• You Don't Say: Tell me when you stop* – English grammar, language, usage and journalism blog by John E. McIntyre – baltimoresun.com
  "I am not here today to rail against publishers who go cheap on the copy editing, THOUGH THEY OUGHT TO BE ASHAMED OF THEMSELVES. What I am curious about is whether your reading patterns match my own. “The easiest thing for a reader to do is to stop reading,” said Barney Kilgore of The Wall Street Journal seventy years ago. I want to know what makes you stop."

  –I stop as soon as I get a strong feeling that the author either doesn't know what they're talking about, or doesn't know what they're doing. Both are a waste of my reading time.

• On Genuine Literary Citizenship « BREVITY's Nonfiction Blog
  "I think the big mistake most writers make is thinking that becoming involved in your community is something you do after your book is published. Instead, I urge writers to become involved as early as possible, in a genuine, non-book-related way. It’s always a little off-putting when a person suddenly becomes interested in book review venues only once they have their own book. In a similar way, it seems false to only be interested in independent bookstores when you’re trying to get your own book stocked. The better solution is, as a part of your daily work as a writer, support the communities you wish to be a part of, by reading books, writing reviews, promoting other writers or bookstores or whatever in your social networking."

  –Wise words from Matt Bell.

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• Amazon to Publishers: Don't Worry, the Kindle Isn't That Popular Anyway
  "In addition to negotiating with magazines and newspapers to offer a subscription service it hopes can challenge Apple's upcoming Newsstand, Amazon is reportedly also thinking about launching an e-book rental service, according to the Wall Street Journal. The service would make a library of backlist e-books available to Amazon Prime subscribers, who already pay $79 per year for free fast shipping and some on-demand video."

  –Behold, the challenging of traditional business models!

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• Eric Olsen on How to Write | FiveBooks | The Browser
  "From their egos and anxieties to the way they work, writers have more in common than we might think. The journalist and editor takes us inside the writing process and reveals who gives the best advice for aspiring authors."

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• Kindle Post US: 18 Kurt Vonnegut Books for $3.99 Each Through September 28
  Eighteen of Vonnegut's Kindle books are available for $3.99 each through September 28!
• In Defense of Memoir: Once More Into the Fray « BREVITY's Nonfiction Blog
  "What I didn’t say to Mr. Hemon, in my Letter to the Editor, is that to write a memoir is not a simple act of regurgitation or spitting out facts to an “interesting story” along the lines of “first this happened to me, then this happened, then this next thing happened.” Of much greater interest, and at the heart of memoir, is the story behind the story, the memoirist’s courageous ability to reflect upon the past, thus artistically recasting his or her experience into one that’s transformative."

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• Yelping with Cormac
  "Because Yelp Needs Cormac McCarthy"
• Project Gutenberg Founder Michael S. Hart Has Died – GalleyCat
  "Michael S. Hart, the founder of Project Gutenberg, died in his home on September 6th. He was 64 years old."

  –We have much to thank him for.

• Conan O’Brien Launches Famous Authors On Ziplines – GalleyCat
  In a recent sketch on his show, television host Conan O’Brien confessed: “TBS, my new bosses, they’re worried that authors won’t be entertaining enough to our young audience, most of whom have never seen a book.” In response, O’Brien created a new feature that will bring literature to a generation bored with books: Famous Authors on Ziplines.

  –Featuring Tom Wolfe, Joyce Carol Oates, and Maya Angelou.

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