The world of Twitter can be hard to navigate. We know that you’re already following us @flavorpill, but we decided it would be fun (and possibly helpful) if we rounded up some of our other Twitter favorites in a series we call “The Followables.” This eighth installment, inspired by the new that Maya Angelou (who already has 385,000 Facebook fans) plans to launch her Twitter account at a belated 82nd birthday party, spotlights the tweeting literati we love. (If you want to learn about critics and publishers as well as authors, we’ve got a list for that, too.) Do us a favor and leave a comment with anyone who you enjoy who didn’t make our list.
The Fiction Fix is your weekly dose of short story. If that’s not your drug of choice, too bad: consider it medicine. Every week, we’ll scour the literary magazines you don’t have time to read, online and in print, and let you know where to find one story worth reading.
This week we’re directing you to One Story #118, “Hurt People” by Cote Smith. One Story is keeping short story love alive by sending subscribers exactly what it says, one story, every three weeks. The magazine is edited by Hannah Tinti — you may have noticed we’re rather fond of her around here — and has published some of our favorite writers: Ben Greenman, Lauren Groff, Nam Le, Kelly Link, Kevin Wilson, and many more. Issue #118 arrived in a very special envelope touting Cote Smith’s publishing debut. Read what we thought of it after the jump. Read More »
Behind the Book is a literacy nonprofit that works with kids to get them excited about reading by bringing books and authors into classrooms. They also host a free, monthly reading series at KGB Bar where everyone from Adam Rapp to Ricky Moody to Jennifer Egan has taken to the podium on the first Thursday of the month to promote their worthy cause. “We hope hope to introduce new people to the organization who are already interested in literature,” explains Executive Director Jo Umans. “It’s also a way to get our name out there. With the political and economic climate what they are, it’s very hard to raise money, and so we’re trying to build up our mailing list. It gives us more credibility — we get such great people to read.”
After the jump find our interview with one of those great people, the fantastic Hannah Tinti.
A few years ago SARAH WEINMAN thought she was going to have a career in science, possibly of the forensic variety. But then she launched the crime and mystery fiction blog CONFESSIONS OF AN IDIOSYNCRATIC MIND as a way of procrastinating on her master’s thesis, and it literally changed her life’s path.
We can respect that.
We also respect her opinions on books across all genres, so much so that every Friday we’ve asked Weinman to recommend a new one for you to check out.
Learn more about her first pick — a macabre tale in honor of Halloween — after the jump, and let us know in the comments area what you thought if you’ve already read it. Read More »
