The Written Nerd

I don' t often use this blog to plug stuff going on at McNally Jackson, but sometimes it's just too good. Thanks to the diligent efforts of mixmaster Steve and blogmaster Dustin (who, incidentally, will be ably taking over my job as McJ events coordinator as I move on to Greenlight), the McNally Jackson blog is now a talkie. It's our inaugural event podcast ! We've been sound recording author events for months now, hoping to preserve some of the great live conversations for posterity. At last, we've edited and hosted one of the best -- the star-studded March 30 poetry event with Robert Pinsky, Sharon Olds, Mark Strand, and Philip Schultz. Click over to the McNally Jackson blog -- if only to see the awesome picture of Dustin attempting to stuff a book into his ear. The audio sounds great -- all those resonant poet voices! Leave lots of comments so we know you're listening, and we'll feel all motivated to do some more.

If you have zero to do today, or you're one of those people who can listen to talk radio and work at the same time, here's a little something: BookExpoCast: "What’s Hot, What’s Good, What’s Next in Graphic Novels" This is a panel I sat on at BEA with others far more expert than I: Nick Smith, a librarian with the Pasadena Public Library, Atom Freeman, the extremely knowledgeable owner of Brave New World Comics in L.A. County, and Tom Flinn with comics/pop culture trade rag ICv2 . Milton Griepp of ICv2 was the moderator. Aside from hearing the slightly annoying (lispy/boyish) sound of my voice, you might learn a thing or two about what's been doing well in various comics markets, and what to look forward to. This was where I learned about the Starman Omnibus , which I read with pleasure this summer, and it cemented my desire to read Scott Pilgrim , which has become a teensy obsession. Happy Friday!