Essay “Literature was a vast minefield occupied by enemies,” Roberto Bolaño, who enjoyed accruing enemies in the pantheon of Latin American letters, writes in the short story “Meeting with Enrique Lihn” (New Yorker, December 22, 2008): except for a few classic authors (just a few), and every day I had to walk through that minefield, where any false move could be fatal, with only the poems of Archilochus to guide me. It’s like that for all young writers. There comes a time when you have no support, not even from friends, forget about mentors, and there’s no one to give you a hand; publication, prizes, and grants are reserved for the others, the ones who said “Yes, sir,” over and over, or those who praised the literary mandarins, a never-ending horde distinguished only by their aptitude for discipline and punishment—nothing escapes them and they forgive nothing. Aptitude for discipline and punishment Bolaño himself had aplenty, too. And in spite of his precarious health, he had stamina. At a young age, he had made up his mind he would die. Who cared if he annoyed others? His mission, as is clear from The Savage Detectives (1998), was to upend that tradition, to take it by the neck and expose its platitudes. What is the use of sacred cows if not to be desecrated? Indeed, every tradition needs an enfant terrible, maybe more than one. When was the last time a rabble-rouser came along in Latin American literature? As Bolaño put it in... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2022-02-28 21:05:10 UTC ]
Sequel to the Canadian author’s bestselling feminist dystopia will be published around the world in September 2019Margaret Atwood has announced a sequel to her bestselling feminist dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale, titled The Testaments. It will be published in September 2019.“Dear Readers,”... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2018-11-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A new book festival for fans of fantasy, science fiction and horror is launching in Edinburgh next summer featuring authors including Scottish sci-fi writer Ken MacLeod and The Bone Season's Samantha Shannon. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-11-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Publishing’s science fiction and fantasy imprint 47North has signed the recent winner of the Arthur C Clarke Award, Anne Charnock, for a further novel, set in the “disturbing near-future”. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-10-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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This week: inside the golden age of science fiction, plus the epic drama of our atmosphere. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-10-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A new book looks at four men who are largely responsible for the genre of science fiction as we know it today. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2018-10-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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FutureBook is partnering with social reading app The Pigeonhole to run a short story competition exploring the future of the book. The winning author is to be hosted at the FutureBook Conference, 30th November. Judges will be Molly Flatt, author and associate editor of FutureBook; Anna Jean... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-09-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Publishing’s science fiction and fantasy imprint, 47North, has signed a new series of books from author James Maxwell. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Four Tor authors—Charlie Jane Anders, Seth Dickinson, S.L. Huang, and V.E. Schwab—discuss identity, characters, and worldbuilding in science fiction and fantasy. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The novelist Margaret Atwood recently caused a stir when, during an interview with Variety, she said that the 9/11 hijackers “got the idea” to fly planes into buildings from watching “Star Wars.” Atwood, the author of “The Handmaid’s Tale” and other dystopian classics, did not have the facts... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-05-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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George R R Martin is funding a new annual scholarship at a science fiction and fantasy six-week course to “help the next great fantasist on the long journey ahead”. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The prolific and profoundly influential writer, who brought a literary and feminist touch to works of science fiction and fantasy for children and adults, died at her home in Portland, Ore., on January 22. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-01-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Given her incredible skill at narrative economy, Ursula K. Le Guin could probably do a much better job of summing up her own achievements as a writer than I could. Then again, Le Guin could do most things better than most writers. An undisputed master of science fiction and fantasy, she also... Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2018-01-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ReedPOP has unveiled a lineup of science fiction, mystery and thriller authors for BookCon 2018, which includes such authors as David Baldacci, Sandra Brown, Brad Meltzer, and Walter Mosley. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-01-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Trying to achieve change through something like science fiction seems like a pipe dream,' Adams says. 'But it also feels like the only thing that writers can hope to do.' Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2017-10-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Skybound Books, a co-publishing agreement between Atria and The Walking Dead creator's multi-platform entertainment company Skybound Entertainment, will focus on science fiction, fantasy, and horror. It will be overseen by Michael Braff, who is based in L.A. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-07-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin Random House has developed a range of Barbican-inspired Penguin Classics to coincide with a new Barbican exhibition, Into the Unknown: A Journey through Science Fiction. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-06-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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For 33 years, Galaxy Press has been promoting the work of science fiction and fantasy writers and illustrators through the annual L. Ron Hubbard Writers and Illustrators of the Future contests. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-06-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookNet Canada has issued four studies looking at the demographics for book buyers of biographies/autobiographies, detective fiction, science fiction and cookbooks, each showing trends for the genre. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-05-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Michael M. Levy, a scholar of science fiction and longtime 'Publishers Weekly' reviewer, died of cancer on April 3. He was 66. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-04-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hodder and Stoughton has appointed Sam Bradbury, currently with Jo Fletcher Books, as editor with commissioning responsibilities in the area of science fiction, fantasy and horror, reporting to publisher Oliver Johnson. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-03-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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