Meg Rosoff's Blog, page 10
December 15, 2011
How I Live Now Film News
I wasn't the last to know, but I've been offline for two days, and came home to find a few hundred emails, many of them demanding to know whether it's true that Saoirse Ronan has been cast as Daisy in the film of How I Live Now. I'm not sure it's 100% official yet, but [...]
December 12, 2011
Eck the Halls.
Well, it's clear what this year's top Christmas gift is, and it's not the pooping dachshund. I'll give you a hint: God Eck ye merry gentlemen. Oh little town of Ecklehem. We three Ecks of orient are. Yes, you guessed it, it's a genuine bonafide soft stuffed Eck, direct from There Is No Dog, created [...]
December 9, 2011
OK, that's it. We're having the body hair conversation.
The story goes that when John Ruskin caught sight of his wife's 'down there' on his wedding night, he was so repelled that they never consummated the relationship. Possibly apocryphal, but weirdly relevant at the moment. The explanation I hear most often is "I have a boyfriend, you know." And I find myself thinking….so? With the [...]
December 7, 2011
One or two things I learned from advertising.
I worked in advertising for something like fifteen years. During that time, I got fired a lot. Generally for insubordination, but sometimes for despair. Once in a while, however, I'm (reluctantly) forced to acknowledge the debt I owe to all those years selling snakeoil. I learned to think laterally. Not to fall back on the [...]
December 5, 2011
Ever wonder why it's so hard to get people to read your unpublished proof?
Back in November, I received a proof copy of a first time novelist's book, with the usual ecstatic letter. I liked the first chapter, and agreed to read the whole novel. Here's what I emailed in response: From: Meg Rosoff [mailto:meg@megrosoff.co.uk] Sent: Tuesday, November 15, 2011 3:15 AM Hi XXXXX Thanks for sending XXXX book — I [...]
December 2, 2011
NEWS FLASH: ECKS INVADE EUROPE.
Yes, a small number* of handmade and numbered Ecks have limbo-danced their hairy way across the secure border between Brooklyn and North London and are now available for adoption to discerning individuals. If you're confident you can give an Eck a good home, please get in touch here, and a social worker will contact you for [...]
November 28, 2011
SLOGANS FOR OUR TIME
It started at the airport. The woman ahead of me had a sport utility bag with the words LIVE LOVE LAUGH BELIEVE HOPE DREAM DANCE on it. And I thought All at once? And then, Don't tell me what to do. Especially on a cheap sports bag. But it was too late. Suddenly, slogans are everywhere. [...]
November 23, 2011
Anger Management
I keep asking other people if they've noticed, and a lot of people have. Not just road rage (though god knows, there's plenty of that), but sidewalk rage, like the thirty something well-dressed woman who — when I bumped into her by mistake — turned to me and hissed 'BITCH.' Bitch? Really? Or the dog [...]
November 14, 2011
How To Find A Voice
I staggered through my first "creative writing" teaching this weekend with the Guardian Masterclass series — staggered because I was less than well. Much less than well. To all my lovely students, apologies in advance if I managed to impart a horrible cold along with my bucket of wisdom. I was humbled by the quality [...]
November 11, 2011
You think writing's bad? Try acting.
What follows is an email sent last week by my friend, the actor Kerry Shale. It's too good not to share, and makes me grateful for the more gentle horrors of the blank page. "So, this play. Best script I've worked on ever and a part made for me. A smart, self-loathing Jew but not a [...]
