‘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 ]
News tagged with: #ve read #main character #rarely deliver #novelists

Other Publishing stories related to: '‘A smorgasbord of unlikability’: the authors helping ‘sad girl lit’ grow up'


This Aussie author had a book idea while ‘high as a kite’ after brain surgery.

She might not have written an entire book in one day, but Australian author Karina May has a pretty good, pretty sweat-smile story behind the rom-commy Duck à l’Orange for Breakfast, which comes out March 28 from Pan Macmillan Australia. First, you need to understand the plot: The novel centers... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-03-22 08:59:40 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pretty good #pan macmillan #australian author


Author Sim Kern Launches #TransRightsReadathon

More than 2,100 participants will spotlight books by trans authors and raise funds for trans rights organizations via TikTok and Instagram this week under the #TransRightsReadathon hashtag. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-20 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #spotlight books #trans authors #raise funds


I believed readers only wanted trauma stories from writers of colour. Then I became an author | Zoya Patel

For so long, it seemed that readers were only interested in the experiences of people like me if we were traumatised, not triumphant – and I internalised this as an indisputable factGet our weekend culture and lifestyle emailI can’t pinpoint exactly when I started imagining myself in the stories... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-03-18 19:00:19 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #weekend culture #young age #cultural diversity #pop culture #hachette


Fast-Growing Independent Publishers, 2023

Publishers used different strategies to maintain, and extend, sales gains in 2022. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #sales gains


Lit Hub Daily: March 16, 2023

Alexa Hagerty decodes the messages of trauma written in the skeletons of Argentina’s death flights victims. | Lit Hub History “Just when you think you’re about to get a thick and steamy anthology of what women want, we find the same censorship and control at play.” Is Gillian Anderson’s new... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-03-16 10:30:52 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #steamy anthology #gillian anderson #anthology


Lit Hub Daily: March 15, 2023

A more interesting autofiction: DK Nnuro examines how Black writers are “appropriating” their way into a literary movement. | Lit Hub Criticism Is the “first job” memoir dead? Bryony Lau makes the case for new narratives of work. | Lit Hub Criticism “If Don Draper is a metaphor for white... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-03-15 10:30:59 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #black writers #white people #memoir


Nobel Prize-Winning Author Kenzaburo Oe Has Died at 88

Kenzaburō Ōe, the Nobel Prize-winning Japanese novelist known for his fiction addressing social and political issues, has passed away at 88. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-03-13 16:17:07 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #political issues #prize-winning author


By Attracting National Budgets, Texas Monthly Grows Ad Revenue 31%

Publisher Texas Monthly, which marked its 50th anniversary last month, grew its overall revenue by 39% in 2022, an uptick the privately owned media company attributed to its expanded number of advertising channels and an ongoing effort to cultivate new sources of revenue. The publisher increased... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2023-03-13 10:21:33 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #expanded number #ongoing effort #privately owned


“Everything is Riding on Your Author Photo.” Mary Childs on What to Expect When You’re Expecting a Book

I thought having a book published would turn me into the confident, self-assured person I always knew I could be. I thought everyone but my enemies would be happy for me, and I would be, too. I thought I would become a morning person. So when my publication date finally came around, I was very […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-03-13 08:54:19 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #author photo #book published


Why authors might want to pay to go on a podcast.

Gone are the days when you could write a book a chapter at a time and hook people in a slow, serial burn. Now, if the internet is to believed, one must amass 100,000 followers on social media before they can even be considered for a book deal (every writer ever: why would anyone follow […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-03-10 17:36:58 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book deal


Sheikh Zayed Shortlists: Literature, Young Author, Criticism

The first three categories’ shortlists have been released in the 17th edition of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award, based in Abu Dhabi. The post Sheikh Zayed Shortlists: Literature, Young Author, Criticism appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2023-03-10 16:05:15 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #criticism appeared #young author #17th edition #abu dhabi #zayed book


AWP23 in Seattle Showcases Presses, Journals, and Authors

The opening days of this year's Association of Writers and Writing Programs conference featured the presentation of its Small Press Publisher Award to Dzanc Books and a discussion between famed Seattle librarian and 'Book Lust' author Nancy Pearl with novelist Min Jin Lee. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #dzanc books #small press


My Author Photo Brought Me Face to Face With the Body I Hated

I’m on my third round of author photos now, which is two too many. For the first, I commissioned the cheapest person I could find. My agent needed a headshot for the London Book Fair, and I didn’t have anything. The photographer came by my house when I was eight months pregnant. I hired her […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-03-09 09:53:57 UTC ]
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Women’s health needs advocates against misinformation, says ob-gyn and author

Ob-gyn and best-selling author Dr. Jen Gunter is advocating for women's health education. She spoke to CBC's Michelle Eliot about how women can navigate health information online. Continue reading at CBC

[ CBC | 2023-03-08 22:24:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #best-selling author


Ian Falconer, Children’s Book Author of OLIVIA, Dies at 63

Ian Falconer, illustrator, theatrical set and costume designer, and children's book author of OLIVIA, has died at 63. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-03-08 17:49:08 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ian falconer #book author #children's book #children’s book


8 Sad Short Stories to Quickly Bring the Tears

If you want a little shot of sadness, here are some of the best sad short stories to get the emotions flowing in no time! Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-03-08 11:36:00 UTC ]
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Women Now Publishing More Books Than Men — And It’s Helping Sales

According to data, women are now publishing more books than men are, and it's affecting the publishing world in a big way. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-03-07 17:36:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #publishing world


Rebel Girls announces $8 million Series A, metaverse expansion

The certified B Corporation aims to reach an audience of 50 million girls by 2025 as it continues to publish new books and expand into new media and storytelling formats. On Monday the girl-centered media brand Rebel Girls announced an $8 million Series A funding round led by publishing giant... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2023-03-06 09:30:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #storytelling formats #random house #publishing giant


PRH Among New Investors in Rebel Girls

Rebel Girls, the media company whose mission is to instill confidence in girls, raised $8 million in a new funding round, with Penguin Random House its lead investor. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-06 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Don’t write what you know, write what you feel: bestselling authors offer tips on World Book Day

Malorie Blackman advises budding authors to pick up on news stories, but Julia Donaldson warns of pitfalls – and Alan Moore says you should read terrible books as well as good onesThe key to being a good writer? It’s being a good reader, authors including Carol Ann Duffy and Alan Moore have said... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-03-02 15:43:52 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #news stories #alan moore #lee child #important things #world book