When We Said No More, We Were Lying

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There are days we could waste by making fun of news. Headlines, articles, even photos — there is so much fodder for our sharp fingers, we simply can’t address it all. But we try, we try. For example, this headline hinting that the next J.K. Rowling has been discovered caught our imagination mid-caffeine infusion. While we don’t deal with facts too often (see previous re: lazy), we feel compelled to make a point. The Harry Potter books were not a success because publishers salivated over the rights during an auction. The success came (and we feel this is a key […]

Books/Mags/Blogs

While The Felines Are Distracted

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A long time ago, we witnessed a virulent, specific argument about a film (Full Metal Jacket). We watched as our friends Ellen and Brad turned red, pounded furniture, and put up their dukes. We were dumbfounded by the passion and divergence of opinions this film raised in Ellen and Brad. Neither had seen it, of course. The argument left them with a mutual distrust of their opinions. There is a trend toward bashing art you haven’t seen. It happens far too often. John McCain hasn’t actually seen Farenheit 911, yet commented upon scenes. Scenes that weren’t in the film. Seeing,

Square Pegs

Promotion for Beginners

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Back when we were young and innocent, we thought books were gifts from above. We’d go the library (ruled by the mother) and she’d hand down the latest acquisitions. We’d take them home, read them, and offer our unbiased and unformed opinions. If they passed our taste test, they would be recommended to other students. As we’ve grown older and looked back on our childhood, we realize we weren’t the only favored reader. Ah well, we still remain her favorite oldest child. Nobody can take that from us. In our motion picture career, we saw how studios get behind their

Wrapped Up In Books

Our Final Comment on the Press

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For those who can’t get enough, the new Edward Wyatt article is in the New York Times. Wyatt, whose work we’ve discussed in grand detail, offers up another thrilling look at the publishing industry. Please take a moment to read along with us. Hmm, on first glance, there doesn’t seem to be much to work with. He takes the “why” of conservative authors’ complaints and debunks it with numbers (yes, Virginia, all that matters is whether or not the publisher can make money). That’s no fun. Okay, maybe we’d like to see him challenge the complaints with the facts and

Books/Mags/Blogs

Caffeine Flowing, Questions Rising

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Have we mentioned our esteem for the press? Good, then we can move on. Sara Nelson starts the day with a story that would almost work…if only she’d found a better example. She says that actors are sidling out of their glittery lives with novels (novels!) in hand, seeking yet another revenue stream. We will pause a for moment to reflect on their gall. Done? If not, you can catch up later — we’re busy people here. Alas, the slithery, slimy actor she chooses is, well, a writer. Not that his behavior should be excused, oh no. But Chris Elliott

Square Pegs

Mr. Adams, Avert Your Eyes

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It is with great sadness and regret that we come to yet another confession: four years of high school French, one year of college French, and all we got out of it was the ability to speak Spanish to our Paris taxi driver. So while we couldn’t puzzle out every word in The International Tribune’s article on the back-to-the-real-world book rush in France, we think we got the gist: lots of books in stores, too many to read, readers rely on awards to guide them, still far too many books, but that’s okay, it’s all about the glory. Your translation

Books/Mags/Blogs

Professional Standards

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You can’t practice medicine without a license. Or rather, you can, but it’s best not to get caught. Same for cutting hair. One must be board certified and reasonably trained in basic hygiene. Now, law, well, it’s all a matter of charming the jury. No need for formal schooling or that sort of thing. Truly, if one can represent oneself, why go to the bother of law school. So many tests, so many sleepless nights… We’ve noted the fact that anyone can declare themself a writer. The tools are easily purchased, the skills are taught in public schools, and there

Square Pegs

Our Innate Nosiness

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Sure, we could send a lengthy, private email to ask all of our questions, but that’s not our style. So here’s yet another question for the birthday girl (she’s so regretting offering to drop by for a visit, but she’ll be enjoying her long weekend before she knows it): Now that you’ve finished checking your Amazon rankings for the billionth time, talk to us about alpha males. What works for alpha and what doesn’t? Do you think alpha males have gotten a bad rap in recent years? It seems to us that with stronger female characters the trend is toward

Wrapped Up In Books

We Knew It!

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It is always a pleasure to have our suspicions confirmed. Not that we require such events to occur — we remain firm in our convictions that we’re always right. It makes life so much easier. But we knew there was something more to this “prolific” thing than hard work. It was simply too pat an answer, too obvious a solution. We’ve read enough to know that there is always more than what appears on the surface. Now, to be honest, we never considered pretzels as a performance enhancing drug, but we admit we’re not much into experimenting. Fear of addiction

Square Pegs

No Need to Rush, The Internet Will Be Around A Long Time

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We realize we shouldn’t make fun of journalists because freedom of the press is what makes this nation great and all that, but, honestly, hasn’t there been a rash of inane headlines lately? Yesterday, we saw one stating that Laura Bush was to praise her husband at the Republican National Convention. Unless there was a serious, nasty disagreement over the breakfast table, this was a given, no? And what accused criminal is going to hold a press conference to announce their guilt? It would be nice, but not likely to happen. So, of course, our first thought when we read

Publishers and Editors
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