Is the Cliche of the Culturally Insulated American a Myth?

In Discussion by Edward Nawotka

By Edward Nawotka Today’s lead article by Emily Williams looks at the question of why so few foreign writers make it into print in the US. It’s by know become well known that approximately 3% of books published in the US are translations (and I would guess that number would be significantly smaller as soon as you factor in self-published …

Is Labeling a Writer by Race or Ethnicity Too Reductive?

In Discussion by Edward Nawotka

By Edward Nawotka In today’s lead story, Nigerian-born author Chika Unigwe, who now lives in Belgium, states: “I’m African, and I never question my African identity. What I question sometimes are the expectations that come with being labeled an ‘African writer.’ What you are supposed to write, how you are supposed to write and so on. But then that is …

Should Famous Authors Bother with Traditional Publishers?

In Discussion by Edward Nawotka

By Hannah Johnson As mentioned in today’s lead article, author Timothy Ferris, author of The 4-Hour Workweek, gave a presentation at LeWeb about how his personal marketing efforts with online tools and social media put his book onto national bestseller lists, while his publisher’s efforts with traditional media were less effective. Yesterday, Seth Godin released a free e-book online, and …

The Literary Life of the French Foreign Legion

In Guest Contributors by Guest Contributor

By Robert Girardi I was drawn to the French Foreign Legion—the subject of my new novel, Gorgeous East—for a variety of reasons. Chief among them has to do with a foolish weakness for old things: old books full of dust, old cars barely running, old chairs that you can barely sit in, old apartment buildings (hopefully without roaches) and most …

How to Explain the Unexplainable

In Guest Contributors by Guest Contributor

Editorial by Amy Koppelman Four years ago, when my father-in-law was diagnosed with cancer, my children asked my husband and me so many questions, most of which we couldn’t answer: “What is cancer? “Why does it happen?” “How is it diagnosed?” “How is it treated?” “Is it contagious?” I began Googling cancer books for children. There were several on the market, …

From Twilight Guy to Bestseller

In Guest Contributors by Guest Contributor

Editorial by Kaleb Nation On April 16, 2008, I started a website called TwilightGuy.com with a short introductory post and the tagline “A Guy Reads Twilight by Stephenie Meyer.” I went to bed. By the next morning, 3,000 people had already visited. So began my journey through the vast and remarkable world known as the blogosphere. When I originally started …

Saving the Earth 100 Book Reviews at a Time

In Guest Contributors by Guest Contributor

By Sharon Glassman Back in the Seal and Crofts 70s, my Sunday School class tucked quarters into cardboard trees to pay for real trees in the deserts of Israel. The simple, seemingly magical idea of Me = Tree captured my Ecology-T-shirt covered heart. So, when I got a request to become a fan of Eco-Libris on Facebook and learned that …

The Strange World of Yakuza Fan Magazines

In Guest Contributors by Guest Contributor

By Jake Adelstein TOKYO: The Japanese mafia, better known as the yakuza, has been the subject of fan magazines for decades. These magazines serve as de-facto trade periodicals for a world of vicious, autocratic thugs, men who are handy with swords and guns, sport full-body tattoos, deal in illegal contraband and laundered money, and rip off the general public; all …