Multi-Format Adaptation News(Cuz It's Not Just Movies Ruining Your Favorite Books)

Peter Jackson's film version of Alice Sebold's Lovely Bones hits theaters this December. Until then, this trailer will have to suffice.


James Cameron has been talking about doing a 3-D movie version of Yukito Kishiro's manga, Battle Angel Alita, since he released Titanic. He's still talking about it.


Doctor Who star, David Tenant, and Star Trek's Patrick Stewart are bringing their stage production of Hamlet to television. (Okay, so it's only public television. But that still counts!)


World War Robot, a wonderful comic by illustrator extraordinaire, Ashley Wood, has been optioned by producer/billionaire Jerry Bruckheimer. While WWR was a subversive satire of war and man's self-destructive tendencies, Jerry's last film was G-Force.


While we're on the topic of odd artistic pairings, Shrek 1 & 2 director, Andrew Adamson, is set to direct an adaptation of Lloyd Jones' award-winning novel, Mister Pip. Pip is the story of a Dickens-obsessed schoolgirl in the Papua New Guinea during a war between soldiers and rebels over copper mining. In other words, it's perfect for fart jokes.


Ray Bradbury's not nearly as protective of his literary properties as one might imagine. When USA Today asked him about Tim Hamilton's graphic novelization of Fahrenheit 451, the brilliant B said, "It's beautiful," then went on to say that he "hopes that a new movie version will be made in his lifetime." For a preview of Hamilton's comic, click here.

If Your Significant Other Works in a Bookstore, Send Them These Links. We Guarantee You You'll Get Lucky Tonight.

School Library Journal has the names & contact info of 75+ authors willing to visit your shop's book clubs...via Skype. Yes, there's always a hitch.


Vromans takes on the controversial concept of 'Free,' offering a list of ways in which bookstores might use it. Stick around for the comments, where Inkwell Michelle blabs our secret plans!


Green Apple Books has come up with a way of dealing with 'local authors' (i.e. demanding print-on-demand types) that is both sensitive and sensible. Needless to say, we're stealing it.


Brews & Books has a brief bit describing a simple Twitter technique indies can use to check out what books & authors folks are Tweeting about in their neighborhood. Turns out, voyeurism is not only fun, it's profitable!


The wrinkle-free faces at ABA Emerging Leaders continue to use their youthful energy for good, coming up with dozens of ways to drive sales in September. This changes nothing, though. I still begrudge them their lack of varicose veins.

Now go on -- get sexin'!

Book News, In Brief

Print-on-demand publishing finally has competition for the title of 'Most Abused Online Service by Would-be Writers': Author Podcasts.


The Christian Science Monitor blends its two loves -- news reporting and hyperbolic prophecy -- proclaiming, "Mass Adoption of e-Books Is Coming." I guess this makes me a hell-bound heretic.


British bookstores have gotten their knickers in a bunch over charity shops selling used books. The bookstores claim it's killing their sales, but I've read seen Mansfield Park -- I know it's really about class.


The Guardian UK asks, Should authors censor their work at public readings? While the obvious answer is 'Duh, f**k no,' the real reason I'm linking to this article is its embarrassing back story: A bookstore in Framingham, MA recently asked author Jennifer Weiner to nix the naughty words when she visited their shop.


Taschen plans to release two versions of their exorbitantly priced Moonfire: The epic journey of Apollo 11 by Norman Mailer -- one for millionaires, and another for billionaires. Kimbooktu reports, "The cheap edition of this book will ‘only’ set you back 800 dollars. The real thing however, is a little bit more expensive." How expensive? "It will be thousands, hundreds of thousands of dollars," Creed Poulson, the firm's public relations manager, told the Times. Personally, I plan to wait a few months. Who knows? It might turn up at my local charity shop.

Can You Say, 'WTF?!'

I knew you could.

(Via Bookdwarf.)

Recommended Viewing:Lewis Black on Writing a Book

Tuesday's Tips for Flailing Writers: Links!

Plot: What it is, isn't, could be and should be.



Mo' plot: Using plot to prevent reader boredom.



Wanna improve the quality of your prose? Write poetry.



Cuz the world no longer wants the written word: 5 Step Author Podcasting.


Speaking of podcasting, Litopia has a nice one about Adverb Killing & Trope Humping.


NPR's Ira Glass says that before you can be good, you've got to be bad. Reeeaaally bad.


The book's done. Now what? 3 Little (but important) Things to Get Ready Before Publication.

