The Prose Factory by DJ Taylor review – beware the suggestion that literary life isn’t what it used to be

The truth about book prizes, why Amazon is like an old-fashioned library and how much famous writers really earned from their journalism …Periodically, signs go up saying that Grub Street is closed to through traffic. Observers speculate that the street is being redeveloped as gentrification forces the former inhabitants to move out, or else that the closure may be due to the expansion of the neighbouring university’s English department. Older heads are shaken in what had been the local pub but is now a coffee’n’crafts shop: there used to be more life in the place, they mourn, when bohemian writers could dash off a review against the clock to pay for their round. Even if Grub Street is eventually reopened, it will never be the same again, and anyway it will probably have been renamed “Creatives Crescent”.Such cliches and exaggerations are characteristic of this genre of lament. Like most keening for the good old days, these threnodies are not pieces of dispassionate historical analysis: they are attempts to compensate for so much that is disagreeable about one’s own time by inventing a more or less idealised version of the past. Still, it is worth wondering why “Grub Street” should be the form taken by paradise lost in this case. After all, the street originally so named in London (it was real before it was metaphorical) came to be the home of that kind of “grub” defined by the OED as “a person of mean abilities; a dull industrious drudge; a literary hack”. Even allowing... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2016-01-09 00:00:00 UTC ]

Other Publishing stories related to: 'The Prose Factory by DJ Taylor review – beware the suggestion that literary life isn’t what it used to be'


US lawmakers plan sweeping review of copyright

A key U.S. lawmaker has unveiled plans for a comprehensive review of the laws surrounding copyright in the United States to determine whether they are still relevant in the digital age.Bob Goodlatte, a Virginia Republican and chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said Wednesday that his... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2013-04-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #coming months #technological change


Pan Mac to explore Secret Life of Dogs

Pan Macmillan has acquired Off the Leash: The Secret Life of Dogs by cartoonist Rupert Fawcett,... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-04-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pan mac #pan macmillan #secret life


Faber Factory partners with MDL

Faber Factory and Macmillan Distribution (MDL) have announced a strategic partnership, which will... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-04-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #faber factory #strategic partnership


Thames & Hudson lines up literary art

Thames & Hudson is releasing a colourful list of “literary art” books this autumn... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-04-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #thames hudson


Ten Titles Up for €100,000 International IMPAC DUBLIN Literary Award

From a longlist of 154 titles, ten novels have been shortlisted and are in the running for the €100,000 2013 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-04-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ten titles


Breaking Digital Ground: E-books and Small Press Literary Publishers

The Association of Writers and Writing Programs annual conference (AWP) began decades ago as a meet-up for academic creative writing departments, students, and writers. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-04-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


March/April Starred BlueInk Reviews of Self-published Books

Among the best, new self-published titles of March and April is The Beach at Herculaneum by Susan G. Muth, only the second title to win a BlueInk Best Book Award. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-04-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #self-published books #self-published titles #book award


New Clients for Faber Factory Plus

Faber Factory Plus now handle sales representation for the Osprey Group’s fiction imprints... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #faber factory #osprey group


Pippa Middleton dropped by her literary agent. Why?

Pippa Middleton and David Goodwin have parted ways. Pippa Middleton's first book was a flop. But you haven't seen the last of Pippa Middleton and her writing. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-03-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #literary agent #pippa middleton #parted ways


Arnott and Kennedy on Amazon US literary imprint

A L Kennedy's The Blue Book and Jake Arnott's The House of Rumour are to be the first... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #literary imprint


Is There a Dearth of Literary Agents in Developing Markets?

Evidence is growing that a lack of skilled, knowledgable literary agents may be hindering the translation and publishing of books from developing markets in Asia and Latin America. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-03-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #literary agents #developing markets #latin america


Literary Asia on the Rise and Translators Are Key, Says Agent

As Asian authors come to prominence, the West should publish them, something that will be impossible without nurturing translators, says a Hong Kong literary agent Kelly Falconer. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-03-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #asian authors


Malaysia’s Tan Twan Eng Takes $30,000 Man Asian Literary Prize

Malaysia's Tan Twan Eng won Asia’s most prestigious literary prize with The Garden of Evening Mists. The prize, in its 6th year, is changing the perception of Asian literature say authors, publishers. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-03-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Literary Magazines Adapt to the Digital Age

There are 866 publications in Poets & Writers’ database of literary magazines, 14 of which were added in early 2013. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-03-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital age #literary magazines


Kindle Paperwhite is my new favorite gadget [Review]

When I wrote Why I Love Kindle back in February I said I was intending to upgrade to a Kindle Paperwhite soon. Three weeks later, timed so I can buy a Kindle copy of my own book (my publisher only supplies free paperbacks), and that’s exactly what I’ve done. The Kindle is one of those very rare... Continue reading at Betanews

[ Betanews | 2013-03-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #kindle paperwhite


BBC sidelines Review Show

The BBC's flagship arts and culture programme, "The Review Show", is being cut from... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-02-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #culture programme #review show


Little, Brown launches literary e-imprint

Little, Brown has become the first publisher to launch a digital imprint devoted to frontlist... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-02-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Life of Pi sells 'pi' copies

Life of Pi has sold 'pi' number of books, selling 3,141,593 copies in all editions.... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-02-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


The Hindu Literary Prize: Five Books Shortlisted

One collection of short stories and four novels—including Jeet Thayyil’s Narcopolis, winner of the DSC Prize—have been shortlisted for The Hindu Literary Prize. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-02-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #books shortlisted #short stories


February’s Starred BlueInk Reviews of Self-published Books

This months reviews of top self-published books features a witty novel about a coupon-clipping mother and her stoic daughter, and a memoir of life on the island of Malta, among several other appealing reads. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-02-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #self-published books