Bookmark Now: Writing in Unreaderly Times: A Collection of All Original Essays from Today's (and Tomorrow's) Young Authors on the St

by Kevin Smokler

Book Overview

An anthology of original essays from our most intriguing young writers, Bookmark Now boldly addresses the significance of the production of literature in the twenty-first century. Or simply, "How do we talk about writing and reading in an age where they both seem almost quaint?"The book features authors in their twenties and thirties -- those raised when TV, video games, and then the Internet supplanted books as dominant cultural mediums --...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0465078443
• ISBN13: 9780465078448
• Release Date: May 2005
• Publisher: Basic Books
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 0.71 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.3" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

hot damn!

i was feeling really depressed about the state of the writing world. why was i slaving away, trying to get my work recognized by tweedy types with quiet poetry readings, where people read poems about obscure literary figures lost at wal-mart as the audience titters politely? where networking & fakeness seem to be par for the course? but then, gleaming from the shelf of my local library--THIS BOOK. yay! hooray! a slew of interesting, unpretentious, HEARTENING articles remind me that there is hope for people like me in the literary world. favorite quote of the book, so far: "On other occasions, the same neighbor would show up in a state of drunken good humor and tell me long, rambling stories, or wash my dishes, or both, and it was on those nights I felt I was coming pretty close to what a writer's life really was--no glamor at all, no fame or fortune, just a vaguely satisfying sense of communing with other literary types who were as messed up as i was."-michelle richmond. (p. 50-1) or maybe: "But I no longer have the fear that deep down I'm not supposed to be a writer. You don't get to decide these things. It's not about having a degree or winning a prestigious award or finding a respected mentor. It doesn't have to be about chapbooks or literary journals. How it works now is that if you're writing something someone else is reading, for better or for worse, you're a writer. You just have to decide what you're going to do about it. -pamela ribon, p. 27. WHY IS THIS BOOK'S SALES RANK SO LOW? writers, pick it up! i'm buying my own copy from my local indy bookstore once i return this one to my local library, and i suggest you do the same.

25 golden nuggets for all of $10 (from Amazon) illustrates why books survive

In a size comfortable enough to stash in your jacket pocket pending a 10-minute reading break, this compendium of brilliant and concise essays on the virtues of books is just perfect. Come on! At 40 cents a piece -- or 3 cents a page -- you will find a ridiculous amount of nourishment if you appreciate great writing, clever thinking, and crisp analysis on the future of printed matter. In addition to the two dozen talented young authors that editor Smokler has assembled here, you will profit from his 8 page appendix of helpful resources on writing and reading.

Insightful while entertaining

Bookmark now is a gem. Kevin combines superb authors who honestly and humorously provide thoughts on the state of reading and creative writing in the past, present and future. Each essay explores a new, exciting question. The answers to these questions help you understand what it has been like to be a writer over the last decade, a decade which that has been so thoroughly impacted by the information age.

A Ray, no Beam, no Klieg Light of Hope for Book Folks!

Finally someone has come up with some solid evidence that, contrary to media predictions of the death of reading and writing in the age of instant computer blogs and ebooks, the art of writing and the art of reading are very much alive and well and prospering. Those of us addicted to the written page, whether writing or finding that intangible joy of turning the paper pages of books of fiction, of poetry, of adventure, of any manner of brain-nourishing information that can be opened, bookmarked, and closed like a comfortable friend, never far from our side, can breathe a sigh of relief. Kevin Smokler has gathered essays and comments by contemporary writers whose topics range from MFA writing programs, self-help writers' books, blogs, googling, ebooks, and the frustrations and joys of the advent of the computer and its role in the writer's and the reader's lives. The fears of 'getting published' are calmed by a discussion of all of the manner of publishing houses that assist first time writers as well as the heretofore unnoted plethora of books being ground out by the Big Name Houses. For a bit of encouragement, a dollop of humor, and some very fine writing from those practicing their art at present, the readers and writers (and reviewers!) are invited to the feast. Indulge thyself! Now if someone could just write as hopefully about the decline of classical music recordings.... Highly recommended. Grady Harp, June 05

Dip your toe into the contemporary culture of writing...

The thing that strikes me most about Bookmark Now is that it manages to let the reader peek behind the curtain of contemporary writing without feeling in any way cute or false; put simply, reading the pieces in this book feels like hanging out with the cool kids at the edge of the cafeteria, except without any of the self-doubting baggage of whether you really belong there. While each author has a distinctive voice, virtually every essay is written in an honest and direct fashion, cleanly addressing the reader without getting bogged down in a given conceit. To be treated with such straightforward respect by a collection of authors is a remarkable thing, and it's a testament to the editor's vision that he managed to impose his own abhorrence of pretense on an edited volume of 24 diverse writers. The essays don't explicitly speak to each other, but they resonate on certain points - the connection between the tools we use to write and our relationship to our readers, the role of education and credentialing, whether the life of a writer is necessarily solitary and neurotic. These are the points of flux in the contemporary world of writing, and while there are no real answers, Kevin Smokler is trying to ensure that we're all part of the discussion.