Cultural Cross Sections Elena Poniatowska In this column that originally appeared in La Jornada, Elena Poniatowska considers the role of editors and talks with Diego Rabasa, founder of publisher Sexto Piso. Already precarious, the pandemic lockdown has made the plight of independent publishers and bookstores in Mexico in light of Covid-19 even more acute. To be an editor is to answer the call of the gods. It’s a vocation, a ministry, an immense privilege, to enter the Olympus of literature. To be an editor is to pick those who have talent and launch them. To be a publisher is to foretell: this one will make it. It’s also to disappoint and reject. I recall the Dutch printer Alexander Stolz in Mexico holding out to me his exquisite edition of Benjamin Constant’s Adolphe, as if it were a diamond, at the Fondo de Cultura Económica, and the paternal care that Arnaldo Orfila Reynal took with the anguished palavering of Fernando del Paso. To be an editor is to be a psychologist and to be bewildered as to how to treat each creature-author. Vicente Rojo was my editor, and we have loved each other deeply since, but I never gave him trouble. What must that genius from Pachuca named Yuri Herrera be like? What’s his soft spot? I have to handle Carlos Montemayor with kid gloves because he’s unpredictable. Federico Alvarez, director of the FCE in Spain, told me that seeing Elena Garro and Helena Paz enter the FCE in Madrid was like falling into... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2020-06-03 21:05:48 UTC ]
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Across the United States, booksellers are wrestling with how to safely open their stores. Some are racing ahead. Others feel it’s too risky. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2020-05-13 19:46:47 UTC ]
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As much as 75 percent of the Russian book industry's usual domestic profits may be lost during the closures of physical bookstores in the pandemic. The post Coronavirus Worklife: Russian Publishers See Bookstore Sales Plummet appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2020-05-08 14:11:48 UTC ]
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An awesome daily roundup of the most interesting bookish links from around the web! Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-05-08 10:30:26 UTC ]
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As part of "Phase 2" of California's four-step plan to restart its economy, bookstores can reopen on May 8 as long as they follow the state’s guidelines to reduce the risk of Covid-19 transmission. Stores will be able to offer curbside pickup and home delivery. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-05-06 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Poet Roger Robinson has won the £10,000 RSL Ondaatje Prize for his “profoundly moving” A Portable Paradise (Peepal Tree Press), which includes a sequence of poems reflecting on the Grenfell Tower fire. The annual prize rewards the best work of fiction, non-fiction or work of poetry that best... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-04 17:47:00 UTC ]
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Welcome to First Things First, Adweek's daily resource for marketers. We'll be publishing the content to First Things First on Adweek.com each morning (like this post), but if you prefer that it come straight to your inbox, you can sign up for the email here. A Bookstore Shocked Fans and Boosted... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2020-05-01 10:45:39 UTC ]
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When beloved bookstore and cafe The Wild Detectives had to close alongside most Dallas businesses due to Covid-19 quarantine measures, it faced the daunting challenge of shifting its business to being online-only. So the shop owners turned to agency partner Dieste, which has created several... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2020-04-30 19:09:51 UTC ]
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Wish you could visit your favorite indie bookstore right now? For the next best thing (sort of), Lookout Books has partnered with a handful of beloved indie bookstores to bring you, Zoom users (as we all are now), free virtual backgrounds of their stores. The purpose of these backgrounds can be... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-04-29 15:24:21 UTC ]
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One bookstore company has offered medical workers a lifetime 20-percent discount in China, as the virus pressures normal sales. The post China Bestsellers March 2020: Bookstores Buck the Pandemic’s Paralysis appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2020-04-28 14:51:33 UTC ]
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Taking a look at how the indie boom happened in the age of multi-floor bookstore chains and Amazon’s 2-day shipping. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-04-27 10:34:51 UTC ]
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For the past six years, Independent Bookstore Day—billed as a “one-day national party that takes place at indie bookstores across the country”—has taken place on the last Saturday of April. (That’s tomorrow!) It’s usually a fun, light-hearted, occasionally raucous spring day where book lovers go... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2020-04-24 11:00:00 UTC ]
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In a joint statement released to mark World Book Day, leaders of three organizations serving the publishing industry issued a cry to support the country’s booksellers as they struggle to survive the Covid-19 pandemic. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-04-24 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Fundraiser for retailers facing hardship during the coronavirus pandemic reveals that benefactor is internet giant widely blamed for trade’s declineAmazon, the internet retail giant vilified for years as public enemy No 1 to booksellers, has been revealed as the surprise mystery benefactor that... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2020-04-23 11:37:33 UTC ]
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Fiction Addiction in Greenville, S.C., has re-opened after the state government gave permission; shoppers are limited to four at a time. "My concern was less for my own health than the health of the store," said owner Jill Hendrix. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-04-22 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Small Press Distribution, which has brought titles from hundreds of independent publishers to readers for more than 50 years, is in urgent need of financial help to keep from folding. A GoFundMe campaign is aiming to raise $100,000 to cover its next month of costs, including health care for its... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-04-21 15:11:21 UTC ]
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Today, the shortlist for the Royal Society of Literature’s Ondaatje Prize was announced. This £10,000 prize is awarded every year to a book—be it fiction, nonfiction, or poetry—that best evokes the spirit of a place. In other words: here’s a great reading list for armchair travel if you are... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-04-20 15:33:02 UTC ]
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It’s not a particularly hopeful time for literally anyone right now (unless maybe you’re getting a $1.7 million tax break?) but that doesn’t mean we should stop trying to help people whenever we can. I’m getting pretty tired of washing my clothes in the bathtub and have been sorely tempted to... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-04-17 15:09:39 UTC ]
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In the U.S., 'The Lying Life of Adults' won't be published until September 1, after a delay caused by Covid-19—but its publishers, here and worldwide, still have high hopes for the book. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-04-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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In the U.S., 'The Lying Life of Adults' won't be published until September 1, after a delay caused by Covid-19—but its publishers, here and worldwide, still have high hopes for the book. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-04-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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