For those in Arizona, just a reminder as to where I’ll be this Saturday (May 17): Pioneer Books 2820 E University Dr # 102 Mesa, Arizona 85213 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Orson Scott Card vs. J.K. Rowling
Orson Scott Card’s written some interesting commentary on J.K. Rowling and her frivolous lawsuit against Steven Vander Ark and his Harry Potter reference book Lexicon.
Card writes:
If Steven Vander Ark, the author of Lexicon, had written fiction that he claimed was original, when it was actually a rearrangement of ideas taken from the Harry Potter books, then she'd have a case.
But Lexicon is intended only as a reference book for people who have already paid for their copies of Rowling's books. Even though the book is not scholarly, it certainly falls within the realm of scholarly comment.
Rowling's hypocrisy is so thick I can hardly breathe: Prior to the publication of each novel, there were books about them that were no more intrusive than Lexicon. I contributed to one of them, and there was no complaint about it from Rowling or her publishers because they knew perfectly well that these fan/scholar ancillary publication were great publicity and actually boosted sales.
But now the Harry Potter series is over, and Rowling claims that her "creative work" is being "decimated."
Of course, she doesn't claim that it's the Lexicon that is harming her "creative work" (who's she borrowing from this time?); it's the lawsuit itself! And since she chose to bring the suit, whose fault is it? If she had left Vander Ark alone to publish his little book and make his little bit of money, she wouldn't be distracted from her next novel.
When I first heard about Rowling’s lawsuit, I thought she was overreacting. I sure didn't see any copyright infringement by Vander Ark – especially since Rowling herself has praised Vander Ark’s website and claimed to have used it at times when writing her books.
For the record, if I ever write a series of books that are even a tenth as popular as the Harry Potter series, I’d be thrilled if someone wanted to write a reference guide or a scholarly work to complement it. Rowling should have been flattered that there was someone out there that cared enough to actually compile such a guide. It sounds like her success has gone to her head.
I’m probably one of the few people that has never read a single Harry Potter book. Card’s article, along with Rowling’s despicable behavior, makes me never want to even read any of them. (OK. Who am I kidding? I’ll probably give in once my kids express interest in reading them or want me to read the books out lout to them. But I will wait until then.)
You can read Card’s entire article here.
The judge is expected to rule on the case Friday. Stay tuned for updates.
Questions from Weber State Univesity Students
Yesterday I had the wonderful opportunity to talk to a literature class at Weber State University that is using Room for Two as one of their books. I was very impressed with the students and their questions, comments, and insight they had. The following are some of their questions and my answers I thought others might find interesting.
Q: What audience did you have in mind when you wrote Room for Two?
A: I was trying to write for a very broad audience. I wanted to tell my story in such a way that even those who have never lost a spouse, child, or had a friend or loved one take their own life could enjoy it. It seems to have worked. Though I’ve received a lot of positive feedback from young widows, young widowers, and suicide survivors, most of the emails I receive have been from people who don’t fall into any of those categories. No matter what group the reader falls in, however, the vast majority of respondents tell me the book has touched their lives in very positive ways.
Q: Why did you write Room for Two?
A: The biggest reason was that I read or, rather, tired to read a lot of “memoirs” about losing a spouse soon after my late wife’s death. I found most of them to be completely worthless. Most of the time the writer would try to make him or herself out as a “wronged hero.” I felt authors were being less than honest about their experience and were hiding their own faults and imperfections. Because of this, I had a hard time relating on any level to the story they were trying to tell. I wanted to write a book that, in my opinion, showed the human side of the surviving spouse as well as the pain that that accompanies the death of a loved one.
In the case of books that dealt specifically with losing a spouse to suicide, I thought the authors were trying to make excuses or justify the actions of their loved ones that killed themselves. Some of the books went as far to romanticize suicide. I find that to be extremely dangerous. The reasons people take their own life is very complex and trying to rationalize or validate their actions is impossible without being able to talk with that person. And since they’re dead, that impossible. Instead of justifying the actions of my late wife, I tried to portray the devastating effect suicide has on those left behind.
Q: There’s a strong religious undercurrent in Room for Two. After reading the book, one can tell that you’re very religious but you don’t much in the way of specifics about what faith you belong to. Was that intentional?
