http://pubbuzz.com/http://pubbuzz.com/http://pubbuzz.com/domains/pubbuzz_com/images/user/header_logo_pubbuzz.gif2005 PubBuzz - The Author Video News Network - Interviews, Readings, Book Reports and Book Fairs, All Rights Reserved. http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#508Mon, 23 Aug 2010 2:14:00 AM EDTThree of America's fast-rising stars in the literary universe today--Jonathan Lethem, Michael Thomas, and Ben Greenman--took the dais at the 2009 Miami Book Fair International to read from and talk about their new works. First up, New Yorker book critic and author Ben Greenman provided the premise for his latest novel, loosely based on the life of Sly Stone Please Step Back (Melville House; April, 2009), not to be confused with his recently released book of short stories, What He's Poised To Do (Harper's Perennial; June, 2010). Greenman read three passages, the first dealing with his main character's inspiration from tragedy as a youth, followed by a passage detailing his main character's sudden career breakthrough in 1968, and ended with a passage set in 1972 when the main character is at the peak of his career. Next up, award-winning, bestselling author Jonathan Lethem introduced his latest winner, Chronic City (Vintage paperback reprint; August, 2010), and read a long passage wherein eagles are nesting in New York City creating a clash between nature and modern civilization. Winner of the 2009 International Impac Dublin Literary Award for his debut novel, Man Gone Down, Michael Thomas wrapped up the reading part of the program by introducing a non-fiction, autobiographical work-in-progress and then reading a passage on fatherhood. The authors then took a few questions from the audience, who asked Lethem about progress on the movie version of his first novel Motherless Brooklyn, his blend of comics, sci-fi, and high-brow literary storytelling styles, and the themes Of Chronic City. Greenman and Thomas took the final question about the blurred line separating fiction and non-fiction. Then Greenman, followed by Lethem, and Thomas each contemplated their process of creating characters, and shared their thoughts on their processes for discovering their voice for each book they write.http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#508http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#505Tue, 03 Aug 2010 1:55:00 AM EDTWith an introduction by Los Angeles times crime and suspense fiction columnist Sarah Weinman, widely praised crime fiction authors James Ellroy and Colin Harrison took the stage at the 2009 Book Expo America convention to take some of the mystery out of their crime fiction. Weinman began the discussion by asking Ellroy and Harrison to consider social values through the lense of their crime fiction and followed up with a question to Harrison about his New York City plot settings and to Ellroy regarding his self-described 'mega-maniacal' impulse toward global storytelling. Harrison then outlined his novel Risk (Picador; September, 2009), and Ellroy described the final installment in a trilogy, which began in 1995 with the publication of American Tabloid followed by The Cold Six Thousand six years a later, andconcluding with Blood's A Rover, now out in paperback (Vintage; August, 2010). Weinman asked Harrison about the process and challenges of serializing Risk in The New York Times Sunday Magazine before publishing the work in book form, and asked Ellroy to comment on his serialization of The Hillicker Curse in Playboy and his pursuit of women, which led to a discussion of how Harrison, who is himself a book editor, worked with editors of his work, and likewise, how Ellroy worked with a variety of editors over fifteen years to shape his trilogy. Admitting that he writes his novels by hand in part to avoid turning on his computer, where he might be tempted to view pornography, Ellroy then confessed to having fallen madly in love with one of Harrison's editorial colleagues although she was happily married, and offered his rationale for highly romantic women characters in his novels, wherein Weinman asked Harrison about the female characters in his novels. Noting that a lot had happened in the nine years between the second and the third book in the trilogy, Weinman wondered how current events played into Ellroy's storytelling process,to which Ellroy responded with an emphatic declaration that he preferred to live in a vacuum so that he could shape the world in his novels as he wants. Harrison then wrapped his portion of the discussion with a few comments on the latest trends in publishing, and Ellroy paid homage to the relative value of books vs. movies.http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#505http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#504Tue, 03 Aug 2010 1:53:00 AM EDTWith an introduction by satirist and host of the Daily Show Jon Stewart, the bestselling author Mary Roach took the stage at BookExpo America 2010 to unpack a few details about the latest in her unlikely series of science books, Packing For Mars (W.W. Norton; August, 2010). Known for her quirky research into such topics as cadavers, sex, and the afterlife, Roach entertained several hundred booksellers and publishing professionals over what Stewart called a 'muffin bucket' breakfast with an explanation of zero-gravity bowel movement technology essential to the quality of life in space