Would You Like to See a Beatrice App?

Before Beatrice was a blog, it was a website dedicated to author interviews in something like the Paris Review mode—not quite as long, perhaps, but sharing their fascination with the gritty details of the writing life. I gave up the interviewing because I just didn’t have as much time to spend on the website once my freelance writing kicked into gear, but I always wanted to get back into it. The only problem was finding a way I could afford to do it, which I was pretty sure meant finding a way to convince people to pay for them.

Last year, I started seriously looking at an app version of Beatrice, combining feature-length Q&A interviews with streaming video highlights. I thought carefully about the pricing, and I became convinced that people would be willing to pay $1.99 or $2.99 for a set of smart, insightful conversations with writers about their books and the creative process that went into writing them. A bundle like, say, three memoir writers, including National Book Critics Circle award winner Darin Strauss, NBCC nominee Deb Olin Unferth, and indie rocker Alina Simone.

I knew that once this app got off the ground, it would be able to find an audience. It’s just a matter of getting it off the ground. Then I thought: What if I could spread the word by launching the app with free interviews? Maybe even keep giving away interviews after that?

That’s why I launched a Kickstarter campaign for the Beatrice app earlier this week. I know those of you who are regular readers of this website recognize the value of having a space where you can learn about great books and great writers, and I believe many of you would be willing to support that kind of space directly. In return, I’m not just promising you these new interviews: If you choose to contribute towards the launch of a Beatrice app, you’ll receive ebooks that collect several of the best interviews I conducted during the early years of this website—interviews filled with practical wisdom about the writing life that rivals any creative writing book I’ve seen.

The Kickstarter campaign has a modest goal, enough to launch the app with those interviews I mentioned with Alina, Darin, and Deb bundled into it. But if enough of you believe Beatrice is worth supporting, I’m willing to share more interviews with you, all of them equally exciting. Let’s see what happens!

Like I said back in January, 2012 is going to be huge.

16 February 2012 | uncategorized |

Why Has Beatrice Gone Dark Temporarily?

On Wednesday, January 18, 2012, along with many other websites, I am “blacking out” my content as a protest against two bits of proposed legislation working its way through the United States Congress: a House Bill called the Stop Online Piracy Act and a Senate bill called the Protect Intellectual Property Act. Sarah Wendell of Smart Bitches, Trashy Books has perfectly described why we’re against this legislation, so I’m just going to quote her:

“I do not think PIPA and SOPA are the correct response, and find them to be much too large a hammer, one that serves those who funded the development of the bill than any actual progress against the relative threat of piracy. They serve to hinder development more than they could ever stop piracy.”

CNET explains what’s at stake, as does the BBC, and Reddit’s Jason Harvey really digs into the details.

Because one possible long-term effection of SOPA/PIPA, should either of them become federal law, would be to suppress both American citizens’ expressions of free speech and their access to other people’s expressions of free speech, I am joining several other websites in a temporary demonstration of what a federally censored Internet could take away from end users like you and me. Normal service will be restored at the end of the day. In the meantime, if you’re as concerned about these bills as I am, call your U.S. Senator or your U.S. representative and let them know where you stand.

18 January 2012 | uncategorized |