Recommended Reading: Larissa Pham on Milena Michiko Flašar’s I Called Him Necktie.
On Hikikomoris, Etc.
The Prince of Horror
“Hill had maintained a daily writing routine since age 13, completing four or five books as a teen and four more as an adult, and was now, at the cusp of 35, finally putting out a novel—a ghost story.” GQ profiles Joe Hill about his writing, being the son of Stephen King, and finding success in his own right. From our archives: our own editor Lydia Kiesling‘s essay on King, nostalgia, and America.
New Dramas Focus On Atom Bombs and Witch Hunts
WGN America has ordered a 13-episode drama about the Manhattan Project. The series, which is set for a summer 2014 premiere, will be written by Sam Shaw and directed by Thomas Schlamme. This marks the second series ordered by WGN America this year. The first one, Salem, will focus on the Massachusetts town’s infamous 17th century witch trials.
New Release Day Continued
A couple more big name books out in paperback this week: David Mitchell’s The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet and Next by James Hynes. (Thanks, Dan)
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Brief Encounters
Talking with Daniel Woodrell
Winter’s Bone author Daniel Woodrell has a new book out, and to mark the occasion, he talks with Dwyer Murphy of Guernica about his upcoming book tour, Southern poverty and the rejections Winter’s Bone received. Sample quote: “When my family started doing better and my parents encouraged my brothers and me to succeed beyond them, we started asking why our parents were telling us to strive so hard to live in these neighborhoods full of people they clearly resented—and feared too, I think.”
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How to Write about Art
Possibly inspired by YiR alum Elizabeth McCracken, who tweeted out tips for applying to MFA programs last week, Zak Smith (the man who painted every single page of Gravity’s Rainbow) tweeted a series of tips for aspiring art critics. Among other advice, he dictates to his tweeps: “If Andy Warhol could have made it, do not write about it.”
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