flight. Roach then thanked booksellers for their support and took questions from the audience seeking tips for aspiring authors; using her husband in research for Bonk, her book about sexual intercourse; the best strategy for getting published, to which she suggested getting an agent and recommended starting the agent search at AgentQuery.com; and comments on her working relationship with her editor.http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#504http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#503Fri, 16 Jul 2010 8:17:00 AM EDTA native of Uganda and now Interim Senior Director for External Relations and Development for the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Michigan State University, Twesigye Jackson Kaguri was recently introduced by Nyaka AIDS Orphans board member and fundraiser Ann Hopkins at the RiverRun Bookstore in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where he talked about his personal mission and his book--The Price of Stones (Viking; June, 2010). Transporting the audience to a tiny outpost called Nyaka in the wilderness of Uganda where he was born, Kaguri told the story of his own stubborn determination to get an education at an early age, his first encounter with the term human rights while a student at Uganda University, and how he subsequently managed to get into Columbia University in faraway New York City against all odds. Kaguri's life changed dramatically when he returned home to Nyaka and found his brother, a father of three children, dying of AIDS, a disease that had ravaged Uganda and left 2.2 million children orphaned in a country of 32 million people. Kaguri recalled his brother dying in his arms, whispering, 'Take care of my children.' Knowing that the best way to take care of children was to educate them, Kaguri began laying the foundation for a school for AIDS orphans in Nyaka, beginning with 56 'poorest of the poor' students and two teachers working for $50 per month, which today provides a quality education for 407 students. Kaguri developed a unique holistic educational approach, including not only the pencils and books necessary for learning, but also the medicine, hygiene, and support networks to enable children to attend school in a sustainable and meaningful way with few dropouts. After providing statistical proof of his remarkable educational success story, Kaguri closed his presentation with the inspirational story of 12-year-old Bruno's determined dream of living a better life through education, and the moving story of 6-year-old Scovia, one of the few Nyaka orphaned students suffering from AIDS, whose last wish was to be buried in her school uniform.http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#503http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#499Fri, 02 Jul 2010 12:35:00 PM EDTWidely acclaimed (Associated Press, Time, Newsweek, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, etc., etc.) bestselling novelist Jennifer Egan brought her latest Escherian tour de force, A Visit From The Goon Squad (Knopf; June, 2010), to BookExpo America 2010 for an exploration of the written and spoken word with BBC Audiobook America's marketing director Michele Cobb. After comparing notes on choosing voice actors for audio books such as A Visit from the Goon Squad (BBC Audio; June, 2010), Egan and Cobb drilled down on audio book production values, followed by a discussion of Egan's last-minute decision to include a slideshow chapter in her new novel and the challenges of audio adaptations of novels. Egan and Cobb then discussed the question on everyone's mind regarding publishing's digital transition and closed their presentation with Egan's comments on the significance of rock 'n roll music references in A Visit from the Goon Squad before opening it up to questions from the audience on Egan's potential young adult market; the meaning of the novel's title; and her hand-written writing process.http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#499http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#497Wed, 16 Jun 2010 8:27:00 AM EDTAward-winning voice actor Scott Brick, who has narrated over 400 audiobooks since he launched his audiobook career in 2000, introduced one of his favorite clients, master storyteller Nelson DeMille at BookExpo America 2010 with a reading from of a scene from DeMille's latest John Corey blockbuster, The Lion (Grand Central Publishing; June, 2010), the long-awaited sequel to his huge thriller The Lion's Game, first published ten years ago. DeMille went through the development of the John Corey character and the epic battle between Corey and his arch-enemy Asad Khalil, from the first John Corey novel, Plum Island, through the fourth in the series, Wild Fire, which he never intended to become a John Corey novel. The #1 New York Times bestselling author then reflected on the autobiographical elements of the John Corey character and his inspiration to create a completely politically incorrect character as his detective hero, and contemplated the future of John Corey thrillers in a world at war with terrorists. DeMille then took questions from fans in the audience focusing on his research for the third John Corey novel and an earlier blockbuster, Nightfall and Mayday, respectively; the inspiration for his ninth novel, Spencerville; his views on outlining plots before writing the novel; his