Literary fiction conveys the human character | Letters

Helen Cross, Andy Stelman, Mark Stewart and Richard Adams respond to a recent Guardian article by Tim LottAs someone whose tiny, grimy literary novels have attracted the interest of the film industry, the truth is the opposite of what Tim Lott (Why should we subsidise writers who’ve lost the plot?, 2 January) suggests; it’s the screenwriter who needs the literary novelist. Plot is easy to learn (and even easier to flog to impressionable students excited by the supposed glamour of the writing life), but impossible to make work on the page without an ability to master what the novel can uniquely convey: the deep mysteries of human interiority. Or, as the screenwriters say, character.Helen CrossFlamborough, East Yorkshire• Tim Lott clearly has not heard of, nor read: Adam Thorpe (Ulverton), Graham Swift (Waterland and Mothering Sunday), Sebastian Barry (A Long, Long Way and Days Without End), Colm Tóibín (Norah Webster), Kamila Shamsie (Home Fire), Salley Vickers (Miss Garnet’s Angel) and many other contemporary British and Irish authors who maintain and expand a “great tradition” of fictional output.Andy StelmanBishop’s Castle, Shropshire Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2018-01-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #mothering sunday #sebastian barry #irish authors

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Literary fiction conveys the human character | Letters'


Oldie launches Soho Literary Festival

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Tue, 05/07/2011 - 08:49 The Oldie magazine team is launching a new literary festival, based in London's Soho, with authors including Man Booker-winner Howard Jacobson and Michael Morpurgo set to appear. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #literary festival


Dawn retains top spot but fiction sales slump on 2010

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 05/07/2011 - 16:04 Dawn French’s début novel, A Tiny Bit Marvellous (Penguin), retains its position at the summit of The Official UK Top 50 week-on-week, thanks to a promotional appearance on ITV’s “This Morning”, and a “£2.99 if you spend £10”... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #wh smith


Writing young-adult fiction: Better than going to the prom.

Young-adult books are being sold to an audience that can't vote, yet they're being written by people commonly referred to on the Internet as "the olds." We should know. We're two of them. Both of us have made our living writing. One of us in journalism (Grady) and the other in literary fiction... Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2011-06-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #young-adult books


Fiction Rules E-Books

Fiction is the leading sales driver of ebooks, and just how dominant that segment has been is clearly seen in a new market study just released by Bowker. According to "2010–2011 U.S. Book Consumer Demographics & Buying Behaviors Annual Review," fiction accounted for 61% of unit sales in 2010... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-06-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Random House dominates Fiction Uncovered list

Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Thu, 19/05/2011 - 12:59 Three Random House Group titles have been picked for the first Fiction Uncovered promotion, which also includes two from indie Portobello. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


BBC defends genre fiction coverage

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Wed, 20/04/2011 - 09:45 The BBC is broadcasting an item on “The Culture Show” about science fiction next month, in the wake of a row about the broadcaster’s approach to genre fiction. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #culture show #science fiction #genre fiction


Fiction Express seeks interaction from readers for digital series

Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Fri, 15/04/2011 - 08:56 An e-fiction venture aimed at tweens and teenagers is being launched by packager Discovery Books in May. Called Fiction Express, it will invite teenagers to buy books in instalments and to vote to decide the direction of the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital series #buy books #released weekly


Kingsolver on shortlist for International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award

Publication Date: Tue, 12/04/2011 - 10:36 Barbara Kingsolver's Orange Prize-winning The Lacuna (Faber) has been shortlisted for the €100,000 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. The 10-strong list, announced this morning (12th April), also includes three from Irish authors, Brooklyn by... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #10-strong list #irish authors #colm toibin #william trevor


Angry Robot buys two fantasy fiction

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Thu, 07/04/2011 - 09:01 Angry Robot has made two fantasy fiction acquisitions, one a swashbuckling adventure and the other set in Elizabethan England. Both deals were signed by publishing director Marc Gascoigne for world English rights for physical,... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #fantasy fiction #swashbuckling adventure #elizabethan england #audio editions #zeno agency


Coronet to publish Tess Daly fiction

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Tue, 05/04/2011 - 16:11 Coronet will publish "Strictly Come Dancing" presenter Tess Daly's first sashay into fiction, having acquired The Camera Never Lies by the TV host. Editor Charlotte Haycock acquired British Commonwealth rights to the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #tv host


Hothouse Fiction expands team

Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Thu, 17/03/2011 - 15:51 Creative agency Hothouse Fiction is expanding its team to increase output and extend its international sales, especially into the US. Hothouse, which develops commercial series fiction for children aged five years and older,... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #children aged #international sales #creative director #darley anderson #editorial consultant #managing editor


Bi Feiyu wins Man Asian Literary Prize

Publication Date: Thu, 17/03/2011 - 17:10 Novelist Bi Feiyu has won the 2010 Man Asian Literary Prize, becoming the prize's third Chinese winner in four years. He was awarded the US$30,000 award at an event in Hong Kong for his novel Three Sisters (Telegram/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt).The... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #hong kong


Hardback fiction added to UK's shopping basket

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Tue, 15/03/2011 - 14:47 Adult hardback fiction books have been added to the basket of goods that the government uses to calculate the cost of living in the UK. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Jamie top, while Faulks boosts fiction

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 22/02/2011 - 16:01 Sales of Jamie Oliver’s Jamie’s 30-minute Meals (Michael Joseph) fell 22% week-on-week, but its 39,118 sale in the seven days to 19th February is easily strong enough to ensure it spends another week (its 17th in total) at the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Jamie scores double non-fiction number ones

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 15/02/2011 - 15:59 TV chef Jamie Oliver has achieved the rare feat of topping both the hardback and paperback non-fiction bestseller lists, helping publisher Penguin score number ones across all four of The Bookseller's main bestseller lists—the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #records began


iBookstore joins Fiction Uncovered promotion

Publication Date: Mon, 14/02/2011 - 08:31 Apple's iBookstore is the latest retailer to sign up to Fiction Uncovered as the new promotion for midlist authors attracts 80 submissions. The online giant joins Waterstone's and Waterstones.co.uk, Foyles, The Book Depository, Amazon.co.uk, W H Smith... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #fiction uncovered #book depository #smith travel #indie bookshops


Circalit Seeks Crime Fiction

A year-old social networking and digital distribution platform that aims to bring writers and agents together has created a contest to find "the next big crime fiction blockbuster." Circalit, launched in February 2010 as a place for screenwriters to showcase their work to studios, began inviting... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-01-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #social networking #bring writers