Trapeze, an Orion/Hachette imprint, is starting to do just that. David Barnett observes that almost 60 people were involved in the publication of his new novel: “the editors, the marketing and PR types – but also the smaller but crucial roles: the proofreaders who make sure you haven’t started calling Maisy Maisie in chapter 12, the all-important cover designers, the team behind the audiobooks, …” – The Guardian
Category: words
Alfa-Bravo-Charlie — All About Spelling Alphabets (And Why We Might Need A New One)
“As mobile phones have replaced landlines, call quality has, strangely, gone down. The general connectivity of the world — including the ease of international video calls and the use of foreign call centers — means that spelling out a name or word is an increasingly common practice. A modern, updated, globally friendly English spelling alphabet would be pretty useful right now, but getting people to use one might be harder than you’d think.” – Atlas Obscura
‘Even Science Isn’t An Exact Science’: On The Art Of Science Journalism
Randi Hutter Epstein: “Nothing in science is 100 percent certain. Scientists talk in probabilities. That’s why doctors never say ‘guarantee.’ They say things like ‘chances are.’ … How do I convey discovery without sensationalizing? How do I convey the murkiness of the scientific process without killing my story?” – Literary Hub
In Praise Of The Most Underrated Punctuation Mark In The Language
New Yorker Comma Queen Mary Norris welcomes a new book about the semicolon and gives a quick overview of the mark’s history (which goes back to 1494) and looks to some of the uses to which it has been put, from Melville to Chandler to Wittgenstein to Henry James to Martin Luther King, Jr. – The New Yorker
Speakers Of Endangered Languages Find Model For A Comeback
“As thousands of languages around the world are threatened—hundreds of which are in the United States—Indigenous communities are learning from the successes of the Māori and the Hawai‘ians. Revitalization has proved to be as dynamic as the communities who undertake it: fluency, intergenerational learning, and engagement with a deeper understanding of cultural contexts and traditions are just some of the aspects of language revival.” – Emergence Magazine
On The Nature Of Aphorisms
Adam Gopnik: “The aphorism, in the course of history, can be taken as the epitome of the rational or the epitome of the irrational. It can be compressed and self-contained wisdom, or it can be a broken fragment designed to show that ours is an already shattered world. But, whatever it is, it’s always an epitome, and seeks an essence.” – The New Yorker
Can Science Fiction Be Useful In Imagining The Future?
“The answer is one that divides futurists, writers, and academics. Some argue that there is power in narrative stories that can’t be found elsewhere. Others assert that in our quest for imagination and prediction, we’re deluding ourselves into thinking that we can predict what’s coming.” – Wired
Why It’s Not Good To Invite A Writer Into Your House
Is it a good idea to invite someone into your home whose occupation it is to observe everything? The writer as host might be no better. Even the most thoughtful guest will undoubtedly interfere with the writer’s productivity during the visit. – The New York Times
What Libraries Mean To The American Dream
Last year, an economics professor suggested killing off the public library and replacing it with Amazon. The backlash was swift – and it’s ongoing. Why? Libraries are free, providing a refuge for everyone, and helping those disenfranchised gain more and more agency – and more: “Libraries are the cornerstones of democracy, where all people—regardless of income, race and religion—are welcome. To me, they’re also the one place where I truly feel at home.” – LitHub
An Author Explains The Most Overrated Novel
In short, Sarah Moss says, “I think it’s called the Great American Novel.” Zing! – The Guardian (UK)