The Pain of Retraction

Okay, so Oprah made a retraction and blasted James Frey and that icky publisher of his. (Personally, I think she should've revoked his book as one of her picks, but that's just my opinion and last I checked she didn't give a damn about my opinion.) Boy, she really had an opportunity there to put the screws to the publishing corporati, but unfortunately backed off a little too much for my taste. (I'll let you in on a little secret, those scoundrels hang on every recommendation of hers like a life preserver. Wasted opportunity if you ask me.)

So I guess that means I have to make a retraction about my rant on Oprah. (See below.) But I don't really want to do it to be honest with you. 'Cause it kinda hurts to make a retraction. I don't want to admit I was wrong about her - well, I wasn't really - it's just that now my visceral mudslinging in her general direction makes me look like the bad guy. Thanks alot Oprah, for finding your conscience! Ugh!

Why does life have to be so complicated? Can't we just keep fiction fiction and non-fiction non-fiction? They all have their respective places on the bookshelf. Geez, can't we all just get along?

Anyway, Oprah, if your sorry for allowing yourself to be duped by that narcissistic liar and for -almost - single-handedly destroying an entire genre of the publishing industry, then I'm sorry I outed you. Okay? Friends again? Good, I'll be over tomorrow night for dinner. Know any good reads?

Okay Terrific.

Steve

Oprah and The Power of Genre-Bending

I have to chime in one more time about this James Frey debacle, particularly in reference to Oprah Winfrey's response to it all.

Now I have nothing against Oprah. Matter of fact, I think she's an amazing entrepeneur. But this time she's gone too far. To sit back and put her stamp of approval on a bunch of lies and deceit... does anyone realize what she's done here?

We all know the power she has over the publishing world. Her golden scepter of approval can turn any book into a bestseller. Those who know this best are the publishing houses who benefit from her knighting of their books. Bottom line is bottom line after all, right?

Oprah must realize her own power as well, wouldn't you think? Did she stop and consider that her standing behind James Frey would literally change the face of publishing? From this point forward, it is no longer necessary to tell the truth in a Memoir. You only have to tell the 'essential truth'. The details are insignificant.

No longer will the reading public be able to rely on the Memoir as a truthful document, especially if the pubs and authors put their little disclaimer on them as Frey is now conveniently doing on his. From this point forward, we will always be second guessing whether we are reading a True Memoir or an Essential Truth Memoir.

Do you understand what has happened here?

By throwing her weight behind this liar with one simple ill-thought out sentence, Oprah has single handedly changed an entire Genre. Memoirs RIP.

It wasn't long ago, in fact the summer of 2004, that Norma Khoury was exposed by The Sydney Herald as a liar and a cheat. What was the response? The publishers pulled her false memoir and actually sought to recoup some of the 6-figures they threw at her.

What a difference a year makes! Have we lost our honesty and integrity so swiftly?

Oprah, have you lost yours completely?

But maybe in the end it’s not about silly things like honesty and truthfulness. Maybe it is all about power and money. If so, Oprah has just upped the ante.

Okay, Terrrific.

Steve

James Frey & Norma Khoury - Not So Strange Bedfellows

Yeah, I have to weigh in on the whole James Frey thing. Seems like TheSmokingGun.com has got the goods on him, proving him a liar. Some memoir! Reminds me of that Norma Khoury from last summer - she's the one that Sydney Herald (I think that's the paper's name) exposed as a fraud after writing her "memoir" about all the female atrocitites going on in Jordan. That was a pack of lies too, evidently.

It really ticks me off to see the conglomerate publishing geniuses throw literally millions of dollars at these frauds, while hardworking, ethical authors (like myself) go largely unnoticed! Who do they think they are? Look at their incredible stupidity: In their unfettered quest for the next best seller - do the math - they could spread out 1 million dollars among 10 authors, instead of dumping it all on ONE fraud, and give them each a very decent wage and have the possibility of 10 books hitting the bigtime instead of just one. How short-sighted can you get?

The mainstream publishing idiots who allow this free for all to take place truly are their own worst enemy.

Okay Terrific.

Steve