Publishing Insider

serendipity

So I'm in vacay with family in Dublin and pick up the local arts section...and Richmond Fontaine is in town, playing that night!!! So what, you say? Well, first, they're a great band, but more important, the lead singer, Willy Vlautin, is a novelist. In fact, I LOVE his debut novel coming in paper in April: MOTEL LIFE. It is like a Coen Bros. movie in prose - dark, funny, beautiful, sad as hell but ultimately redeeming. Do NOT miss the band or the book!

no longer the beautiful game

From the AP: soccer violence worldwide.  Franklin Foer was right on.

dibs

Why does this grown man leap with joy when he finds Dibs on sale at the supermarket?

Billy Collins

Someone did some animation to go with Billy Collins' The Dead on youtube, with Billy reading.

great new mystery

My pick of the week: WRONG KIND OF BLOOD, by Declan Hughes. A wonderfully atmospheric debut mystery set in Dublin. Modest sales in cloth, but now in pb, and sequel due in April. Email me for a copy.

the bizarre world of rugby

The rain begins to lash down as Ireland send a monster high ball down on Olly Morgan's head. He catches cleanly and calls for the mark before sparking a break with Harry Ellis. Ireland scuttle back to stop the attack but England get a penalty for Paul O'Connell's high tackle on Jonny Wilkinson. The fly-half finds touch but nothing immediate comes from it.

lazy media

From Bookselling This Week: "The media frequently, and falsely, rings the death knell for all independent bookstores every time a store closes, while store openings enjoy far less coverage. Last year alone, 97 new independent bookstores opened, improving upon the previous year's 90 new stores. Equally under-reported, but just as important, are the stores that are changing hands instead of closing, often because a community member or former bookseller purchases the business. Here's a look at five stores that recently underwent, or are working towards, a change of ownership." My note: Memo to media - Got off the phone and really get out and explore your story with some depth and understanding.

off to Dublin

I'm off on a vacay. To Dublin with family. Not taking laptop along, alas, but if i find an internet cafe and can log into Typepad, I'll send some drunkeyn blarney from across the great waters.

Jim Dale

omigod...he reads the Arthur and the Invisibles CD!!  (He's a god in our house. When I met both J.K. Rowling and Dale at a party years back, my daughter said: "You met Jim Dale!!")

love is in the air/a freebie

Free copy of MATHEMATICS OF LOVE today, to tie-in to valentine's day, to the first 5 to email [email protected]