Archive for October, 2009

Winners of the 50 Word Crime Noir Challenge

In September our Reader Challenge asked you to write a crime noir in 50 Words. Thanks to all who participated–so many of you submitted great mini-crime stories, making for a great challenge. Our guest judge James Ellroy just picked his three winners.

Without further ado, here, in no particular order, are the winning crime noirs. Congratulations! Each winner will receive a free signed copy of Blood’s a Rover, Ellroy’s new novel.

“Not What It Seemed” by seagoat
 I almost fell for the dame. She murdered Case and now she was going down. She yanked her little gun from her purse and fired. She was a lousy shot. I slugged her beautiful face. The wig flew off. I gaped. Then I kicked him in the crotch.

Untitled, by mstrust
“It’s done?” she asked.
He had a photo as proof. She looked closely. Held out a bag.
“Killing his girlfriend was cheaper.”
“You hired someone else?” He sounded hurt.
“Simple job,” she smiled.
He shook his head.
“Scorned women keep me in business.”
“Hits?”
“Arrests,” he said, pulling his badge.

“A Friend in Need” by snailgenie
In trouble again.
She wiped the rain out of her eyes, or was it tears?
He hesisted…
She wasn’t the brightest bulb, but then again, he often had a hangover.
He sighed and offered her his coat.
Later, he’d regret leaving his handcuffs in the pocket.

Read all the entries in our Reader Challenge forum.

Halloween Reads

The origins of All Hallow’s Eve go back to the Celts, whose autumn festival Samhain celebrates the end of the “lighter half” of the year and beginning of the “darker half.”

Come to the dark side with one of our spooky books. And have a very happy Halloween.

Announcing The Publishing Point

We are excited to announce the next stage in the evolution of the Digital Publishing Group. Since we launched it six months ago, the group has grown to 300 members from all over the publishing industry, and we’ve received great reviews from such talks by bestselling author Seth Godin; head of digital for Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Gail Horwood; the CEO of Lexcycle/Stanza, Neelan Choksi; HarperStudio’s Debbie Stier; and the founder of Tumblr, David Karp. We think the time is now right to build on our success, expand our core mission, widen our range of programs, and build in community tools. Inspired by members’ ideas, we have big plans ahead, plans that we believe make it appropriate to change the name of the group. So say a fond farewell to The Digital Publishing Group and join us in giving a warm welcome to The Publishing Point.

We’d love all of you who’ve joined The Digital Publishing Group via MeetUp (and any of your colleagues/friends) to now become part of our expanded community on Ning. You’ll benefit from being able to communicate with fellow members and learn about all the cool stuff we’re launching. It’s easy to join, and best of all, it’s completely free. You can also follow us on Twitter—@publishingpoint—and tweet about us using the hashtag #pubpt.

So here’s our new and improved mission statement:

Publishing today is being transformed. Whether we’re authors, agents, publishers, or booksellers—everything about the way we create, publish, distribute, market, and sell is changing.

A transforming industry demands a new type of organization, an organization that supports, encourages and enables change. The Publishing Point is that organization.

What is The Publishing Point? The Publishing Point is a community excited about change, a community that empowers professionals and inspires innovation. The Publishing Point is a forum that recognizes that change comes from all directions—from the bottom, top, inside, and outside our industry. The Publishing Point is a conversation where we share and debate the issues that shape everything we do.

The Publishing Point is about information, education, training, and news; it’s about the ideas and resources for our changing industry. But it’s more than that. The Publishing Point is a movement. A movement for those passionate about change—the changing reader, the changing book, the changing opportunities, and the changing industry.

Be part of the transformation. Be part of the future. Be part of the movement. Be part of The Publishing Point.

To Trick, or To Treat: That Is the Question

Have you ever dressed as a literary character for Halloween (or would you like to)? Maybe Dracula, or Alice from Alice in Wonderland, or Max from Where the Wild Things Are?

Tell us about your costume in our Question of the Week forum.

If you have any pictures of it that you’d like to share, send them to us at support [at] dailylit [dot] com and we’ll post them here on our blog.

New Short Fiction by Laurel Dewey — Free on DailyLit

As we first mentioned in our newsletter, we’re excited to launch the first of five new novellas from Laurel Dewey, a fresh voice in crime writing. Unfinished Death, a novella written for DailyLit readers, features Dewey’s signature–and incredibly well-loved–heroine Denver Police Detective Jane Perry, a character who has had a striking impact on readers.

We’ve seen some comments from our own readers that show how well-loved Jane Perry is. Recently in our forums Lad525 said “I love the realness and straight talking attitude of her main character, Detective Jane Perry.” And Wildcat1733 was excited too:

“I just signed up with Daily Lit when I found out about them serializing original short stories by Laurel Dewey. Thank you! Thank you! I’ve read both Jane Perry novels (PROTECTOR and REDEMPTION) and devoured them. She has quickly become one of my top ten favorite writers. If you like your fiction gritty, creative, character-driven and thought-provoking, you too will LOVE Laurel Dewey’s stories.”

For her part, Dewey, who has said that Jane came to her, fully formed and “demanded that [Dewey] learn about her,” was surprised by how much her readers responded to Jane:

“I wasn’t prepared for was the massive connection Jane Perry would have with readers who ranged in age from fourteen to ninety. While her impatient, gritty, and often foul-mouthed behavior irritated some people, they also admitted that they couldn’t stop reading. The majority were drawn to Jane’s intelligence, compassion, intuition and brutal honesty, as well as the indelible impression she makes as a survivor….What was intriguing was that readers didn’t so much want to be like Jane; rather, they wanted to hang out with her.”

