Does the romance novel have a non-fiction equivalent?

Romance novels are everywhere in North America.  New or used, they are easy to come by.  Obviously they are filling some kind of demand.

But let's say you want something that's accessible, cheap, and easy to read that's also non-fiction what are the options?

My first thought is that the newspaper might be the non-fiction counterpart of the romance novel, but I am not entirely satisfied with that comparison.  Maybe magazines?

In the end magazines and newspapers both have the problem that their articles are much shorter than a romance novel, and I guess I am looking for something that is about as long (a very arbitrary requirement I know).

Is it possible that the romance novel just doesn't have a non-fiction analog?  Is such a thing needed?  Could we create something to fill this void?

Finally, my first glimpse of an Occupy site

Since deciding to come to Halifax for a few days one of the things I have wanted to do is take a look at the Occupy NS site on the Grand Parade. Though there has been more media coverage of the protest as a result of the city's request that the protestors vacate the square to allow things like the Remembrance Day celebrations to take place, my sense of the physical reality was still lacking. How many tents were there? How full was the Grand Parade? Did it look like a tent city?

Finally last night Jeannette and I had the chance to drive by the occupation and get a look at the set up. Much to our surprise the Grand Parade was not full, there seemed to be a line of tents along the back of the paved area, but much of the rest of the pavement was unobstructed. Though there may have been one, I didn't see a single burning barrel (and we all know it's not a real strike/protest if there isn't at least one burning barrel).

As this view of the site was relatively brief I may have to find some time tomorrow to examine the site a little more closely and really get a sense of how things are working at the Occupy NS headquarters (especially considering this is a protest site that has passed it's health and safety inspection).

Oh, and in related news Occupy Magazine seems to have come out with its second issue a few days ago. As far as I can tell this issue also seems to be comprised primarily of articles harvested from other sources rather than original content. In this issue I really was expecting to see more content exclusive to this publication, but maybe that isn't the type of publication they are going for. Maybe if I make it to the Grand Parade tomorrow I will be able to pick up a print copy of the magazine to inspect in more detail.

The return of the Occupy Nova Scotia/Halifax media coverage

It seems that after about a week without coverage mainstream media has come back to the Occupy Halifax/Nova Scotia protests in the Grand Parade. I am now curious to see if the other media outlets in the city will provide an update now that at least one source has? Also, isn't just the fact that a tent city has sprung up in downtown Halifax something of a newsworthy story locally? I imagine that this is having at least some impact on the thousands of people who work in the surrounding area.

Interestingly, so far I haven't seen mention in the mainstream media of the occupation's associated publication, Occupy Magazine. An notable development since yesterday on the Occupy Magazine front is that the publication is now available online. Apparently the print only idea only lasted a day or two before cheaper distribution mechanisms were decided upon.

The upside of Occupy Magazine being available online is that I have now had a chance to see the type of material it contains without actually having a print copy in my hand. And at least for their first issue they seem to have gone with content relating to the Occupy movement first published in other venues. Only a small portion of the magazine was comprised of content written specifically for this publication. I guess we will have to wait for subsequent issues of the magazine to see if this model is continued or if they are able to source original content from international contributors, as seems to be their goal.

In related news, there seems to have been an 'Occupy'-themed "open the House of Assembly" protest at the confederation building in St. John's today.

At the moment it seems that Atlantic Canada is just full of excited Occupiers.

An unexpected development at Occupy Halifax

After my last post I continued to search the internet for signs of life at Occupy Halifax/Nova Scotia. I eventually found evidence that the protest has given life to a new print-only publication, a magazine called Occupy Magazine. It seems that the co-op responsible for publishing the magazine are interested in having their publication distributed internationally.

The first issue was released only yesterday and I gather that they are already thinking about subsequent issues. Of course, the magazine's Twitter feed suggests that the magazine is in the red. I guess given the current state of the print media this shouldn't be too much of a surprise.

Because the magazine is new and because it is not available online I still don't have too much of a sense of exactly what it is or what it contains. Maybe in a few days more reports about its content and origin story will make their way to the web. I am also curious to see if the national and international distribution plans come to fruition.

I don't feel so classy anymore

A few days ago I mentioned that I had just received a direct mailing that suggested I was a global business leader and encouraged me to subscribe to Bloomberg Business week. Today I saw a Groupon deal that offered a better deal on Bloomberg Businessweek to the general public.

I am a little bit hurt to find out that my direct mailing might not have actually based on some assessment of my personal traits and that they were really just trying to sell magazine subscriptions. For a second I thought that I might have actually been something of a trend setter.

Don't I feel classy and important

Just a few minutes ago Jeannette checked the mail and found that the only piece of mail today was a flier from Bloomberg Businessweek advertising a special introductory offer. If I take this offer I will get 26 issues of the magazine for only $20 (I am not as tempted by this deal as I am by The Economist deal that would see me get 12 issues for $15 if it is a better per issue rate).

What I found particularly interesting about this ad were a few of the passages that were supposed to convince me to accept their offer.

The first such passage I particularly liked as it makes it sound as though I am a global business leader. And isn't that something that we all want to be?

In an effort to attract our key demographic audience of senior executives and global business leaders, we're pleased to offer you a special discounted rate on the weekly relaunched Bloomberg Businessweek.

As as much as I would like the following passage to apply to me, I think it is very unlikely that as a TA I will be able to take advantage of this recommendation.

The cost of your Bloomberg Businessweek subscription may qualify for reimbursement from your company. Consult with your business manager and keep top portion for your expense records.

Seeing as I am not actually a "global business leader" or "senior executive" with an expense account that could be used to pay for this subscription I may have to give this promotion a pass. Maybe what I find more surprising is how I ended up on such a highbrow mailing list? I wonder if as I decline these offers I will gradually slide down the prestige scale until they hit me with an offer that is so cheap I can't refuse?