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purely to get published; A Place of Greater Safety emerged only when she contributed to a Guardian piece about writers’ unpublished first novels.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 ]
Last year’s historical fiction was all about the 60s, baby, while this year’s features more from the 1950s, the long 19th century, and the 1970s. I have bad news for Gen-Xers and Xennials: the 1990s are now historical fiction, and there’s plenty coming out about the tail end of the 20th century... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2023-01-30 09:52:54 UTC ]
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Historical fiction for young readers like CATHERINE CALLED BIRDY help readers discover the history of sexism, ableism, and more. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2023-01-27 11:34:00 UTC ]
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Her second memoir — about her small-town coming-of-age, her multiple traumas and Hollywood escapades — is an attempt to set the record straight. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-01-27 10:00:07 UTC ]
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Following the new double-dipping template of memoir and documentary, Pamela Anderson finally tells her own story with remarkable matter-of-factness. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-01-27 08:01:22 UTC ]
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These ten moments from SPARE are among the weirdest in this bestselling and highly anticipated memoir from Prince Harry. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2023-01-25 11:39:00 UTC ]
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Prince Harry's 'Spare' sold more than 195,000 copies in its second week on sale, helping to lift print book sales 1.2% last week over 2022. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-01-25 05:00:00 UTC ]
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How Edith Wharton foresaw the 21st century: “The scandals documented in Wharton’s narratives serve as harbingers of the sensations that flash across our hand-held screens.” | Lit Hub Biography Peggy Orenstein delves into the endangered, male-dominated vocation of… sheep-shearing. | Lit Hub... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2023-01-24 11:30:01 UTC ]
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Immerse yourself in sapphic historical fiction with these 20 must-read books like Mademoiselle Revolution and Notes of a Crocodile. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2023-01-23 11:37:00 UTC ]
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The world’s fastest-selling memoir is merely an episode in a soap opera in the Sussexes’ adopted Californian hometownOn the day Prince Harry’s controversial, headline-grabbing memoir Spare officially became the fastest-selling non-fiction book in history, the bookstore in his adoptive hometown... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-01-21 14:25:09 UTC ]
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Publishing experts say the highly discounted product launches for mega-marketed books like Spare are an entrenched method big booksellers use to get people into stores, especially in an era where online competition is only a click away. ... Continue reading at CBC
[ CBC | 2023-01-21 09:00:00 UTC ]
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Memoirist and public health executive Michelle Bowdler, author of Is Rape a Crime? and novelist and family counselor Lynne Reeves Griffin, author of Dark Rivers to Cross, a novel about relationship violence, talk about writing trauma narratives with the power to bring pain deemed undiscussable... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2023-01-19 09:52:46 UTC ]
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'Spare,' the memoir by Prince Harry, sold nearly 630,000 print copies in its first week on sale at outlets that report to NPD BookScan. Even with that huge debut, total sales rose only 1.4% last week over the week ended January 15, 2022. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-01-19 05:00:00 UTC ]
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John Hendrickson's memoir “Life on Delay” recounts his experience with this poorly understood neurological disorder, tracing an arc from frustration and isolation to acceptance and community. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-01-18 10:00:22 UTC ]
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The British author, who lived in the US, blended memoir and travelogue in books that were often inspired by the seaJonathan Raban, the British travel writer, critic and novelist known for his candid accounts of travelling the world in books such as Passage to Juneau and Coasting, has died aged... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-01-18 08:53:25 UTC ]
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In 'Spare,' the Duke of Sussex attacks just about everything but the real source of his woes: the British monarchy itself. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-01-17 14:00:28 UTC ]
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The book, which so far has no title or publication date, was announced by publisher William Collins, who did not reveal how much Johnson will be paidA memoir by former prime minister Boris Johnson, covering his years as leader, will be published by HarperCollins, it has been announced.The book,... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-01-16 16:38:43 UTC ]
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As much as Prince Harry's memoir Spare gives the 38-year-old the chance to tell his story in his own words, the book and the media swirl around it have spawned a host of questions — for the Duke of Sussex himself, the Royal Family and the... Continue reading at CBC
[ CBC | 2023-01-15 09:00:00 UTC ]
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Prince Harry's memoir "Spare" is gracious, harsh, self-pitying, self-deprecating and, ultimately, self-aware. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-01-14 11:00:18 UTC ]
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An accidental release of Prince Harry's memoir Spare, five days ahead of schedule, led to round-the-clock coverage of the book and its many revelations. Publishing professionals say the outcome has been highly beneficial for sales. Continue reading at CBC
[ CBC | 2023-01-14 09:00:00 UTC ]
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Duke of Sussex tells Telegraph that he has enough material for another memoir and his original draft was twice as longPrince Harry says he has enough material to write another memoir and chose not to publish some details as he was concerned his father and brother would never forgive him if they... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-01-13 23:56:18 UTC ]
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