Unfinished Death–published for the first time on DailyLit–drops us into Jane’s world in the dark days before her first novel, Protector. We’ve been able to make this story–and the four novellas that will come out over the next four months–absolutely free thanks to the publisher, Storyplant, who’s counting down to the launch of Dewey’s book Redemption in February 2010. Enjoy!

If you’d like to read more about readers’ reactions to Jane Perry, visit Laurel Dewey’s site.

DailyLit News: October 2009

Note from the CEO
It’s a month of style, soup, and spooks.  Check out our new DailyLit Style line launching with Shoes, Bags and Tiaras featuring stunning objects from the Victoria & Albert museum collection. We’ve also got recipes from Molly Katzen (known for her bestselling Moosewood Cookbook); the spooky Legend of Sleepy Hollow as our new Big Read; oh, and for the beat of a different drummer, we’ve got a new memoir from Stewart Copeland, drummer for The Police.

Susan Danziger
Founder and CEO, DailyLit
susan [at] dailylit [dot] com

New! DailyLit Style Kicks off with Shoes, Bags, and Tiaras
We’ve created DailyLit Style to bring you fashion, art and style of all kinds. Kicking off this line is Shoes, Bags, and Tiaras featuring objects from the Victoria & Albert Museum in London sent directly to your inbox one gorgeous object at a time. Read it—FREE.

New Reads: Recipes, A Rocker, and More
—Get Cooking by Mollie Katzen: The author of the best-selling “Moosewood Cookbook” has just released a brand new collection of recipes, from Genuine Mac & Cheese to Chocolate-Peanut Butter Crunchy Things; we’ve got a taste for you. Read it—FREE.
—Strange Things Happen by Stewart Copeland: He’s the drummer for The Police, one of the most successful rock bands of all time. Find out what happened backstage, pictures and all. Read it—FREE.
—Unfinished Death by Laurel Dewey: In anticipation of the paperback release of Dewey’s detective novel, “Redemption,” each month we’re releasing one original, never before published story featuring her inimitable character, Jane Perry. Read this month’s story—FREE.

DailyLit’s Big Read: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
With Halloween approaching, we’ve made the classic short story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow our next Big Read. Join us in following our hero Ichabod Crane into the dark, misty woods. Read it—FREE:

Reader Challenge: Tea with the Queen
As a tribute to the launch of “Shoes, Bags, and Tiaras” from the Victoria & Albert Museum collection, this month’s Reader Challenge will challenge you to invite an unlikely character for tea with the queen.  Describe this encounter in one sentence and post your royal responses in our Reader Challenge Forum. (For those of you who took part in last month’s challenge, winners will be announced shortly.)

Fresh Voices, Fresh Tastes
We’re proud to announce the launch of two series from our very own DailyLit Externs: Authors in the Kitchen by Megan Halpern features bestselling authors, including Audrey Niffenegger (The Time Traveler’s Wife), talking about cooking and the stories that spice it up. The Ghost in the Pantry by Erin Ferretti-Slattery features recipes and stories that highlight’s her own family’s rich history. Read Authors in the Kitchen or The Ghost in the Pantry—FREE.

DailyLit Selects (This Week: Malcolm Gladwell)
DailyLit Selects is our on-going series of excerpts from new and noteworthy authors. This week we’re featuring an excerpt from Malcolm Gladwell’s new book What the Dog Saw. You can also check out excerpts from Dan Brown’s new book and Oprah’s latest book club pick. Read DailyLit Selects—FREE.

Question of the Week #47: Words to Live By

This week’s Question of the Week was inspired by a conversation Susan had with @gretchenrubin (of The Happiness Project) who mentioned that she was asking people about their favorite expressions or words to live by. What’s yours?

Head to our Question of the Week forum to share.

DailyLit Launches DailyLit Style with V&A’s “Shoes, Bags and Tiaras”

I’m excited to announce two DailyLit firsts.  DailyLit has partnered with its first museum, the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, to launch a series entitled Shoes, Bags and Tiaras. This series features (no surprise) a particular pair of shoes, bag, or tiara selected from V&A Publishing’s collection sent periodically to your inbox.

This series also launches DailyLit Style, a series dedicated to the engaging world of style in all its senses.  It’ll be a fun and quirky series meant to surprise and enlighten.  We’ll also look to our readers to suggest additions to DailyLit Style so if you have any ideas, please let us know here.

Stewart Copeland’s “Strange Things Happen” Free on DailyLit

As the drummer for the Police, Stewart Copeland has lived the life of a rockstar.  Strange Things Happen is his new memoir of the crazy days he’s experienced, and you can read it for FREE on DailyLit, thanks to its publisher, HarperStudio. The book includes Copeland’s memories, personal photographs, and, yes, stories about Sting.

Head backstage with Copeland. It’s a wild ride. Read Strange Things Happen–FREE.

Question of the Week #46: Childhood Favorites

To celebrate this week’s release of Where the Wild Things Are, based on the classic children’s book, tell us: what was your favorite book as a child?

Head to our Question of the Week forum to share your response.

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