In defense of present tense: I’m genuinely curious as to what people think about this? Does it make writing or reading easier? The articles delves into why it’s maligned and includes a selection of quotes from writing professors about why it’s a positive thing.
Cereal ads and feminism, but really a pertinent question about female authors hiding their names: Jane Caro is an Australian commentator and in this article she asks if females have broken down barriers, why do female authors still hide their names. But, what caught my eye was an anecdote of her daughters asking her if girls don’t eat cereal for breakfast because all the ads they saw only had boys in them. It got me thinking about all the cereal ads I see and how few girls if any there are in them. It’s the most innocent thing, but has a big impact.
How to write the perfect villian: the perfect villian is one who could be you, me or anyone, says Melinda Salisbury. This is SUCH a good explanation of what makes a good villian.
I didn’t realise Australia had an author the equivalent of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, or as it turns out, better than: Fergus Hume wrote a book called The Hansom Cab, which became the best selling book of the 19th century… and has never been out of print. WHAT. Apparently, A Study in Scarlet couldn’t match its publishing numbers. And Lucy Sussex has written Blockbuster! Fergus Hume and the Mystery of the Hansom cab, which explores how this book came to be published. It’s remarkable thinking that I’ve never heard of him, I’ve loved the crime genre forever and he pretty much was a great influence on it.
Ian Pears’ Arcadia is the first book to be written with digital readers in mind first. There’s an app that goes with the book and here’s the thing — it is essential to the reading experience of Arcadia. This article explains that the app makes the book somewhat of a Choose your own adventure series for adults. There’s also a vid on that link that shows how readers can follow (and switch between) 10 different storylines and characters. I can’t quite wrap my head around how this is supposed to work without seeing the app and experiencing how it works, but mind = blown. Nods. BTW, here’s Ian Pears’ thoughts on the app and the process of writing and app development.
What do you think? Will Arcadia be on your #tbr list?
I like the idea of an app that goes along with or adds to a book, but so far the apps being developed for that purpose are only for iPhone/iPad. So, unless that changes, I won’t be buying any books that have or require an app.