That makes no sense. Why should she withdraw her book?
Legolas Send a noteboard - 18/10/2011 07:03:23 PM
The organizers really showed their lack of professionalism not catching that mess before it got public, but really, the author concerned by this had one elegant, professional and sensical thing to do - which would have saved everyone's face: ask for or accept offered apologies and announce she is withdrawing her book from the competition to avoid everyone, incl. herself, any further embarassament. She should have refused right away to be artificially added to the short list (which fooled no one), and if it didn't occur to her for some reason, she should have withdrawn her book the minute the chairman privately made it obvious it's what he expected her to do. The whole story would have vanished the next day - mistakes do happen all the time. This only harms the reputation of an award she cares for enough to have entered, and it makes her look stupid for having accepted to be on that list when her book doesn't belong there. And it only publicizes her book isn't worthy of consideration for this award (though this may get her a whole bunch of pity readers and make her book sell much better than expected).
That would only make the committee look even more incompetent, and I'm really not quite sure what it would bring her, either. Withdrawing your book from competition for an award just because it wasn't selected for the shortlist - or was wrongly selected, as the case may be - sounds rather petty to me, to be honest. Of course she could have indicated privately and discreetly that she didn't mind having her book demoted off the shortlist again, and perhaps she did, but doing that publicly - which is essentially what withdrawing her book from competition is - is just rubbing it in.
Or at least that would've been my reasoning at the beginning of the thing. At this point, her having withdrawn the book immediately after she found out *does* look as if it might have been less painful, but how was she to know at that point that they'd bungle things so badly?
The latest scandal in the world of publishing: NBA asks Lauren Myracle to withdraw her book.
- 17/10/2011 07:24:12 PM
1224 Views
The book obviously wouldn't have been on the list. Cut it, don't apologize, tell people to fuck off
- 17/10/2011 08:11:15 PM
777 Views
The quote from the blogger's father is all kinds of awesome.
- 17/10/2011 10:26:52 PM
1042 Views
In fact I'm now far more tempted to read her books than Lauren Myracle's...
- 17/10/2011 11:02:50 PM
933 Views
Wow, that's a great quote. I'm afraid I'm going to have to steal it now. 
*NM*
- 18/10/2011 07:40:34 AM
396 Views
*NM*
- 18/10/2011 07:40:34 AM
396 Views
Yeah, I was confused that the NBA was focusing on a book and not on... itself.
- 18/10/2011 06:24:41 PM
961 Views
the first fuck up was the mix up, the second was not to immediately apologise to the the author, but
- 18/10/2011 01:27:52 PM
973 Views
That's a big FU, but she didn't do the right thing either...
- 18/10/2011 02:23:38 PM
768 Views
That makes no sense. Why should she withdraw her book?
- 18/10/2011 07:03:23 PM
916 Views
Side question- Are these awards publicly voted for, or is it some commmitee who makes the choice?
- 18/10/2011 02:30:49 PM
765 Views
