Where pop culture meets geek culture and they make out a little.
Posts tagged Bookmines
I’m waiting for the next piece of bad news.
Jun 23rd
Today started out well enough. I’m only working through Thursday this week as Friday starts a 10 day vacation, so I was in reasonably good spirits this morning until…
I heard on the radio that George Carlin had died.
For a long time I’ve considered Carlin a hero of sorts. I’ve never had a real big desire to be a stand-up comedian. But George Carlin was one of those few performers who could accurately be described as a “wordsmith,” and as a person who also fancies himself pretty handy with the…what do you call it when you make with the words in a certain order, sentences…I’ve always greatly admired his skill with language.
I will now share my epic failure with all of you.
Apr 28th
Longtime (well, not so long…) Normalinauts are aware of my second job, and what a wonderful job it is. And even though I’ve come to oddly enjoy the routine anal cavity searches, after seven years, I’m finding less and less reasons as to why I still work there (oh yeah, I know you’re reading this ms. love, but I know you know it’s nothing personal…).
One reason that I stuck around was an interesting…stunt?…the company was trying. As one who has a perfectly good fantasy novel sitting around, I was intrigued, you might say, at the prospect of getting it published in such a way that 500 bookstores across the country would all have it prominently displayed (and, no doubt, have some sort of “contest” related to the selling of said book).
Instead of selecting my book, the powers that be have decided to publish something called “The Killer of Orchids.” Sound good? Well, take a look at the synopsis that appears in the official press release:
“The Killer of Orchids,” follows two amateur sleuths, Xander Pooka, an 11-year old boy who is bright-beyond-his-years, and Jeff Redwing, a single, gay computer genius, as they investigate the murder of two local men by a samurai. Their investigation leads them into an underground ring where murder is the game and they become the hunted.
Maybe I’m just bitter, seeing as how my book was passed over, but doesn’t that synopsis seem like a joke or a bad SNL sketch. But my guess is that this thing makes it onto the New York Time’s Bestseller list. If everyone and his brother would read something as bad as The Da Vinci Code (which is probably one of the three worst books I’ve ever had the misfortune of reading) then no doubt “The Killer of Orchids” will find a large audience.
And if my novel lost to that, well then, what does that say about my writing?
The one small piece of information that I take solace in is that the winning novel will not be published until quarter 1 of 2009…by that time, Border’s may not, in fact, exist as a company anymore…
Joy Division – Heart and Soul
I have found my personal Mecca – Selexyz Dominicanen
Apr 9th
Selexyz Dominicanen is the name of a bookstore in Holland that was created out of the dormant husk of a 13th century Dominican Church. Behold!
Truly I must voyage there and pay homage to the gods of the written word in this most holy of places.
Read a bit more about it in this Guardian article or see even more pictures…
Thanks Mojo!