Joanne

When Joanne Harris wrote Chocolat, her novel of morality and magic set in a cloistered French village, she did not expect it to be published, let alone succeed. Her agent thought that it was “very unfashionable writing” and “wasn’t at all the kind of thing he felt would be commercial”. Now, 25 years later, after more than 1m sales and an Oscar-nominated film adaptation starring Johnny Depp, Harris is writing a prequel.In the original novel, protagonist Vianne sets up a chocolaterie – selling champagne truffles,…

NEW YORK —  Molly Ringwald has a long-standing connection to Truman Capote: When she was about 3 years old, she appeared onstage in “The Grass Harp.” Her character was referred to as Fig Newton — although she doesn’t think that was in the script — and she didn’t have any lines.Still, it sparked an awareness of the writer at an early age and his powerful mystique. “It was one of those things where I was always interested in Truman Capote because I’ve known about him for so long,” she says.Five decades later, Ringwald has…

My earliest reading memoryI was about five, sitting in my grandfather’s study in Brittany, listening to him reading to me in French from his translated copy of Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book. He read me those stories so often that when he tried to skip a section, or rephrase something he thought was clumsy, I would correct him word-for-word. His nickname for me was Grenouille (frog), which also happened to be what Mowgli, the young protagonist’s, name meant, and I was convinced the stories were about me.My favourite…

A version of this post original appeared in TechCrunch’s weekly robotics newsletter, Actuator. It has been updated to include details about a new scholarship fund being raised in her honor.  I didn’t know Joanne Pransky personally, so when news of her death broke late last month, I reached out to my LinkedIn followers, asking if any of them did. “Yes,” answered one, “didn’t everyone?” Over decades of work, Pransky has left a lasting impact on the industry, bringing a uniquely human element to conversations about…

You, too, can have a piece of Newman’s own … everything.Nearly 400 items from the personal holdings of the legendary actor Paul Newman and his wife and former co-star Joanne Woodward are on offer at Sotheby’s latest celebrity estate sale.The movie stars and enduring lovebirds met on the Broadway set of Picnic in 1953, and lived in what sounds like marital bliss for some 50 years. The pair collected Americana and held on to the Hollywood memorabilia and bits and bobs of a life that managed to be unpretentious yet…

Boys should be encouraged to read books about girls, said author Joanne Harris, because “a boy who is afraid to read a book with a girl protagonist will grow up into a man who feels that it’s inappropriate for him to listen to a woman’s voice”.The author of Chocolat told an audience at the Hay festival in Wales that if violence against women was to be prevented, it “needs to be addressed really early, long before an actual crime happens”.Harris, who taught in an all-boys school for 15 years, said “the way we educate our…

Wrestling and comics have always been closely associated. Colorful characters and high-flying action are just some of the elements that unite the two artforms. Comics about wrestling, then, are a no-brainer, with titles like Ringside and Do A Powerbomb! proving wildly popular in recent years. Now AHOY Comics is getting in on the action with The Gimmick, a forthcoming miniseries from writer Joanne Starer, artist Elena Gogou, colorist Andy Troy, and letterer Rob Steen. The series follows Shane Bryant, a wrestler who also…

| Joanne Starer and Elena Gogou launch The Gimmick #1 in Ahoy Comics' March 2023 solicits and solicitations, released first on Bleeding Cool, below. As well as more My Bad and Billionaire Island. Ahoy March 2023 Solicits THE GIMMICK #1WRITER | JOANNE STARERARTIST | ELENA GOGOUCOVER A | ERICA HENDERSONCOVER B | KHARY RANDOLPH0123AH221 | 0123AH222FULL COLOR | 32 PAGES | $3.99IN-STORE DATE | 3/8/2023FOC DATE | 2/5/2023 A hard-hitting action/drama written by rising star Joanne Starer (Sirens of the City)! Pro wrestling champ…

I have made a career out of being an author. It has been a great privilege to be able to do that. But I am deeply saddened that the job I love has become inaccessible and unsustainable for others – and increasingly ruled by luck.I’m not talking about the luck that plays a part in the writing process, or in getting our work in front of the right agent or the right editor at the right time. I’m talking about the luck that comes later, once our work has been signed and contracted, and we’ve earned our way to the status of…

| The Gimmick is a new comic book series about super-powers and pro-wrestling launching from Joanne Starer and Elena Gogou from Ahoy Comics in March 2023, featuring covers by Erica Henderson. But the first issue features a variant cover by Khary Randolph, appearing here for the first time.   Joanne Starer once owned a women's wrestling promotion out of Pennsylvania and championed equality in the field. "THE GIMMICK is born from the wild, incredible, and sometimes terrible experiences I had in the world of…