Author name: Booksquare

Dissecting the publishing industry with love and skepticism.

Cranky, Cranky, Cranky

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Opinion: While Weblogs have grabbed the public’s attention mostly for their political revelations, their value as forums for collective knowledge is becoming known in other areas as well. You know what? The above statement is, well, not insightful, but certainly a great starting point for a discussion on how easy-to-use software (and the lack of technical knowledge) can be used to expand knowledge and information-sharing. Because this is something we are particularly interested in (see: all previous articles on this topic), we went the whole nine yards and read the darn thing. It’s pretty much a rehash of the yards […]

Books/Mags/Blogs

While We Never Have High Hopes for the Los Angeles Times, We Do Expect Better of Patt Morrison

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Yes, it’s true: one of our favorite columnists and sometime-radio host has dropped the B-bomb. Yeah, sure, she’s going for humor here, but still. Honestly. Really. Isn’t there a way to insult women’s fiction without implying violence toward females? We renew our plea for new press stylebooks and journalistic creativity. With an official state dirt, a state fossil and a state tartan, we need a state bard. And as a blue state, it’s our obligation to demonstrate that airport bookstore thrillers and bodice-rippers are not the alpha and omega of literature and that just because poetry usually comes in slim

Square Pegs

On Maybe A Little Too Much Time on Someone’s Hands

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The “time seemed appropriate” for the hieroglyph version, due in April, translators said, as the story had already been published in 35 languages. Peter Rabbit gets hieroglyph tale: Beatrix Potter’s classic children’s book The Tale of Peter Rabbit has been translated into ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs by the British Museum.

Quote of the Week

Just We Thought The World Was Stable

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In a move surely designed to throw us off our pace, Publisher’s Weekly has named Sara Nelson as editor-in-chief. Since Nelson has provided us much fun and amusement (plus actual usable information), we’re concerned that this move will lessen the New York Post’s commitment to journalistic exc….uh, anyway, we look forward to seeing Nelson’s editorial stamp on PW. New Chief Editor at Publishers Weekly Publisher’s Weekly

Publishers and Editors

Online Education: Saves Gas, Builds Craft

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If you’re looking for a few craft classes to meet one or more New Year’s resolutions, Salon has helpfully come through for you. Choose from a variety of options (satire, chicklit, screenwriting), and start your year off write! Yes, too much coffee. We promise, that will hardly happen again. Salon eClasses

Tools and Craft

Even When We Saw It Coming, We Didn’t Believe It Would Happen

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Even as we predicted the continued health of the library, we knew of one situation where that was not to be the case. The irony that libraries are shuttering in Salinas cannot be escaped, unless, we suppose, you’ve chanced to drive through the area recently. Then it might make sense, but not in a good way. There is sufficient blame for this situation to go around. Everyone has their favorite scapegoat (we certainly have ours), but the bottom line is that libraries, like hospitals and schools and parks, exist for the good of the community. In this case, the community

Square Pegs

Testing Jill’s Resolve

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‘Cause what is she gonna do? There’s no way she can be here before morning, and by then, we’ll be filled with appropriate remorse and promising to never disobey her again. Besides, we were quite intrigued by this article about endings — something we, strangely, do well. Do not burst our bubble. Usually we have a clear idea of that final line of dialogue or that last joke or something long before we have a clue about the beginning*. That’s not to say we know the climax of the novel — that little aspect is generally a surprise to us.

Tools and Craft

More Quotes Than We Can Round Up

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Yes, we’re giving ourselves points for laziness here — we’ve let someone else do the work. We think it is time for American literary commentary to raise the bar: the British have taken pretentious fiddle faddle to new heights. Next year, we want to link to a similar piece, but one compiling the works of U.S. critics. We know they can rise to the task. Literary reputations on the line: John Dugdale is amused by pomp, pretension and piffle in his annual awards

Square Pegs

On The Inevitable Problem of the Writing Profession

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And unlike retiring from a job, one can’t simply stop being a writer. “I always get an idea, and then I say, well, maybe I’ll just do this one. I think if the idea turned out to be a novel, it would be different. But once you do one story, you get more ideas, and pretty soon you’ve got half a book,” [Alice] Munro says. “So what are you going to do, stop there?” Alice Munro

Quote of the Week
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