I'm not supposed to be typing this, but I blogged Worldcon, so I feel weird not doing the same.

Briefly: it's sort of dead. The parties ended REALLY early tonight. We were home by two. Weird. Had dinner with Jay Lake and his tremendous entourage, caught up with a lot of people, had cake (twice!), saw Teddy--who I still adore, and am now back home. Maybe a trip into San Francisco tomorrow, instead of hanging around the con.

The hotel doesn't allow signage, which is odd. Otherwise, it's really pretty and nice. Got to meet one half of Zeno Agency today; lunch with the Johns on Saturday. And now, no more typing. =)

A bit of short notice, but I thought you'd like to know that my client, David J. Williams, will be speaking at the Library of Congress tomorrow. Seriously cool. =)

Details here

I saw sea lions. I saw redwoods. I ran around Northern California. Love it here. =)

And now, because F. Scott Fitzgerald is one of my favorite writers (bet you didn't know that!), I really want you all to hop over here and read what Mr. Scalzi has to say about F. Scott Fitzgerald's income. It's definitely interesting!

Since I know you're all dying to hear about how my right wrist is...

In actuality, this is getting put up on the blog, so that I don't have to type this over and over for various people. Please bear with it. :-)

I still have tendinitis. The tendinitis is apparently a complication of the rheumatoid arthritis I have. It may never go away completely, but the doctor is hopeful that it will be alleviated with Occupational therapy. Theoretically, the occupational therapy is supposed to teach me how to use my wrist, so that it does not have repetitive strain. I see the therapist when I return from California, in the beginning of November. Blog posts will continue to be scarce around here, due to the fact that I hate dictating.

I am hoping that the therapist will let me knit again, at some distant point in the future. I'm pretty miserable about all of this, as you can imagine. :-( The fact that I may not have a working right wrist until December is very depressing. I am keeping imaginary fingers crossed that the tendinitis will be able to be alleviated enough that I will not have to wear a brace anymore.

Dear Viz,

This is an open letter to you about OOKU, Volume 1 by Fumi Yoshinaga. I recently purchased it at my local Barnes & Noble based on the many reviews I had read of it online, and the fact that it had won an Eisner Award. I devoured the manga, reading it in about two days, because I was so entranced by the story. The artwork is beautiful and the writing good.

But I am very, very confused about why you found it necessary to sell the book wrapped in shrinkwrap. I could understand if the book contained scenes such as in Alan Moore's LOST GIRLS, which justifiably is sold shrink-wrapped. But OOKU is not a work of erotica like LOST GIRLS. It is an alternate history manga, which deals with adult subjects in a very non-graphic way. The only sex scene in the book literally fades to a black panel, and picks up the morning after. There is no nudity in the book.

I found nothing explicit in the book that wouldn't be sold as part of a romance. In fact, in the romance industry, OOKU would be regarded as a "sweet romance". In my local Barnes & Noble, the romance section is only a few feet away from where the book was shelved. I am puzzled and bewildered at your decision to publish the book as "explicit content", and to sell it in shrinkwrap.

Given the subject matter of the book, I am left with only one conclusion. And as much as it pains me to make that conclusion, I am forced to do so. I do not like to point fingers. I like to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. But considering the fact that a good bit of OOKU addresses the romances between the men of the inner chambers, I am left to conclude that you sold it in shrinkwrap because it dealt with homosexuality frankly and maturely.

Now, of course this may not be the case. But if this is not the case--if you can give me a reason other than that--then I would like to hear from you. In my opinion, as a publishing professional, OOKU was not explicit in any way, and did not deserve to be sold shrink-wrapped. In fact, I would venture to say that the shrinkwrap will hurt your sales and Ms. Yoshinaga's profits because prospective readers will not be able to browse through the book in bookstores.

Additionally, if I am correct that you sold it that way because of its discussion of homosexuality, then I think you're underestimating the intellect and cultural maturity of your readers. We live in a multicultural world, where there are people of every sexual orientation, creed, ethnicity, and race. To attempt to protect your readers from something that is "different" and to then label it as "explicit content"is simply shameful.

In Japan, manga is published for readers of all ages, and such a title would most likely be shelved with manga intended for adult readers. It would not be considered explicit content, and it would be read by a variety of women and men. It would be treated with respect. By shrinkwrapping OOKU, you have shown that you do not trust American readers to make the same informed reading decisions as their Japanese counterparts.

I look forward to hearing from you about your rationale for using the shrinkwrap, and why you chose to do so.

Sincerely,
Jenny Rappaport
-----------------
OOKU can be purchased at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and independent booksellers. I heartily recommend it.

This is just one of a few new things I've been working on for my clients. :-)

		October 9, 2009
		Fiction: Sci-Fi/Fantasy		John Joseph Adams's BRAVE NEW WORLDS, a reprint anthology featuring the best of dystopian fiction from best-selling authors, to Jeremy Lassen at Night Shade Books, in a nice deal, by Jenny Rappaport at The Rappaport Agency (World English). jenny@rappaportagency.com

My wonderful assistant, Jodi Meadows, has let me know that she will be stepping down from her post at the end of this year, in order to focus more on her own writing. Jodi is a talented writer in her own right, and although I am saddened by her departure, I know that she's going to end up producing great stuff for me to read. :-)

In the meantime, I am searching for a new assistant. The job description is as follows:

The Rappaport Agency, LLC is looking for a smart, hard-working, book-loving assistant with good organizational skills for our Freehold, NJ office. Responsibilities include evaluating manuscript submissions, writing revision letters, communicating with authors and editors, and learning the ins and outs of the publishing process. The Rappaport Agency, LLC offers a comprehensive introduction to the world of book publishing and mentorship by Jenny Rappaport, an experienced literary agent.

A love of genre fiction, particularly science fiction and fantasy, is a must for this position. Ideally, a dedicated period of time as an assistant will lead to future employment as a literary agent. Although the position can be partially filled through telecommuting, serious applicants will be able to travel to our office at least once a week. Cat allergy sufferers should be aware that the office contains a cat.

This is a part-time position with a small amount of financial compensation.

Please send all resumes and cover letters by e-mail to jenny@rappaportagency.com with the subject line "Assistant".

I rarely post about my Etsy shop, but being able to manipulate photographs with my left-hand-only lately has been one of the things keeping me sane with the tendinitis. A creative outlet is important, and writing is so insanely slow with Dragon. I'm having a sale, so feel free to check it out.

My ETSY shop Kitten String has been updated today with a sale. Details are below. Kitten String has hand-dyed fiber and yarn, as well as fine art photography.