Categorising fiction may help to sell books, but it says little about how writers write or readers readIn her Reith lecture of 2017, recently published for the first time in a posthumous collection of nonfiction, A Memoir of My Former Self, Hilary Mantel recalled the beginnings of her career as a novelist. It was the 1970s. “In those days historical fiction wasn’t respectable or respected,” she recalled. “It meant historical romance. If you read a brilliant novel like I, Claudius, you didn’t taint it with the genre label, you just thought of it as literature. So, I was shy about naming what I was doing. All the same, I began. I wanted to find a novel I liked, about the French Revolution. I couldn’t, so I started making one.”She made A Place of Greater Safety, an exceptional ensemble portrayal of the revolutionaries Danton, Robespierre and Desmoulins, but although the novel was completed in 1979, it wasn’t published until 1992 – widely rejected, as she later explained, because although she thought the French Revolution was the most interesting thing in the world, the reading public didn’t agree, or publishers had concluded they didn’t. She decided to write a contemporary novel – Every Day Is Mother’s Day – purely to get published; A Place of Greater Safety emerged only when she contributed to a Guardian piece about writers’ unpublished first novels. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2023-11-27 12:30:00 UTC ]
After several late nights scrolling through Instagram, I chance upon the perfect image for the cover of my memoir The Migrant Rain Falls in Reverse. Taken by a Vietnamese street photographer, the image is a long shot of an intersection; at the top, a truck is entering the frame while a car is... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-04-17 08:58:14 UTC ]
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These backlist titles—which were all published between 2010 and 2020—include narratives about estranged brothers and a young Sacajewea. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-04-16 11:30:00 UTC ]
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Trevor Noah's memoir adapted for young readers, a female spy in the late '40s, a Christmas-time whodunit, fun fantasy romance, and more of the best book deals of the day Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-04-13 11:30:00 UTC ]
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Author Art Bell shares a quick exchange with Walter Mosley and how he went about writing his memoir as a thriller and vice versa. The post How to Write Your Memoir as a Thriller and Your Thriller as a Memoir appeared first on Writer's Digest. Continue reading at Writer's Digest
[ Writer's Digest | 2025-04-10 20:00:00 UTC ]
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Published in November, it will cover everything from Smith’s childhood to her rise as a punk rock star and later retreat from public lifePatti Smith has written a memoir that her publishers are describing as her “most intimate and visionary work” yet, which is due out this autumn.Bread of Angels... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2025-04-09 14:51:02 UTC ]
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Plus, the new memoir from Gisèle Pelicot's daughter, a puzzle book series, another season of Watson, and more. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-04-09 12:30:00 UTC ]
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My most anticipated historical fiction has multigenerational love stories, Indigenous horror, ancient Roman romantasy, and more. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-04-07 12:30:00 UTC ]
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In his memoir the former Vanity Fair editor and man-about-town recalls the golden age of glossy magazines, when sales were in the millions and ‘the budget had no ceiling’I can’t pretend to be impartial. When I look at the artworks in my house I say “thank you, Graydon” from the bottom of my... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2025-04-06 06:00:42 UTC ]
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The acclaimed historical fiction author discusses her drafting process, the real history behind her work, and her latest publication, Murder in Berkeley Square. The post The WD Interview: Vanessa Riley appeared first on Writer's Digest. Continue reading at Writer's Digest
[ Writer's Digest | 2025-04-05 20:00:00 UTC ]
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From a memoir by chef Kristin Kish to an essay collection by Viet Thanh Nguyen, there's something in this list for every nonfiction lover. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-04-02 10:30:00 UTC ]
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Helen Garner’s How to End a Story, Graydon Carter’s When the Going Was Good, and David Sheff’s Yoko all feature among the best reviewed nonfiction titles of the month. Brought to you by Book Marks, Lit Hub’s home for book reviews. * 1. Raising Hare: A Memoir by Chloe Dalton (Pantheon) 9 Rave • 1... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-03-30 14:00:37 UTC ]
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Read these new trans historical fiction books in support of the 2025 Trans Rights Readathon. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-03-26 11:30:00 UTC ]
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“Somewhere beneath the bugle blast, the beer bloat, the crush of bodies, I was part of something.” Kyle Seibel on attending the Gathering of the Kyles (in Kyle, Texas). | Lit Hub Memoir “I am talking, of course, about #Scandoval, a word that I, a lowly lifestyle journalist and nascent author,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-03-26 10:30:02 UTC ]
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The goal of censorship is to control what people think by controlling what they can read and learn. Book bans target and affect the most at-risk members of society. That's not a coincidence, either. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-03-19 11:30:00 UTC ]
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“Crucially, The Living Mountain needs to be understood as a parochial work in the most expansive sense.” Robert Macfarlane on Nan Shepherd’s uniquely poetic memoir of life in the Cairngorm Mountains. | Lit Hub Criticism “I went home and obeyed those directions for some three months, and came so... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-03-19 10:30:35 UTC ]
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This week, the hosts discuss Black Bag, Deli Boys, and the enduring legacy of Dave Eggers’ memoir A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2025-03-19 07:20:00 UTC ]
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In the memoir “Firstborn,” Lauren Christensen writes about losing the daughter she was expecting. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-03-17 16:00:04 UTC ]
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