American author Joy Williams: ‘The comfy story has got to change’

The novelist and short story writer on her new book about Azrael, the angel of death, her encounters with Raymond Carver and Richard Yates, and why fiction should be uncannyJoy Williams, 80, has written five novels and four story collections and is the recipient of numerous awards. Her most recent book of short stories, Concerning the Future of Souls: 99 Stories of Azrael (Tuskar Rock), was published earlier this year. Her work ranges from the philosophical examination of being, belief and morality to urgent engagements with environmental catastrophe; James Salter wrote of her that she belongs in the company of Céline and Flannery O’Connor. Born in Massachusetts, she now lives in the Sonoran desert.An earlier collection of yours was called 99 Stories of God, and now you’ve moved on to Azrael (the angel of death and transporter of souls) as the subject. What drew you to him?I read in a WS Merwin collection his translation of Hadrian’s deathbed poem to his soul – Animula vagula blandula – so sorrowful and succinct. The soul, a worthy subject. And Azrael has always fascinated me: he was death, but not death exactly. He was more a gorgeous creation of Islam. I picture him as responsible for all the souls of this ensouled Earth. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2024-10-19 17:00:20 UTC ]
News tagged with: #uncannyjoy williams #story collections #numerous awards #published earlier #work ranges #philosophical examination #urgent engagements #environmental catastrophe #sonoran desert #earlier collection #ve moved #deathbed poem #gorgeous creation #ensouled earth #recent book

Other Publishing stories related to: 'American author Joy Williams: ‘The comfy story has got to change’'


‘It’s quite galling’: children’s authors frustrated by rise in celebrity-penned titles

Keira Knightley is latest star to publish a children’s book, but some say trend pushes aside genuine writers and makes it harder to find great children’s fiction“A modern classic by Keira Knightley” reads the provisional cover of the actor’s debut children’s book, I Love You Just the Same. Set... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2024-10-20 13:00:48 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #latest book #nielsen #nielsen bookdata #bestseller chart #dougie poynter #tom fletcher #long list


Penguin Random House amends its copyright rules to protect authors from AI

Artificial intelligence makers have faced a mountain of criticism for borrowing from the work of others to train its models. Now the world’s largest publishing house is taking steps to ensure its authors don’t have their work plagiarized in the name of progress. The Bookseller reports that... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2024-10-18 21:04:36 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #random house #publishing house #bookseller #penguin random house #publishing company #desist letter #bookseller reports #authors don #taking steps #protect authors #copyright rules #ai training


At Frankfurt: Isabel Cristina Giraldo on Sharing Colombian Stories

At Colombia's Frankfurt Book Fair stand, Isabel Cristina Giraldo is helping Colombian publishers and authors connect with international audiences. The post At Frankfurt: Isabel Cristina Giraldo on Sharing Colombian Stories appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-10-18 14:38:46 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #frankfurt book fair


Frankfurt: Authors Scholastica Moraa and Emmanuel Ngwainmbi Advocate for Authentic African Voices

In a Frankfurt Book Fair discussion moderated by publisher Mercy Kirui, two authors are 'putting Africa at the center' of their work. The post Frankfurt: Authors Scholastica Moraa and Emmanuel Ngwainmbi Advocate for Authentic African Voices appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-10-18 08:42:35 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #frankfurt book fair #post frankfurt


Interview With Colin Kaepernick, Activist and Co-Author of ‘We Are Free, You & Me’

Business memoirs are at hand as he navigates a new role as the founder of a startup to “democratize storytelling.” Meanwhile he has co-written “We Are Free, You & Me,” an illustrated book for kids. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2024-10-17 09:00:07 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #illustrated book #colin kaepernick


Frankfurt Book Fair: FEP’s Data ‘Story’ of the European Book Market

The ‘story’ being told by FEP book industry data, says Enrico Turrin, shows a stable, post-pandemic book market across Europe. By Brianna Robles | @breesharraine uring the opening day (October 16) of the Frankfurt Book Fair, the Federation of European Publishers (FEP) presented key data about... Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-10-17 07:37:57 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book industry #book market #european publishing


Tommy Robinson’s book went to No 1 on Amazon. This is what I learned from the reviews | Zoe Williams

