The first-person essays boom: top editors on why confessional writing matters

A Slate piece on first-person writing has prompted debate in the digital media community. We asked editors at BuzzFeed, Jezebel and other leading sites to weigh in on the importance of such pieces – and why there is a gender divideOn Monday, Laura Bennett’s Slate piece on the boom of first-person essay writing sparked a fierce online debate between editors and writers: how can one best work between the vulnerability of a writer and the traffic goal of an editor? What’s the line between publishing someone’s personal experience and exploitation?In response to Bennett’s piece, we asked senior editors at several publications known for publishing first-person stories about what they value in them, how they look after their writers, and why it is that so many confessional stories seem to be written by women, and not men.This route to publication and a book/movie deal simply is not open for non-white womenAnd now Pollitt’s up at bat. Her three previous essay collections gathered brilliant commentary on welfare, abortion, surrogate motherhood, Iraq, gay marriage and health care, mostly from the pages of The Nation. But with “Learning to Drive,” she gets personal, and shameless. She has decided to wave her dirty laundry (among which she found unidentified striped panties) and confesses to “Webstalking” her longtime, live-in, womanizing former boyfriend. (Take that, you rat!) It’s hard to tell if she’s coming into her own, trying to sell more books or has lost it entirely. Or... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-09-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #gay marriage #health care #dirty laundry #ve heard

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Meet the Editor: Monique Patterson

With her recent promotion to editorial director of romance added to her existing role as executive editor at St. Martin’s Press, Monique Patterson will help oversee the house’s romance program. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-03-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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No reduced tax rate for ebooks, top EU court rules

E-books must be subject to the full rate of value-added tax (VAT), and European Union countries may not extend tax exemptions for books to include ebooks, the EU’s highest court ruled Thursday, adding that it considers downloadable ebooks to be services.Most EU member states, with the exception... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2015-03-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #physical books #paper books #vat rate #lower rate #limited number


iBooks Bestsellers: Hawkins Back On Top

Paula Hawkins’s 'The Girl on the Train' pushed E.L. James out of the top spot on Apple's bestseller list. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-03-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ibooks bestsellers #hawkins back #paula hawkins #bestseller list


Patterson, Archer and 'Hawk' fly to top of charts

A busy publication schedule drove change across all the major Bookseller charts last week, with titles from James Patterson, David Walliams, Jeffrey Archer and Helen MacDonald all chalking up number ones in their first week of sale. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-03-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #james patterson #jeffrey archer #david walliams #helen macdonald


Dahl’s Charlie tops Sainsbury's list of books kids 'should read'

Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Puffin) is the book parents most think their children should read before the age of 16, according to a survey from supermarket Sainsbury's. Sainsbury’s asked 2,000 parents which 50 books children should read by the time they are 16 to celebrate... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-03-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #roald dahl #supermarket sainsbury #taking place


Customer-Management Survey: Existing Business Is Top Priority for Publishers

[Sponsored Content] Boosting retention and revenue are on the front burner. The post Customer-Management Survey: Existing Business Is Top Priority for Publishers appeared first on Folio:. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2015-03-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Peters reveals its top sellers

Perennially popular authors such as Allan Ahlberg and multi-authored series such as Rainbow Magic top the charts of children’s books sold to libraries, according to Peters Books & Furniture. The library supplier revealed exclusive sales data to The Bookseller, which showed that the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-03-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #allan ahlberg #top sellers #books sold


Divergent author Veronica Roth is writing TWO new books

Newsflash! Divergent fans, sit down, take a deep breath and get ready to read Veronica Roth’s new duologyAttention all you Divergent fans! Put down your books, pick up your calendars and rejoice at some really exciting news.It has been announced that Veronica Roth, author of the bestselling... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-03-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In Jerusalem, A “Retreat” for Editors, Agents and Scouts

For the 30th Jerusalem Book Fair Fellowship Program, 35 alumni — editors, agents and scouts — joined 39 new fellows for a week of professional networking. The post In Jerusalem, A “Retreat” for Editors, Agents and Scouts appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-03-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The U.K.'s Top Selling Cookbook Comes Stateside

'Deliciously Ella,' which has topped charts and set records in the U.K. since its January release, will go on sale in the U.S. next week. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-02-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #deliciously ella #topped charts #january release


Tom Rob Smith thriller tops chart

Tom Rob Smith scores his first UK Top 50 number one with the paperback of his latest thriller, The Farm. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #latest thriller


Four Questions for...Italian Editor Giuseppe Strazzeri

We spoke with the editorial director of Longanesi Publishing about the problems with local price-cutting measures on books, and the debut by the "energetic and young" writer from Naples he's excited about publishing in May. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-02-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers Get Personal at Toy Fair

From crafts and inventions to various elements of personalization, many of the playthings displayed at this year’s New York International Toy Fair had a do-it-yourself slant. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-02-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Flipboard Is Your Personal Magazine

[Sponsored Content] Flipboard calls itself a personalized social magazine, but some might pause at the term. After all, Flipboard doesn’t offer a cover to cover reading experience. The post Flipboard Is Your Personal Magazine appeared first on Folio:. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2015-02-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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iBooks Bestsellers: 'Fifty Shades' Tops the Charts, Box Office

Following a record-breaking opening weekend for the 'Fifty Shades of Grey' film, which raked in in $81.7 million, the books in E.L. James's series also ruled Apple's bestseller list. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ibooks bestsellers #fifty shades #box office #bestseller list


VIDEO: India's chart-topping author Amish Tripathi

Amish Tripathi's Shiva trilogy about the popular Hindu deity has become the fastest selling book series in Indian publishing. Continue reading at BBC World

[ BBC World | 2015-02-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #indian publishing


Nick Hornby writes first TV drama Love, Nina

Author of Fever Pitch is adapting a book of the same name based on the memoirs of Nina Stibble, a nanny who worked for some of London’s leading literary lightsThe author of Fever Pitch, Nick Hornby, is penning his first TV drama, based on the memoirs of a nanny who worked for some of the leading... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-02-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #literary london #nina stibbe #award-winning book #fever pitch #nick hornby #tv drama #leading lights #half-hour episodes


Peru’s Colmena Editores Gives Edgy Debut Authors a Voice

One of Peru's fledgling publishers, Colmena Editores, is making room for edgy new generation of authors, while also offering classics and criticism. The post Peru’s Colmena Editores Gives Edgy Debut Authors a Voice appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-02-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Beyoncé writes foreword for 22-Day Revolution diet book

Yellow Kite is to publish The 22-Day Revolution, a book about the benefits of a plant-based diet, with a foreword written by Beyoncé. Founded on the principle that it takes 21 days to make or break a habit, The 22-Day Revolution by exercise physiologist and nutrition expert Marco Borges is a... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Into the Wild' author Jon Krakauer will write a book about sexual assaults on campus

Jon Krakauer's upcoming book 'Missoula' will center on stories he was told by those who said they experienced sexual assault at the University of Montana. Krakauer is also the author of 'Into Thin Air.' Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2015-02-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #upcoming book #thin air