Literary fiction

REVIEW:  The Understory by Elizabeth Leiknes

REVIEW: The Understory by Elizabeth Leiknes

  ETA: Bancroft Press is giving away copies of this book and The Sinful Life of Lucy Burns, which I also reviewed and recommended. Enter before tomorrow, June 1st, though! Dear Ms. Leiknes: After reading, reviewing, and greatly enjoying your debut novel, The Sinful Life of Lucy Burns, I was happily surprised to receive an(…)

What Jennie’s Been Reading

What Jennie’s Been Reading

Since last I wrote, I read and reviewed Patricia Gaffney’s Crooked Hearts. Here’s what else I’ve been reading: The Great Famine: Ireland’s Agony 1845-1852  by Ciarán Ó Murchadha: Because apparently one book about innocent people starving to death just wasn’t enough for me. Actually, it wasn’t until I started this book that I realized I had(…)

Wednesday Midday Links:  The Amazon Tablet Is Real

Wednesday Midday Links: The Amazon Tablet Is Real

Sometimes I forget what news pieces I’ve posted here so if I have posted this, please forgive my lapse in memory.  Tech Crunch has actual details of the new Amazon Tablet. It’s 7″ and supports two finger multi touch gestures (instead of the 10 finger supported by the iThings). Runs on a modified Android platform(…)

REVIEW: All Is Bright by Sarah Pekkanen

REVIEW: All Is Bright by Sarah Pekkanen

Dear Ms. Pekkanen: According to the Amazon bio, you are an acclaimed fiction writer which would be why your name is unknown to me. I rarely read outside the romance genre. Your publicist sent this to me and as I do with all books sent to me, I opened and read the first page. The(…)

How the Lit Fic Crowd Can Make Digital Publishing Legitimate

How the Lit Fic Crowd Can Make Digital Publishing Legitimate

Last September I blogged that Literary Fiction should embrace digital publishing because “the psuedo profit sharing that the new arm of HarperCollins is testing: no advances, higher royalties” made sense for the embattled publishing industry. E publishing, with its low overhead, provides a safety net for experimental fiction, the bailiwick of literary fiction. E publishing(…)

LA Times Wonders if Lit Fic Can Be Helped by Sexier Covers

Man titty for everyone, I say. LA Times Book Blog wondered today if lit fic would sell better if its covers weren’t so anemic. If you recall, Stephen King had the same complaint regarding a book he had recommended. Fieldwork was a thriller set in Thailand, but the cover was of . . . blurry(…)

Why Literary Fiction Should Embrace Digital Publishing

Why Literary Fiction Should Embrace Digital Publishing

Photo by takomabibelot Kassia Kroszer of Booksquare fame posted on Friday an article addressing the publishing industry’s failure to recognize its own money making potential. Publishing views itself on the decline. Print newspaper book review sections have gone the way of the dinosaur. According to the article in NY Magazine, “serious readers” numbered around 120,000(…)