Excellent rant by Tim Egan in the New York Times. He is a writer’s writer.
what’s on my mind right now:
- The READING CLUB is my way of saying thanks to those who spend time with me on this page. It is completely random,... fb.me/KFHB7os6 7 hours ago
Join me on Facebook. You won’t be sorry.
I tend to spontaneously give stuff away to readers and libraries.
Join the fun here. Really.
ask me anything anonymously
...on my FORMSPRING page...just remember, I'm a fiction writer.
Top Posts
Top Clicks
take a look at a book
Buy or borrow my books at WorldCat.org.
| Search for an item in libraries near you: Enter title, subject or author |
| WorldCat.org >> |
authors beaches bestsellers book reviews books celebrations Christmas contests Dobermans dogs editing fiction libraries literature manuscripts new fiction novels Pacific Northwest photography publishing reading recipes romance novels Thanksgiving travel videos women's fiction writing writing craft Writing workshops
Blog Stats
- 644,032 hits
Archives
- June 2013
- May 2013
- April 2013
- March 2013
- February 2013
- January 2013
- December 2012
- November 2012
- October 2012
- September 2012
- August 2012
- July 2012
- June 2012
- May 2012
- April 2012
- March 2012
- February 2012
- January 2012
- December 2011
- November 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- January 2008
- December 2007
- November 2007
- October 2007
- September 2007
- August 2007
- July 2007
- June 2007
- May 2007
- April 2007
- March 2007
- February 2007
- January 2007
3 comments
Comments feed for this article
December 13, 2008 at 9:58 am
HELEN
Thanks so much for posting this, Susan. I can understand it perfectly, but I could not even come close to writing so clearly. He has the same opinion about Sarah Palin’s verbiage that I have. However, I would have written just one (unacceptable) word to describe it– BULLSHIT!–.
December 12, 2008 at 8:25 am
april
I believe the issue is that folks with their 15-minutes of fame are trying desperately to cash in. It’s sort of how reality show is viewed by actors. If Joe the Plumber was a well-spoken person who had a fascinating story with how he influenced the campaign or how he viewed the world even, I’m sure it would be a good read. In this case, I don’t believe that is the case.
I agree that part of the issue is that this kind of “entertainment” reaches out to the lowest common denominator of people and there is an audience. It’s a big flash of income and then it’ll be on the bargain table with people wondering who that is. I’m kind of a cynic though. As much as I love great art and creativity, publishing is still a business and it will chase the dollar to stay afloat. Sometimes, it’s hard to stay focused on quality when the sparkle of money is so blinding.
Agree or disagree, it is an op/ed piece so I think it’s a well-written article that make his point. I happen to agree and may have forwarded the piece to a few friends. I may disagree with his examples of good and great literature, but that’s a different issue.
December 12, 2008 at 7:13 am
Sheila
Thanks for the link. I read the article, and it has raised some questions for me. Unfortunately, I didn’t see a link to comment to Mr. Egan directly.
Does the problem lay with Joe who has decided to write a book, or does the problem lay with us as a society that will buy a book written (or supposedly written) by someone who has had his 15 minutes of fame? It’s not likely I’ll be buying the book (if it ever gets written), but there must be a market for it, or he wouldn’t be getting this attention.
Who is to say a person must be a good citizen in order to write a book, or that a plumber (famous or not), doesn’t have a voice that readers will like to hear? I’m an engineer by trade, and enjoy writing on a daily basis. I don’t think I’d appreciate someone telling me that since they don’t butt into my electrical systems, I shouldn’t butt into their publishing world. What a limiting world it would be.