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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 License.Throwback Thursday: Terry Brooks
Sep
15
2016
Signing for “Armageddon’s Children”
The Tattered Cover
Denver, CO
14 September 2006
Throwback Thursday: Christopher Paolini
May
05
2016
The Tattered Cover, Denver, CO
11 September 2005
Throwback Thursday: Alexis Ohanian
Dec
31
2015
October 23, 2013 on the University of Nebraska, Lincoln campus.
Throwback Thursday: Clive Barker, 2005
Aug
28
2014
Posted in Books, Fun Tagged with: author, horror, throwbackthursday
Friday Video: An Evening With Neil Gaiman & Amanda Palmer
May
02
2014
Published on Dec 12, 2013
A performance of spoken word, songs, stories, chats with the audience, and more than a few surprises with author Neil Gaiman (Coraline; The Graveyard Book) and musician/cult figure Amanda Palmer (Dresden Dolls; Amanda Palmer and the Grand Theft Orchestra).
Neil Gaiman and Amanda Palmer released a 3-disc set, titled An Evening With Neil Gaiman & Amanda Palmer on November 19th.
Previously unreleased to the general public, and culled from hours of live recordings, one CD features Gaiman and Palmer collaborations, such as “Makin’ Whoopee” and “I Google You,”. One CD is all Amanda Palmer, and marks the first time original live Amanda Palmer tracks “Dear Old House” “Gaga, Palmer, Madonna: A Polemic” “Judy Blume” and “Do You Swear to Tell the Truth the Whole Truth and Nothing But the Truth So Help Your Black Ass” have been made available to general public on CD. Gaiman’s solo CD includes several uncollected poems and stories, and his non-fiction account of a visit to the Oscars in “The View From the Cheap Seats”.
Amanda Palmer is a Boston-based musician, force of nature, deliverer of an astonishing TED talk and occasionally one-half of The Dresden Dolls. Her last solo record (with backing band the Grand Theft Orchestra) Theatre Is Evil, debuted at #10 on the Billboard charts. She has just under a million Twitter followers and is not afraid to perform naked, especially when she needs to deal with British tabloid newspapers. You can follow her on Twitter here: @amandapalmer
Neil Gaiman wrote Sandman, American Gods, Coraline and the Newbery Award winning The Graveyard Book. His recent novel The Ocean at the End of the Lane debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and remained on the list for 20 weeks, to be replaced by his new book for children, Fortunately, the Milk. He has just under two million Twitter followers and ridiculously messy hair. You can follow him on Twitter here: @neilhimself
Margaret Atwood
Apr
14
2014
Here are my photos and videos from the amazing Margaret Atwood event put on yesterday by the Omaha Public Library. Thanks to everyone who worked so hard to make this event a reality.
Friday Video: Josh Hanagarne’s Internet Librarian Keynote
Feb
28
2014
Posted in Books, Libraries Tagged with: author, il2013, librarian
Friday Video: Bruce Sterling / transmediale 2014 afterglow Opening Ceremony
Feb
07
2014
Cypherpunk writer, journalist and critic Bruce Sterling gives a talk on the future of digital culture and its seedy (geo)politics at the opening ceremony of transmediale 2014 afterglow, January 29,2014. Introduction by Kristoffer Gansing.
Hugh Howey takes on the Author’s Guild
Jan
28
2014
I’ve not yet read any of Hugh Howey’s work but I’ve heard enough good things about his novels that I recently ordered these. This recent blog post of his has just made me a fan.
They weren’t even supposed to have jobs, these interlopers. They weren’t supposed to earn a living on their own. That’s what the gatekeepers said — men and husbands and fathers. They said this lesser race of people were supposed to be satisfied. They should be grateful to subsist on scraps and on domestic crumbs.
The 1912 textile strikes were led primarily by women, who were treated horribly in the workplace even as they fought to improve conditions for all. The slogan that emerged from the 1912 strikes was: We want bread, but we want roses, too! Women workers demanded fair wages and fair treatment all at once. They fought for an increase in pay and a promise not to be discriminated against.
There are parallels one century later. I don’t want to compare anyone’s working conditions to what women went through at the turn of the 20th century (or today for that matter), but once again we see interlopers fighting for the rights of all workers, even as they fight for dignity and respect. Once again, you have the very people being denigrated and judged and barred from entry working out here on the curb for the better treatment of those on the factory floor.
We have to. Because we sure as hell aren’t getting any help from our leadership.
Scott Turow, the head of the Authors Guild, spends his time fighting for publishers and for bookstores — the very parties who stand between writers and readers. These publishing partners can be great facilitators or they can be great abusers, and it should be the job of the Authors Guild to ensure which. Just as it should be a union’s job to make sure factory and retail don’t harm the transfer of labor to the consumer.
Instead, the Authors Guild came out for price-fixing and higher costs to readers. Scott Turow sees Amazon as the enemy, even as an increasing number of authors today make a living primarily through self-publishing and e-books. I have yet to see Scott lash out at publishers for their unfair contracts and horrid pay. When HarperCollins released data showing that it makes more from an e-book sale than a hardback sale while the author makes less, where was Scott? Where was anyone representing authors?
I don’t have much of a platform, and nobody should really care what I think – but this is my blog, so let me tell you where I stand on things these days. And let me also introduce you to the people who stand for me and with me, whether they mean to or not.
I stand for the ability of those who choose to write for a living to have the best opportunities possible. It’s a narrow focus, but it’s one I’m passionate about. I’ve been passionate about this for longer than I’ve been writing. It goes back to my book review and bookstore employee days. As a reader who loved stories, I cared for those who created them. Now that I’m on the other side and have become friends with storytellers, this cause is strengthened. And the more I learn about the abuses authors suffer, the more I want to speak out.
So here’s what I think the Authors Guild should be saying. Here is what their platform should be. (And I’m too busy running a hypothetical publishing house in Houston, so for goodness sake, don’t think I want another job. I don’t):
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Posted in Books, ebooks Tagged with: author, publishing
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 License.