It’s easy to mock The Atlantic for its really long articles, but it’s even easier when The Atlantic hires a known plagiarist and then seems shocked by the results.
What was the shocking part?
The plagiarist didn’t plagiarize!
Instead, the plagiarist made stuff up.
The short version is that The Atlantic hired a writer who had been caught plagiarizing a few years ago. I’m not bringing this story up to bash the magazine or even to bash the writer. It just demonstrates the unethical tactics writers sometimes use to get themselves published.
The long version is below.
*****
Editor’s Note: After The Atlantic published this article, new information emerged that raised serious concerns about its accuracy, and about the credibility of the author, Ruth Shalit Barrett.
We have decided to retract this article. We cannot attest to the trustworthiness and credibility of the author, and therefore we cannot attest to the veracity of the article.
We draw a distinction between retraction and removal. We believe that scrubbing the article from the internet would not meet our standards for transparency, and we believe it is important to preserve access to the article for the historical record. We have decided to take down the online version but to make available a PDF of the article as it appears in our November 2020 issue.
Read more here at Niche Sports Are No Longer an Ivy League Admissions Plan.
*****
Again, I’m not trying to bash anybody here, but this situation brings up interesting questions. Should The Atlantic have hired a known plagiarist? Should The Atlantic have hidden the plagiarist’s name in the byline? Should The Atlantic have done a better job checking up on the plagiarist’s work?
Should I even refer to the plagiarist as “the plagiarist?
*****
Enough with the questions! What do you think? What is worse, making up details in journalism or plagiarizing? How far would you be willing to go to get your writing published?
Back in the 1980s, Tama Janowicz was a (kind of) famous author in a group of young New York writers called the Literary Brat Pack. If you’re not aware of the 1980s, the Brat Pack was a group of actors/actresses who starred in a bunch of lightweight Hollywood comedies and dramas. They were nice looking and young.
The Literary Brat Pack were relatively young and nice looking… for writers.
Tama Janowicz had just published a book of short stories called Slaves of New York, and professors and students in my writing and literature classes talked about how great it was. It didn’t seem to be in my genre, but I wanted to see what was so great about it, so I began reading the first story, and this is what I saw:
*****
Modern Saint #271
After I became a prostitute, I had to deal with penises of every imaginable shape and size.
*****
What!? This acclaimed literary author was writing about dicks? It wasn’t just the first sentence either. The first couple paragraphs were about dicks. That kind of ticked me off. The esteemed Tama Janowicz had to resort to writing about dicks on the first page of her literary masterpiece.
This was my first moment of disillusionment with the literary world. What was I going to do if I wanted to become a well-known literary figure? Write about puss…? Never mind!
I went to another story just to see if it was any good. It was okay but nothing special. There were a couple student peers in my fiction writing class that had just as much talent but would never be successful like her.
At the time I wondered how a writer like her could become so acclaimed. Back then, it was really tough to research this stuff, and frankly, I didn’t care enough to do it. I just wondered for a moment and moved on.
Now I’ve had the chance to read about Tama Janowicz’s background. Her mom was a literature professor. She grew up in New York City. She hung out with Andy Warhol.
How would Tama Janawicz NOT have been successful it in the New York publishing scene? If you want to be a successful author, have a literature professor parent, grow up with New York connections, and (if you’re female) write about dicks on your first page. Also, write about drugs and depravity. Lots of depravity.
I might not be talented enough to become a successful literary writer, but it’s good to understand the formula.
*****
Enough about me! What do you think? Should a famous author resort to writing about dicks on the first page? What’s a bigger sign of desperation, putting profanity in a book title or writing about dicks in the first paragraph?
When the movie version of The Natural came out in the 1980s, I thought Robert Redford was miscast, even though I hadn’t read the book. Back then, I probably didn’t even know The Natural was a book.
At some point I found out that The Natural wasn’t just any book. It had been a highly acclaimed book. It had even received a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1952.
In the 1980s, Robert Redford was considered an aging stud, but he was still a stud. The Roy Hobbs character should have been played by an actor who wasn’t such a stud. The book doesn’t describe the younger Roy Hobbs much, except as “white faced, long-boned boy” and that second part doesn’t quite fit Robert Redford. I didn’t need that description, though, to know that Roy Hobbs shouldn’t have looked like a stud.
