'Reader's Digest' Wants Your Life Story in 150 Words or Less

Oh boy, do I have a contest for you long-winded Facebookers and personal bloggers. It's called, "Your Life: The Reader's Digest Version." The venerable magazine is willing to shell out $25,000 if you can keep The Story of You to a crisp and compelling 150 words (words, not characters—this isn't Twitter). Hell, I'd fork over that much if certain "friends" would stop sending me six-page family missives disguised as Christmas cards. Short and sweet, people! You are not that interesting. Jane Lynch, star of Glee and host of next month's Emmy Awards, gets the ball rolling with her own abbreviated life story on the magazine's Facebook page (see it after the jump). Shame, it sounds nothing like her caustic Sue Sylvester character from the Fox musical. Rather, it's an earnest promo-within-a-promo for Lynch's memoir, Happy Accidents, dropping in September. More celebrities with books to hawk will follow. But if Lynch, a sought-after, award-winning actress (Best in Show, Role Models, Party Down), can give a snapshot into her psyche within just a few sentences, so can you. I'd be even happier with a haiku. Jane Lynch's entry: "At the tender age of 50, I realized that I had the family, friends and the acting career I had always wanted. I had suffered on the way, feeling out of place, overcontrolling and drinking too much, but all that suffering had not fueled anything useful. The good things were a result of happy accidents that I had been willing, and let's hope smart enough, to... Continue reading at 'AdWeek'

[ AdWeek | 2011-08-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #award-winning actress #role models #tender age #acting career #good things #stay open

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Study Says Tablet, E-Reader Users Haven’t Given Up Print

Men more likely to own tablets, women more likely to own e-readers according to GfK MRI. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Judging E-Readers by Their Book Readability

If you're heading to the beach this summer and you plan to read an ebook, you won't want to take your iPad. Luckily, the latest versions of the Nook and the Kindle offer glare-free screens and other reader-friendly functions. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2011-06-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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US e-reader ownership doubles in six months

Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Tue, 28/06/2011 - 09:15 E-reader ownership in the US has doubled over the past six months, the first time ownership of e-readers has reached double digits among US adults. According to a report carried out by the Pew Internet Project, the share of... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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If a college graduate, older than 30, wealthy and Hispanic, you probably own an e-reader

By Joe Wilcox, Betanews Nearly a quarter of US adults with household income of $75,000 have ebook readers. By ethnicity, Hispanic Americans lead other races. Continue reading at Betanews

[ Betanews | 2011-06-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Seven Stories gets Blyton funds

Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Fri, 17/06/2011 - 07:59 The Seven Stories centre for children's books in Newcastle is to benefit from a £750,000 endowment donated by the Enid Blyton Trust for Children, following a decision to close the Enid Blyton Trust and donate its funds to one... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Mercury titles set to rock readers

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 16/06/2011 - 15:44 Publishers are vying to be the champions as they bring out titles to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the death of Queen star Freddie Mercury in November 2011. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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SourceMedia Folds Investment Dealers Digest

The last issue of Investment Dealer's Digest was released on May 27, as the weekly publication has folded. Paid circulation of the magazine was less than 700. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-06-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Council cutbacks hit blind readers using RNIB scheme

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Thu, 02/06/2011 - 09:33 Local authority cutbacks to the Royal National Institute for the Blind’s Talking Books service are leaving blind and visually impaired book lovers without proper access to the world of reading, the RNIB has said. The service... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ofsted: libraries the key for 'keen readers'

Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Fri, 27/05/2011 - 09:01 A new Ofsted report into the teaching of English, "Excellence in English", has highlighted schools' investment in books, home reading, book borrowing from the school library and events such as book fairs and storytelling... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Aurum buys spy's story

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Tue, 24/05/2011 - 08:25 Sam Harrison at Aurum has bought a biography of Cold War spy George Blake by journalist Roger Hermiston. Harrison acquired UK and Commonwealth rights for a "significant" five figure sum from Andrew Gordon at David Higham... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Kobo's Strategy Also Includes Hardware With Introduction of New Touch E-Reader

The bare bones e-reader that Kobo released in May 2010 was intended to help sell more of its ebooks. But now the company is also seeing the merits of pursuing a hardware strategy, which includes today's unveiling of an all-new touch-enabled device. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2011-05-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google partners with Telegraph for Ways with Words festival

Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Wed, 18/05/2011 - 14:46 Google is to partner with the Telegraph Ways with Words Literature Festival, as it celebrates its 20th year. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Getting the Word Out: Audio Book Marketing 2011

The Audio Publishers Association is set to kick off its 14th annual June Is Audiobook Month campaign, designed to celebrate the industry and bring greater awareness of audiobooks. As formats and consumer habits have changed over the past 10 years—sometimes dramatically—audio publishers have kept... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-05-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Barnes & Noble Plans New E-Book Reader [Voices]

Barnes & Noble Inc. will unveil a new electronic book reader later this month, the bookseller told analysts and investors on Wednesday, according to a federal filing released after the close of trading. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2011-05-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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iPad users may not become book readers, report finds

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 28/04/2011 - 08:00 A large proportion of iPad owners in the US have not used the device to read an ebook, a survey from media and publishing forecast firm Simba Information reveals. A report on the firm's "Trade E-Book Publishing 2011"... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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NOOK Color Reader Looks to Become Tablet Competitor

Barnes & Noble Inc. is stepping up their e-reader offering, upping the NOOK Color experience to rival those of tablet computers like the iPad and Motorola Xoom. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-04-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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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 ]
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Pan Mac buys six from School of Life

Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Tue, 05/04/2011 - 15:10 Pan Macmillan has signed a six-book deal with London self-help bookshop The School of Life. Editorial directors Liz Gough and Cindy Chan bought world rights in the series directly from The School of Life. The “intelligent,... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Borders collapse: readers turn to ebooks

Interest in ebooks has jumped since Borders and Angus & Robertson slipped into voluntary administration. Continue reading at The Sydney Morning Herald

[ The Sydney Morning Herald | 2011-03-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sceptre to examine secret life of Christopher Marlowe

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 25/03/2011 - 11:56 Sceptre is to publish a début novel-in-verse which promises to put an end to one of the greatest literary mysteries, that of whether playwright Christopher Marlowe wrote Shakespeare's plays. Publishing director Carole... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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