Episode #226: Chop Suey: Publishing News and Cell Phone Etiquette
Grace and Alvina have an odds and ends episode where they talk about a bunch of publishing news, including how Goodreads is combating review bombing and a new app to battle AI art. They also discuss the new ettiquette surrounding cell phones, and Alvina shares some LBYR book recommendations.
How have you been?
Grace just returned from Illinois from visiting schools and has a few more trips in 2023! Grace’s daughter Hazel is participating in NaNoWriMo (where you have to write a whole novel in one month. (10,000 words!) Hazel’s teacher will bind their book for them if they can get it done in a month! Alvina went to the Peking Duck House with friends. She is working on getting her inbox down to ZERO before the end of the year! Alvina recently attended the book launch for Emmett by L.C. Rosen at the new beautiful Ripped Bodice Bookstore in Brooklyn!
Chop Suey: Publishing News!
Elizabeth Gilbert’s book Snow Forest was “review bombed” on Goodreads. Read about the issue here. What can Goodreads do about review bombing books before their release date?
Amazon is on track to control 80% of the consumer book market by the end of 2025. This is a scary percentage! Please try to buy books from your local indie or bookshop.org!
On Nov 2nd, the Scholastic Union walked out because of wages. The members of the union all belong to Scholastic’s magazine division.
Someone sent Grace an article based on the new AI tool for artist’s to use! Before you upload your art online, if an AI tries to use your art, then the AI will break. It is like an AI poison pill! Is a publisher able to embed AI? Grace falls on the side of those against AI.
FYI: KKR has completed the 1.62 Billion dollar acquisition of Simon & Schuster.
NCTE met with the CEO of Scholastic expressing their concerns about the separation policy. After that conversation, Scholastic decided to cancel their big Robinson dinner and redirect the cost of that event to the NCTE Freedom Center instead.
Modern day cell phone ettiquitte!
The book friends discuss the Washington Post article, The new phone call etiquette: Text first and never leave a voicemail! Emotions are for voice, facts are for texts and other appropriate phone rules.
Book Recommendations!
Alvina recommends Little Brown books that have received 3 starred reviews or MORE….these make great books!
Two of these books belong to Grace! Chinese Menu (7 starred reviews!) and Once Upon a Book (4 starred reviews!) You can get either of those personally autographed if you order from her local indie book stores! You can find them at the Eric Carle Museum or at High Five books.
Big by Vashti Harrison
An American Story by written by Kwame Alexander and illustrated by Dare Coulter
When the Stars Came Home by Brittany Luby and illustrated by Natasha Donovan
Every Dreaming Creature by Brendan Wenzel
Ellen Takes Flight: The Life of Astronaut Ellen Ochoa by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated by Oliver Dominguez
Middle Grade:
My Head Has a Bellyache by Chris Harris and illustrated by Andrea Tsurumi
World Made of Glass by Ami Polonsky
YA:
The Next New Syrian Girl by Ream Shukairy
Gratefuls
Grace is grateful that she can be done traveling soon and can do morning runs now that the sun rises earlier. Alvina is grateful that her primary doctor came out of retirement!
THANK YOU!
Thank you to Hachette Audio, Little Brown Books for Young Readers, and Alex at Pacyworks Studio for producing and editing this podcast. Be sure to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and tell a friend about us. (Use the hashtag #bookfriendsforever.)
You can find Alvina @Planetalvina on Twitter and TikTok and @Alvinaling on Instagram and Threads, @alvinaling on BlueSky
You can find Grace @Pacylin on Instagram and Threads, @authorgracelin on Facebook, @gracelinauthor on TikTok, and @authorgracelin on BlueSky Social!
Please keep tagging and messaging us on social media using the hashtag #bookfriendsforever! OR email us at bookfriendsforever@gmail.com! Please let us know if you have any topic ideas!
