I spend way too much time on the Internet. During that time, I frequently favorite and save links to things, but then I’m not very good about sharing them. This is unfortunate because I really love reading other people’s link roundups and I imagine my link hoarding might be useful to someone else out there. I’m going to try to start doing my own roundup of Internet stuff I found interesting every week. We’ll see how long I last!
Here are some articles and blog posts and pub deals that I was excited about recently:
- Q&A Sessions: You are at an event. The speaker finishes talking. The crowd applauds. Then you hear those painful words, “I think we have time for a Q&A session.” You audibly groan as people line up to speak. And then they begin not to ask questions, but to pontificate or tell a story about themselves or tell the speaker why every single thing they said was either wrong and stupid or the most brilliant thing ever because OMG they are that person’s hero. You know the drill. Thankfully Peter Wood at The Chronicle of Higher Education has written “How to Ask a Question,” an article which should be passed out to every single person who ever attends an event that allows Q&A.
- Robin Wasserman Interview: When I see a blog post from Libba Bray, I basically throw myself a little party. These posts are infrequent, but always delightful. This week’s interview with The Book of Blood and Shadow author Robin Wasserman does not disappoint. And if the goal was to get me to pick up a copy of Wasserman’s newest book, it will surely succeed.
- Text from Dog: I am a bit addicted to the tumblr Text From Dog, which features–as you might expect–texts from a dog. I might even like it more than the Is Ryan Gosling Cuter Than a Puppy? tumblr. (The answer is always no, btw.)
- Cover Trends: Sick of covers featuring headless bodies and sad girls in pretty dresses? Check out Stacked for an insightful post on cover trends and the female body. You might not find some of these covers problematic one by one, but group them all together and the statement is pretty powerful. This post provides plenty to ponder.
- Ebook Shenanigans: Maureen Johnson explains the DOJ’s lawsuit against Apple and most of the big publishers, and the NYT discusses the impacts of the lawsuit on pricing structure. If you’re interested in the future of books and ebooks, it’s worth staying informed on retail vs. agency pricing models and how they impact the people who actually create the books.
- Survivor and The Hunger Games: Former Survivor contestants share their Hunger Games strategies, and one finalist talks about the ties between Survivor and The Hunger Games. I will never see Jeff Probst the same….
- Lauper Memoir: Girls who just wanna have fun should rejoice. Atria has announced that they will be publishing Cyndi Lauper’s memoir this fall. The press release promises that this book will “show her true colors,” because that joke will never get old.
- Whitney Pub Deal: Daisy Whitney sold a YA fantasy novel called Starry Nights that is set in Paris. She will now be releasing two books a year, one contemp and one fantasy, which is good news for everyone.
- New Debut Authors: Sumayyah Daud sold her debut novel, Begin Again, and Lindsay Cummings sold The Murder Complex. Congratulations debut authors!
- Smith Pub Deal: Andrew Smith sold Grasshopper Jungle, which sounds amazing, and like the arch-nemesis of those who enjoy genre labels.
- Rowling’s Adult Book: It’s probably safe to assume that everybody already knows this, but JUST IN CASE you were hiding under a rock, J.K. Rowling’s adult book title and summary were released this week. The Casual Vacancy will be available in September 2012.
