[Englecturers] February newsletter - writing contest, Paulo Coelho, movers & shakers

Mon Feb 25 20:33:56 PST 2008

Englecturers,

Here's our monthly newsletter from Goodreads--giving you the latest and greatest in our quest to connect people through reading!

Writing contest | Paulo Coelho | Movers & shakers | Featured authors | New features | Poem of the month 

Announcing the first Goodreads book review contest!

Do you think your literary insight runs deeper than New York Times critic Michiko Kakutani's? Or maybe you're as succinct as movie man Roger Ebert? Show us what you've got! We've chosen three books for you to praise or disparage.  Submit your reviews for consideration in the Goodreads Book Review Contest Group. The winning reviews will be featured as top reviews on Goodreads, and along with bragging rights, the best reviewers will also receive Amazon gift certificates.

This month's categories:
* New Fiction: The Witch of Portobello by Paulo Coelho
* New Nonfiction: In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto by Michael Pollan
* Classics: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/3159?al=NzQzMjUw-d7468e32a990a6234714a17ead704230211d55d9&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Feb_newsletter

A Goodreads exclusive -- interview with Paulo Coelho

The acclaimed author of the international bestseller The Alchemist talks with Goodreads about his life as a writer, his new book The Witch of Portobello, and his avant-garde filmmaking contest The Experimental Witch.

Do you have more questions for Paulo? He will be available on the Q&A Group with Paulo Coelho from now until February 29th!

http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/2897.Q_A_with_Paulo_Coelho

10 Questions for Paulo Coelho
Goodreads: The Alchemist was first published in 1988. Now 20 years later, how do you feel your writing style or priorities as a writer have changed over the many years of your career? Would you describe writing as your own Personal Legend?

Paulo Coelho: Last year I wrote a column about the way I felt about the release of my book, The Witch of Portobello. I was in Lisbon, just hours before the book was released in Portugal and in Latin America. I was walking along the streets of this marvelous city thinking about the moment when the first reader would touch the book in the shelves of the bookstore. I was excited and realized that I was still able, after publishing many books, to feel exactly the same way as in the release of my first book, The Pilgrimage. Of course, with success, the dimensions change but the inner feeling of sharing my soul with others remains intact. 

My personal legend has always been to become a writer. I’m glad I can say that I’m fulfilling my dream. But this must not be interpreted as "the end of the line"--on the contrary, I have to commit every day in order to stay in this path that I’ve chosen. One is constantly challenged -- even by success. 

GR: You have stated that each of your books was written over a period of only two to four weeks. Describe a typical day spent writing.

PC: When I finally feel I’m ready to embark on a new book, I always go through the following cycle that takes me from two weeks to a month. Before going to bed I have everything planned: I will wake up early and dedicate myself solely to the novel I’m writing. The only thing is, when I wake up I decide to browse through the net, then it’s time for my walk. When I come back I quickly check my mails and before I know it it’s already 2:30 p.m. and time to have lunch. After which I always take a sacrosanct nap. When I wake up at 5 p.m. I come back to my computer, check another set of emails, visit my blogs, read the news. Then it is already time for dinner – and at this point I’m feeling extremely guilty for not fulfilling my goal of the day. After dinner I finally sit at my desk and decide to write. The first line takes a bit but quickly I’m submerged in the tale and ideas take me to places that I never thought I would tread. My wife calls me to go to bed but I can’t, I need to finish the line, then the paragraph, then the page...It goes on like this until 2 – 3 a.m. When I finally decide to go to bed, I still have many ideas in my mind--that I carefully note down on a piece of paper. I know, though, that I’ll never use this--I’m simply emptying my mind. When I finally rest my head on my pillow I make the same oath--that the next day I’ll wake up early and that I’ll write the whole day long. But this is useless: The next day I wake up late and this cycle starts all over again. 

GR: Tell us about The Experimental Witch. How do you envision the finished product?

PC: I’m an "Internet addict" and decided last year to release one-third of The Witch of Portobello in my blog in several languages. Readers from all over the world could read the first 10 chapters and leave their comments. It was a great experience, and last year in July I wanted to further this interaction with my readers by inviting them to adapt the book for the screen. As you know, there are 15 narrators, and filmmakers are invited to choose one and film all the scenes where they interact with Athena [the main character]. Once their video is done, they are invited to post it on YouTube. Composers from MySpace are also invited to show their material until the end of May. The rules are equally on my blog.

