Drawing on her panoramic reading and her experiences of the authorly life cycle, Atwood surveys her trade with a mix of seriousness and gentle fun“You may find the subject a little peculiar,” warns Margaret Atwood, before she discusses the writer’s relationship with mortality. “It is a little peculiar. Writing itself is a little peculiar.” Atwood’s survey of her profession makes this seem like an understatement: after all, she argues, writers have been placed in close company with the devil and the dead; they have secret identities and hidden doubles; they are death-defying magicians, self-erasing nobodies, even – if you want to get “murky and pretentious” – shamanistic travellers. This book prefers to stay on the side of clarity and self-deprecation, combining evidence drawn from her panoramic reading – one chapter deals with The Tempest, The Wizard of Oz and Klaus Mann’s Mephisto – with her own experiences of the life cycle of an author. She tempers the seriousness of her questions – What is a writer? For whom do writers write? – by poking gentle fun at her trade, describing the machine-like publishing industry as “cog eat cog”, and quietly mocking endless discussion panels. Yet Atwood sees her kind reflected everywhere – from Gilgamesh to The Beast With Five Fingers – and works hard on their behalf: advocate, analyst and always, writer.•To order On Writers and Writing for £7.99 (RRP £9.99) go to bookshop.theguardian.com or call 0330 333 6846. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
The publishing industry has rallied round to help the independent Big Green Bookshop after one of its owners sent out a desperate tweet appealing for customers because they were “seriously skint”. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-04-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin Random House UK (PRH UK) will now pay its work experience participants the National Living Wage in a bid to make the publishing industry more accessible and diverse. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-04-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ada Igwebu and Connor Faulkner have been offered places by Blake Friedmann on its inaugural Carole Blake Open Doors Project, a programme encouraging candidates from diverse backgrounds to enter the publishing industry. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-04-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Every day, digital publishers are challenged by the fragmentation of media. Third-party and social platforms appropriating content, mobile "snacking," low-quality "clickbait" competition and content recommendation services that drive visitors off-site are just some of the factors depressing... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2017-03-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers and agents have noted an “upbeat” mood at this year’s fair, with many saying that the publishing industry can play an important role in helping people to navigate through or escape from the prevailing turbulent political climate. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-03-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors, agents, chief executives and more predict what will happen in the publishing industry in 2017. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-01-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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After Donald Trump's triumph in the US election, Sarah Shaffi looks at how more than ever the publishing industry needs to promote messages of inclusivity and diversity. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The largest Spanish-language book fair in the world has become a place where thought leaders, artists, educators, and scientists gather to share information that impacts the publishing industry. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-11-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The publishing industry needs to improve the diversity of its staff and open itself up to writers of all backgrounds if it is to increase the range of its output, publishers have told The Bookseller. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The AdBlock Plus whitelist program has been a lightning rod of controversy within the publishing industry ever since it debuted in 2011. But despite how often the whitelist is written about, it isn’t entirely clear to many people how the process behind it works. Here we explain what we know and... Continue reading at Digiday
[ Digiday | 2016-10-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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By and large, Singapore’s education system, which is among the most highly regarded in the world, is a boon to its publishing industry. No subject is more popular, or more competitive, than mathematics. Known as Singapore math, the city-state’s mathematics teaching method and curriculum is... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-10-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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With a goal of supporting and promoting 'Latino/a/x' people and literature in the publishing industry, a new network of book professionals formalizes the group's activities. The post ‘Latinx in Publishing’ Launches in Hispanic Heritage Month appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2016-10-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Bookseller has launched its annual tracker of the publishing industry's transformation, the FutureBook Digital Census. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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David Salariya, founder of The Salariya Book Company, gives tips on how publishers can engage reluctant readers. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-08-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A new hashtag, #women_writers, is providing a safe space for female writers to talk about their literary passions, careers and frustrations in response to sexism within the publishing industry. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-08-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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News Corp., the Wall Street Journal and New York Post publisher controlled by billionaire Rupert Murdoch, reported fiscal fourth-quarter profit that missed analysts' estimates as a decline in ad sales outweighed an increase in digital revenue in its real estate business.Earnings, excluding some... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2016-08-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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With nearly twenty years experience in the publishing industry, Fiona Carr joins online rights platform IPR License as Senior Sales Manager. The post Fiona Carr Joins IPR License as Senior Sales Manager appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2016-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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There is "a lack of awareness within the publishing industry about the rest of the country”, New Writing North c.e.o Claire Malcolm has alleged, whilst making the business case for signing more writers from the north of England. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-07-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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We'd like to build bridges between the writing development sector and the publishing industry, to address diversity and to build new readers for contemporary writing, writes Claire Malcolm of New Writing North. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-07-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Freedom of movement has undoubtedly helped the economic development of the UK and the publishing industry needs to work to "connect its demand for labour with the supply coming across the world". Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-07-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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