A: Yes. Outside of the mountain west, most people don’t know much about the LDS (Mormon) Church. I didn’t want to alienate or distract readers who are unfamiliar with the church. Hence the reason I used very generic terms to describe my religious affiliation. Those who are familiar with the LDS church will, I think, know what faith I’m a member of rather quickly.
Q: If you were to rewrite Room for Two for a Mormon-only audience, what would you change?
A: Nothing.
Q: How did you come up with the title for your book?
A: The working title of the book was Running Forward. However, that never seemed to fit with the story I was telling. One day I was editing a part of the book where I was struggling with making room in my heart for another person. Though the exact phrase “room for two” doesn’t appear in the text, while reading that paragraph, those words formed in my mind as I read it. I immediately knew I had the perfect right title for my book.
Q: I really enjoyed reading your late wife’s poem “Ten Toed Children of Eve” that was in Room for Two. Have you considered about publishing the rest of your late wife’s poetry?
A: I’ve thought about putting a website up that contained her poetry and some of her other writings. Right now it’s more of a time issue. I have other writing projects are more pressing.
Q: Which writers have influenced you the most?
A: Orson Scott Card, Ethan Canin, and my dad.
Q: How do you find the time to write?
A: I make time. Once my kids are in bed, I spend some time with my wife and then write until I can’t keep my eyes open. It’s easy to talk about being a writer but hard to actually put in the hours required to write something worth publishing. I went to school with a lot of “writers” that were more talented than me. However, I’m the only one with a book. Though talent has something to do with getting published, most of it has to do with dedicating the time to writing, editing, and rewriting your manuscript.
Q: Are you writing more books?
A: I’m currently writing a work of fiction. If I can hold to my self-imposed deadlines, I should have a publishable manuscript sometime this summer.
Q: Do you have any plans to write a follow-up to Room for Two?
A: Yes. After I complete this work of fiction, the plan is to write another book that picks up where Room for Two left off. The main focus will be on the early years my marriage to Julie. The working title is Seconds because the book is going to focus a lot on second chances, second marriages, second loves, etc.
Do Travel Writers Go to Hell?
According to The Daily Telegraph, writer Thomas Kohnstamm admitted to faking large sections of The Lonely Planet guidebooks he wrote.
THE Lonely Planet guidebook empire is reeling from claims by one of its authors that he plagiarised and made up large sections of his books and dealt drugs to make up for poor pay.
Thomas Kohnstamm also claims in a new book that he accepted free travel, in contravention of the company's policy. His revelations have rocked the travel publisher, which sells more than six million guides a year.
Mr Kohnstamm, whose book is titled Do Travel Writers Go To Hell?, said yesterday that he had worked on more than a dozen books for Lonely Planet, including its titles on Brazil, Colombia, the Caribbean, Venezuela, Chile and South America.
In one case, he said he had not even visited the country he wrote about.
"They didn't pay me enough to go Colombia,'' he said.
"I wrote the book in San Francisco. I got the information from a chick I was dating - an intern in the Colombian Consulate.
"They don't pay enough for what they expect the authors to do.''
If the pay was so bad, one has to wonder why Kohnstamm agreed to write the travel guides in the first place. If he was talented enough to fool The Lonely Planet’s editors, one would think he should have tried his hand at fiction.
But more striking is why a publishing company (in this case Three Rivers/Crown) would reward a writer who admits to defrauding another publisher with a publishing contract. With other non-fiction books having difficulty passing the truth test, I’d think that a publisher would be hesitant to publish a book from an admitted liar.
(Blog entry cross-posted here.)
Book Review: The Road by Cormac McCarthy
With all the other writing I’m doing, I never have time to write reviews of the books I read. I will try to do better. Please note I’ve changed from four star reviews to five star reviews so they match up with my ratings at GoodReads. (And if you like books, get your butt over to goodreads.com, set up an account, and start sharing your thoughts about books you love and hate with friends. You can also see what books I’ve read so far this year, what I’m currently reading, and what’s on my shelf to read.)
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Generally I find books that win prestigious prizes either 1) boring and/or 2) a bunch of literary drivel. The only reason I bothered to read Cormac McCarthy’s The Road (winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for fiction) was because it came recommended by a friend whose opinion I trust.
