were doing some kind of comedy scene "don't worry if you're not funny, because you'll just never be cast in a funny role. You can't learn how to be funny, so forget about it." Continue reading...

Publishing Spotted: Calexico In Space!

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 06:23:30 -0700

Need some writing music? I can't tell you how many pages I've written while listening to Calexico.

This band sounds like the end of a pulp fiction novel, when the ruined hero trudges off to Mexico--maybe to escape, or maybe to die in the desert.

So get this: U.S. Representative and astronaut wife Gabrielle Giffords chose the Calexico tune "Crystal Frontier" to wake up the astronauts on the space shuttle last week. Check it out at Wired, and get yourself some new writing music:

"Touch and Go is offering the song as a free download up until the mission is complete and Discovery touches down on June 14. Calexico's forthcoming effort Carried to Dust is due out September 9 on Quarterstick Records."

Two book trailers enter the bloody ring, but only one can emerge.

What is the most popular poem on the Internets? Who In The Hell Is Tom Jones? by the intoxicating poet, Charles Bukowski. You must read every poem on this Top 50 Most Viewed Poems list--it's like a poetry anthology edited by a roomful of MySpace kids and webby readers. Thanks to Ed Champion for the link.