Richard Wright‘s 106th birthday passed this last week, and in celebration The Paris Review posted an excerpt from a 2003 remembrance. Pair with our own Lydia Kiesling‘s review of Wright’s Native Son.
Richard Wright, 106
Antebellum YA
Move over Bella and Edward; Scarlett and Rhett were the original young adult power couple. At The New York Times, Claire Needell argues that Gone with the Wind is the epitome of the young adult novel. "The choice between two starkly different lovers (one gentlemanly, one roguish) appears, for the very young, to be a choice between two utterly distinct potential identities, two possible roads through life."
●
●
A TumBelivr event in San Fran!
Tumblr and the Believer are throwing a party at San Fransisco's Make-Out Room! Sheila Heti will be there, and so will Issac Fitzgerald, and Melissa Graeber. If you'd like to cover this event for #LitBeat, well, just get in touch!
●
●
The Stand on Screen
Getting a director for Stephen King's The Stand was almost as difficult as surviving the virus. The latest director to try is Josh Boone, who is no stranger to adaptations because he's bringing The Fault in Our Stars to screen. To brush up on your King, read our essay on learning about America through his novels.
●
●
Lolita, in the Margins
When Vladimir Nabokov developed a screen adaptation for Lolita, his director Stanley Kubrick declared it the "best ever written in Hollywood"--meaning, it seems, most gorgeously novelistic, evocative, readable. Here's a short excerpt of his screenplay with original margin notes.
●
●
Rejection Romanticized
Recommended Reading: Kavita Das on why writers shouldn’t romanticize rejection. “Not only is it harder for writers of color to get published, but when rejecting our work, publishers tell us that what we’re writing about is too narrow and niche and won’t appeal to mainstream audiences.” Our own Bill Morris writes about the sorry state of rejection letters and literary magazine editors take your questions about them.
●
●
Failing Upwards
Recommended Reading: Tony Kushner’s recent speech at the Whiting Writers' Awards.
●
●
Book Reviewing as Blood Sport
●
●
Once Upon A Time
Ignore films like Memento when writing, Steve Almond argues, and instead focus on old-fashioned devices like narrative, plot, and character development.