Let’s Discuss “Content”

This year, at the start of BEA, an interesting experiment will be happening.  Bloggers will be getting together at the first Book Blog UNCON.  This meeting will take place on Monday, June 4th, at The Center of Fiction in Midtown.

What does this mean for my readers?  Well, for most of you, probably not much.  But I have high hopes for UNCON.  Rather than the traditional conference format of panelists and audiences, UNCON will consist of group sessions and (what I, for one, consider) workshops where bloggers will discuss different ideas and topics relevant to the field of book blogging.

The organizers have asked attendees to propose sessions and topics they’d be interested in.  Here are some ideas I have.

I’d like to see a session about content. It’s an on-going conversation between Lori @TNBBC (Hollah!) and myself that I’d like to open up to a larger and more diverse group.   A big question I have is about finding and developing new content.  More specifically, I’d like to hear everyone’s opinions on -

  1. The Blogger / Publisher Relationship – Who determines what is Buzz-Worthy?
  2. What Do You Review? – Is it helpful to have a specific criteria for determining which books you request/review – or is it better to go by your gut?  Do you/should you look for diversity?  Do you browse publisher catalogs?  or wait for them to contact you?  What other sources are helpful?
  3. New Releases vs. Back Catalog – What % of each?
  4. Beyond the “Review” – That’s a pretty broad area that can include Blog Series, Memes, Blog Tours, Interviews, Vidcasts, Podcasts, Twitter, etc., etc… the possibilities are nigh endless.

That’s it… my two cents have officially been added.

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The Shortlists Are In

The Independent Foreign Fiction Prize

  • Blooms of Darkness by Aharon Appelfeld / Jeffrey M. Green, translator (Hebrew)
  • Alice by Judith Hermann / Margot Bettauer Dembo, translator (German)
  • From the Mouth of the Whale by Sjón / Victoria Cribb, translator (Icelandic)
  • The Prague Cemetery by Umberto Eco / Richard Dixon, translator (Italian)
  • New Finnish Grammar by Diego Marani / Judith Landry, translator (Italian)
  • Dream of Ding Village by Yan Lianke / Cindy Carter, translator (Chinese)

The Best Translated Book Award (Fiction)

  • Lightning by Jean Echenoz / Linda Coverdale, translator (French)
  • Upstaged by Jacques Jouet / Leland de la Durantaye, translator (French)
  • Kornél Esti by Dezső Kosztolányi / Bernard Adams, translator (Hungarian)
  • I Am A Japanese Writer by Dany Laferrière / David Homel, translator (French)
  • New Finnish Grammar by Diego Marani / Judith Landry, translator (Italian)
  • Stone Upon Stone by Wiesław Myśliwski / Bill Johnston, translator (Polish)
  • Scars by by Juan José Saer / Steve Dolph, translator (Spanish)

What’s the verdict, readers?  Pleased? Disappointed? Just confused?  I wish I could speak to these lists more, but all I can say is that I’m glad to see that both Umberto Eco and Sjón moved on to the next round of the Foreign Fiction Prize.  SO…

I have a proposition:  If you’ve read any of the books shortlisted for either prize, tell us what you think in the comments below.  If you’re a blogger and have a review up for one of the finalists, leave the link.  Or, if you’re in that kind of mood, feel free to bitch about your favorite book being overlooked.

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