The Oscars and The Wire are over, TV is still in strike-recovery mode, and the music industry is deader than ever—which is all fantastic news! That is, if you’re a novelist or playwright or artist, you’ve got way less competition. Proof: Friends are actually talking about Caryl Churchill’s upcoming revival and Jhumpa Lahiri’s forthcoming short stories; some have already read the new Richard Price. Even musical theater seems relevant again! Better yet, now that our TiVo is empty, we’ve got time to bitch about the Biennial (before reappraisal kicks in) and defend the New Museum against graffiti attackers.