The far-right activist’s Manifesto briefly topped the website’s chart. It is gone now, but the comments make for worrying readingIt’s always tempting to self-soothe when the far right is on the march. Tommy Robinson’s new book, Manifesto: Free Speech, Real Democracy, Peaceful Disobedience,... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2024-10-15 10:00:56 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #hardback #zoe williams #indigenous people #sally rooney #british history #richard osman #boris johnson #free speech


How Book Bans Have Changed the Lives and Education of Librarians

"Crawford County (AR) libraries have begun to return segregated LGBTQ+ books to their original sections after an order was issued by a federal judge." Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2024-10-11 11:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #libraries #federal judge #book bans


Han Kang: innovative South Korean author wins the 2024 Nobel prize for literature

Han Kang’s poetry and short stories are just as innovative and important as her novels. Continue reading at The Conversation

[ The Conversation | 2024-10-10 17:11:35 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #short stories #han kang


Which One of You Sent Me Lonesome Dove in the Mail? Or: Tackling the Great American Western

It was a random day in August when a trade paperback copy of Lonesome Dove showed up in the mail from Simon & Schuster. It didn’t come with a press release or a note, and I’m still not sure who sent it to me (I’ve asked a few S&S publicists and it remains a mystery!), […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-10-10 11:50:25 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #paperback #press release #simon schuster #lonesome dove


Heartland Fall Forum: Changing the World, One Book at a Time

After a day of celebration, the 250 booksellers attending Heartland Fall Forum focused on the business of bookselling, with a busy trade show followed by a day of education as veteran booksellers mixed with 114 first-time attendees. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-10-10 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


8 Outstanding Science Fiction and Fantasy Short Story Collections

"What blooded me as a really feral reader in college was the discovery of short story collections." Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2024-10-09 14:30:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #science fiction


Lit Hub Asks: 5 Authors, 7 Questions, No Wrong Answers

The Lit Hub Author Questionnaire is a monthly interview featuring seven questions for five authors with new books. This month we talk to: Charles Bock (I Will Do Better: A Father’s Memoir of Heartbreak, Parenting, and Love) Kay Chronister (The Bog Wife) Mike Fu (Masquerade) Kate Greathead (The... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-10-08 08:56:09 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #memoir #full disclosure #wrong answers


Luis Jaramillo on Creating a Multigenerational Speculative Story of the Borderlands

I highlighted Luis Jaramillo’s first book, the short story collection The Doctor’s Wife—a gathering of 91 ultra-short chapters, some as brief as a sentence, that add up to a portrait of a family—as a best book of 2012 for NPR. His first novel further reveals his wide-ranging literary talents.... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-10-08 08:55:05 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #first novel #el paso


The New Yorker Union Members Unanimously Authorize Strike Ahead of Festival

More than three years ago, The New Yorker's unionized employees authorized and threatened a strike during a contentious first contract negotiation that culminated with scores of protestors descending on the Greenwich Village home of Conde Nast executive Anna Wintour days... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2024-10-04 11:54:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #conde nast


De Los Reads: Paola Santos' 'How to Eat a Mango' and other Latino authors we're reading in October

Paola Santos' picture book encourages young readers to appreciate nature's gifts and the love that comes with them. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2024-10-03 19:53:20 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #picture book


Majority of UK children’s books with Black main characters written by white authors, study finds

Report finds that books with main characters from minority ethnicities or who are disabled or neurodivergent are written by those who do not share the protagonist’s identityMore than half of children’s books with marginalised main characters are by writers and illustrators who do not share their... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2024-10-03 17:10:48 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #books published #main characters #report finds #white authors #study finds #uk children


I Love Short Stories. Do I Have to Write a Novel?

In 1993, I published my first decent story in a literary journal and a few months later received a letter from an agent whose name I recognized. I’d written short stories in college classes, sent them off, and typically the only thing that came back was a rejection, housed in the... Continue reading at Electric Literature

[ Electric Literature | 2024-10-01 11:10:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #short stories #electric literature #literary journal


Trauma, Transfigured: Pascha Sotolongo on Loneliness, Latin American Lit, and the Fantastic in Fiction and Life

Rarely have I been so moved, awed, amused, satisfied, and softly startled by a debut, but The Only Sound Is the Wind, the gorgeous new fiction collection by Pascha Sotolongo, is a deft, accomplished, utterly fearless book of short stories that seamlessly meld the mundane and the transcendent,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-10-01 08:55:46 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #short stories #fiction collection