Authors Electric

Good morning, class. Our lesson today, for your edification, is on Brazen Boobies. And if you belong in this classroom, you've already started to wonder which sort of boobies we'll discuss. Do we mean the mammaries that delight the memories of Jan Needle's tribe, the Needle-ites? Or do we mean nincompoops, also known as boobies? Have you fallen for the sort of misdirection prized by the Kirtonians, founded by Bill Kirton? If so, take comfort in knowing that the real game has only begun. For now that you're here we can turn to word one. That's right, let's focus on It's worth a close look for two reasons: 1) Adjectives, like adverbs, are commonly forbidden. 2) Brazen's dual use here lets us to study when adjectives work or do not.. Brazen Boobies #1  w ill draw in a certain crowd but the phrase is unemployed. We could just as easily write Luscious Tatas or Supremo Patooties. Brazen Boobies #2  works because it  does  work. After lea...

Every now and then, if you’re a writer, looms that awful thing - the author photograph.   They’re stuck on the back of your books and are supposed to seduce the reader into believing that you’d be an interesting, friendly, wildly creative, spell-bindingly addictive person to spend time with.  Ageism has crept into publishing, as with everything else, so you’re also expected to look as though you have reasonable mileage still left in the tank. Gone are the times when wrinkles, turkey wattles, fag hanging out of the mouth, professorial spectacles and bad hair were considered a vital part of the creative persona.  Alas. W H Auden could get away with it! Some authors cheat - they carry on using a shot that’s decades old.  I recently went to a literature festival to hear an author talking about her books - the photo in the programme showed a dark-haired, slim-line beauty, but on stage was a plump, grey-haired lady I would never have recognised as the same person. ...