Lit Links

We had a guest blogger scheduled for today but a family emergency prevented him from contributing. So that we don’t have that ever-so-sad blank space, here’s a round-up of some recent great links.

Ever wonder happened to fan mail for J.D. Salinger? One of the people assigned to read his fan-mail reader reflects on the experience.

Here’s a quote from the article: “Every day, a bundle of mail was dropped on my desk by the office secretary, much of which consisted of letters addressed to Salinger. The letters came from Sri Lanka or the Netherlands or Arizona. They included deeply personal admissions—cancer diagnoses, bankruptcy, divorce—and were often written in Salinger's own brash style or, at the very least, incorporated the slang of the period he chronicled. "Dear Jerry, you old bastard," they tended to start.

Laura Miller from Salon.com shares her best advice to writers. Here’s a snippet: The components of a novel that readers care about most are, in order: story, characters, theme, atmosphere/setting.
Speaking of writing advice, several illustrious authors offer their own rules for writing fiction. Elmore Leonard says this: Never use the words "suddenly" or "all hell broke loose". This rule doesn't require an explanation. I have noticed that writers who use "suddenly" tend to exercise less control in the application of exclamation points.

Could it be true? Is the discussion of creative writing more popular than creative writing itself.?

Are you all a twitter about how to use social networks for promotion? Here’s some tips. For instance then author says, “You can’t build meaningful connections with fans by just talking about yourself all the time.” Who knew?

Finally, does James Frey have multi-personalities? Some say he might be John Twelve Hawks.