TODAY: In 1923, short story writer and essayist Katherine Mansfield dies.
- David Zucchino tells the story of the 1898 white supremacist plot to take over Wilmington, North Carolina, one of the only successful coups in the history of the US. | Lit Hub History
- What happens when your writing goes viral? Courtney Maum on the perks and perils of unexpected internet fame. | Lit Hub Craft
- “She was on the edge of something and no one ever quite forgave her for it.” Lynn Steger Strong on the messy, complicated, unapologetic writing of Elizabeth Wurtzel. | Lit Hub
- “That most buoyant of American philosophies, actually, from the outset, wasn’t buoyant at all.” On the renegade ideas behind the rise of American pragmatism. | Lit Hub History
- Icelandic Noir, marital secrets, and more books you may have missed in December. | Lit Hub
- Antifacists before Antifa, or: America’s rich history of Nazi-punching. | Lit Hub History
- Parul Sehgal on Danez Smith’s new collection, Julian Lucas on Garth Greenwell’s return to Bulgaria, and more of the Reviews You Need to Read This Week. | Book Marks
- The CrimeReads staff presents part one of the year’s most anticipated crime and mystery releases, featuring over 125 new crime novels, mysteries, and thrillers to look forward to in 2020. | CrimeReads
- A new documentary about a 1969 debate between the controversial Nobel Prize-nominated writer Yukio Mishima and Japanese college students restores original footage of the author once thought lost. | Variety
- Author Charles Sprawson has died at 78. His 1992 book Haunts of the Black Masseur, an expansive cultural history of swimming, is sometimes cited as one of the most influential sports books ever written. | The Guardian
- “Growing up, I often saw dad’s dark side, depending on how much he had to drink.” Susan Mailer reflects on her relationship with her late father, Norman. | The Wall Street Journal
- In defense of the Gossip Girl books, “an effective anthropological study of early-aughts Upper East Side wealth.” | Vogue
- “The art world can posture but, where it counts, less is changing than it might seem.” Cody Delistraty on how the myth of the artistic genius is holding it back. | The Paris Review
- “I went down the climate change rabbit hole. Seven years later, I’m still trying to get out.” Jenny Offill on our “weirdly-boring, slow-moving apocalypse.” | Greenpeace
- What does it take to adapt a novel for the stage? | The New York Times
Also on Lit Hub: What can an essayist do in the face of massive tragedy? • 15 great books that speak to the lives of middle-aged women • Read from Crissy Van Meter’s debut novel Creatures.
