In an effort to keep it light-hearted this week, I thought I would pass along this great blog a friend brought to my attention. Created in preparation for the release of her book of the same name, Will Work for Prom Dress is a blog wherein author Aimee Ferris shares a picture each day of a different published author in their prom attire. Because who doesn’t want to relive those images, am I right or am I right? But more to the point, the blog also includes a competition, allowing readers to guess the authors and enter a prize drawing, to be held on the date of the book’s release. Some of the pictures are fantastic in the worst way—really, it’s more questionably-colored taffeta and organza than you could ever hope for. But on the technical side, I absolutely love Ferris’s creative and quirky approach to advertising and building interest for her book prior to release. That’s one of those things we can’t stress enough to our clients: the importance of taking charge of self-promotion and marketing from the home front, if you will. I hope you enjoy Aimee’s blog as much as I did!
Category Archives: Stephanie
Taking on Modern Library
Happy New Year, readers! I’ll be honest: I miss December a little and I’m still adjusting to this new year. But I need to hurry up. After all, I can only mistakenly write 2010, cross it out and write 2011 for so long. But I digress.
Today, I wanted to share with you this post on Edward Champion’s website that I thought was very interesting. Part his own personal challenge, part a literary case study, Champion plans to read the entire Modern Library list of top 100 novels of the 20th century from #100 to #1. Throughout the process, Champion will write about each on his site in an effort to “track some quirky course of literature.” I find this interesting for a few reasons. First, I appreciate Champion’s ambition. I’ve written in the past on lists and reading the classics, and I think this list is a respectable and broad representation of titles considered canon, even within the temporal limits of the 20th century.
But I also wonder about his aim to somehow trace a path, whether linear or not, through literature. When these one hundred books were chosen, I imagine they were selected for their distinction as individuals, not as a whole. So I guess I’m just a little skeptical. And of course I wonder how books of this century measure up, and whether in ninety years we’ll be able to make a similar list and track a similar progression.
At the end of the day, I admire Champion’s drive. I’d love to think I could take on a challenge like this, but honestly, where is he going to find the time? Would any of you ever attempt something like this?
January 10, 2011 
DG&B 
about us, advice, calendar, changes at DGLM, conferences, DGLM Recommends, Facebook, feedback, fun, Jane, Jessica, Jim, John, Lauren, Michael, Miriam, opinion, our blog, our clients, our website, Rachel S., Stacey, Stephanie, technical help, Twitter, what we're looking for, What's New at DGLM Welcome to the new DGLM blog and website!
Welcome to our shiny new home, blog readers! For the new year, we bring you a new DGLM site, a merger of our website and blog. Thanks to everyone who made suggestions a couple months ago on features and tech questions—where possible we’ve incorporated your feedback, and other things we’re keeping in mind in case we can implement them in future.
We’ll be blogging as usual over here at www.dystel.com now instead of at Blogger, and there are also some other things for you to explore over to the right (unless you’re not currently reading this on the site itself, in which case you might want to just poke your head in and take a look!). You might be interested in learning more about us and our clients. If you’re an author looking for representation, perhaps you’ll want to peruse our FAQ, Submission Requirements, Who We Are and What We’re Looking For, and Nonfiction Proposal Guidelines. Need something new to read? Check out our Staff Recommendations, Recent and Forthcoming Titles, and What We’re Reading in the column on the right. Maybe you want to know where we’ll be? We’ve got a calendar with our upcoming conferences and events in that sidebar as well! Of course, if you’d like, please feel free to use the links over there to Subscribe, Follow, or Like us and share our site with others! The new blog should start feeding into our Twitter and Facebook accounts today, so if you’re already following us there, you don’t need to do anything. If you’re reading us in a blog reader, please subscribe to the new RSS feed.
Make yourselves at home!
As always, we want to hear from you! What do you think of the new digs? Any suggestions for improvement? Glitches we may not have caught? (We hope not, but let us know if so!) New features that you’d like us to consider? We can’t always implement everything recommended to us, but we’re always open to hearing your ideas.
As these age things go….
What can I say? With four days left until Christmas, my brain is admittedly floating somewhere near the ledge of the ninth floor window next to my desk. However! Before I escape to the land of fried desserts and chocolates more commonly known as my home, I wanted to pass along this great interview with Kody Keplinger. Her debut novel The Duff, is a contemporary young adult work that has received strong reviews since its release in September. But what is more notable about Keplinger’s career is that The Duff came out when she was only eighteen, an accomplishment that admittedly doesn’t happen too often. I guess the first thing that came to mind as I read this was the influence something like age can have on one’s writing. Certainly, being eighteen puts Keplinger in a unique position to write about common issues surrounding high school students. Which led me to wonder about the ways in which a person’s writing evolves over the years. Could you imagine yourselves being published, or completing a full novel for that matter, at age eighteen? Do you think your current work-in-progress would have the same feel had you written it during your teen years? Certainly I’m inclined to say no to the latter question, but I’m curious as to the nuances and evolutions you have found in your own writing styles and methods as time has passed. What do you feel is the same, different, etc?
So my parting gift to you this Christmas is the renewed mantra to continue writing, revising, and querying. It’s all an ongoing process that takes practice and dedication…but you already knew that. Wishing everyone a relaxing and productive holiday break, and I look forward to seeing your material in the New Year!
Get a room!
