Millions staff writer Patrick Brown put together a case study (featuring graphs!) on how books get “discovered.” Spoiler alert: there’s no “magic bullet.”
Book Discoverability
Capital G
"Good TV is not merely good TV (i.e. better-than-average TV), but TV that is so good it deserves to be taken as seriously as great films and even great Literature (yes, with a capital 'L'). As such, watching Good TV and discussing Good TV are qualitatively different than watching and talking about other kinds of TV. The emergence of Good TV is a rather big deal in the recent history of American culture. It may well be one of the top two or three cultural developments of this still-young century." Todd Hasak-Lowy dissects the TV revolution. (Pair with: our own Michael Bourne on the new age of cable and Broadway.) (h/t The Rumpus)
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A Bookstore of Common Prayer
Common dreams, common bookstores: "I went home with...the BookWoman bumper sticker, which reads: 'Support Your Feminist Bookstore — She Supports You.'"
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Welcome Jacob!
We're welcoming another regular to The Millions. You'll recognize Jacob Lambert from his ongoing series "The Road (A Comedic Translation)," and he'll be doing more humor pieces for us as well as whatever else he comes up with. Jacob has written for MAD Magazine for several years. He also has a regular column in Philly Weekly and freelances for various other publications. Welcome Jacob!
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The Surreal World
Recommended Reading: Dean Young's poem "Why I Haven’t 'Outgrown Surrealism,' No Matter What That Moron Reviewer Wrote" for Plume.
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How to Write Like a Man
“She can write like a man, they said, by which they meant, She can write.” Claire Vaye Watkins writes for Tin House about the problem that has no name. Also check out this Millions piece on sexism in the age of the internet.
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Modernist Myth Making
A look at how H. D.'s interpretation of Helen of Troy differs from the traditional.
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Melatonin, Menthol Lights, Jungle Gyms
At Trickhouse's Back Room, Ian Ganassi lists life's essentials, along with a few I could do without.