I’m glad I did. This book had me riveted from beginning to end.
The book is about a father and young son who journey through a post-apocalyptic world (North America?) trying to survive in a world that is seemingly without plant or animal life of any kind. Cities are empty. Food is scarce. The only other people are those who are also trying to survive. The survivors they encounter will do anything to keep surviving.
Even without learning the names of a single character, where they are traveling to (the California coast?), and what caused the world as we know it to end (nuclear war?), McCarthy creates vivid portraits of two people trying to survive in a dangerous and dreary world. The father’s constant pursuit of finding a better place – one where they can survive – is driven by his love for his son and the hopes that his son can, one day, have a better life. In a world where everyone else has lost their humanity, the father does his best to keep some sort of civilized quality to their meager existence.
McCarthy’s writing is short and to the point but carries a strong poetic quality to it. He’s also able to paint a picture of a truly lifeless world in such a way that’s very haunting. Two months after I read it, I still think back to certain passages where he described the dead world and shudder. And even though the book paints a bleak portrait of humanity’s future, it does leave the reader with home that life will continue despite the awful world the characters find themselves in.
If you want a well-written, moving book without the literary pretense that comes with most award-winning books, then you’ll enjoy The Road.
Five stars (out of five) for a page-turning and unforgettable book.
Memoirs: Stranger than Fiction
Publishers should be kicking themselves. For the second time in less than a week, a critically-acclaimed memoir has been exposed as a fraud.
In "Love and Consequences," a critically acclaimed memoir published last week, Margaret B. Jones wrote about her life as a half-white, half-Native American girl growing up in South-Central Los Angeles as a foster child among gang-bangers, running drugs for the Bloods.
The problem is that none of it is true.
Margaret B. Jones is a pseudonym for Margaret Seltzer, who is all white and grew up in the well-to-do Sherman Oaks section of Los Angeles, in the San Fernando Valley, with her biological family. She graduated from the Campbell Hall School, a private Episcopal day school in the North Hollywood neighborhood. She has never lived with a foster family, nor did she run drugs for any gang members. Nor did she graduate from the University of Oregon, as she had claimed.
This story comes less than a week after it was revealed that the Holocaust memoir, “Misha: A Mémoire of the Holocaust Years” by Misha Defonseca, was a complete fabrication, and it's been only two years since most of James Frey's best-selling “A Million Little Pieces” was proven to be wildly embellished, exaggerated, and falsified. The accuracy of another best-selling memoir, “A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier” by Ishmael Beah are also being raised after series of articles by an Australian newspaper. (Beah, stands by what he wrote.)
What's going on here? Are publishers too lazy to investigate stories that seem too good to be true? Do authors feel their story won't be published or taken seriously unless they make up parts of their life?
Granted, memoirs are an imperfect art and are only as good as the author's memory. But there's a difference between recalling that an advent happened on a Monday when it, in fact, happened on Wednesday, and simply making up scenes, characters, or an entire life.
Whatever is happening, it's not good for the memoirs genre. Not only does it make it less likely that publishers will pass on memoirs in the future, but that readers are less likely to purchase a memoir when browsing bookstore shelves.
To restore readers' trust in the genre authors and publishers need to come up with a voluntary set of standards to which they're willing to adhere. Though not a comprehensive list, here are three ways to start.
1. If asked by the publisher, authors should be prepared to verify as much of the story as possible. This includes names and contact information of people who can corroborate the story, places, and approximate dates when events occurred. This may not always be easy to do if someone is writing about events that happened several decades ago but the author should be willing to authenticate as much as the story as possible. If authors knew there was a good possibility their story could be vetted before it hit the press, it would probably discourage liars like Seltzer and Frey from trying to get published.
2. Publishers need to be willing to investigate. If the scenes, dialogue, or the overall narrative sounds contrived or too good to good to be true, it's time to do some fact checking. Reviewers of Love and Consequences mentioned that the dialogue seemed "embellished" and scenes felt "self-consciously novelistic at times." Such red flags should lead the publishers to do some simple fact checking. A background check and a few phone calls could have been done quickly and revealed that Seltzer's story was a lie.
