George Orwell’s 1984 is being ripped off, rewritten and sold on Amazon. He’s not alone, and it’s not easy to get Amazon to act according to NYT:”This is not really negligence on Amazon’s part. It is the company’s business model. Amazon, which does not break out revenue or profit from bookselling or publishing, assumes that everyone on its platform operates in good faith until proven otherwise. “It is your responsibility to ensure that your content doesn’t violate laws or copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity or other rights,” it tells prospective publishers.”
An opera director explains why an operatic adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing fits perfectly into a 1950s American setting (“The community is extremely tight-knit; everyone knows everyone and, returning from a War when they were simply three of many, Claudio, Benedick and Don Pedro return back to the bosom of their town as notable personalities – big fishes in small ponds.”). The director also discusses how the characters fit into that era (“She’s the token ‘Queen’ of the High School Prom – the girl all the boys want, but will never be allowed to get. Think Sandy, rather than Rizzo!”).
“Jesus came to earth, told us stories for three years, and then left. His ministry, as remembered by the people he taught, was primarily ordered around the stories he told and the story of his life he gave them.” Samantha Field discusses the role of story in Christianity.
“Her breasts, of which she was normally proud, had withdrawn into themselves, as if depressed.” and other bad examples of men writing women.
Michelle Berger talks about her first encounter with Toni Morrison’s writing.
Punisher co-creator Gerry Conway says (correctly, I think) that cops wearing Punisher logos don’t get that the Punisher isn’t like them: he’s stepping in because the system failed, where they are the system. Over at Atomic Junkshop my co-blogger Greg Hatcher takes a broader look at people missing the point of the story. Something I’ve written about before.
“Characters don’t have to be actual historical figures, but they need to seem authentic to the time period and place in which the story is set.” One of the insights historical novelist Miriam Herin shares in an interview with Michele Berger.
Genre bending: who decides what qualifies as a country music song?
I’ll end, for not reason other than I like the image, with this pulp cover. Art is uncredited.
#SFWApro. All rights to image remain with current holder.
