Author of this year’s biggest release Stephenie Meyer surprised her fans by posting on her web site that her “partial draft of Midnight Sun was illegally posted on the Internet and has since been virally distributed without my knowledge or permission or the knowledge or permission of my publisher”–and as a result, she has put the new manuscript “on hold indefinitely.” Meyer writes: “My first feeling was that there was no way to continue. Writing isn’t like math; in math, two plus two always equals four no matter what your mood is like. With writing, the way you feel changes […]
Authors
Revealing Ron Paul's Ghostwriter
Presidential candidate Ron Paul’s book THE REVOLUTION: A Manifesto “has become the centerpiece of a counterconvention,” the Washington Post reports. “But although the congressman from Texas has repeatedly called the book his own work, it was largely written by an unacknowledged ghostwriter, and it is unclear how much Paul contributed to the final product.” The paper “obtained” a copy of the “original manuscript,” written by Ron Paul supporter and libertarian scholar Tom Woods, along with correspondence from Woods. A letter from last December presenting the manuscript says, “When my agent shopped the idea around (before I’d actually written the book) […]
Author Says Cape Cod Murder Book Has Him in Trouble with Law
Author Peter Manso was indicted by a Barnstable County, MA grand jury last week on 12 charges related to gun possession, storage and permits. The most serious of the charges, felony possession of an assault weapon (an AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle found in his bedroom closet to be exact), carries a maximum sentence of 10 years. Police “say they responded to Mr. Manso’s home alarm system, entered the house and saw the loaded shotgun on a closet shelf. They obtained a warrant and returned to find the other guns.” But Manso calls it “complete lawlessness” and says that it’s payback […]
Ambassador Scieszka on Kids' Reading
National ambassador for young people’s literature Jon Scieszka speaks at length to the LAT about getting kids, and boys in particular, to read. “My first tip is to include not just fiction in your idea of reading. Include graphic novels, include Calvin and Hobbes. Third- and fourth-grade boys devour those — and they’re really sophisticated, but parents will say, ‘Oh, that’s not really reading.’ ” He recalls that “I first saw fairy tales in ‘The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show,’ and they sounded kind of familiar. Then I read the fairy tales. Then I wrote my own books [in which he […]
Rushdie's Day in Court
Salman Rushdie appeared in London’s High Court to hear former policeman and author of ON HER MAJESTY’S SERVICE Ron Evans apologize and admit that the first version of the book contained 11 “falsehoods.” Rushdie told the press after the hearing to settle his libel suit, “It is a very difficult thing to do, to stand up in the High Court of London and admit to be a liar. If they do that, it is enough for me.” (He did not seek damages.) An attorney for Evans and publisher John Blake still tries to insist that they “have voluntarily removed the […]
Bread Loaf's Literary Waiters
The Washington Post looks at the “two dozen young writers who serve as waiters for the two-week summer summit [at the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference], donning aprons and name tags to serve breakfast, lunch and dinner to the 225 participants…. Most are professors, graduate students in the fine arts or prize-winning writers, chosen from 600 applicants for work-study scholarships that cover the $2,300 tuition. “When they’re not taking in poetry readings, learning about character development or getting other pointers from Pulitzer Prize winners, they can be found in the dining hall of the Victorian-era Bread Loaf Inn, taking orders or […]