Harper Lee never wanted Go Set a Watchman brought out, Sylvia Plath’s diary was burned by Ted Hughes – the controversial world of literary legacies When a writer is born into a family, the Polish poet Czesław Miłosz said, that family is finished. Yes, but when a writer dies that family’s troubles have only just begun. Wills may be contradictory and instructions to literary executors confused. Works left behind on computers or in desk drawers may be of uncertain status: were they intended for publication or not? And if the writer is famous enough, there’ll be biographers to deal with: can they be trusted to paint a kindly portrait? In their lifetime, authors have a measure of control. Once they’re gone, it’s left to others to guard their reputations.The vigilance can be fierce, with the appointed custodians (whether spouses, children, lawyers, agents, editors or friends) not so much keepers of the flame as dragons guarding a cave. Posterity is rarely kind to them: however they act, they will be accused of acting badly. If they deny the author’s wishes, as those acting for the French philosopher Michel Foucault have recently done by consenting to the publication of a book he hadn’t finished and didn’t want to come out, they will be called treacherous. And if they are overly loyal, destroying work the author disowned but that deserves to be saved, they will be called philistine or just plain stupid. Either way, they can’t shirk the role allotted them. They have an estate to... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2018-03-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
Two bestselling novelists filed a suit against OpenAI, claiming the company used intellectual property to 'train' its artificial intelligence chatbot. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-07-01 14:28:47 UTC ]
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Libri Group’s takeover by Mathias Corvinus Collegium raises fears of crackdown on literary freedomsThe takeover of Hungary’s largest publishing house and bookstore chain by a private foundation with close ties to the country’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán, has prompted walkouts from authors who... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-06-23 11:38:44 UTC ]
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If you believe that the role of a novel is to instruct readers on correct moral positions, then Trial is a masterpiece. Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2023-06-20 16:38:36 UTC ]
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The authors of a picture book about a penguin family with two fathers sued the state and a school district that removed the book from libraries. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-06-20 14:25:50 UTC ]
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A new queer indie bookstore is splitting profits with LGBTQ authors and spreading queer joy and literacy with a rainbow book bus. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2023-06-20 10:40:00 UTC ]
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Knopf executive v-p and publisher Reagan Arthur said it would be hard to name an editor who had a more lasting and profound impact on American letters than Gottlieb: "He had a vision not just for what worked on the page, but what worked in the marketplace." Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-06-14 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Cormac McCarthy, whose inimitable literary style and uniquely bleak outlook on human nature combined to ensure his status as a behemoth of contemporary American letters, died of natural causes at his home in Santa Fe, N.M., on June 13. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-06-13 04:00:00 UTC ]
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In two decades of leadership at the publishing house, he helped remold a clubby book industry into a diversified and highly profitable corporate enterprise. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-06-08 21:08:45 UTC ]
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Richard “Dick” Snyder, who built Simon & Schuster into the biggest publisher of its day over the course of a long and tempestuous career, died on June 6 at his home in Los Angeles. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-06-08 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Decades after “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret,” an anthology and a novel let readers see periods through the eyes of diverse protagonists. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-06-02 09:00:39 UTC ]
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Yorwerth, who founded Yorthwerth Associates in 2003, is remembered for his advocacy for authors in the self-help and spiritual categories and as a fixture of the London and Frankfurt Book Fairs. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-06-02 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Sherrill was a cofounder of Chosen Books and co-author of bestsellers such as 'The Hiding Place' with Corrie ten Bloom, who hid Jews during the Holocaust. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-06-02 04:00:00 UTC ]
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As part of its campaign to protect its members from the rise of large language models and other artificial intelligence tools, the Authors Guild has released four new model contract clauses concerning the technology. Earlier, the Guild released a survey of members that found that 69% of those... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-06-02 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Flaws used to feed their sales but now writers are expected to be saints‘As you get older you realise that all these things – prizes, reviews, advances, readers – it’s all showbiz, and the real action starts with your obituary.”Martin Amis first started spinning in favour of his future... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-05-27 17:31:09 UTC ]
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Toronto Star books editor Deborah Dundas says that even though class divisions exist in Canada, we don't talk about them openly. Continue reading at CBC
[ CBC | 2023-05-27 08:00:00 UTC ]
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The non-profit organization that mails millions of books a year to families with connections to Judaism, has relaunched and added online seminars to a program that takes 20 authors and illustrators for eight days in Israel. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-05-23 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Martin Amis, best known for a scathing, dazzling trilogy of novels on money-saturated '80s London and the memoir "Experience," died Friday at 73. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-05-20 20:05:38 UTC ]
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The celebrated author of Money and London Fields, whose works defined the 80s and 90s literary scene, died of oesophageal cancer on Friday at his home in FloridaMartin Amis, the influential author of era-defining novels including Money and London Fields, and the memoir Experience, has died at... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-05-20 18:53:35 UTC ]
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Shunning fire and brimstone, he became a best-selling author and founded Redeemer Presbyterian Church, which drew young New Yorkers. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-05-19 22:35:33 UTC ]
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In 'Look at the Lights, My Love,' an extended essay about a Parisian superstore, Annie Ernaux proves she can master any subject by melding experience and recollection. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-05-19 13:00:25 UTC ]
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