Monday Menagerie: Literary Cake Wrecks

While scouring the net, looking for a theme for this week's Monday Menagerie, I came across a Super Punch post promoting Jen Yates' Cake Wrecks: When Professional Cakes Go Hilariously Wrong.
Can you guess where this is heading?
Anyway, after less than ten minutes of poking around the Cake Wrecks website, I had more than enough examples of literary-themed baked goods to fill out this post, with the added bonus of providing an extra bit of early hype to Yates' 9/4 release.

Warning: Do not view before baking. You'll have the inspiration sucked right out of you, only to have it replaced by a crippling feeling of foreboding that'll leave you curled up on the kitchen floor in the fetal position.

First up, Spider-Man! Notice how the baker used a subtle 'sperm meets egg' motif to illustrate the 'Happy Birthday' message? That's art, y'all. But why so glum, Spider-chum? Is getting old really so bad?


Next up: Harry Potter and the Extremely Bad Hair (and teeth, and glasses, and face) Day. Or is it Tales of an Eighth Grade Quasimodo? Tough call.


Q: What if, instead of sexy, high school vampires, Twilight was about gnarled-handed trolls?
A: It would've sold a helluva lot less copies, and the cover would've looked like this.


Stephen King's It. (Honestly, I'd totally buy this one. Can you imagine leaving it inside the fridge of a clown-phobic friend? That's one less present you'd have to buy come the holidays!)


To Cake Wrecks' credit, for every dozen or so disasters, Yates usually highlights at least one or two confectionery creations like this gorgeous Where The Wild Things Are cake...


...and this insanely complex Lord of the Rings: Return of the King cake.

Remember: Cake Wrecks: When Professional Cakes Go Hilariously Wrong, in stores September 4th!

Book News, In Brief

Andrew Slack is a "Harry Potter rabbi," a kids' lit enthusiast and licensed circumcisionist who blends B.C. scripture with J.K.'s writings. Crazier still? He's not the only one.


It's a fact: Supermarkets sell one in every five books bought in the UK. (But we bookstores could totally horn in on their ice cream sales if Ben & Jerry's would just okay a lit-themed ice cream!)


While I whole-heartedly recommend reading The Bookshop Blog's advertising tips for indie bookstores, I can't help but notice that they missed the indies' most popular and enduring marketing gimmick: Free bookmarks.


With controversial corrective measures like "Throw out the computers," Condalmo's Prescription for Libraries may seem like a bitter pill. Still, with the exception of "Audiobook Storytimes," I agree with every idea.


Grand motivational speeches, staff dinners, and one on one conversations -- these and other glaringly obvious ideas make the Harvard Business Review's recommended methods for Inspiring Employees at a Grass-Roots Level.


On the opposite side of the employee-relations spectrum, the following note was posted in a bookstore's backroom on the 4th of July:
The past NO longer matters. It doesn’t matter who you are, how long you have worked here, or what your position is. If I do not feel that you are working hard meaning (selling make titles, shelving carts, cleaning the store, borders rewards, customer service, etc.) You WILL lose your hours and others will get them.
To find out which big box bookstore threatens their staff this way, click here.

Recommended Viewing:Fantastic Mr. Fox Trailer

Freaky, furry fun!

I Scream, You Scream, We All Screa--Shhh! This Is A Library, Dammit!

Summer sees a sizable increase in two things in our store: (1.) Folks asking us for book recommendations and (2.) staff sojourns to the ice cream shop next door. As if stalking us from afar, The New Yorker has news of a Facebook group which sorta blends both: People for a Library-Themed Ben & Jerry’s Flavor. A few of the suggestions/submissions thus far:

Writer’s Block: Coffee with fudge chunks and nicotine stains.

Chick Lit: Fat-free Peach-Mango swirl with pieces of Chicklet chewing gum.

Chexy Librarian: Demure vanilla on the outside, chocolate-covered cherries and Chex cereal pieces on the inside.

And here's mine:

Using the Computers to Upload my Amateur Smut Stories Crunch: Sinfully sweet black raspberry ice cream with long, sticky shavings of almost pornographically delicious dark chocolate. (Note: Best served in a cone or on a stick.) As an added bonus, the container will come with a wrap-around slip cover that reads: 'Just Looking for a Job Crunch,' and shows a well-dressed family man eating from a decidedly non-phallic bowl of bland, vanilla bean ice cream.

Got one of your own? Go here for the New Yorker article and/or here for the Facebook group.

Tip via: Estoreal!

Adaptation News(for those who prefer to watch)

Brian Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim -- soon to be a feature film -- is now en route to becoming a video game, as well.


Another really good comic, Greg Rucka's Whiteout, will have its film adaptation hit theaters in September. Click here to view the trailer...and Kate Beckinsale in the shower.


Having successfully adapted Dennis Lehane's Gone Baby Gone, Ben Affleck is hopping back into the director's chair again, this time for a film version of Charles Hogan's The Town.


