- Yep, it’s spring in Kentucky. We’re having a snowstorm, freakishly, and then I’m sure it’ll be in the 50s and sunny forever, starting in the middle of next week. We did our spring cleaning yesterday in preparation (stacks of books shelved or cast aside for donation!), so the house is sparkly nice for my weekend of hibernation and thesising.
- Speaking of which, as soon as it stops snowing I need to get to a bookstore, because reading this New Yorker piece about Gossip Girl what do I discover? There’s an omniscient narrator. Now, it’s probably arguable how realistic these books actually are, but there’s no magic to speak of and they’re by an American* and so for my purposes? Genius.
- Jeff Ford’s The Shadow Year, which I can’t wait to read, is apparently already in stores. It’s also an April Booksense pick. Yay!
- The fabulous Cassandra Clare gets interviewed by Cynthia Leitich Smith.
- Libba Bray is smart on fanfic.
- Why teen girls love vampires. I’ll admit it–I was a vampire fiction whore when I was a teen. Those were my (un)guilty pleasure books, so I’m not at all surprised by this "trend."
- Hot Slayer on Slayer action.
- Jeff VanderMeer interviews Toby Barlow in free verse. I’ve got to get my hands on a copy of Sharp Teeth.
*Yep, I realize there’s a string of ghostwriters. I only need concern myself with the first one and the convention observed throughout, since this is intended to bolster a side point.
Permit me to once again recommend both Jeff Ford’s new book (Segundo podcast forthcoming) and the Barlow.
My only note re: GG is to keep in mind that the “author” is actually a string over overcaffed young thangs getting screwed by the royalties god. But you knew that. And it’s probably not relevant to your research.
And now back to my regularly scheduled thesising.
Yep, yep. She did write the first one though, I’m assuming — which is really all I need. That, and that they kept the convention.
She did indeed, and they did indeed.
Can we cyber-toast when all of this nonsense is done?
DEFINITELY. (!!!)
Not to butt in, but as someone who does actually know, Cecily wrote the first eight books in the series and the prequel.
She’s getting screwed by the TV people, also.
I’ve no doubt — one of the hazards of creating a “property.” Thanks for the confirmation though, Jennifer; that’s what I’d found online and it’s nice to know it’s true.