From the Magazine
Michelle Legro on the Life of Sadakichi Hartmann, Great Gatsby Roundup, and More
Anne Margaret Daniel looks at F. Scott Fitzgerald's career in Hollywood; Michelle Legro examines the life and work of poet Sadakichi Hartmann; Paul Theroux argues the case for simple handwritten notes; and other news.
Fraudulent Vanity Publisher Sentenced to Prison, Randy Susan Meyers on Self-Promotion, and More
Vermont-based vanity publisher Peter Campbell-Copp has been sentenced to jail for fraud; Scientific American examines the physiological differences between reading print or electronic texts; novelist Randy Susan Meyers discusses the pressures of social media self-promotion; and other news.
Edra Ziesk Examines the Nature of Friendship, McSweeney's on the Radio, and More
Dissident poet Li Bifeng was sentenced to twelve years in prison in China; News Corp, which owns HarperCollins, is in early discussions with CBS about acquiring Simon & Schuster; Brain Pickings features the routines of several successful writers, including Joan Didion, Haruki Murakami, and Ray Bradbury; and other news.
Saint Paul Team Wins National Poetry Slam
A team representing Saint Paul has won the twentieth annual National Poetry Slam (NPS) in West Palm Beach, Florida. The Minnesotans beat out sixty-seven other teams from across North America to claim the two-thousand-dollar grand prize on August 8. Rounding out the final standings were, in order, teams from Albuquerque, San Francisco, and New York City.
Bennington Band Honors Late Poet
A group of writing instructors and students who over the years formed a ragtag band during late-night impromptu jam sessions at the Bennington Writing Seminars released their first CD earlier this year. Titled Let's Doghouse: A Tribute to Liam Rector, the compilation serves as a memorial to the founding director of the Writing Seminars, a poet, who passed away two years ago.
You Are Not Alone: Postcard From New York City
On a warm, breezy Saturday evening, hundreds of people who had spent the past three days at the annual BookExpo America took a break from the hubbub to attend You Are Not Alone, a celebration featuring comedy, music, and, of course, some top-notch literature.
Lit Crawl: Postcard From New York City
Contemporary literature lovers invaded ten beer-soaked bars scattered throughout Manhattan’s Lower East Side and East Village as part of the second annual Lit Crawl NYC—a two-hour bar hop serving up an eclectic taste of the New York City literary scene.
Debt Relief and Enlightenment: Postcard From New York City
On the second Saturday of this month, a renovated turn-of-the-century electrical parts factory in the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens was aglow with jovial literary energy, much of which was generated in response to the albatross of many a writer: student loan debt.
Anne Carson Makes It New: Postcard From New York City
Last Thursday Anne Carson collaborated with sculptor Peter Cole, choreographers Jonah Bokaer and Rashaun Mitchell, and dancers from the Merce Cunnigham company to present “Stacks and Bracko.”