Freelance Writing Distraction #782: Bookslut

bookslutlogo.jpgWhen you spend all your working hours in front of the infernal machine (read: laptop), you find yourself eager for any distraction from the drudgery at hand. I am a sucker for well-written material on other writers, musicians, anyone at all involved in media. Bookslut is one of those distractions I must force myself to save until late in the day when the work is nearly done.

Having only recently looked into this Chicago-based site, I find plenty to keep me occupied. The author interviews alone are worth the time drain. One example: In issue 73, Jason Jones interviews author Jeff Warren about his book The Head Trip: Adventures on the Wheel of Consciousness. The interview is thoughtful, the chemistry between
the two is good, and it’s a joy to read. Some freelance writers shrug and say, “So what?” They are used to reading high quality material, but the context is quite different for me. With an editing background in music journalism, military reporting, and commercial writing, I’ve spent years wading through other people’s poor preparation, clumsy interview questions, and just plain hopeless work. It’s enough to make you give up the game and run screaming for the nearest Civil Service exam.

That’s why I tend to take notice when I discover another outlet for solid writing in any field remotely close to my own. Bookslut is aimed at people who love to read. That’s me, so this is more than just a case of me having respect for writers with skill; they are talking directly to ME. As an omnivorous book consumer, I have acres of tomes with subjects ranging from sexual life in ancient China to the life and times of Lester Bangs. Bookslut is my kind of people.

If you are the kind of person who writes by day and uses a pry bar to cram another two or three titles into an already-distressed set of bookshelves by night, Bookslut is definitely for you. My warning–don’t make any plans once you click the link, you’ll be there for a while.