Friday Links: Reading and Writing with a Broader World View

Happy Friday, everyone! This week I’m stepping back and taking a look at the larger scope of the world when it comes to writing and reading. How do recent events affect how we view the world, how we write our stories, how we consider our readers, and how we choose what to read ourselves? We can look back and see clearly how the prevalence of fantasy and darker paranormal seemed to grow up around harder economic times, and that the rise of dystopian literature appears to have been a precursor of the current political climate. So what happens now?

I’m not claiming to be drawing any conclusions with this week’s links, but many do play into this theme and I think it’s something to consider going forward. It’s early days yet, but I’m sure the writings of our time will reflect much of this current turmoil eventually, as well as whatever follows. Food for thought going into the weekend. I wish you lots of excellent time to read and to write, and  hopefully a bit of inspiration. Enjoy!

Fantasy Is about Power: An Interview with Lev Grossman – A talk with the author of The Magicians trilogy, about the books, and about the TV series based on them that just began its second season.

Translation — and Migration — Is the Lifeblood of Culture – A look at how the mix of ideas and cultures from different nations serves to influence and develop imagination everywhere.

On Dracula’s Lost Islandic Sister Text – On this mysterious, altered version of Stoker’s classic work.

“It’s Going to Be Darker. And that’s OK.” Neil Gaiman on Trump, Brexit, and the Death of Social Media – Gaiman discusses the new series based on American Gods and considers what it means to create art in troubled times.

50 Must-Visit Beautiful Bookstores on Six Continents – See the world, buy some books.

Waterstone’s, the UK’s National Bookstore, Came Back from Near-Death by Transforming into Indie, Local Stores – How the new mastermind behind the chain turned the tide, proving it’s still possible to get readers into bookstores.

What’s the Next Big Dystopian Novel? Margaret Atwood Has some Ideas – The author of The Handmaid’s Tale, which has gained new popularity between current politics and the series soon to debut on Hulu, talks dystopian literature and book trends.

How to Escape the Slush Pile: A Self-Editing Checklist for Short Story Writers – Excellent tips, some of which apply to any writing.

On Writing, Publishing, and Ideas

The last few weeks have been particularly busy over here, which means my brain cells are very slowly draining out of my skull from overuse. So rather than blabber at you myself, I offer you Neil Gaiman, with thoughts on where ideas come from and other writerly things. He will be far more entertaining than I will right now. So take a gander, then go write something. Enjoy!

Neil Gaiman in Conversation with Junot Díaz

Last November, Neil Gaiman sat down and had a long chat with author Junot Díaz, one of his final appearances before he takes 2016 off to be just a writer and a father to his new baby with wife Amanda Palmer. This interview kicks off with a great rundown of the history of Sandman, which is well worth watching whether you’re familiar with the comics series or not. If you prefer to just get right to Neil, you can jump to about the 6:30 mark, where the video moves to the interview venue. This is a longish interview — nearly an hour and a half — so be sure to carve out a bit of time to watch.

Friday Links: What Will You Read in the New Year?

Happy Friday! It’s a week until Christmas and day 18 of the writing challenge, and I think that calls for lots of Friday Links. For those of you planning ahead to the new year, I’ve got some reader challenges for 2016 in the mix, plus plenty of other goodies.

If you’re participating in the challenge, remember to post some writing time to your calendar this weekend and set up your alerts to help you keep those all-important writing dates with yourself (or your writing buddies). Wishing you a wonderful weekend of productivity and holiday enjoyment!

Neil Gaiman on Returning to ‘Sandman’ – A lovely interview over at NPR.

I Read 50 Books by Women of Color This Year – One reader’s recounting of her self-imposed reading challenge, with some great book recommendations.

Take 2016’s Ultimate Reading Challenge – Courtesy of PopSugar.

Making Creativity a Habit – Artist and author Danny Gregory talks about showing up every day to make your art.

The Best British Novels of All Time – A list compiled by foreign critics. Do you agree with their choices?

In Translation – Author Jhumpa Lahiri talks about writing in a foreign language.

The 2016 Book Riot Read Harder Challenge – Back for its second year.

14 Brilliant Australian Books that Won Prizes in 2015 – Some books to check out if you’re looking to read more globally.

Friday Links: Late-and-Lazy Thanksgiving Weekend Edition

Yesterday, instead of posting my usual Friday links, I spent the day napping, reading, and eating leftovers. However, it was not my intention to take the entire weekend off from this blog, so here I am with some belated linkage and a two-part announcement/reminder.

