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 ]
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This Earth Day, settle into "A Fire So Wild," Sarah Ruiz-Grossman's debut novel about the societal impacts of climate change. Continue reading at HuffPost
[ HuffPost | 2024-04-05 09:45:24 UTC ]
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He conceived an early version of cyberspace and predicted the “technological singularity,” a tipping point at which machines would become smarter than humans. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2024-03-28 22:04:59 UTC ]
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These historical fiction books are set during the Aztec empire, 1900s Manchuria, Meiji-era Japan, and more. Which eras do you like to rad about the most? Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-03-27 17:00:00 UTC ]
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This trio of new novels shows real people in their natural habitats, drawn with writerly flair. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2024-03-19 15:22:43 UTC ]
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On International Women’s Day Kate Mosse, co-founder of the Women’s prize for fiction and bestselling author of Labyrinth, heralds a new honour Gloria Steinem said: “The story of women’s struggle for equality belongs to no single feminist nor to any one organisation but to the collective efforts... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2024-03-08 12:30:02 UTC ]
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Summit publisher Judy Clain’s inaugural acquisition, a debut novel titled ‘Great Black Hope’ by Rob Franklin, bodes well for storied imprint’s relaunch. Clain, previously editor-in-chief of Little, Brown, called Franklin “the writer we dreamed of publishing” at Summit. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-03-01 05:00:00 UTC ]
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For a few days in October 2023, the capital of the science fiction world was Chengdu, China Continue reading at ABC News
[ ABC News | 2024-02-29 02:54:58 UTC ]
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The biennial Novel Prize comes with a $10,000 purse and simultaneous publication in North America, by New Directions; the U.K. and Ireland, by Fitzcarraldo; and Australia and New Zealand, by Giramondo. In a twist, this year, the three publishers crowned two winners. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-28 05:00:00 UTC ]
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McDonald's is giving anime and manga fans the chance to visit fictional chain WcDonald's with a campaign kicking off Feb. 26 in more than 30 markets around the world. An obvious riff off the "Golden Arches," WcDonald's has appeared in many memorable shows from anime and... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2024-02-21 14:00:00 UTC ]
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Super Bowl 58 was Taylor-made for ratings gold. Thanks to multiple telecasts and streams, the power of live sports and even a Taylor Swift bump, Sunday's Super Bowl matchup showcasing the Kansas City Chiefs' overtime win against the San Fransisco 49ers smashed viewership... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2024-02-13 02:47:06 UTC ]
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From England and France to the deepest Arctic and northern China, these stories will transport you. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2024-02-11 10:00:24 UTC ]
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While much science fiction is based on theoretical physics, occasionally literature returns the favor and inspires scientific ideas. A perfect symbiosis between the two came about in the early 1980s, when astronomer-turned-novelist Carl Sagan was researching his fictional work Contact and turned... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2024-02-09 09:54:04 UTC ]
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Novelist Jacinda Townsend and writer James Bernard Short join co-hosts Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan to talk about the movie American Fiction, which is based on the novel Erasure by Percival Everett. Townsend and Short discuss how the film addresses race in the publishing industry via... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2024-02-08 09:08:33 UTC ]
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The movie, with its handful of Oscar nominations, has refocused attention on “Erasure,” a satire of the literary world and its racial biases. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2024-02-03 10:02:42 UTC ]
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Penguin Random House strengthened its grip on the picture book lists and made gains on the frontlist fiction lists, which Scholastic still rules. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-02 05:00:00 UTC ]
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The following is from Zodiac: A Graphic Memoir by Ai Weiwei with Elettra Stamboulis, illustrated by Gianluca Constantini. __________________________________ From Zodiac: A Graphic Memoir by Ai Weiwei with Elettra Stamboulis, illustrated by Gianluca Constantini. Copyright © 2024. Published by Ten... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2024-01-30 09:55:47 UTC ]
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Concerns raised about interference or censorship after documents showed writers were barred despite receiving enough nominationsA prestigious literary award for science fiction, which was hosted in China for the first time, has come under fire for excluding several authors from the 2023 awards,... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2024-01-24 15:53:48 UTC ]
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Check out these 8 gothic science fiction novels! They're sure to both terrorize and entertain you in equal measure! Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-01-24 11:34:00 UTC ]
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The best historical fiction set in Italy, like these nine titles, explores the complex and even chaotic history of the country. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-01-18 11:31:00 UTC ]
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2023 was an incredible year for books celebrating all things science. Here are 10 of the best science fiction books of 2023. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-01-15 11:30:00 UTC ]
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