Shout, Shout, Let It All Out

Former Beatrice holiday guest Paul Clayton has launched A Beautiful Spleen, a new author blog that "will discuss writing (others' mostly, and mine on occasion), the publishing business (which has nothing to do with writing anymore), popular culture, except when I'm discussing my own work, then, not-so-popular culture..." and the like. It's still the early stages, though Clayton will try to add more entries when he can... At which point he may start to feel like Ayelet Waldman, who's just terminated her blog to start a new Salon column and begins by writing about all that blogging, where she "discovered in myself a confessional impulse, a compulsive need to haul open the tattered edges of my emotional raincoat and expose the nasty parts lurking beneath." And describes what happens when you "muse aloud" about suicide in an electronic forum your friends and loved ones read regularly.

Neil Gaiman's also gently encouraging his fans to expect less from him on his blog for the rest of the month, as he secludes himself "in order to make the April 1st deadline on the second draft of Anansi Boys." Woo hoo! He adds:

"It's a great day for a deadline. It's really appropriate for the book, for a start, and whether I make it or not I can still call my editor and tell her I'm done. ("Really?" "Nope. April fool.")"