Sunday, March 10, 2013

Time Magazine Hits 90


Time magazine turned 90 this month and has survived its competitors like Newsweek and US News & World Report. It still prints a weekly edition, and also has a digital version. It gets read by millions of people each week and retains a certain stature but its influence is fading and its circulation is a fraction from its peak days. Time has had all kinds of interesting covers, from cartoon icon Bart Simpson to Man of the Year choices that included robots, ruthless dictators, and historical heroes.

Oddly, in its nine-decade existence – or roughly 4700 covers - -the only sitting president not to appear on the cover while in office was Herbert Hoover. Of all presidents, whether in office or not at the time of publication, Richard Nixon made the cover the most times – 47. Reagan was 38, Clinton 37, and W 33. Obama has been on 31 times.

Will we be discussing who is on the cover a decade from now? Not likely, so enjoy a piece of living history by reading Time now. It still offers insights and information of value. Happy birthday, Time.


Interview With A Syndicated Humor Writer & Author CAPPY HALL REARICK



1.      Cappy, after penning six books, what inspired you to work on your first mystery book? Brian, my father was a detective and for years I wondered if somewhere deep down inside me there was a detecting gene crying to see the light of day. My protagonist is a television columnist and that was familiar territory for me. Also, the books I enjoy the most tend to be psychological mysteries. Since I'm not getting any younger, well, you do the math …

  1. 2.   What do you love about writing? I love that it lubricates my brain. I don't ever want to get to the point where my interaction with friends and family revolves around old lady ailments, knee replacements and hearing aids. I'd much rather bore them into the middle of next week by telling them about the exploits of my current character, Bailey McGee. She's much more interesting than organic diets and fiber pills.

  1. 3.   What do you find most challenging about it? Some days the challenge is simply stringing sentences together that make sense. In column writing, the challenge is always, ALWAYS to come up with a subject with universal appeal. As a grandmother, I gag when authors write about their adorable children or grandchildren. In contrast, I write about my Grandkids from Hell, and you know what? I get more positive feedback than I do when I write about other things. I also enjoy writing nostalgia but find that as I get older, it becomes a challenge to remember experiences as they really happened. So what do I do? I lie.

  1. 4.   What advice do you have for struggling writers? I often advise them to begin by writing short pieces for local newspapers, even fish wraps. Those are great venues to help one find his/her voice and to learn about what William Zinsser called "word clutter." (That's particularly difficult for Southern writers, both newbie’s and those of us who have been around the block.) Writing for local papers is such a good way to build a readership, or platform as it's called today. And I'm pretty convinced that the small, local newspapers in this country will survive the larger ones like the Trib and the Times. Folks in small towns all over America have a habit of reading the obits if, for no other reason, to make sure their own name is not listed.

  1. 5.  Where do you see the publishing industry heading? Everything will go electronic and it won't be long in coming. My author friends all say that their e-books are outselling print books three to one. I see that in my own books as well. We live in a mach-speed world and although there will always be people who prefer to hold a book in their hands and turn the pages themselves, they are becoming fewer in number. I have a vast home library and love every one of my books. They look so pretty on the shelves. That said, these days I read everything on my Kindle and I dare anyone to challenge me on it! Electronics is the wave of the future so we might just as well accept it like that movie title: Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb. Well, kinda, sorta.

6.     Also... Tell me more about your syndicated column -- where does it run? What is it about? I have only recently joined the ranks of the syndicated columnists, and although I'm happy to be in such auspicious company, I honestly don't know much about the ins and outs of it. I write a column and send it to a woman named Allison and she sends it out and tries to sell it all over the world. Do I need to know more than that? I don't think so. Actually, I don't WANT to know more. I get a check and deposit it into my dwindling bank account and then go back home to my MacBook and write another one. The one thing I DO know about it is that the focus of Senior Wire is to appeal to seniors and since they like reading about my Grandkids from Hell, that works for me. I think it might be a vicarious thing, don't you?


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Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog are his alone and not that of his employer, the nation’s largest book promoter. You can follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels more important when discussed in the third-person. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog © 2013

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