Thanks to the internet, it has never been easier to steal other people's work. There's also a high risk you'll be found out. So why do it? Rhodri Marsden goes in search of a little originalityIt's not that hard to think of something totally original. If you don't worry about it being any good, it's easy. "Colorless green ideas sleep furiously," was Noam Chomsky's spirited attempt in his ground-breaking 1957 book on linguistics, Syntactic Structures. "Hold the newsreader's nose squarely, waiter, or friendly milk will countermand my trousers," was Stephen Fry's during an episode of A Bit Of Fry And Laurie. But when novelist John Gardner used the phrase "opening the throttle at the last moment" in his 1983 book Icebreaker, it's unlikely that he sat back and congratulated himself on being the first to have written it. Innovation wasn't what he was aiming for, after all; he was just trying to describe someone driving a scooter. But Google Books, that vast indexing project, informs us that Gardner's was the only book to contain this phrase until another, Vestige Of Evil by Len Vorster, appeared on Amazon in 2011. A section of the novel, one of two books self-published online under that name, featured other phrases that were no longer unique to Icebreaker, such as "the ice and snow were not as raw and killing as this" and "the slope angling gently downwards to flatten". The many coincidences were startling, though if it wasn't for the internet, nobody need ever have known.In... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2014-03-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
Bookseller Katherine Morgan has founded her own online bookstore—all while working two gigs at Bookshop.org and Powell's City of Books. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-27 05:00:00 UTC ]
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I am, primarily, a guitarist. Dabbling in keys and synths has always felt a bit unnatural from a physical standpoint. A keyboard doesn’t respond the way a fretted instrument does. This isn’t surprising, nor is it a bad thing. It’s just not what I’m used to. The better... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2023-11-10 15:00:28 UTC ]
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Three of the Big Five publishers struggled in the first nine months of 2023, according to recent financial results, as the industry coped with sagging sales and rising costs. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Revenue in the quarter ended September 30, 2023, rose 8% over fiscal 2023 at HarperCollins, and profits jumped 67%. Executives at parent company News Corp expect the publisher to show marked improvement over last year. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Helped by the bookselling community, Akimbo reopened in April after a fire destroyed its first location. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-03 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Joy Buolamwini, author of "Unmasking AI: My Mission to Protect What Is Human in a World of Machines," joins the L.A. Times Book Club on Nov. 14. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-11-03 00:31:12 UTC ]
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A new book argues that corporate publishing has transformed what it means to be an author. Continue reading at New Yorker
[ New Yorker | 2023-11-01 10:00:00 UTC ]
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Total sales at Amazon increased 13%, to $143.1 billion, in the third quarter ended September 30, 2023, over the comparable period in 2022, and operating income jumped to $11.2 billion, from $2.5 billion in the third quarter 2022. Online sales rose 7%. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-10-27 04:00:00 UTC ]
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In the different field of celebrity autobiographies, ghostwriters are often at work. Certainly, coverage of 'Spare' by Prince Harry frequently referenced his ghostwriter J.R. Moehringer. But how does ghostwriting work in practice? Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-10-20 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The tech industry is reeling from the combination of a rough economy, the COVID-19 pandemic and some obvious business missteps. And while that led to job cuts in 2022, the headcount reductions have unfortunately ramped up in 2023. It can be tough to keep track of these... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2023-10-16 15:52:41 UTC ]
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Forthcoming titles from religion and spirituality publishers aim to get families talking about right-to-life messaging, sex trafficking, climate change, houselessness, gender roles, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-09-22 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Illustration by Krishna Bala Shenoi. Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso is a weekly series of intimate conversations with artists, authors, and politicians. It’s a podcast where people sound like people. New episodes air every Sunday, distributed by Pushkin Industries. * To celebrate the release of her... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2023-09-19 08:35:25 UTC ]
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A book-length thought experiment uses math to investigate some of life’s big questions. Continue reading at The Conversation
[ The Conversation | 2023-09-18 12:19:43 UTC ]
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Amazon Prime Day came and went in July, but Amazon’s not done with its membership-only sales events for 2023. The company just announced that it will hold “Prime Big Deal Days,” another Prime Day of sorts, on October 10 and 11, mirroring what it did during the same month last year. Engadget will... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2023-09-18 11:58:42 UTC ]
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In the first half of 2023, publishers struggled to keep expenses down, with multiple companies citing higher costs as the major reason margins shrank in the first six months of 2023. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-09-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
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At a glanceExpert's Rating ProsHefty performance for a 14-inch deviceCrisp oled displayTop-notch keyboard and mouse padSturdy, durable chassisConsCan get hot to play onSome fiddling with settingsOur VerdictIf you’re looking for serious power in a tiny package, the Asus Zenbook 14 Pro OLED... Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2023-08-31 10:30:00 UTC ]
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Nielsen’s big data trading rollout comes prior to MRC audit meetings and without Nielsen detailing findings that could drastically impact ratings for some Spanish-language networks and other programming. Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2023-08-28 09:30:00 UTC ]
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Independent booksellers from across the country highlight eight independently published books they're excited to sell this fall. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-08-25 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Every fall season, bookseller enthusiasm builds for certain subjects, and novels—notably high-stakes historical fiction and immersive work in translation—are extra hot for 2023. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-08-25 04:00:00 UTC ]
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From upstarts to stalwarts, independent presses are stocking the upcoming season with unconventional and adventurous books. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-08-25 04:00:00 UTC ]
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