Post-it Note #26
In which I compile all my Daily Notes from last week on the theme of Blurbs
In case you missed any of my Notes last week, here they are:
Frank Gelett Burgess invented the term blurb in 1907, with his character Miss Belinda Blurb blurbing about the contents of the book, on the book’s jacket.
I have included an image of Burgess’s book here, alongside my own embroidered selfie in the style of Victoria Villasana. I think they look quite similar. Just imagine that I’m shouting, YES! This is a BLURB!
Miss Belinda Blurb
Me, pretending to be Miss Belinda Blurb
What’s the optimum length for a blurb? Well that depends on the kind of blurb. According to blurb.com it’s between 100 and 200 words.
Here’s my illustration today- a very quick animated drawing of Mimi and a bowl of oranges in front of the blurb-filled bookcase:
https://www.blurb.com/
The book I’m reading was chosen for me by someone else. They selected it because of the blurbs, eg:
On almost every page you will find sentences that combine precision and vision…an exhilarating read, says The Times. Barack Obama adds, It changed how I thought about the Earth and our place in it. Emma Thompsonchips in with, The best book I’ve read in ten years. It is a remarkable piece of literature.
Tomorrow I’ll add some further accolades, and reveal the author and title.
My biro drawing today, Brandishing Branches, holds a clue!
My biro drawing of a weeping willow tree in winter at Wakehurst Place, Brandishing Branches.
You are probably on tenterhooks wondering as to the title of the blurb-spangled book I referred to in yesterday’s notes: It’s The Overstory by Richard Powers.
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction; The Multimillion Copy Global Bestseller Shortlisted for the Booker Prize;
“A rare specimen: a Great American Eco-Novel…It will change the way you look at trees.”- Financial Times
The blurb-coverage is enough for a novella in itself, however, I would not have chosen this book for myself (I won’t go into the reasons here but I have noticed that most books I buy are written by women.)
It is a great book and I am enjoying reading it, so maybe I’ll add my own blurb afterwards.
First though, here’s my coloured pencil drawing of rhododendron tree trunks:
My coloured pencil drawing of rhododendron tree trunks.
In space no one can hear you scream is a tagline, not a blurb.
A blurb would be wordier, eg: In space the ship’s engineer gives birth to an alien baby. Her cries of pain during labour go unheard because her colleagues are dead and the aliens do not have ears. Read on to find out how she copes as a single mother in space…
My illustration today is my biro drawing on an envelope; featuring someone looking rather stressed and perhaps posting their cry for help in the hope that someone listens.
My biro drawing on an envelope.
Have a wonderful weekend- and pay attention to those blurbs! What do they say about the book you’re reading?
I’ll be back tomorrow with a new theme for next week.