Tolkein's heirs have filed a lawsuit to try and block the filming of The Hobbit. When this case is miraculously dismissed due to a large sum of money being dropped into the Tolkiens' laps, remember, you read it here first.


Wes Anderson, the fetishistic stylist behind Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums, has made a stop-motion animated feature out of Roald Dahl's Fantastic Mr. Fox. For a nice look at the puppets (and a blocked view of the sets), click here.


Remember Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH? It was the Newbery Medal-winning children's book that they made into the creepy and cool cartoon, The Secret of NIMH. Well, Hollywood is adapting it again, this time as a blend of CGI and live action.


In order to keep some semblance of coolness, I'll try and keep the Twilight news as brief as possible: Radiohead's Thom Yorke has written a song specifically for New Moon, and Bryce Dallas Howard will be replacing Rachelle Lafevre as 'Victoria' in Eclipse.

Book Review:Sense and Sensibility by J. Austen

I’m fully at the mercy of my Jane Austen fixation now. It started with Persuasion, ramped up with Emma, and is continued by Sense and Sensibility. The latter has all the usual elements of a novel by Austen: a female protagonist; marriage at the end; some sort of impropriety by a character in the protagonist’s immediate social circle; prose which brings grown readers to their knees; and use of the nowadays-rare literary voice “free indirect speech.” Interestingly, I noticed some differences. Sense and Sensibility mentions the servants regularly throughout, unlike the other two novels. Also, it focuses on a pair of sisters, with one of them fulfilling the role of primary protagonist. There is a richness to their sisterhood, and it endears you to both of them, even when one holds a little less sense than the other. In contrast, I found myself under-whelmed by the male characters. The previous books had male characters that impressed, while one in Sense and Sensibility comes off as a bore at first. Another is far too charming, to the point of being suspicious. Both characters eventually show other layers. Still, I didn’t find myself rooting for any of them to end up with the protagonist on account of their personalities; only because of the female character’s own desire did I have allegiances. The protagonist Elinor Dashwood is thought by some scholars to be one of the first literary depictions of a female intellectual. Her consideration of social situations and her pleasure at playing with ideas seem to back this up. To borrow a line from Moreland Perkins’ Reshaping the Sexes in Sense and Sensibility, Elinor is “a talented analyst of human conduct, character, and convention who is equally dedicated to concretely applied reason - although we imagine her functioning this way long before the phrase ‘an intellectual’ was put to its current use.” (Perkins, p.13) To put a personal spin on it, I found myself becoming attracted to Elinor mainly for the above reasons - in the previous two novels I was extraordinarily happy for the protagonists for their eventual fortunes, though I could not share in their husbands’ love. I was endeared towards the protagonists, most certainly, though I didn’t find myself jealous of an Austen character until Elinor was scooped up. I won’t tell you by whom - you’ll just have to find out for yourself. Enjoy!

Reviewed by Wendell 'Scutopus' Edwards

Book News, In Brief

Wi-Fi(nally): Barnes & Noble take a late leap into the 00's, offering -- wait for it -- free Wi-Fi!


It's not you, N.C. It's them: Textbooks.com has joined Amazon.com in abandoning its North Carolina booksellers over the state's proposed internet sales tax.


i-Caramba: The online world is buzzing about Apple's newest gadget, the Tablet. Boasting a 10 inch touch screen, it's expected to take e-books where the the Kindle couldn't -- into the homes of average Janes & Joes.


Amazon Hawks Hate (And So Should You): I hate it when I have to take Amazon's side about anything, but truly practicing free speech and anti-censorship means selling sh*t you find offensive -- even Nazi books.


The Groupies Wear Corsets and Their Rider Requires Mead: Shakespeare's Globe theater company -- London's premier tights-wearing troupe -- has deemed the U.S. worthy of a three month tour. States and dates can be found here.

Go, Look: Editing Sarah Palin

Full on power-props to The Abbeville Manual of Style for steering me towards this choice bit of fact-based hilarity: Vanity Fair's executive literary editor, Wayne Lawson, took the red pen to Sarah Palin's long-winded resignation speech. Page one is posted above. To read the rest, click here.

Tuesday's Tips for Flailing Writers

Ten Tens

10 Writing Prompts

10 Daily Writing Rituals

10 Common Writing Mistakes

10 Myths of Freelance Writing

10 Tricks to Hook Your Reader

10 Writing Tips from Joss Whedon

10 Signs You're Obsessed with Writing

10 Reasons to Take More Photographs

10 Dos & Don't for Writers Seeking Feedback

10 Writing Tips from the Masters (with quotes!)