If you are an author, you ought to be in at least one good reading group or book club. Writers read good writing. You’ve heard that before. You know it’s true. And yet, you’re afraid reading a lot of good books right now might be just one more way to procrastinate the hard work of writing. At least you’re honest. But I want to urge… [Read More]
Since my last blog post on Tuesday, I’ve had very limited access to the internet due to travel. The illusion of free wi-fi in public places is, well, illusory. In Wisconsin this past week, my search for internet access brought me back into the libraries of my youth. New buildings and outstanding collections have replaced what stood bolted down in the 1970s section of my… [Read More]
While some folks like to read about the lives of celebrities, athletes, and politicians, and how they put their pants on just like you and me. I don’t. Apparently I am not alone. The new trend in small farm memoirs began in earnest when Storey Publishing, known for its how-to guidebooks for small animal farmers, released its first memoir in 2008. Jenna Woginrich began as… [Read More]
If a man in a boat is crossing a river and an empty boat drifts along and bumps into his, he won’t get angry. But if there is someone in the other boat, then the man will shout out directions to move. …If a man could make himself empty, and pass like that through the world, then who could harm him? Mark Salzman’s ebook The… [Read More]
Leigh Stein, author of The Fallback Plan (Melville, 2012), will unashamedly tell you that she’s lived with her parents four times. Her newly-released novel, a coming-of-age about post-college angst, is spliced with details from her own experience and speaks volumes to the plight of so many twenty-something’s undergoing a quarter-life crisis. Stein’s protagonist, Esther, is a recent Northwestern graduate suffering from the post-grad blues. While… [Read More]
The New Year is upon us. Everyone is talking about 2012 resolutions and proposing ways to become a better person. Personally, I hate resolutions. It’s fine to desire to be a better person, to lose 15 lbs, to eat more wholesome meals and fewer fast food quick fixes, to tackle home improvement projects, to promise to volunteer at the local food pantry every weekend, and… [Read More]
For the Love of Books is a series of blogs we have run this fall of 2011 to celebrate all things BOOK. This week we feature a memoir writer living in Brooklyn, Ashley Grill. Ashley brings a different perspective with her observations of living in Brooklyn and seeing books everywhere….. “Walking along the rows of brownstone buildings in Park Slope is one of my favorite things about living in Brooklyn,… [Read More]
In my quest for notable small bookstores in New York and the world over, I must mention the near and dear WORD in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. This neighborhood hot spot – referenced frequently in Shelf Awareness – is a little bookstore with a big heart for its north Brooklyn community. With a vast array of literary events like book groups and readings, plus current Staff Picks… [Read More]
Our blog’s “Gone Local” series aims to explore who and what the Ithaca area’s literary community has to offer. Be it bookstores, publishers, or local authors, each contributes invaluably to the bookish zeitgeist. Recently, Swenson Book Development contacted Larson Publications (of Burdett, NY) to get an independent publisher’s views on the literary business, the craft, and the community. Larson Publications started in 1982 as a… [Read More]
An attitude of gratitude isn’t just a holiday message. It’s a company philosophy for Swenson Book Development LLC. Thanksgiving is the perfect time to affirm our sentiments that we have so much for which to be grateful. We appreciate all the good books our clients have published: Almost Everything Takes Forever (Antrim House) Dear Friend Amelia (Six Mile Creek Press) Drawing Love (Indie Writers Press)… [Read More]