Roy Hobbs (in the book) has lots of self-doubt, and Robert Redford never looks like he lacks confidence. Even when his characters state that they lack confidence, they seem self-assured. That’s the movie producer’s/director’s fault, not Robert Redford’s.
And it’s not the book’s fault either. I usually don’t blame books for the faults of movies (unless I’m in a bad mood and want to pile on an author whom I dislike).
The Natural by Bernard Malamud (I guess I should mention the author’s name) is one of those books where readers will know within a few pages whether or not they’ll like it. It definitely reads like literary fiction from the 1950s. There’s a lot of overwriting(?) in older literature that feels awkward by today’s standards, and sometimes it seems like authors tried too hard to be wordy. Here’s an example from page 6 (in my paperback copy):
*****
After a troublesome shave in which he twice drew blood he used one thin towel to dry his hands, face, and neck, clean his razor and wipe up the wet of his toothbrush so as not to have to ask for another and this way keep the bill down.
*****
I’m not going to rewrite this sentence in a way that I like better. This was the style that 1950s literary fiction was expected to be written in, and I’m not a fan of it.
All that means is that I have no chance of winning a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in the 1950s. And I might not finish reading this book.
*****
Enough about me! What do you think? Was Robert Redford miscast in The Natural? What other famous actors/actresses have been miscast in movies based on famous novels? Do you like/appreciate the kind of sentence that I excerpted?
I admit I didn’t understand everything in The Big Short. This includes both the book by Michael Lewis and the movie. A lot of people pretend to understand, but I’m pretty sure they don’t.
Even though Michael Lewis is a good enough writer to make names and numbers interesting, I can’t always follow all the names and numbers when there are a lot of them. The movie had an advantage because the producers hired a bunch of attractive actors/actresses, wrote them some witty lines, and added music and graphics.
The audience reaction to a book/movie like The Big Short is often something like “How could they NOT see what was coming?”
According to the article linked below, something similar might (or might not) be happening again, and if it does happen again, most people won’t see it until it’s too late. But it will probably make for another cool book and another cool movie, and the audiences can again wonder how (statistically) nobody saw this coming.
*****
After months of living with the coronavirus pandemic, American citizens are well aware of the toll it has taken on the economy: broken supply chains, record unemployment, failing small businesses. All of these factors are serious and could mire the United States in a deep, prolonged recession. But there’s another threat to the economy, too. It lurks on the balance sheets of the big banks, and it could be cataclysmic. Imagine if, in addition to all the uncertainty surrounding the pandemic, you woke up one morning to find that the financial sector had collapsed.
You may think that such a crisis is unlikely, with memories of the 2008 crash still so fresh. But banks learned few lessons from that calamity, and new laws intended to keep them from taking on too much risk have failed to do so. As a result, we could be on the precipice of another crash, one different from 2008 less in kind than in degree. This one could be worse.
Read more here at Will the Banks Collapse?
*****
What do you think? Can you follow all the numbers in stuff like The Big Short or the linked article from The Atlantic? If so, does an article like the one linked above pose legitimate concerns, or does it simply promote baseless fear? When does expressing legitimate concern turn into fear mongering?
When struggling writers need advice about writing, they often turn to the book On Writing by Stephen King. That makes sense. Stephen King is one of the most successful American authors of the last 50 years, and every aspiring writer has heard of Stephen King’s most famous quotes:
“…the road to Hell is paved with adverbs…”
“The scariest moment is just before you start.”
“Kill your darlings.”
A lot of Stephen King’s writing quotes come from On Writing. But here’s a revealing quote from On Writing that I never see mentioned:
*****
I used to tell interviewers that I wrote every day except for Christmas, the Fourth of July, and my birthday. That was a lie. I told them that because if you agree to an interview you have to say something, and it plays better if it’s something at least half-clever (p.153)
*****
“Half-clever” is okay, but I prefer something truthful. Even though I’m not a fan of outright lying, King’s justification is more interesting than his admission.
If Stephen King was concerned about saying something “half-clever” in an interview, what would he do when he’s writing an entire advice book about writing?
Now I’m wondering how much of his On Writing book is bogus. After all, he had to write something.
