You Think He's Going To Buy It?
We wish you nothing but the best. Success is good for you, us, the world. We also wish for the success of literary endeavors — most of the time. Maybe it’s just that our version of literary success and someone else’s version of literary success cross in the overlapping mutuality of the Venn diagram. Either way, books get published, writers get paid and readers get happy. Padgett Powell once said, “You don’t think anyone is actually going to buy it?” after reading from his work on a book tour. That sad prediction is forgotten as we join Padgett in his geographic comfort zone — rural Florida. But does a comfortable locale equal a comfortable state of mind? Read more in Deadspin. Normally we’ll drink to the success of any old reading endeavor, but the Kindle is destroying our parents’ libraries, the thought of which makes us sick. Speaking of sick, Terry Gross has an interview that explains how moonlighting as a professional dominatrix is a way to fund your path to greatness, Heidegger’s brilliance leads to Hitler, and Vollman’s Imperial County reminds us that everything ties together. Just like a group of literature professors bashing acclaimed novels for a quick payday. Hey, everyone has a different version of literary success, right?. — Andrew Geer
