Someone left a manuscript out in the rain. On their tumblr blog, Doubleday Books share two pictures of their offices repurposed to dry it out.
Rainy Day Books
Letters to a Young Writer
Over at the Story Prize blog, Year in Reading alumnus Colum McCann shares a letter of advice to writers starting their career. As he puts it, “A story begins long before its first word. It ends long after its last... [it] reveal[s] a truth that isn't yet there.”
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Curiosities: Return to the Monkey House
The Walking Tour is drawing ever nearer! Get all the details and RSVP if you want to be notified of any schedule changes.In the NYRB, Mark Danner examines the politics of torture, and J.M. Coetzee gets deep inside Samuel Beckett's head.James Wood finger-drumming on YouTube is just the most weirdly hypnotic thing we've ever seen.Typewriter-part art. (via The Rumpus)A new front runner in the coolest bookshelf contest. Think of it - geographic classification! (for American lit only)"Geoff Dyer book unlikely to win Bad Sex Award"Jane Austen got rejection letters too.Wow. A new Kurt Vonnegut collection is on the way. Amazon has it listed.A glimmer of good news in the newspaper business?Audrey Niffenegger is having a pretty good recession.Further Reading: Kevin's list of families and fiction has garnered many additions from readers in the comments.
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Spiegel & Grau turns to indies for help
Shaken by scathing reviews from The New York Times and The Washington Post, Yann Martel's publisher turns to independent bookstores for help.
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The Poet’s Essay
Recommended Listening: David Naimon interviews recent Whiting Award-winning poet Brian Blanchfield about his essay collection, Proxies.