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Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Blooks?

Posted by Paul Constant on Wed, Nov 19, 2008 at 1:10 PM

One of my current pet peeves is blogs that have been turned into books. The A.V. Club lists 27 such books, and reviews them for content and whether you can get the same information by just reviewing the blog's archives. It's a much more thorough look than I ever would have the intestinal fortitude to undertake.

As a sample, here is their take on my least-favorite blog that has been turned into a book, ever:

4. Hot Chicks With Douchebags (hotchickswithdouchebags.com)

Hot-Chicks-With-Douchebags.thumbnail.jpgThough he defines a douchebag as "An unattractive or offensive heterosexual male characterized by some or all of the following characteristics: overly gelled hair, popped collar, bling, orange tan, overwhelming aura of arrogance," Jay Louis readily applies the term to the spectrum of skeevy, shiny men who populate his blog Hot Chicks With Douchebags. Though the questionable classification of "hot chick" seems mainly based on cup size and lack of clothing, the men to whom these supposed objects of desire cling are unquestionably worthy of mockery—even if the term "douchebag" is as overused and nebulous as "hipster." And the word gets a workout in Louis' book adaptation, which flogs the joke to death with a lengthy classification of douche-types (such as The Fratbag, The Gangstabag, and The Eurobag, which is somehow different from The Greasy Euro-Douche), a glossary of mostly made-up terms (douchepocalypse, scrotifact, woo hotties), and anecdotes of Louis' own close encounters with douchedom. It's a sort-of funny gag that wears extremely thin over 200-plus pages, especially once you realize that, like hipsters, those most likely to call out and mock so-called douchebags most likely have a whiff of doucheness themselves.

I can't do any better than that. It's a great post, and you should read it all.

 

Comments (15) RSS

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1
Oh, man. HCWDB is a FANTASTIC blog. I check it every day. I wouldn't buy the book, but the scrotes and bags and Prompa Loompas featured there are hysterical beyond belief. I mean, come on -- check out this guy:

http://www.hotchickswithdouchebags.com/u…
Posted by Fnarf on November 19, 2008 at 1:31 PM
2
Hot Chicks With Douchebags should be renamed Douchebags with Douchebags.
Posted by jrrrl on November 19, 2008 at 1:33 PM
3
You missed the part about one of the douchebags suing the author:

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/yea…
Posted by oscar on November 19, 2008 at 1:45 PM
4
Paul it's pretty obvious that you're a douchebag. Look at your picture. It's ok that you worked the counter at Barnes and Noble for a decade and haven't got your master work published yet. The irony of party crasher is so much more deep, I'm offened you didn't get a book deal. I'm glad to see (fixed gear/skinny jean/ugly ironic tat's/crappy music on vinyl/going to linda's)douchebag stick up for (Gelled hair/abercrombie/ugly meaningful tat's/ crappy music on 93.3/ going to Earls) d-bag. This is the unity we've been missing in this country
Posted by mike on November 19, 2008 at 2:11 PM
5
three of the douchebaguettes are also suing. though it's hard to see how they show damages by being called "hot chicks."
Posted by ellarosa on November 19, 2008 at 2:23 PM
6
I have not once been tempted to buy a book based on a blog I like. And I definitely read some of those blogs on that list of 27. Someone must buy them, I guess, otherwise publishers wouldn't still be scrambling to capitalize on the “it” blog of the moment.
Posted by Julie in Chicago on November 19, 2008 at 2:33 PM
7
Good comment about how the Waiter Rant has destroyed the very thing that got it a book deal. The blog is shit now. Same with "Clublife", not mentioned in the article.

But this kind of book has been around forever. You could call them "bathroom readers". They've been sitting on bookstore counters (and all kind of giftie shoppes) since they first figured out how to print the covers in color. They're impulse buys, no different than those "funny signs" books at the travel store.
Posted by Fnarf on November 19, 2008 at 2:56 PM
8
Blooks is a keen idea. Seriously, the worst part about writing is forcing yourself to write, and blogs sometimes get you going, by allowing you to call out the inner editor amongst all your frenemies.

I've thought the only way i'll get back to my old productive writing habits is if I do a Blook.
Posted by Will in Seattle on November 19, 2008 at 3:02 PM
9
Um, Will? You can't have a blook if you don't have a blog first. What are you going to do, make a book out of your Facebook page? God knows we're all waiting with bated breath for yours.
Posted by Fnarf on November 19, 2008 at 3:07 PM
10
See that's the prob, Fnarf, I really despise blogs - or at least doing the lead post on them.

I meant more of a book writing blog, where you posted the portions as you completed them, and then let people critique them.
Posted by Will in Seattle on November 19, 2008 at 3:16 PM
11
You get right on that, Will.
Posted by Fnarf on November 19, 2008 at 3:22 PM
12
@ 2
for real
Posted by laureney on November 19, 2008 at 6:13 PM
13
I just spent some time reading the A.V. Club comments on that post, and they were so pedantic and characterless that I stopped in the middle of a sentence and closed the window in disgust. Slog may not be perfect, but it's home.
Posted by Aislinn on November 19, 2008 at 6:54 PM
14
If anybody turned my blog into a book, and then other people bought the book, I think that would be pretty awesome. But who would buy what can be accessed on the interwebs for free?
Posted by joneser on November 19, 2008 at 8:18 PM
15
I can't believe they missed Better Living through Bad Movies. Seriously, awesome book.
Posted by Shoe on November 20, 2008 at 8:38 AM

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