Since this is an original idea, it’s very difficult to predict how the finished product will be. We have many directors in mind to edit the raw material from the readers, and the aim is to show the film in Cannes next year and then release it in movie theaters. 

Read the next seven questions: http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show_group/17500.10_Questions_with_Paulo_Coelho_Goodreads_Interview

Movers & shakers
Goodreads can tell you what's hot! These books have been racing up our most popular charts in the last month.

Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life by Steve Martin
Former stand-up comedian Steve Martin tells readers "why I did stand-up and why I walked away." This candid memoir is earning raves not only for its wit but also for its wisdom.
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/773858.Born_Standing_Up_A_Comic_s_Life

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz
Short story writer Junot Diaz delivers his debut novel, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, which tells the story of a nerdy but lovesick Dominican-American living in New Jersey.
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/297673.The_Brief_Wondrous_Life_of_Oscar_Wao

In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto by Michael Pollan
Following his bestseller The Omnivore's Dilemma, Pollan now tells us what to eat ("mostly plants"). Learn why humans have forgotten how to eat well, and find out who is profiting from our confusion.
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/315425.In_Defense_of_Food_An_Eater_s_Manifesto

Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi
Read the original graphic novel that spawned the Oscar-nominated film. Written by Marjane Satrapi, the book shows readers the Islamic Revolution in Iran through the eyes of a young girl.
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9516.Persepolis_The_Story_of_a_Childhood

Then We Came to the End: A Novel by Joshua Ferris
If you love The Office, Dilbert or even Catch-22, give Joshua Ferris a try. Written in first-person plural, this quirky book chronicles what is desperately funny about cubicle life and corporate collapse.
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/97782.Then_We_Came_to_the_End_A_Novel

Featured authors

Here’s an exciting sampling of new authors on Goodreads! You'll never guess what is on their bookshelves...

Jennifer Finney Boylan
This author's first memoir, She's Not There, was an Oprah-approved, runaway bestseller about being transgendered. Her second foray, I'm Looking Through You: Growing Up Haunted: A Memoir, combines the paranormal with issues of gender identity. Jennifer will be answering questions from March 3rd until March 14th in her group, Q&A with Jennifer Finney Boylan.
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/30973.Jennifer_Finney_Boylan

Brian Wood
Prolific comics creator Brian Wood transports his readers to a "near-future" New York City, now an Iraq-style war zone in the series DMZ Volumes 1-5.
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20493.Brian_Wood

Dorianne Laux
Dorianne Laux's fourth book of poetry, Facts About the Moon, was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award.
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/155377.Dorianne_Laux

New features
Thanks to your help, Goodreads is getting better every day! We are constantly working to improve and expand the site, and we welcome your suggestions. Tell us what you want by visiting the Goodreads Feedback Group. Here are some of our latest additions.

Events Revamped and Expanded
Who's coming? When and where? Goodreads wants to help the literary community connect online and in person. Check out all the new ways you can use events on Goodreads! You can search for events in your city and add upcoming events to any member profile, author profile, or group. Everyone can now record his or her RSVP and even figure out where to go using Google Maps. 
http://www.goodreads.com/event

Customize Your Book Links
Do you always check your local library before buying online? Or maybe you want Amazon.uk to be just one click away? Customize your "find at" links by clicking "more" and then "edit" from any book page. You can rearrange the links, delete the ones you don't want, and add new ones you create! 
http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/edit_list

Poem of the month

Sixty-Seven Years by Ruth Bavetta

and I’ve understood nothing
except the stretched weight of summer nights,
the burn of the sun at four o’clock,
the shadows of the eucalyptus,
the indifference of rain.
I wait for clouds to arrive from the west,
for my teeth, hair, skin,
bones, fingernails to thin;
and the sky smells of melting candles
and the trees are still. 

http://www.goodreads.com/story/show/7576.Sixty_Seven_Years

-- The Goodreads Team	

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