Years ago, Stephen King used to do book reviews for a weekly entertainment magazine, and I was pretty sure that he hadn’t read the books he was reviewing. I’m not accusing him of writing fake reviews. I just wondered because I’d read some of the books he reviewed and it seemed like we had read two completely different books.
But if you write reviews for a weekly entertainment magazine, you have to write something.
I guess that’s the best advice you can give to a writer. You have to write something, and it plays better if it’s something at least half-clever.
*****
Enough about me. What do you think? Does this admission to lying mean that maybe Stephen King has lied about other things? Was Stephen King’s lie at least “half clever”? What do you think about Stephen King’s book On Writing?
Things change a lot over twenty years. Back in the year 2000, Harry Potter books were really popular, and JK Rowling was churning novels out almost on an annual basis. Plus, self-help books sold really well back then.
In the year 2020, books about President Donald Trump and racism are really popular. It’s kind of weird that in the year 2000 people who loved Harry Potter and self-help bought Harry Potter and self-help books, but in 2020 people who despise Donald Trump and racism keep buying books about Trump and racism.
With that in mind here are the Top Selling Books (all genres except children’s) in 2000 (according to Amazon.com Best Sellers of 2000 in Books):
1. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by JK Rowling
2. Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson MD
3. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by JK Rowling
4. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling
5. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by JK Rowling
6. Body for Life: 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strength by Bill Phillips
7. The Brethren by John Grisham
8. The Beatles Anthology: Beatles Gifts, The Beatles Merchandise, The Beatles Memorabilia) by The Beatles
9. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
10. Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids about Money- That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not by Robert T. Kiyosaki and Sharon L. Lechter
*****
Top Selling Books (so far) in 2020 (according to Amazon.com Best Sellers of 2020 in Books):
1. Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created The World’s Most Dangerous Man by Mary Trump
2. Where The Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
3. Midnight Sun by Stephanie Meyers
4. Untamed by Glennon Doyle
5. White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard For White People To Talk About Racism by Robin DeAngelo
6. The Room Where It Happened by John Bolton
7. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
8. How To Be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X Kendi
9. Rage by Bob Woodward
10. Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
*****
Some things don’t really change. In the year 2000, I was a cheapskate who didn’t buy best sellers when they first came out. That hasn’t changed. If I’m interested in a best seller, I’ll wait until I can find a cheap copy or check it out from the library.
Back in the year 2000, I didn’t read Harry Potter books because I’d already read (and gotten tired of) fantasy books by the time the Harry Potter books came out. I didn’t read self-help books because I thought most of the authors were scam artists.
Today, I don’t read books about Donald Trump because I can watch the news any time I want. I don’t read books about racism because I’m already anti-racist (or I’m too fragile).
*****
Enough about me! What do you think? How have your reading habits changed over the last twenty years?
When a classmate in college announced that his goal in life was to write THE Great American Novel, I thought, well, that’s kind of arrogant.
At that time, I was struggling to finish writing coherent short stories. Writing a novel would have been an accomplishment. Writing a great novel? Writing THE great American novel? That still seems too ambitious for me.
Critics can’t even agree what THE great American novel is right now. Below is a list of novels that make most Great American Novel lists. I don’t see my former classmate’s name on any of them. Actually, I don’t remember what his full name was, but I know his novel still hasn’t made the cut.
*****
Moby Dick by Hermann Melville
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
The Great Gatsby by John F. Fitzgerald
The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper
Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy
*****
I’m not saying any of these books are THE Great American Novel. I’m just saying they’re on various lists. There probably isn’t really any book that is THE Great American Novel. It’s just a silly topic designed to start stupid arguments when we should be reading books rather than arguing about them.
To be fair to my former classmate decades ago, he might have written THE Great American Novel, but it wasn’t recognized as such by literary agents or book publishers. My classmate wasn’t rich and didn’t have connections. I think he was a pretty good writer, though.
*****
Enough about me! What do you think? Do any of these books deserve to be acclaimed as THE Great American Novel? Is there really any such thing as THE Great American Novel?
Even though I’ve read only a few Agatha Christie books, I respect the heck out of what she accomplished. Yeah, a lot of her books were the same (meaning they had a very similar formula), but at least she was rewriting a really good book all the time.
