Articles from October 2005

Talking Up The Fear Factor

October 21st, 2005 · 5 Comments

Pardon us if we’re thinking that the Google project is the most exciting thing to happen in the publishing industry since the printing press. Not since mass-production of books was made possible has there been such opportunity. We read an interesting piece this morning that addresses something we haven’t considered: fear of the unknowable. But […]

File Under: Books/Mags/Blogs

And Then There’s This

October 20th, 2005 · Comments Off on And Then There’s This

The Association of American Publishers has also filed suit against Google over the Google library project. The suit notes, among other things, that there is “continuing, irreparable and imminent harm publishers are suffering … due to Google’s willful (copyright) infringement to further its own commercial purposes.” If we were the type to read carefully (rather […]

File Under: Square Pegs

Separating Fact from Fiction

October 20th, 2005 · 1 Comment

Susan Gable, who, between us, spends a lot of time seeking out the weird of the world, tells us about yet another case where fear overrides common sense. Again, we will note that lots of people write about things they never plan to do. And sometimes it’s healthy to express uncomfortable thoughts — much better […]

File Under: Square Pegs

Posting By Proxy

October 20th, 2005 · Comments Off on Posting By Proxy

As this week continues to careen out of control, we look to others to provide wit and wisdom. Or at least interesting reads. Over at the Co-Op, Elizabeth Poliner stops by to discuss her book Mutual Life & Casualty. In addition to expanding on her themes, she also addresses how she sees the novel-in-stories: As […]

File Under: Square Pegs

Don’t Fear The Genre

October 18th, 2005 · 7 Comments

We have often wondered how certain books would fare if presented to contest judges in manuscript format (sans author names). If a book is stripped of all identifying markers and judged simply by the words inside and how they are presented, would genre fiction have a fighting chance? It is a fair question — how […]

File Under: Square Pegs

Busy As, Well, A Writer

October 18th, 2005 · Comments Off on Busy As, Well, A Writer

We have been making merry at a few other blogs. With almost no effort, we found two books that couldn’t be more different to write about. At Paperback Reader, we’ve shared our (lengthy) thoughts about The Last Heiress by Bertrice Small. You know the old saying: we read, you decide. At the Litblog Co-Op, we […]

File Under: Square Pegs

It Was A Dark and Stormy Night

October 17th, 2005 · Comments Off on It Was A Dark and Stormy Night

Hmm, that’s not exactly true. It much more stormy than dark — it’s amazing how bright lightning can be, especially when you’re trying to sleep. We spent far too long this morning trying to compose sentences that made sense. We abandoned the project in favor of staring off into space. Luckily, we have found someone […]

File Under: Square Pegs

A Contribution to The Collective Unconscious

October 14th, 2005 · Comments Off on A Contribution to The Collective Unconscious

The Smart Bitches are picking up the idea of ebook royalty rates at traditional publishing houses — and they’re examining the issue with all the fervor of, well, smart bitches. We firmly believe that the more this issue is discussed, the better for the publishing industry. It is near-impossible for publishing houses to make the […]

File Under: Square Pegs

A Brief Contest Announcement

October 13th, 2005 · 2 Comments

In its continuing quest for publicity, lulu.com has announced a new contest. We report, you decide: The website Lulu.com, which enables amateur authors to publish and sell their own books, is sponsoring the first literary prize for “blooks” — or books based on blogs or websites. In, uh, related news, Susan Gable informs us that […]

File Under: Square Pegs

The Confused View of Literature, We Salute You

October 13th, 2005 · Comments Off on The Confused View of Literature, We Salute You

There is a thing called “the heat of the moment”. We’ve all encountered it. It happens when you get all worked up about something and engage in rash behavior. It is often a moment one lives to regret. Either that, or you wear your moment as a badge of honor for the rest of your […]

File Under: Square Pegs