Should I focus on…
a) finishing my novel and then trying to get it published, or
b) figuring out how I will coax my face to look this good on the book jacket? Book jacket pics are the new MySpace photos.
We’re all looking at you, Marisha Pessl, with your glamorous black and white publicity shot and your flashy website and your Bookslut interview. This is my favorite review of your overrated debut novel:
Over media hyped writer who has sandwiched a 200 page clever yet not very well concluded mystery in 500 pages of pretentious literary references. So great, Marisha — you’ve read a plethora of literature. Big deal – most good writers have but to thrown it into your writing to make yourself sound impressive — how sophomoric and shame on your editor for not cutting most of it out — a marketing ploy for sure. It is not so much a means of developing Blue’s bookish persona as a clever book selling idea to pack it with references to great works in literature — so that when these names get dropped in book reviews the work sounds more intellectual than it really is. Same with having the main character be a student at Harvard — ah, the mere mention of this great institution gives the character more merit than she deserves. (Why not have her go to your alma mater instead? — Barnard not good enough, huh?!!) Using great names and works of literature to beef up a so-so juvenile mystery.
People can be so mean! 🙂
PS Full disclosure – I’ve never read the book. But I trust Dominic. He is a scientist and he’s in this month’s Crutchfield Electronics catalogue.
Focus on “A.” “B” shouldn’t be a problem. Bet you look just as good in black and white. : )