*****
2020 marks 100 years since the publication of Agatha Christie’s first novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles – the book that introduced Hercule Poirot to the world. We’re celebrating 100 years of Agatha Christie stories with a host of activities and events for readers, viewers, listeners and fans. Join us as we celebrate what we love about the Queen of Crime, her timeless stories and her unique characters.
This year sees the release of Sophie Hannah’s new Poirot novel The Killings at Kingfisher Hill, as well as the big screen launch of Death on the Nile with Kenneth Branagh and an all-star cast, so you can expect plenty of exciting news and updates too. Read on to find out more. We’ll keep you updated on our website, and on social media using #100YearsofChristie.
Read more at 100 Years of Agatha Christie!
*****
It’s kind of weird for the Agatha Christie website to promote Sophie Hannah’s Hercule Poirot books. Maybe Hannah’s books are good, but they’re not really about the real Hercule Poirot; they’re about some guy who just happens to be named Hercule Poirot.
The same applies to other iconic fictional characters like Sherlock Holmes or James Bond or Conan the Barbarian. Anybody other than the original authors aren’t really writing about those characters. I should know; I used to read the impostor’s books. They were okay, but they weren’t really the original characters.
I don’t necessarily blame the Agatha Christie estate for hiring a new author for popular Agatha Christie characters. As a reader, I can usually spot the difference between the original and the newby. Thankfully, if I ever want to read another Agatha Christie novel, there are plenty to choose from.
*****
What do you think? Should estates hire new authors to write about iconic characters? Are these novels ever as good as the originals? What is your favorite Agatha Christie novel?
The Strand Bookstore in New York City is sometimes described as “historic” by shoppers or reviewers, but I’m not so sure. It opened less than 100 years ago, and I don’t think that’s really “historic.”
To me, maybe a location 150 years or older would be historic. To somebody from Europe or Asia or Africa, maybe a location has to be 1,000 years old to be “historic.”
Anyway, The Strand Bookstore in New York City (or somebody who works there) recently sent out a tweet asking for help or more business or thoughts and prayers.
*****
We need your help. This is the post we hoped to never write, but today marks a huge turning point in The Strand’s history. Our revenue has dropped nearly 70% compared to last year, and the loans and cash reserves that have kept us afloat these past months are depleted.
We have survived so much in the past 93 years, and we are ready to fight against all odds to keep The Strand alive, but we cannot do it without book lovers like you.
Read more here at Strand Book Store on Twitter:.
*****
I’m not suggesting that anybody should pitch in to help The Strand. I don’t know the owners. They might be dicks to their employees. They might have supported and voted for the government regulations that are destroying their business in the first place. There might be other better local book stores that deserve or need more help.
I don’t even have advice for the owners of The Strand. If my family ever goes to New York City, maybe we’ll stop by. I like historic bookstores, though I don’t think a store founded in 1927 is really “historic.”
*****
What do you think? How long should something exist before it can be considered historic in the United States? 100 years? 200 years?
There might be some authors today who are worth more than 10 million dollars, but I bet none of them could sell a single book for that price.
*****
A complete and original copy of Shakespeare’s very first printed collection of plays set a record Wednesday when it was auctioned off at just under $10 million. This was the first time in almost two decades a copy had hit the market.
Referred to as the First Folio, the collection was published in 1623, seven years after Shakespeare’s death.
“A complete copy of the First Folio comes up more or less once in a generation,” said Margaret Ford, the International Head of Books and Manuscripts at Christie’s. The auction house took bids in New York City, and said the sale establishes a world auction record for any printed work of literature.
Read more at Shakespeare’s Original First Folio Sells For Almost $10 Million.
*****
Even if I could afford a book like an original Shakespeare folio, I’m not sure I’d want it. I’d be paranoid that something would happen to it while in my possession.
When I sold a bunch of old, expensive comic books a couple years ago, I was almost relieved to get rid of them. I couldn’t enjoy reading them anymore because I didn’t want to accidentally rip a page or tear the paper and devalue them.
If I didn’t want to read my Silver Age comic books, just think how nervous this auction winner is when he’s reading an original Shakespeare Folio. Every time he touches it, the value could drop by hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Poor Shakespeare auction guy. He just bought a book that he can’t/shouldn’t really touch.
*****
Enough about me! What do you think? Would you even try touching such an expensive book? What old books would you like to own?
Dysfunctional Literacy 