Dear winways,
Welcome to the October 2014 State of the Thing! This month we're looking to hire a new programmer, AllHallowsThing is here at last, and we're doing an appropriately horror-themed ReadaThing! We've also got an interview with The Toast co-creator Mallory Ortberg.
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AllHallowsThing Contest
Halloween is nigh, which means that the AllHallowsThing contest is here! Whether you celebrate as an excuse to get all dressed up yourself, or would rather decorate a pumpkin, we want to see your best literary-themed Halloween efforts. Check out Sylak's Cthulhu Pumpkin (inspired by the work of H.P. Lovecraft) winning submission from last year at right.
Glory and prizes could be yours! We're accepting submissions now through Monday, November 8th. Details are on the blog. Come post your questions and comments on Talk.
Spooktacular ReadaThing
ReadaThing is a long-standing group that hosts one of my favorite LT traditions: relay-style read-a-thons. LibraryThing members across the globe volunteer for time slots, such that we've always got someone reading around the clock for the duration of the ReadaThing.
The week of Halloween, we'll have a ReadaThing launching at midnight UTC between Friday, October 24th and Saturday, October 25th (that's 8pm Eastern on Friday). The read-a-thon will end 96 hours later, at 7pm Eastern on Friday, October 31st.
ReadaThing participants can read whatever they want, wherever they want, whenever they want, though we're aiming for a timely horror theme for this one. What will you be reading? Tell us all about it on Talk.
» Check out this Talk post to learn more and sign up!
Planning on reading, but not sure when? That's okay, too! There's always room for readers who don't want to commit to a specific timeline. See this wiki page for details.
Find Us a Programmer
As LibraryThing continues to grow, so too does our staff. We're in need of a brilliant programmer to join our ranks full-time. Are you a PHP hacker who also happens to love books? Then chances are, we're looking for you. Come work with us in Maine, or telecommute!
Know someone who fits the bill? Send them our way! If we end up hiring a person you've referred to us, we'll give you $1,000 worth of books, in the form of a gift certificate to your favorite bookseller!
» See the blog post to apply!
Talk of the Thing
LT Members Help Each Other Out. LibraryThing members are raising funds to help out the husband of long-time member Morphidae. Ken (MrMorphy) has been battling retinal cancer for some time now. If you'd like to contribute, please visit their YouCaring site. We're rooting for you, MrMorphy!
Book Prizes and You. When a book or author wins a prestigious prize, like the Nobel or Pulitzer, we're used to seeing an uptick in popularity for that author. Do prizes affect your reading or book-purchasing habits? Tell us what you think on Talk.
Q&A with Mallory Ortberg
Co-creator of The Toast, Mallory Ortberg, has written for Gawker, New York Magazine, The Hairpin, and The Atlantic. Her first book, Texts from Jane Eyre: And Other Conversations with Your Favorite Literary Characters (out November 4, 2014) is the next step in the popular Texts From series featured on The Toast. It is also a riot.
Your book is essentially what it says on the tin, but, in case anyone is unclear on the subject, could you tell the audience at home what Texts from Jane Eyre is all about, in a nutshell?
Sure. It is... it is slightly less gimmicky than it sounds, I think, because it's really very specific jokes about very specific literary characters. The premise, you know, is pretty much "WHAT IF CELL PHONES BUT THE PAST," but the phones aren't really the point, the point is all the horrifically selfish behavior exhibited by some of our favorite protagonists throughout the Western canon. It's jokes about books.
As someone who is hailed as the Queen of the Internet (or at least a very specific subset of the Internet) right now, why did you decide to turn Texts from Jane Eyre into a book? Was there a particular story or character the served as a jumping-off point?
Oh gosh, to be quite honest, I decided to turn it into a book because someone offered me money to do it. I mean, I don't think the offer would have been made if the series didn't seem viable, but basically someone said "I think this would make a good book and here is some money to prove it," and I said "Thank you," and wrote enough words to earn that money. Otherwise I'd probably just have kept on doing it for free on the internet, like a chump.
It started as just Texts From Scarlett O'Hara, but then I found myself thinking about so many other literary characters, and I didn't want to stop. By Little Women, I think, I'd realized that this was something a lot of people were having fun with, not just me, and that it was the sort of thing that could go on for a long time.
You can see Mallory talk more about the beginnings of the Texts From series—and her inspiration for the book—here.
You seem to have a deep and abiding love for the source materials in a lot of Texts from Jane Eyre. Who were your favorite and/or least favorite characters to write text sessions for?
I DO. Oh, Lord, do I ever. I have no unfavorites in the book, any unfavorites were speedily culled from earlier drafts, but I think Jo March and Mr. Rochester have to rank pretty high. Maybe William Blake. The really creepy ones, who yell a lot, they're quite dear to my heart.
» Read the full interview here.
Free Books: Early Reviewers
You are not currently signed up for LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program. You are missing out!
Early Reviewers offers free books to members—about 100 titles a month! Since 2007, we've given out over 160,000 books. The catch? Publishes want your honest review. How you review a book won't help or hurt your chances of winning books in the future, but not reviewing your winning will.
» Sign up for Early Reviewers
The October batch of Early Reviewers books contains 3,247 copies of 125 different titles. The deadline to request a free book is Monday, October 27th at 6pm Eastern. Look for the November batch around the 5th.
The most requested books so far from the October batch:
More free books: Member Giveaways
At any given time, there are hundreds of books available from our Member Giveaways program. It's like Early Reviewers, but isn't limited to select publishers—any author or member can post books. Request books, or offer your own!
Hot titles this month
- The Martian by Andy Weir
- The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd
- Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
- Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
- Allegiant by Veronica Roth
- The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
- The Circle by Dave Eggers
- Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
- The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
That's it for this month! I'll see you in November.
Questions, comments, ideas? Send them my way.
—Loranne (loranne@librarything.com)
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