Books The Book-of-the-Year Club
posted by on June 25 at 15:00 PM
Nathan Bransford, who is a literary agent, has a great discussion up at his blog about whether authors should feel obliged to produce a new book every year.
I’ve honestly never had the thought that books take a set time to write. I’m kind of shocked by how many commenters over there expect a book a year, as though it’s their right as readers. But a lot of writers on Bransford’s blog seem to think that this slow-pace thinking contributes to a kind of primadonna mentality. I can see both sides, but when it comes to fiction, I think that ultimately, the kind of care that’s necessary almost demands more than a year’s worth of work.
I think a new book every year is a little ridiculous if you're not a genre writer. Still I hate it when writers go 10 years or so. I think Ian McEwan has been publishing pretty much every two years, no? I think that's a pretty good pace.
As listener and not much of a reader, I think a band that releases an album every year is bound to falter. I imagine it's very similar with authors. There's no need to rush art.
There is a serious dearth of books to read in this world, so we need to up production.
I say let's start translating and publishing scrolls from the Villa of the Papyri.
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