In light of my post from last week about spying on others and the books they are reading, I loved reading this article from the New York Times about how romance readers are switching from print to electronic in droves. Just as I had mentioned how the Kindle and iPad complicated my creeping endeavors by removing a visual cover from the equation, it seems that many romance novel fans have made the transition from print to e-reader for exactly that reason—trying to hide Fabio from my prying eyes, are you? Anyway, new information from Bowker suggests that romance is now one of the fastest growing genres in terms of electronic sales, surpassing even general fiction. As numbers grow exponentially, it’s clear that romance is carving out its own place in the e-reader market. And apparently, some of the most sought-after titles are often also the raciest. Cheeky!
Information like this is just another indication of the change that we’re constantly seeing. And for something like romance, a genre that has held its own over the years, it’s nice to see that it too can adapt to the evolving landscape.
First of all, I love the implications of discreetness that come out of this. But I also wonder, for the prospective romance writers out there, do you think something like this might affect or influence the kind of novel you write? Will it change at all how you approach your story?
Please watch the gap between the train and the platform
by Stephanie
As I ride my commuter train into and out of the city every day, I like to peek at the riders around me and see what they’re reading. And what’s interesting is that now that the Kindle and iPad are vastly replacing physical books, the ability to creep on people becomes complicated. It sometimes makes me wish readers had little thought bubbles floating over their heads, a title & author ticker scrolling by. But that’s a digression. How many of you can admit to sneaking a peek at what others are reading, particularly in a public transportation setting? I know you all have, don’t lie! With that in mind, I enjoyed happening upon this blog titled The Book Spy, in which one blogger documents the books he sees while riding the New York City subway, and includes information such as the location / train line spotted, a physical description of the reader, and other varying assessments on the encounter. The reason I like this blog so much is that it reinforces an important point: the physical act of reading is, in fact, enduring. Maybe I seem a bit negative in thinking that reading risks becoming a diminishing pastime, but it is admittedly refreshing to find people actively reading in an otherwise mp3-player-dominated setting. Anyway, if nothing else, I hope you enjoy the Book Spy’s interesting, sometimes snarky evaluations of his fellow subway riders as much as I did!
As I embrace my younger days
After reading Jim’s post on lists, I started to do a bit of reading online, and for whatever reason, I was not prepared for the inundation of end-of-the-year lists that I found. After some perusing, I found that I particularly enjoyed Gayle Forman’s piece from NPR with her picks for some of the best young adult novels of 2010. Her list is brief but varied, and includes titles that tackle a range of universal issues: trauma, war, first love, and so on. But what I loved about this list was what I didn’t find—paranormal, otherworldly, fairy-goblin-undead-vampires. Lord knows, many books have done exceedingly well this year being based in the paranormal. But it’s admittedly comforting to know that 2010 also saw its share of quality young adult fiction that involves real people tackling real issues. I wish I saw more things like this in my inbox. There’s just something about reading a young adult novel that takes on tough issues and presents me with characters that I feel I can relate to—I feel myself drawn into their lives, as though I could just as easily run in to the same obstacles and emotions.
Am I talking crazy here? Maybe I’m hurling myself off the paranormal/fantasy train too soon? Who knows. Do you have any young adult favorites from this year?
Thanksgiving’s here, I can smell it
When literature and art combine
Today, I wanted to talk about the soon to be published book by Jonathan Safran Foer, as covered in this piece from Vanity Fair. Tree of Codes is a fascinating work that Foer constructed by, well, deconstructing his favorite novel, The Street of Crocodiles by Bruno Schulz. What results is a visually beautiful work—die-cut paper that produces a Swiss cheese of sorts—that unites literature with conceptual art in a way that I find both weird and innovative. Foer points out that Tree of Codes is his own alternative to e-books, which is something I really took to. At a time when the physical book as we’ve known it seems to be drastically changing, I appreciate that Foer is, in a way, attempting to put forth his own reinterpretation of the book itself.
This is something I wish I would see more on bookshelves. While it’s doubtful that this art form is something that will ever take off, I can’t help appreciating what Foer is trying to do here. I think pushing the boundaries of a book’s physicality in a way such as this offers the reader a new and complex way of thinking about the printed word, or perhaps lack thereof. At the same time, though, is this just a gimmick? Is there enough practicality in its uniqueness to make it reproducible? Would people even care to see it again elsewhere? Maybe it’s just art for art’s sake; a piece of conceptual art meant to be seen, rather than a new way to think about creating literature. I love the creativity, and I love the high-concept production quality, but this might just be a one-hit wonder. What do you think?
One Moment Please While I Geek Out
by Stephanie
Judge me as you will, but I will make no attempts to hide the fact that I am a Harry Potter fan, and have been since the beginning. The series seems to have been a benchmark for my (relatively speaking) younger years, and I have always been one of those fans who stuck with the books and subsequent franchise throughout its life. In fact, next week I will be going to the theatre (which at $13 a ticket, who does that?) to see the first installment of the final movie. I’m hoping I don’t resort to pushing a small child to get to the good seats, but I won’t make any guarantees.
Anyway, with that in mind, I wanted to pass along this clever piece that examines the elements of the series that make for sound tips writers can take away and use to hone their own work. From character development to plotting to points of view, it’s interesting how one pivotal series holds within it so many building blocks to strong writing. I’m sure some won’t feel the same with regard to my admiration for the series, but I think this piece makes a strong argument in favor of Rowling’s talents, as well as driving home the importance of truly enjoying the world you create.