Balancing key foundational topics with new developments and trends, Engagements with Narrative offers an accessible introduction to narratology. As new narrative forms and media emerge, the study of narrative and the ways people communicate through imagination, empathy, and storytelling is especially relevant for students of literature today. Janine Utell presents the foundational texts, key concepts, and big ideas that form narrative theory and practical criticism, engaging readers in the study of stories by telling the story of a field and its development. Distinct features designed to initiate dialogue and debate include: Coverage of philosophical and historical contexts surrounding the study of narrative An introduction to essential thinkers along with the tools to both use and interrogate their work A survey of the most up-to-date currents, including mind theory and postmodern ethics, to stimulate conversations about how we read fiction, life writing, film, and digital media from a variety of perspectives. A selection of narrative texts, chosen to demonstrate critical practice and spark further reading and research "Engagement" sections to encourage students to engage with narrative theory and practice through interviews with scholars This guide teaches the key concepts of narrative—time, space, character, perspective, setting—while facilitating conversations among different approaches and media, and opening paths to new inquiry. Engagements with Narrative is ideal for readers needing an introduction to the field, as well as for those seeking insight into both its historical developments and new directions.

Fictional novelists and other author characters have been a staple of novels and stories from the early nineteenth century onwards. What is it that attracts authors to representing their own kind in fiction? Author Fictions addresses this question from a theoretical and historical perspective. Narrative representations of literary authorship not only reflect the aesthetic convictions and social conditions of their actual authors or their time; they also take an active part in negotiating and shaping these conditions. The book unfolds the history of such ‘author fictions’ in European and North American texts since the early nineteenth century as a literary history of literary authorship, ranging from the Victorian bildungsroman to contemporary autofiction. It combines rhetorical and sociological approaches to answer the question how literature makes authors. Identifying ‘author fictions’ as narratives that address the fragile material conditions of literary creation in the actual and symbolic economies of production, Ingo Berensmeyer explores how these texts elaborate and manipulate concepts and models of authorship. This book will be relevant to English, American and comparative literary studies and to anyone interested in the topic of literary authorship.

This volume investigates the changing definitions of the author, what it has meant historically to be an 'author', and the impact that this has had on literary culture. Andrew Bennett presents a clearly-structured discussion of the various theoretical debates surrounding authorship, exploring such concepts as authority, ownership, originality, and the 'death' of the author. Accessible, yet stimulating, this study offers the ideal introduction to a core notion in critical theory.

Accurate and reliable biographical information essential to anyone interested in the world of literature TheInternational Who's Who of Authors and Writersoffers invaluable information on the personalities and organizations of the literary world, including many up-and-coming writers as well as established names. With over 8,000 entries, this updated edition features: * Concise biographical information on novelists, authors, playwrights, columnists, journalists, editors, and critics * Biographical details of established writers as well as those who have recently risen to prominence * Entries detailing career, works published, literary awards and prizes, membership, and contact addresses where available * An extensive listing of major international literary awards and prizes, and winners of those prizes * A directory of major literary organizations and literary agents * A listing of members of the American Academy of Arts and Letters

Written by a quartet of straight-talking author-lawyers, this is the most comprehensive and thorough reference guide on publishing law--in an easy to read format.

Print Culture and the Medieval Author is a book about books. Examining hundreds of early printed books and their late medieval analogues, Alexandra Gillespie writes a bibliographical history of the poet Geoffrey Chaucer and his follower John Lydgate in the century after the arrival of printing in England. Her study is an important new contribution to the emerging 'sociology of the text' in English literary and historical studies.At the centre of this study is a familiar question: what is an author? The idea of the vernacular writer was already contested and unstable in medieval England; Gillespie demonstrates that in the late Middle Ages it was also a way for book producers and readers to mediate the risks - commercial, political, religious, and imaginative - involved in the publication of literary texts.Gillespie's discussion focuses on the changes associated with the shift to print, scribal precedents for these changes, and contemporary understanding of them. The treatment of texts associated with Chaucer and Lydgate is an index to the sometimes flexible, sometimes resistant responses of book printers, copyists, decorators, distributors, patrons, censors, owners, and readers to a gradual but profoundly influential bibliographical transition.The research is conducted across somewhat intractable boundaries. Gillespie writes about medieval and modern history; about manuscript and print; about canonical and marginal authors; about literary works and books as objects. In the process, she finds new meanings for some medieval vernacular texts and a new place for some old books in a history of English culture.

Provides a blueprint for researchers to follow in a wide variety of investigations. Introduces an alternative approach to conducting author cocitation analysis (ACA) without relying on commercial citation databases.

Frustrated with the plethora of conflicting information on how to self-publish? Wouldn’t it be wonderful to sit down with someone who has already made the mistakes, done the analysis, and will provide you the short cuts—the secrets about the things that work? Now you have that chance with the Career Author Secrets series. Indie Publishing (Self Publishing) has changed dramatically in the past five years. There are now new, easier tools to use for every part of the process—editing, formatting, distribution, sales, and analysis. This boxset contains three books. Secrets Every Author Should Know: Publishing Basics It contains everything a DIY author needs to get her book from manuscript to professional publication in both ebook and print, including: * Why books don’t sell * Options for DIY or contracting professionals *The truth about ISBNs & Copyright Registration * Secrets for formatting your book the easy way * Creating book covers that sell * Making decisions about distribution Secrets to Pricing and Distribution: Ebook, Print and Direct Sales Once you have a finished book, you need to get it into readers’ hands. Loading your book to a vendor looks deceivingly easy. However, the career author knows that each vendor has its own methods for promoting books, performing searches, and identifying ready buyers. You need to take advantage of these differences in order to maximize your profits and discoverability. Capitalize on competitive retail pricing in different markets, and use effective metadata to draw more readers to your books. Learn to: * Write compelling book blurbs for each title that focus on “reader cookies” and • marketing. * Unlock keywords and get access to hidden category options. * Take advantage of search algorithm nuances at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, and Apple. * Use aggregators to increase distribution opportunities around the world. * Evaluate opportunities for direct sales to bookstores and individual consumers. Secrets to Effective Author Marketing: It’s More Than ‘Buy My Book’ This book provides specific techniques to exploit the value of your books without resorting to the typical overexposure in social media and newsletters with “Buy My Book” sales messaging. Instead, focus on the top three proven techniques that actually sell books. Follow step-by-step instructions and timelines to learn how to: 1) Create an Effective Plan for Communicating to Readers; 2) Use Social Media and Email lists to Engage with Your Readers; and 3) Plan for Effective Campaigns for both Book Launches and Backlist Rejuvenation throughout the year. In addition this book provides techniques to: * Distinguish specific groups of readers most likely to buy your novel or nonfiction book. * Understand your competition and the advantages that your book offers. * Clarify hooks that capture attention of the media, reviewers, and readers. * Identify where and how to reach readers, reviewers, and media. * Create and implement a consistent brand throughout all marketing efforts. * Effectively select, from 100+ options, the appropriate marketing tactics and timing that matches your book intentions and values. * Maximize organic reach and stay to a budget of less than $100 per book campaign. * Develop a long-term online marketing plan.

The most celebrated authors of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales are immortalized not only in their writing but also in the museums, libraries, and other memorials dedicated in their honor. Over 300 sites devoted to 40 authors are covered in this guide. The sites range from restored historic homes to memorial statues. Each entry describes the site and its history, placing it within the context of the author's life and career. Directions are provided to help the reader reach each site; telephone numbers, admission prices, and hours are also included for the traveler's convenience. The text is illustrated with photographs from these historic and literary homes, libraries, and other important memorial locations. Postage stamps commemorating the writers are also included.