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the literary scene

By Erica Schwiegershausen 7/19/12 12:00pm

the literary scene

Writer Steve Fishman, recounting his Jason Bourne moments while hunting Bernie Madoff.

At Ebook Launch Party, New York Writers Dish on Getting Lady Gaga and Bernie Madoff to Talk

The mood was largely self-congratulatory Monday night at the celebratory release of New York Magazine’s first ebook, a collection of the magazine’s 26 most popular stories from the past five years, published by Byliner. New York staff and readers gathered at The Half King, singing praises to the publication over sliders and spinach salad and interrogating writers on their celebrity interview techniques.

New York editor-in-chief Adam Moss introduced “three of the longer lasting writers at the magazine,” Steve Fishman, Vanessa Grigoriadis and Jennifer Senior, who each read selections from their iconic cover stories—a profile of Bernie Madoff, Lady Gaga, and a sociological exploration of “why parents hate parenting,” respectively.

In the Q&A that followed, Ms. Grigoriadis was asked about her ability to “seduce the celebrity, to get her to … share intimate details of her life, only to end up reading a piece in which many things are said about her that she doesn’t particularly wish were said about her.”

“I never do that!” Ms. Grigoriadis replied indignantly. “I don’t know what you are talking about,” she added, with only a trace of irony. Read More

By Christine Chen 6/29/12 6:10pm

the literary scene

Ishle Park, poet laureate of Queens, reads to the audience.

Asian American Writers’ Workshop Launches Three New Magazines

The Asian American Writers’ Workshop’s magazine launch party expected only around 300 guests to come and support their three new titles, but ended up hosting a much larger audience of all races and ethnicities.

“There were over at least 1,000 people at the party over the course of the night, likely more,” said Sara Faye Lieber, writer and digital media strategist for AAWW.

Participants ranged from Theresa Li, an activist for DREAM Act, to Marguerite Desir, a designer from the West Indies with diamond-studded sunglasses and a heavily beaded necklace.

“It’s connecting the dots together,” Ms. Desir said. “I believe we are all connected, and in not staying to one tradition and spreading it out.”

The crowd only quieted down to a loud murmur when the party’s main event began and speakers such as artist Julio Salgado, Bhangra music mixer DJ Rekha, Queens poet laureate Ishle Park, writer Tao Lin and Christina Xu, founder of the Awesome Foundation, took the stage. Even then Comedy Central’s Hari Kondabalu, sent several quips towards the food and drinks stands in addition to his repertoire of race-related jokes. Read More

By Erica Schwiegershausen 6/20/12 4:45pm

the literary scene

Sheila Heti.

Sheila Heti’s Book Launch Last Night: A Serious Meditation on Genius, Blowjobs and Bagels

Sheila Heti’s new novel, How Should a Person Be?, is dedicated to Margaux Williamson, a main character who is the best friend of the book’s protagonist—Sheila—and, not exactly by coincidence, is Ms. Heti’s best friend in real life as well. Last night, at a launch party for the book at powerhouse Arena, the real Ms. Heti spoke into a microphone as the real Ms. Williamson sat in the front row.

“When I showed Margaux the first draft of this book,” she said, “I thought she was going to say, like, ‘This is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever read.’”

How Should a Person Be has the subtitle “a novel from life,” and it consists, in part, of a compilation of fictionalized emails and interview transcripts. Ms. Heti recounted the experience of showing Ms. Williamson her manuscript in real life, a process that is also documented in the novel. “It’s interesting to have characters that tell you that you did the wrong thing,” Ms. Heti said. Read More

By Christine Chen 6/20/12 1:50pm

the literary scene

The lady-filled crowd at the first annual VIDA fundraiser. (Photo: Jaclyn Rachel Green-Stock)

VIDA Supporters Party to Fight the Byline Patriarchy

It was a regular, quiet Monday night of muted jazz and pool games in most of the bars down North 11th Street. The red brick warehouse of the Brooklyn Brewery, however, reverberated with the chatter of a 300-plus crowd, gathered in support of the first annual VIDA fundraiser, sponsored by Riverhead Books.

VIDA, a nonprofit organization that supports women in literary arts, was formed almost three years ago to tally up the inequalities between men and women authors and poets. The resulting statistics, called “The Count,” shook the publishing world by revealing the low percentage of female-authored published work–The New Republic, for instance, only published 78 women overall in 2010, compared to a whopping 344 men.

It’s not surprising, then, that most of the guests at the fundraiser were young women. “It’s like a Mt. Holyoke mixer with Emerson boys,” Sande Boritz Berger, whose writing career spans the last four decades, remarked. Read More

By Erica Schwiegershausen 6/14/12 11:30am

the literary scene

Sadie Stein and Amy Warren (as Dorothy Parker) read from a 1957 Paris Review interview.

Wallace Shawn Arrives Late, Leaves Early from Inaugural Paris Review Literary Salon at the Strand

“Home away from home” is a cliché that The Observer never expected to hear from Paris Review editor Lorin Stein, especially to describe the Strand—which, until yesterday, had refused to carry The Paris Review.

However, for reasons that remain elusive, the two institutions have decided to put the past behind them (and, in the case of the Strand, disregard the company policy which dictated no magazines). The new kinship was cemented last night with an inaugural reading in the Strand’s rare books room—the first of a series of monthly literary salons—as well as the unveiling of a collaborative Strand/Paris Review tote bag.

“They’re not just going to carry the magazine but they’re going to advertise for us,” Mr. Stein told the audience somewhat smugly. “All is forgiven.” Read More

By Daniel D'Addario 6/05/12 2:46pm

the literary scene

Judith Regan (Getty Images)

Lambda Literary Awards Strike A Celebratory Note

“The empire still stands,” said master of ceremonies Kate Clinton at last night’s Lambda Literary Awards, honoring gay and lesbian literature. “We’re all Cuomo-sexuals now.”

Ms. Clinton was referring to last summer’s legalization of same-sex marriage, among the many other positive changes for gay citizens over the past year. She wasn’t afraid to delve into Read More