Posts from — July 2008

In the ongoing effort to make book trailers more viral and buzzed-about, a McSweeney’s author named Deb Olin Unferth hired a quirky animator and even quirkier comedian named Maria Bamford to bring her newest work to life. MediaBistro’s GalleyCat makes the good point that the video for Olin Unferth’s forthcoming novel “Vacation” is more colorful and interesting than the written promotional material it. Check out the video below, then look at GalleyCat to read the McSweeney’s blurb. What do you think?

Do you have a quirky book that needs a good home? Why not send a query letter to a genius literary agent like Max & Co: A Literary Agency and Social Club. They like humor, they like quirky, and hopefully they’ll like YOU! WordHustler wants to help your dreams become a reality, so get Hustlin!

Records. 8-Tracks. Laser discs. As technology marches on, the accessories constantly evolve. Remember cassette tapes? Neither do most people…unless you’re a lover of books on tape. But now even audio-novels have evolved into books on CD. What does this mean for those beloved little plastic and ribbon beasts? The New York Times was present at a funeral for the hard-working but outdated cassette tape, held at Hachette Publishing. The cassette tape is survived by its older brother, the compact disc, who himself has not been looking well ever since the advent of MP3s.

Read the full article on the New York Times HERE.

Do you have a novel you’d like to one day become a book on tape…er, CD…um, downloaded/read on Kindle/beamed directly into readers’ brains?  Why not take the first step towards glory by sending a query letter to a fiction publisher like Overlook Press? Your words. Their eyeballs. They should meet. WordHustler wants to help! Yay!

The New York Times ran an interesting article about the evolution of reading and how, not surprisingly, youths today read more online than in print. But therein the question lies: is reading a blog the same as reading a magazine article? Does reading comments on your Facebook profile really count? And what about novels? Remember those?

For more laments about the future of literacy (kidding…sort of) check out the article HERE.

Do you have a book you’d like to see being read (in print or online, let’s not split hairs) by children everywhere? Why not send a query and writing sample to Chronicle Books? They publish an eclectic mixture of traditional and innovative children’s books. Wait a minute: eccectic…innovative…hey, that’s just like you! Go to WordHustler and start shaping young minds today!

Sorry for the radio silence, fellow Hustlers! We’ve been revamping and refining the site a wee bit, and have also launched our special, fun, good-times 99 Cent Query extravaganza! That’s right. For only $0.99 you can send out query letters, poetry submissions, or any other masterpiece up to four pages. This price includes the shipping costs AND a SASE!

Is this a deal? Yes. Your ticket to superstardom? Fingers crossed.

Go to www.WordHustler.com today and get started! Be sure to check out our other new prices, which have also been lowered so you, our fellow writers, can maximize your exposure without minimizing your wallets. At these low of prices, you can’t afford NOT to send your brilliance out to the world! Hustle on!

Well, if you haven’t seen it, you’ve been living under Iraq. Sorry, a rock. Critics, pundits, and voters alike are all buzzing about The New Yorker’s “satirical” cover cartoon of a burka-clad Barack Obama and his Rambo-esque wife Michelle fist-bumping in the Oval Office while a cozy fire consisting of a flaming American flag burns in the background. Did I mention the portrait of Osama bin Laden, wearing the same headgear as Barack, hanging over the mantel? The Obama camp has chastised the New Yorker, as has John McCain, but the magazine staunchly holds that this satire, entitled “The Politics of Fear,” is intended to expose the way many Americans think of their Presidential candidate. The question is: how fine is the line between reflecting what people think and telling them how to think?

This is not the first time a magazine has used a scandalous cover picture to generate buzz. Check out the Los Angeles Times’ retrospective of the “10 Magazine Covers That Shook The World” to see some more examples. And don’t forget to vote for your favorite cartoon, er, I mean CANDIDIATE, this November.

Got some incindiary political juice to share? Why not submit an article to Foreign Affairs magazine? WordHustler wants to help shoot your writing career into the stratosphere. Then maybe one day you can run for President…quick question: how thick is your skin?

Listen up pork chop lovers: there’s a new magazine in town…and it’s well done. Meatpaper, “a print magazine of art and ideas about meat” has launched and it’s taking both the carnivorous and the vegans by storm with its witty write-ups and interesting articles. As the magazine itself says, “We like metaphors more than marinating tips. We are your journal of meat culture.” Even as a vegetarian, I was still entertained with the cavalcade of provocative pieces this magazine dished up.

Featuring articles such as “On the Range: Braised moose nose, roasted cicadas, and other traditional Native American treats” and “Sweat Sock: The Other White Meat. What grill marks and a little garnish can do.”

Meat. It’s what’s for dinner…and after-dinner reading.

To check out Meatpaper, go HERE.

Do you have some tasty ideas you’d like to see in print? Why not submit an BBQ article to Better Homes and Gardens or kid-friendly Sloppy Joes to FamilyFun Magazine? WordHustler wants to make your summer, and your writing career, delicious.