Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Demi-Puppet of the Millennium?

THE DEMI-PUPPET AWARDS

At some point before the end of the year I hope to announce a series of demi-puppet awards. Right now I'm still assessing who best qualifies for what.

TOP AWARD

The Demi-Puppet of the Millennium will be that literary "journalist" who best embodies everything gone wrong with the profession. Such as: refusing to look into literary corruption, or helping to cover up exposures of corruption; protecting establishment approved writers, or writing unquestioning fawning suck-up pieces of same; and so on.

DEMI-PUPPET NOVELIST

The novelist who's received awards and attention most out-of-proportion to achievement and ability. Now, if you think Jonathan Franzen has this category locked up, you're wrong. For instance, what about Jon-Jon Goulian, who received a $700,000 advance for a novel absolutely no one wanted to read?

But there are very many candidates in this category.

DEMI-PUPPET APPARATCHIK

The Big Six publishing world bureaucrat who exemplifies the System's clueless money wasting; who's most responsible for American lit's lack of relevance and excitement. For instance-- who is Goulian's publisher? Agent? But it could take me months to scrutinize the many candidates. By then, the entire top-heavy edifice may have collapsed in a heap.

I'll have other categories and candidates as I think of them. Keep reading.

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