Those of you who have frequented this blog for some time know that as NaNoWriMo comes to a close, I like to let participants know that, while I applaud and encourage your November writing efforts, I don’t want to see queries for them come the start of December. With very few exceptions, what you’re writing for your NaNo novel is a draft only — a first draft — and likely also too short to be considered a novel unless you’ve exceeded your 50,000-word goal. What you have is a starting point; please take that and finish it. Lengthen, reread, revise, send to critique partners, and revise some more. I’m happy to hear about your fabulous book, but only once you’re done making it fabulous.

The second part of my announcement is that for the past several years I’ve issued my own little writing challenge for the month of December. I like to encourage writers to take that NaNoWriMo momentum and run with it. Or, if you didn’t participate, to dig in during this busy month and find a way to develop new writing habits so that, when the new year kicks off with all its resolutions and goals, you’ll be well on your way to making them a reality. So look out for the official challenge post on Monday.

But now for the links. A little late, but hopefully no less enjoyable for it. Wishing you a lovely rest of the weekend. Happy writing!

Make It Now: The Rise of the Present Tense in Fiction – Interesting look at this growing trend.

Want to Be an Artist? First Go a Little Nuts – Korean novelist Young-ha Kim on letting creativity stem from play.

Podcast: Master Class with Winnie Holzman – A chat between screenwriters Winnie Holzman (MY SO-CALLED LIFE) and Jason Katims (ROSWELL, FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS).

Ever Wonder Why Americans of the 1930s and 40s Spoke with an Accent? – An intriguing peek at what is sometimes thought of as movie-speak.

Neil Gaiman on Storytelling in the Age of the Internet and Other Oddities – Gaiman talks about how storytelling has changed as a result of social media and other modern conveniences.

12 Authors You’ll Love No Matter Your Favorite Genre – Great list.

The Ultimate Guide to Getting Published in a Literary Magazine – A look inside the process, plus tips on navigating the system.

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers – Great places to hear about new books, new authors, and other reader-ish pleasures.

Friday Links

Happy Friday, everyone! My week has been quite busy, but overall very good, and part of that has been that I feel rather inspired and energized by a couple of things that happened. Unfortunately, I cannot talk about them. One of the problems of this job is not all news is suitable for public consumption.

However, I do have links to share, and I sincerely hope that they inspire you and leave you feeling energized and anxious to write. At the very least, I hope they make you take a fresh look at certain aspects of writing and of reading, because I find a new perspective can be excellent for generating new ideas. Enjoy, and happy writing!

“Let’s Talk Genre:” Neil Gaiman and Kazuo Ishiguro in Conversation – A great conversation inspired by the release of Ishiguro’s The Buried Giant, and the genre-related chatter that followed.

On Writing Diverse Characters… And Moving Past Passive Aggression – An intelligent, informative blog post about what diverse characters should and should not look like.

Ten Commandments of Writing – An interview with Karen E. Bender in which she shares her wisdom.

Artist & Thief – Author Maggie Stiefvater shares an excerpt from her SCBWI Keynote speech.

The Power of Female Friendship – In the wake of the discussion of how unlikely books featuring females are to win major prizes, Michele Filgate offers this short-but-intriguing list of books about women and their friendships.

Neil Gaiman in Conversation with Audrey Niffenegger

Last October, Neil Gaiman sat down with Audrey Niffenegger at Bard College and had a lovely chat about writing and time travel and ideas and all sorts of other wonderful writerly things. It’s finally available online, and so I offer it up here to inspire and entertain you. It’s on the long side, so be sure to set aside a chunk of time to watch. Enjoy!

Neil Gaiman in Conversation with Audrey Niffenegger from The Fisher Center on Vimeo.

Friday Links

Happy Friday! This week I’ve got an assortment of links ranging from some bad business news to some venues to send your submissions. That’s the beauty of the publishing industry — never a dull moment. I hope you’ve all had a wonderful week and are setting some time aside this weekend to work on your current writing project and maybe to curl up with a good book. I know the latter is certainly on my agenda.

So without further ado, I give you this week’s links. Enjoy!

News About Strange Chemistry and Exhibit A – Angry Robot announced this morning that they’ll be closing down their young adult and crime/mystery imprints.

Women Remember: A Roundtable Interview – Author Mary Robinette Kowal sits down with several well established women in the science fiction genre and discusses what has changed since they first got into the game… and what hasn’t.

9 Literary Magazines for New and Unpublished Writers – These publications welcome material from writers just starting out.

Neil Gaiman Wants to Be Bored – A great interview with the writer for Studio 360. Be sure to scroll down for the longer, uncut version.

‘Every Hour a Glass of Wine’ — the female writers who drank – Author Olivia Laing recently wrote a book following the drinking habits of several well known male authors, and here she turns her attention toward famous women writers with a similar inclination.