analysis of creating a strong character in audiobook readings; the impact of the growth of e-books on book publishing; and what Scott Brick calls the 'Gatsby Moment' in The Lion.http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#497http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#486Fri, 23 Apr 2010 1:30:00 AM EDTColson Whitehead's award-winning, meteoric literary career blazed briefly in the middle of the 2009 National Book Festival, where the author introduced his 'autobiographical fourth novel' Sag Harbor, now out in paperback (Anchor; June, 2010), set in a predominantly black neighborhood in the summer playground of the ultra rich and famous. Having set the stage with provocative and entertaining visual aides, Whitehead proceeded to read two passages from the book, first introducing his main adolescent characters Benji and Reggie waiting for an older friend with a car to pick them up followed by a passage illustrating the painful adolescent awkwardness of going to a barber shop and coming out with a really bad afro. Whitehead wrapped his performance with a short description of his evolution as a man and a writer.http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#486http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#493Mon, 24 May 2010 4:29:00 AM EDTWith an introduction by long-time friend of the Miami Book Fair, Mark Chapman in an auditorium that bears his family's name at Miami Dade College, where the book fair is held annually, famed Pulitzer Prize winning historian Taylor Branch began the event with recollections of Bill Clinton from college days to working on the McGovern presidential campaign, in Texas where Branch he got to know the young Hillary and Bill first hand. Branch then described how startled he was when President-elect Bill Clinton approached him about creating secret presidential tapes, an unthinkable idea in the post-Watergate era, covering the eight years of Clinton's presidency in a total of 79 taping sessions. The first taping session Clinton reviewed Bosnia and gays in the military options, Branch said, noting that the book based on the tapes, The Clinton Tapes, recently released in paperback (Simon & Scuster; June, 2010) is a first-hand record of a President at work, not a biography of his life and legacy. When the Monica Lewinsky scandal broke into the headlines, Branch continued taping despite Clinton's apprehension the Clinton impact on Hillary and Chelsea. Branch wrapped his book event regaling the audience with a story about Boris Yeltsin's drunken escape from Blair House, eluding security, in search of pizza.http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#493http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#496Sat, 12 Jun 2010 10:18:00 AM EDTWith an introduction by stand-up comedian and author of the forthcoming Zombie Spaceship Wasteland (Scribner; January, 2011) Patton Oswalt, Vanity Fair columnist and iconoclast journalist/political pundit Christopher Hitchens took the podium at the 2010 BookExpo America author's lunch, also featuring Sara Gruen (Ape House) and William Gibson (Zero History), to introduce his tell-all memoir Hitch-22 (Twelve; June, 2010). With typical bad-boy aplomb Hitchens proceeded to entertain the over 800 booksellers and publishing pros at the lunch with naughty limericks to illustrate the virtues in economies of writing style before 'outing' himself and running to catch a plane, receiving a hasty send-off from lunch host Oswalt. Hitch-22 landed at #11 on the New York Times non-fiction bestseller list the following week. http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#496http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#494Sun, 06 Jun 2010 11:58:00 AM EDTKicking-off the 2010 BookExpo America (BEA)book trade show at the Javits Center in New York City, BEA Event Director Steven Rosato called attention to the rapid expansion of e-book publishers at the convention. Rosato then introduced American Booksellers Association CEO Oren Teicher, who dispelled the 'end of books' rumor making its way around the industry, followed by the Association of American Publishers CEO Tom Allen, who noted that book sales were up 8% this year industry-wide, and closed with Rick Joyce, Chief Marketing Officer Of Perseus, offering another digital innovation for book people at BEA. Over the next two days nearly 22,000 industry professionals poured into the convention halls to talk business and meet the authors, including bestselling author Bruce Feiler autographing his recently release memoir The Council of Dads (William Morrow; April, 2010); romance writer Debbie Macomber autographing her new novel Hannah's List (Mira; April, 2010); thriller writer Lee Child signing his latest Jack Reacher blockbuster 61 Hours (Delacorte Press; May, 2010); mystery maven Mary Higgins Clark autographing her latest page-turner The Shadow of Your Smile (Simon and Schuster; April, 2010) along with her bestselling daughter Carol Higgins Clark inscribing her new Regan Reilly mystery Wrecked (Scribner; April, 2010); Scott Spencer signing his forthcoming literary work of fiction Man in the Woods (Ecco; September, 2010); and the renowned man of high fashion Tim Gunn autographing his new book, Gunn's Golden Rules (Gallery; September, 2010)--among others. Stay tuned for lots more BEA videos in the coming weeks. http://pubbuzz.com/index.cfm?module=news#494