3. The reader should be notified up front if names and places have been changed or events have been compressed or told in a different order than they actually happened. Some memoirs have such a disclaimer but it's by no means an industry standard. If authors changed something, let the readers know why it was done. Such a disclaimer doesn't make a memoir any less powerful but goes a long way to establishing trust with the reader.
Memoirs can make powerful and entertaining reading. Standards would go a long way to rebuilding readers’ trust in a genre that is suffering from brazen acts of dishonesty and deceit. Without some standards in place, future memoirs run the risk of being bypassed by readers altogether, or worse, becoming classified as fantasized fiction.
Note: This article was originoally published at A Ton of Authors and a Wannabe blog
Saving Independent Bookstores
For those who wring their hands over the demise of small, independent bookstores, there’s an excellent article in the Wall Street Journal on how to save them. Be warned: It requires putting your money where your mouth is.
The Way I Am Legend (The Book) Should Have Ended
My good friend Ryan has been razzing me for sometime over my absolute hatred of the ending I Am Legend (the book, not the movie). In the comments of a recent post where I named I Am Legend, the worst read of 2007 he wrote:
“I would speculate that this novelette written over 50 years ago, holds up better than 95% of the genre written in its time…. You said yourself that you enjoyed the read, but hated the ending. I think you really need to revisit the story. This is speculative fiction at its finest.”
Well, I don't think it’s bad speculative fiction though I don’t know if it’s the finest example that speculative fiction has to offer. It is, however, a very good one.
In any case, I’m going to detail my problem with the ending of the book and contrast it with the ending of the movie and explain why I listed it as the worst read last year.
Warning: Spoilers for both the book and the movie follow.
The general plot of the book centers on a character named Robert Neville who is the last human on the planet. The rest of humanity has been afflicted by a virus that has changed them all into vampire/zombie creatures. Neville spends his nights inside his vampire-proof house while the undead creatures roam around his house attempting to find a way in. During the day scavenges for supplies, repairs damage to his house, and looks for any other human survivors.
During the course of the novel we learn about Neville and start to care about him. He’s lost a wife and a child to this virus, hasn’t had any human contact for years, and at night tries to drown out the sounds of the vampire/zombie creatures that lurk outside.
One of the things he does to pass the time is hunt for these creatures during daylight hours. Unlike the movie, these creatures are languid and passive during the day so Neville never encounters a problem when he goes into homes or buildings to kill them with a stake through the heart. During the course of the novel he racks up an impressive kill count.
Then after an afternoon of creature killing, he spots a woman walking through a field in broad daylight. He chases her down and takes her back to his place. Later we find out that this woman is an anvanced type of vampire creature sent to spy on him. Through their own scientific inquiries, some of these vampires have found a way to be active and alive during daylight hours and are starting a new society and Neville is a threat to that society.
One night they arrive at his place, break down the door and take him captive. At the end of the book, Neville sits in prison and learns that he’s going to be executed. However, the vampire creature that was sent to spy on him takes pity and gives him some pills to end his life. He looks out the window at a street full of vampire/zombie creates. They are first are startled when they see him then stare at him silently.
And this is how the book ends:
Robert Neville looked out over the new people of the earth. He knew he did not belong to them; he knew that, like the vampires, he was anathema and black terror to be destroyed. And, abruptly, the concept came, amusing to him even in pain.
A coughing chuckle filled his throat. He turned and leaned against the wall while he swallowed the pills. Full circle, he thought while final lethargy crept into his limbs. Full circle. A new terror born in death, a new superstition entering the unassailable fortress of forever.
I am legend.
Is that a great ending or what? Our hero turns out to be the bad guy in this new world. Because he’s killed so many of these vampire creatures, he’s going to be the monster that these new creatures tell their children stories about. Neville is going to be the creature that gives vampire children nightmares. His legend is going to be one of death and terror.
Sure, it’s a creative ending and it’s not the imagination of Richard Matheson I have a problem with. The reason I hated the ending is because he took a character I somewhat cared about and gave him an ignominious death.
Death by suicide just as he realizes how these vampire/zombie creatures view him? Oh, please. That’ s no way for our hero or a monstrous “legend” to go. What’s the point in creating a character that the reader just might care about only to have him go out with a whimper? That’s what I call a big letdown.
