I guess its serendipity. I spent part of Friday afternoon updating the links page to reflect a long list of literary websites, resources, and weblogs. I did this with the hope that NoCategories might become a more literary endevor.
Today, I recieved an email requesting that I write a book review, and an offer for a free review copy.
I know I complained earlier about all the “Buzz Balls & Hype” that can engulf a website that writes book reviews.
It seems as if the realm of the literary blog is already beginning to diverge. There are the so called “literary blogs” that discuss reading and writing, and then there are the ones that serve promotional purposes for a struggling writer, the so-called “author website”. Need I bother to mention that I prefer the former to the later?
Its not just something that happens to literary websites. I’ve noticed a recent proliferation of advertizing on the Gawker family of blogs. On one recent entry — it is a very funny article called “Lies I Have Told Verizon DSL Support Today” — the ads are so thick you can barely find the text of the article! Those blogs are starting to remind me of the mid-90’s websites, with all the clutter, etc. Blogging Pro put it well, with the headline: “Gizmodo Revamps RSS Feeds to Make More Money”
To the credit of the Gizomdo Blogs, Blogging Pro mentions:
Gizmodo seems to have developed a fair policy of delivering partial ad-free feeds or full feeds with advertising enclosed. Readers choice. The ads are placed every fifth entry so the reader is not bombarded with sales pitches.
It seems that Web Syndication is a viable way to avoid the kind of bombardment I’m complaining about.
To return to the topic at hand, I’m resolved not to let that kind bombardment happen in my little internet garden here. While I’m delighted to get a free book for review, and would be delighted to do so in the future, I’ll do my very best to be fair in my assesment of such a book.
Besides, any press is good press.
Rants, raves, and writings for your reading pleasure.