‘A smorgasbord of unlikability’: the authors helping ‘sad girl lit’ grow up

In this post-Fleabag world, publishing has become obsessed with the inner turmoils of messy millennials – but isn’t it time they pulled themselves together? Meet the novelists subverting the clichesYou’ve probably come across this woman: she is unfulfilled in her career, has been abandoned by at least one man, she is aimless and lamenting the obstacles in her life (of which, in reality, there don’t appear to be many). She is not just miserable, she’s a mess; self-absorbed and full of self-loathing.If you’ve read a book by a woman, about a woman, that has been published in the last five years, then it’s overwhelmingly likely that this woman was the protagonist. The narrative likely circled around this character’s sadness, her passive struggle to overcome it, and little else. Typically, such stories have notes of darkness but will rarely deliver the actual thing. Usually the main character (like the author) will be middle-class, if not incredibly wealthy. Almost always she will be white. The book’s cover will probably feature a devastated-looking woman with her hair covering her face or her head cradled in her hands. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2023-08-08 15:19:43 UTC ]
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Other Publishing stories related to: '‘A smorgasbord of unlikability’: the authors helping ‘sad girl lit’ grow up'


Books 'can help kids cope with problematic online images'

  Author Michael Rosen has said sex in teenage fiction can help young people deal with... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-12-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors Guild Appeals Google Decision

In a filing with the district court, the Authors Guild gave notice that it is appealing Judge Denny Chin’s to dismiss its copyright suit over Google’s library scanning program. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-12-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Shelf-help' books set to fill publishers' coffers in 2014

New 'intellectually credible' self-improvement books set to outsell celebrity biographies in 2014Sir Alex Ferguson may have the coveted Christmas number one spot with the record-breaking sales of his memoir, My Autobiography. But not even celebrity memoirs are likely to match the publishing... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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From frat boys to executives, Pikesville natives grow in the online photo business

Ryan Millman has come a long way since his college days of printing photos from frat parties. Now a full-blown manufacturer, he oversees a suite of four photo-related companies that churn out everything from T-shirts and photo books to canvas prints for major commercial retailers. Continue reading at Baltimore Sun

[ Baltimore Sun | 2013-12-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Digital Census shows sales still growing

The Bookseller's Digital Census, the annual tracker of how the book business is managing the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Kindle for Android adds Collections to help organize your e-library

If you've bought quite a library of Kindle books for yourself, you might have a chore scrolling through the lot to find the one you want. Thankfully for Android users, you can now organize your reading material into Collections with a new Kindle app ... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2013-12-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sequel announced to Stieg Larsson's Girl With the Dragon Tattoo trilogy

Swedish publisher Norstedts says new book in international bestselling crime thriller series will be out in August 2015The Swedish publisher of the best-selling The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo trilogy says it has hired an author to write a sequel to the series by Stieg Larsson, who died in... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Independent bookstores and self-published authors are increasingly teaming up

Previously, independent bookstores tended to stay away from marketing self-published authors, but in the age of Amazon, some are embracing local authors no matter how they released their work. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-12-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HCCB signs new Geek Girl book deal

HarperCollins Children's Books has signed a new three book deal with Holly Smale, author of... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-12-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors draw fans to ... a casino?

A program at Connecticut's Mohegan Sun titled 'Winning Authors' brings bestselling authors to the casino, drawing crowds of hundreds. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-12-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Indie Booksellers, Authors Team Up

Many independent booksellers have begun to have a change of heart about self-published books. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-12-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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What authors pick as the best books

Australian authors and critics sift through the piles of books they read in 2013 to highlight the treasures they found.     Continue reading at The Sydney Morning Herald

[ The Sydney Morning Herald | 2013-12-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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What authors are reading in 2013

Australian authors and critics sift through the piles of books they read in 2013 to highlight the treasures they found.     Continue reading at The Sydney Morning Herald

[ The Sydney Morning Herald | 2013-12-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Reddit Draws Readers, Authors, Publishers

For anyone struggling with choosing the perfect literary present this holiday season, there’s a large, vocal, and opinionated group that just might be able to help: the more than one million subscribers to the Books category on Reddit, the popular social media Web site. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-12-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Growing up Downton: Anthony Russell on living in Leeds Castle

Anthony Russell's vivid stories provide insight into the life of English nobility in the 1950s and '60s -- along with consequences that come with being handed every material good on a silver plate.Imagine if a woman such as the Dowager Countess from “Downton Abbey” was one of your grandmothers.... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-12-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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SIBA Rolls Out Author Inspired Wrapping Paper

SIBA rolls out wrapping paper featuring over 150 author signatures collected during the SIBA 2013 trade show in New Orleans. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-12-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Stop spying on us! Authors' upset

It is the stuff of books and now it has become very real, with Australian authors Anna Funder, Frank Moorhouse and David Malouf joining the fight to demand an end to mass surveillance.     Continue reading at The Sydney Morning Herald

[ The Sydney Morning Herald | 2013-12-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HarperCollins buys gang girl memoir

HarperCollins has acquired Sour, the true story of Tracey Miller, a former Brixton gang girl,... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-12-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Manil Suri Wins the One Book Prize Most Authors Don’t Want

The Literary Review has awarded its 21st annual Bad Sex in Fiction Award to Manil Suri for a scene in The City of Devi featuring a, err, stellar climax. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-12-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers, Book Fair Help Revive Cambodia’s Love of Reading

Under the Khmer Rouge, Cambodia's reading culture was destroyed, but over the past five years it has returned with the help of a revitalized publishing industry. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-12-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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