Headbutts, snark and furious obsession: a toxic history of literary rivalries

When her first book came out, Lulah Ellender became obsessed with an author whose book launched the same week. She reflects on past feuds and how resentment now festers onlineWhen my first book was published last year I wasn’t prepared for how unhinged I would become. I’d expected review-induced nerves and worries that swung from “No one will read it” to “Oh God, someone is actually going to read it”. But I hadn’t foreseen the appearance of a wholly one-sided and indecorous obsession with another author.This author’s book launched in the same week as mine. It was nothing like my book, a memoir based on lists written by my grandmother, so its existence should not have troubled me, yet my writing life somehow became combatively interwoven with his. I had a review in a broadsheet; the next week he had a full-page spread in the same paper. I did a radio interview; he appeared on the same show. Every time I read about his achievements (pretty much every time I checked his social media), it diminished my own. It was like a nasty bruise I couldn’t resist pressing.I didn’t wish him any actual harm. Just, in writer Roxane Gay’s words, “papercuts and abject failure” Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2019-03-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #writing life #radio interview

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What happened to Washington's wildlife after the largest dam removal in US history

The man made flood that miraculously saved our heroes at the end of O Brother Where Art Thou were an actual occurrence in the 19th and 20th century — and a fairly common one at that — as river valleys across the American West were dammed up and drowned out at the altar... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-11-12 15:30:32 UTC ]
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Libros Schmibros Grows into a Los Angeles Literary Fixture

Founded in 2010, the lending library encourages literacy through bilingual story hours, book discussion groups, and film screenings. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
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The #35,000 Aspen Words Literary Prize Names Its 2024 Longlist

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[ Publishing Perspectives | 2023-11-08 22:42:17 UTC ]
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Anuja Varghese's short story collection Chrysalis among $25K Governor General's Literary Award winners

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[ CBC | 2023-11-08 12:00:00 UTC ]
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LitAg Short Takes: Kalem Agency and Italian Literary Agency

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[ Publishing Perspectives | 2023-10-20 12:05:43 UTC ]
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John Freeman and Omar El Akkad on a Literary Magazine’s Final Issue

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[ Literrary Hub | 2023-10-19 08:10:54 UTC ]
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Literary magazines can be life-changing – but they need more support

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[ The Guardian | 2023-10-10 10:30:07 UTC ]
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Music, history and courageous journalism: Baillie Gifford prize shortlist announced

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[ The Guardian | 2023-10-08 19:00:48 UTC ]
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The 10 Best Histories of Women in WWII

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-10-04 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The White Review literary magazine ceases publishing

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[ The Guardian | 2023-09-26 09:06:39 UTC ]
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Panel Mania: 'Toussaint Louverture: The Story of the Only Successful Slave Revolt in History'

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-09-20 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Conformity Killed the Radio Star: The Great Literary Hoax of I, LIBERTINE

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[ Book Riot | 2023-09-18 10:39:00 UTC ]
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[ The Paris Review | 2023-09-13 14:10:36 UTC ]
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Here are the winners of the 2023 Whiting Literary Magazine Prizes.

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[ Literrary Hub | 2023-09-12 12:00:56 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-09-12 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Two New Histories of Publishing

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-09-08 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Jewish creators are a fundamental part of comic book history, from Superman to Maus – expert explains

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[ The Conversation | 2023-08-30 15:27:34 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-08-09 04:00:00 UTC ]
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