“Nearly half a century ago, the Rosenbach Museum and Library began building a relationship with the young author and illustrator Maurice Sendak, who very quickly started using [it] as a repository for his original drawings, manuscripts, proofs, and rare editions. Through the years the numbers mounted, and today about 10,000 items of Sendakiana … fill the Rosenbach – the museum’s best calling card with generations that grew up with his books. But now that card is being recalled.”
Category: words
Making E-Readers (And E-Books) Poet Friendly
“Of all the literary genres, poetry has proved the most resistant to digital technology, not for stodgy cultural reasons but for tricky mechanical ones. Most e-readers mangle the line breaks and stanzas that are so crucial to the appearance and rhythm of poetry.”
Jane Austen Fans Really Love To Dress Up Like Jane Austen’s Characters
“It is not just about Jane Austen, it is about a way of life which was much more elegant, much more refined.”
So, Turns Out People Under 30 – AKA Millennials – Love Print Books
Millennials may not care for libraries the same way Gen-Xers and Boomers do, but they sure do love books in print form.
Any Last Words? (Why Writers Aren’t Good About It)
“Few writers have willingly put their last word to paper. Few have composed the literary equivalent of a last will and testament. Most of the time, the creator comes up dry.”
The Notorious Million-Word Novel Is Now Finished
“Comics legend Alan Moore has finished the first draft of his second novel, Jerusalem – and it runs to more than 1m words. His daughter, Leah Moore, made the announcement on Facebook on Tuesday, adding with a wink that ‘now there’s just the small matter of copy editing’.”
27 Writers On Whether Or Not To Get Your MFA
“It’s [a conversation] that we should be having, considering the explosion of the MFA in the past 40 years: from a mere 79 programs in 1979 to 854 today.”
All Those People Transcribing Smithsonian Documents For Free – What’s In It For Them?
“‘It’s a different way to interact with our records,’ said the Smithsonian’s project coordinator Meghan Ferriter, ‘and once they get into it, they realize how cool our collection at the Smithsonian really is.'” Turns out she’s not kidding.
The Things You Learn Transcribing For The Smithsonian
WSJ reporter Kelly Crow: “What happened to the painting? The mystery kept churning in my imagination as I transcribed a draft of a letter that American modernist Arthur Dove wrote in May 1933 to his biggest patron, Duncan Phillips.”
If Books Can Change Your Life, Can They Also Make It Far Worse?
“Novels might not make us worse, but they can unlock parts of us that were already there, already dark, already violent or ruthless or self-destructive.”