Married to the mob: the rise of the smartphone in fiction

They interrupt narrative and disrupt plot – no wonder novelists have been slow to warm to mobile phones. But a new generation is putting technology at the heart of their workWhat do you call a phone when it rings in a fictional world? “Mobile” and “cell” are old, “smartphone” is almost a tautology and “phone” is so intrusive that the word seems to ring out shrilly from the page the instant you type it. This may be because we read fiction partly to escape our phones, or it may be that phones, even fictional ones, seem to demand too much of our attention. Telephones, of the kind we all keep handy, are so much a part of daily life we touch them as often as our faces. But phones in fiction require a sleight of hand: if characters use them as realism dictates, they will feel as interruptive on the page as they do at the dinner table. How can authors navigate this challenge?Like bathrooms and paid employment, it is amazing how often phones are dispensed with by many otherwise realist fiction writers. JM Coetzee famously wrote to Paul Auster (in Here and Now, the 2013 selection of their letters) that he was not prepared “to write novels in which people go around with personal electronic devices”. Because, if “everyone has access to more or less everyone else, what becomes of all that plotting?” He also lamented the impact of mobile technology on the “novel of adultery”, though surely Sally Rooney has proved there was nothing to fear. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2023-07-22 10:00:09 UTC ]
News tagged with: #mobile technology #daily life #dinner table #paul auster #write novels #novelists

Other news stories related to: "Married to the mob: the rise of the smartphone in fiction"


Married to the mob: the rise of the smartphone in fiction

They interrupt narrative and disrupt plot – no wonder novelists have been slow to warm to mobile phones. But a new generation is putting technology at the heart of their workWhat do you call a phone when it rings in a fictional world? “Mobile” and “cell” are old, “smartphone” is almost a... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-07-22 10:00:09 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #novelists #write novels #paul auster #dinner table #daily life #mobile technology


Fiction Sales Continue to Rise

Sales of adult fiction rose 28.1% last week and young adult fiction jumped 49.6%, driving a 6.4% increase in total unit sales of print books last week over the week ended June 27, 2020. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-07-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Interview: Fabrice Piault on the Rise of French Popular Fiction

While the trend has been building for some time, publishing news media in France now are reporting on how 'houses known for publishing literary fiction have been hiring editors to develop popular fiction imprints.' The post Interview: Fabrice Piault on the Rise of French Popular Fiction appeared... Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2018-07-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #hiring editors #fabrice piault #post interview


The Rise of Surender Mohan Pathak: HarperCollins India Wins Big With Hindi Pulp Fiction

Hindi pulp fiction writer Surender Mohan Pathak has been made 'the Agatha Christie of India' by HarperCollins India's Minakshi Thakur, now at Westland. The post The Rise of Surender Mohan Pathak: HarperCollins India Wins Big With Hindi Pulp Fiction appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2017-12-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Historical Fiction Books for People Who Don’t Like Historical Fiction

There are historical fiction books out there for every reader. Find recommendations for fans of literary fiction, romance, fantasy, and more. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-12-19 11:32:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #historical fiction #literary fiction #find recommendations


10 Tudor Fiction Titles to Step Up Your Historical Fiction

The Tudor Dynasty lives on in these outstanding historical fiction novels, including The King’s Witch. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2021-10-22 10:33:00 UTC ]
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Non-fiction and children’s outstrip fiction in Ireland as sales fillip continues

After encouraging sales despite bookshops’ closures in the first lockdown, the market in Ireland has responded remarkably well since, with sales of Non-Fiction and Children’s titles particularly solid. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2021-09-10 13:31:14 UTC ]
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5 Historical Fiction Books to Read If You Don’t Like Historical Fiction

Think you don't like historical fiction? Try these books out and prove yourself wrong. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2019-09-14 10:33:10 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #historical fiction


Casting a wide net: the rise and rise of podcasts

Renowned for their diversity, the popularity of podcasts has skyrocketed in recent years. This has not passed publishers by with many harnessing the potential of the medium by launching their own shows.   Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-03-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Immigration in 2018: Rising tensions and rising voices

Nearly every morning, a pseudo-dystopian scene unfolds just steps away from America’s gates. At the San Ysidro Port of Entry in Tijuana, someone reads aloud from a mysterious, unsanctioned notebook filled with the names of thousands of people from across the globe. Each of them — including the... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-12-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In Colombia, A Discussion of ‘Women’s Fiction’ Versus Fiction by Women

As part of the launch of Hay Festival's Latin American anthology, 'Bogotá39-2017,' author Samanta Schweblin and editor Sara Malagón talk about labels and gender. The post In Colombia, A Discussion of ‘Women’s Fiction’ Versus Fiction by Women appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2018-03-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Survey: Translated Fiction Outsells English Fiction in the UK

'Currently 25 percent of our top 20 fiction titles are translated,' we learn from Waterstones. It appears that UK readers are surprisingly into international books. The post Survey: Translated Fiction Outsells English Fiction in the UK appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2016-05-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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E-fiction venture Fiction Express goes into print

ReadZone Books will this year publish stories from Fiction Express - an e-fiction venture that... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Percival Everett, Author of ‘James,’ Wins National Book Award for Fiction

Jason De León received the nonfiction award for “Soldiers and Kings: Survival and Hope in the World of Human Smuggling.” Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2024-11-21 03:36:15 UTC ]
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Spain: Publishers Report 211 Publishers at Frankfurt, Turnover Rising

The book market in Spain, the market’s publishers association reports, sees turnover growing by 5.1 percent, up 30.1 percent in 10 years. By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson FGEE’s Stand at Frankfurt: 56 Publishers and Institutions aving covered the 2024 Guest of Honor Italy... Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-11-20 00:04:51 UTC ]
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Richard Flanagan Wins the Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction, But Rejects the Cash Prize.

Out of an impressive shortlist, Richard Flanagan’s Question 7 has won 2024’s Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction. Flanagan’s wide-ranging memoir and history weaves together H.G. Wells and Rebecca West’s affair, pre-war nuclear physics, his father’s imprisonment near Hiroshima when the American... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-11-19 22:15:16 UTC ]
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Christy Award Winners for Christian Fiction Honored at Gala

Among the winners, 'Indigo Isle' by T.I. Lowe (Tyndale House) took home the Christy Award for Book of the Year, and The Amplify Award for Christian Fiction, which seeks to elevate stories from ethnically diverse perspectives, went to 'The American Queen' by Vanessa Miller (Thomas Nelson). Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-11-19 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Historical Fiction for Native American Heritage Month

Which historical fiction novel featuring Native Americans are you picking up this month? Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2024-11-13 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Texas Library Re-Classifies Nonfiction Native American History Book as Fiction: Book Censorship News, November 1, 2024

"We know from history that a way you control a nation is by controlling what its citizens read" — Jodi Picoult Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2024-11-01 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Five reasons Warhammer 40,000 should be considered a great work of science fiction

While it is fair to say that Warhammer 40k has so far been underrepresented in science fiction circles, it seems the tide is finally starting to turn. Continue reading at The Conversation

[ The Conversation | 2024-10-28 17:36:58 UTC ]
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