At least in the movie when Neville dies, he dies for a cause and there’s a hope – albeit a small one – that humanity might continue and that these creatures might be turned back into humans. And the Neville character takes out as many of the creatures as he can when he dies in a fiery explosion. Now that’s the way to make an exit and the way the book should have ended as well.
Books Make Great Gifts
If you're looking for last minute holiday gifts, why not consider a book? Books make great gifts because you never have to worry if they'll make someone's butt look big or have an allergic reaction. In that spirit here are some book and author recommendations for those still looking or have postponed their Christmas shopping until the last possible minute.
Anything by Michael Connelly
Connelly had proven himself as one of the best writers today. His stories are intriguing, his characters are complex, and his prose is clear and crisp. Though most of his books surround LAPD Detective Harry Bosch, he's written a great book called The Lincoln Lawyer where he introduces a compelling criminal defense attorney named Mickey Haller who worries more about deal and negotiation rather than a client's guilt or innocence. For all Haller's faults, Connelly makes him someone we can sympathize with and who is forced to make the hardest decision of his life when faced with pure evil.
If you decide to buy a Harry Bosch novel, you don't have to worry about buying the first Bosch book, The Black Echo. I didn't read any of the Bosch novels in order and yet I was still able to enjoy the stories because Connelly gives you just enough background when necessary so you aren't missing out on anything. Just another reason he's one of the best writers working today.
The 48 Laws of Power, The 33 Strategies of War, and The Art of Seduction
Though marketed as ways to increase your power, crush your enemies, and seduce the man or woman of your dreams, Robert Greene's books are really insights into human behavior. Each book contains rules to obtaining, say, power and short vignettes of famous men and women and how their choices led to let them to obtain their ultimate desires or caused them to be complete failures.
You can read them as lessons history, glances at human psychology, or books about business. However you choose to read them, they are wonderfully told stories with remarkable insight from Greene. Even if people on your list don't thirst for power or anything else Greene suggests, these books are help identify those who might try to take advantage of you.
Please note that you might have to ask a store clerk where these books are located. I've seen them in business, psychology, self-improvement, and history sections of stores.
Write Tight
If you know of an aspiring writer or anyone who enjoys improving their prose, buy them Write Tight. I've read a lot of books on writing and this is the one that has helped me the most. The book only concerns itself helping writers say the most in the fewest number of words. Period. Anyone can be verbose. Only those who truly master the art of writing can write tight.
Just about anything by Orson Scott Card
If you're looking for something in the science fiction/fantasy realm, I recommend just about anything by Orson Scott Card. Known best for his Ender Series, Card does wonderful job of creating believable characters in far away worlds.
One of my favorite things about Card is that he focuses more on the story and how the characters interact with each other than describing space ships or exotic places. Sure, we get a good tastes of these worlds but Card concentrates more on telling stories. Ender's Game and the books that follow are classics. But you also might want to consider Treason, Empire, and his Alvin Maker series.
Room for Two
What would be the point of writing a holiday book list if I didn't shamelessly include my own memoir, Room for Two.
Room for Two isn't just for those who have experienced loss but for anyone who wants to see the strength of the human character. We have an inner strength that is more powerful than we realize and can overcome anything that's placed in our path if we work hard at overcoming life's obstacles.
But you can decide for yourself if this book is right for you or someone on your Christmas list by reading the first chapter here.
Finally...
And I'm always looking for new authors and books to read. If you have any suggestions on what I should find under the tree Christmas morning, leave a comment below.
Can't Anyone Agree on I Am Legend?
Heard three different reviews of the movie I Am Legend today. One person loved it, one found it too scary, and a third didn't like it at all -- especially the ending. Though he didn't tell me how it ended (I asked to not to so it would surprise me) it does somewhat make me worried that they stuck with the crappy book ending instead of coming up with something cool. (Yes, Ryan, the ending of the book blows. But more about that after I see the movie.) And if I Am Legend turns out to be a major disappointment, at least there's one good movie to look forward to next summer: The Dark Knight. The trailer for it makes it look like they're keeping the Batman series back on track!