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09-21-11: Tad Williams and Deborah Beale at SF in SF on August 13, 2011


"...and you will notice that Antony has never stayed with any of the publishing companies he's founded..."

—Tad Williams

Even the most skilled court reporter could not have kept up with this conversation, and not just because the content was often on the outré side. To be honest, most of what Deborah Beale, Tad Williams, the audience and I discussed on that Saturday night was simply hard-nosed business talk about publishing.

Here's how that happens. Take a husband-and-wife team of bestselling fantasy writers and ask them about e-book, e-publishing and how well the big NY houses are handling this now. Then step back a few feet, because the shrapnel is going to be hazardous. Rest assured that Big Publishing sometimes seems quite intent on studying the biggest mistakes of the music business and repeating them. One can imagine a scenario that involves libraries and copyright violations, because the idea is rapidly becoming that you can buy books, but not loan them.

Or, conversely, that you can read books and not pay for them. Matter and anti-matter may help send the Enterprise scooting about the galaxy (but not beyond the edge, oh no, lest the monsters getchya!), but they don't make for a sensible policy with regards to paying skilled authors to write and getting an attention-deprived, money-deprived, and time-deprived population to read.

I'm feeling much better now. What one can discuss with great authority, with these two fabulous writers, are their inspirations, from literature to landscape. You can hear the incendiary results by following this link to the MP3 audio file.




09-20-11 UPDATE: Podcast Update: Time to Read, Episode 10: George Pelecanos, 'The Cut'


Here's the tenth episode of my new series of podcasts, which I'm calling Time to Read. The podcasts/radio broadcasts will be of books worth your valuable reading time. I'll try to keep the reports under four minutes, for a radio-friendly format. If you want to run them on your show or podcast, let me know.

My hope is that in under four minutes I can offer readers a concise review and an opportunity to hear the author read from or speak about the work. I'm hoping to offer a new one every week.

The tenth episode is a look at the work of George Pelecanos and his latest novel, 'The Cut.'

Here's a link to the MP3 audio file of Episode 10: Time to Read: George R. Pelecanos, 'The Cut.'




09-19-11: A 2011 Interview with Lev Grossman

Click image for audio link.

"I'm gonna write it ... and if Viking doesn't publish it, everyone can just come over to my house and look at it on my laptop."

—Lev Grossman

I had so much fun reading 'The Magician King' that I couldn't wait to talk to Lev Grossman about his latest novel. Grossman's novel was a wonderful hoot, but also a ripping yarn. That's a combination that I can really enjoy.

It is also the sort of thing that lends itself well to discussion, because unless you were on the right wavelength, the comedy is not really obvious. That is precisely what makes it so damn funny. Grossman took his world and his characters seriously, then found language that turned everything upside down, but not in a nutty manner. This is not the sort of broad satire that is we frequently see done (and done well), but a more subtle, though no less hilarious brand of humor.

Grossman and I talked about how he wrote the book, and his process is really surprising. Here's where I'm going to let you get it straight from the author; we start with a great 2-minute reading and then plunge into a really fun interview. You can find your way to Fillory by following this link to the MP3 audio file.



New to the Agony Column

09-05-15: Commentary : Susan Casey Listens to 'Voices in the Ocean' : Science, Empathy and Self

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Susan Casey : "...the reporting for this book was emotionally difficult at times..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 213: Susan Casey : Voices in the Ocean: A Journey into the Wild and Haunting World of Dolphins

08-24-15: Commentary : Felicia Day Knows 'You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost)' : Transformative Technology

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Felicia Day : "I think you have to be attention curators for audience in every way."

08-22-15: Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 212: Felicia Day : You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost)

08-21-15: Agony Column Podcast News Report : Senator Claire McCaskill is 'Plenty Ladylike' : Internalizing Determination to Overcome Sexism [Incudes Time to Read EP 211: Claire McCaskill, Plenty Ladylike, plus A 2015 Interview with Senator Claire McCaskill]

Agony Column Podcast News Report : Emily Schultz Unleashes 'The Blondes' : A Cure by Color [Incudes Time to Read EP 210: Emily Schultz, The Blondes, plus A 2015 Interview with Emily Schultz]

08-10-15:Agony Column Podcast News Report : In Memory of Alan Cheuse : Thank you Alan, and Your Family, for Everything

07-11-15: Commentary : Robert Repino Morphs 'Mort(e)' : Housecat to Harbinger of the Apocalypse

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Robert Repino : "...an even bigger threat. which is us, the humans..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 208: Robert Repino : Mort(e)

07-05-15: Commentary : Dr. Michael Gazzaniga Tells Tales from Both Sides of the Brain : A Life in Neuroscience Reveals the Life of Science

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Michael Gazzaniga : "We made the first observation and BAM there was the disconnection effect..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 208: Michael Gazzaniga : Tales from Both Sides of the Brain: A Life in Neuroscience

06-26-15: Commentary : Neal Stephenson Crafts an Eden for 'Seveneves' : Blow It Up and Start All Over Again

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Neal Stephenson : "...and know that you're never going to se a tree again..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 207: Neal Stephenson : Seveneves

06-03-15: Commentary : Dan Simmons Opens 'The Fifth Heart' : Having it Every Way

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Dan Simmons : "...yes, they really did bring those bombs..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 206: Dan Simmons : The Fifth Heart

05-23-15: Commentary : John Waters Gets 'Carsick' : Going His Way

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with John Waters : "...you change how you would be in real life...”

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 205: John Waters : Carsick

05-09-15: Commentary : Jeffrey A. Lieberman, MD and 'Shrinks' : A Most Fashionable Take on the Human Mind

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Jeffrey A. Lieberman, MD : "..its influence to be as hegemonic as it was..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 204: Jeffrey A. Lieberman, MD : Shrinks: The Untold Story of Psychiatry

04-29-15: Commentary : Barney Frank is 'Frank' : Interpersonally Ours

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Barney Frank : "...while you're trying to change it, don't ignore it..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 203: Barney Frank : Frank: A Life in Politics from the Great Society to Same-Sex Marriage

04-21-15: Commentary : Kazuo Ishiguro Unearths 'The Buried Giant' : The Mist of Myth and Memory

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Kazuo Ishiguro : ".... by the time I was writing this novel, the lines between what was fantasy and what was real had blurred for me..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 202: Kazuo Ishiguro : The Buried Giant

04-17-15: Commentary : Erik Larson Follows a 'Dead Wake' : Countdown to Destiny

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Erik Larson : "...said to have been found in the arms of a dead German sailor..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 201: Erik Larson : Dead Wake

04-15-15: Commentary : Peter Bell Reflects 'A Certain Slant of Light' : Strange Stories of Modern Scholars

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2014 Interview with Peter Bell : "...I looked up some of the old books..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 200: Peter Bell : Strange Epiphanies and A Certain Slant of Light

03-14-15: Commentary : Marc Goodman Foresees 'Future Crimes' : Exponential Potential

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Marc Goodman : "...every physical object around us is being transformed, one way or another, into an information technology..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 199: Marc Goodman : Future Crimes: Everything Is Connected, Everyone Is Vulnerable and What We Can Do About It

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