The novelist on his new collection of journalism, why he regrets criticising Sally Rooney and how he’s never shaken off the influence of JG Ballard“I’ll see your eidolon next Tuesday,” writes Will Self, 61, when I email to arrange a video call to discuss his new collection of journalism, Why Read: Selected Writings 2001-2021, which is centred on the concern (as he later told me, or my on-screen spirit-image) that “people are dumbing down their entire response to their own culture by their unfettered use of social media”. Self’s 26 previous books include Umbrella, shortlisted for the Booker prize in 2012, and its sequels Shark and Phone, the latter a single 624-page paragraph which the Telegraph called an “epic anti-tweet”. Speaking from his home in south London, he said he liked the description “because the book was a deliberate attempt to call people’s attention to what was being lost by the digital. I don’t think the Umbrella trilogy is that hard to read at all; it’s only hard to read in contrast to a tweet. By Donald Trump!”How did you pick the pieces in Why Read?Until fairly recently, certainly since 2001, I probably wrote an average of 150,000 words of journalism every year, so there’s a vast amount to choose from. My New York editor said that in the age of the web, collections like this need a theme or else readers feel they’re just getting a grab bag they could’ve sourced themselves. So the emphasis fell on the impact on reading and writing of what I choose to call... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2022-11-26 18:00:32 UTC ]
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Mills & Boon has revealed drama teacher and public speaker, Courtney Hayles, as the winner of its Man of the Year 2016 competition. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-01-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The government's hand-picked candidate Daniel Scioli, the governor of Buenos Aires province, was so heavily favored to win by a wide margin that he didn't turn up for the first presidential debate. Mr. Scioli, who is also from a wealthy family and lost an arm in an accident years ago while... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2016-01-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Biographer and historian Amanda Foreman is to chair the 2016 Man Booker Prize jury, and will be backed by a critic, a novelist, a poet and an actor. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-12-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The absence of any black, Asian or minority ethnic writers on next year’s World Book Night list provoked an outcry and a Twitterstorm. We asked writers and leading figures within the industry what can be done to encourage greater diversity in British publishingLatest work: Meatspace (Friday... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-12-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nonesuch Books & Cards, along with its second location in South Portland, have sold 1,000 copies of the Swedish paperback, making the novel the store's top seller since its May release. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-12-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Yes, book publishers have a problem with writers of colour – it’s just not the one Man Booker prizewinner Marlon James describesThere are so few ethnic minority voices in publishing and the media that when one criticises another it has come to be regarded as a form of strike-breaking. Knowing... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Black & White Publishing has acquired two psychological thrillers set in a "claustrophobic, close-knit community full of secrets and lies" by crime author SJI Holliday. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Our annual salary survey drew responses from a younger group than in years past, though the industry still is very white, with 89% of respondents reporting as caucasian. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A Jamaican-born writer took the Man Booker Prize for the first time, while some authors are in the running for the National Book Award in America. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2015-10-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Marlon James has won the Man Booker Prize 2015 for his novel A Brief History of Seven Killings (Oneworld). James, who is the first Jamaican to have won the £50,000 award in its history, was announced as the winner at a ceremony in London’s Guildhall on Tuesday 13th October. Chair of judges,... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-10-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Thousands of Angelenos braved the heat Sunday to participate in the 31st annual AIDS Walk in Los Angeles. The 6.2-mile walk began at 10 a.m. at West Hollywood Park, with the route continuing along Santa Monica Boulevard and through the Fairfax district. More than 20,000 people registered to... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2015-10-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Experience on the buy side and sell side of media brought David Katz to where he is today, running ad solutions at Hearst's Core Audience, the programmatic ad buying division of the publishing giant. The senior director of ad solutions works with hundreds of salespeople, arming them with data... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2015-09-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin Books is to reissue H G Wells’ The Rights of Man, with a new introduction by Ali Smith. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-09-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Marlon James, the author of 'A Brief History of Seven Killings,' is the first Jamaican author to have his or her work make it to the finals. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2015-09-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The shortlisted authors each receive £2,500, and the winner will receive a further £50,000. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-09-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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After Michael Derrick Hudson adopted an Asian pseudonym, he landed a poem in the 'Best American Poetry' anthology, prompting anger, recrimination and debate. The post Yi-Fen Chou: The White Author Who Went Asian to Get Published appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-09-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Film director takes to Facebook to apologise for his own ‘death’ after website publishes premature obituaryReports of Terry Gilliam’s death may have been greatly exaggerated, but that hasn’t stopped the film director and Monty Python troupe member from taking great pleasure in confirming them.... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-09-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The dark, freezing woods of Sweden are the perfect breeding ground for terrifying tales of naughty children who get what they deserve. This week, Simogo -- the developer of beautifully macabre game Year Walk, and mysterious narrative experiences De... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2015-09-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Italian novelist, whose real-life identity is a well-kept secret, says in email interview that female authors continue to be confined to a ‘literary gynaeceum’The elusive Italian author Elena Ferrante has said that women writers tend to be shut “in a literary gynaeceum” by the books... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-09-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Black & White Publishing has signed a psychological thriller, Abigale Hall, by the winner of Faber and Faber Creative Writing MA Prize, Lauren A. Forry. Managing director of Black & White Publishing, Campbell Brown, acquired World English rights for the publication from Sandra Sawicka... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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