Every day Poets & Writers Magazine scans the headlines—from publishing reports to academic announcements to literary dispatches—for all the news that creative writers need to know. Here are today’s stories:

Former bookseller Mark Saunders has been named director [2] of the University of Virginia Press. (Shelf Awareness)

A Pennsylvania librarian banned a book to demonstrate the harm of censorship [3]. (GalleyCat)

Critic David L. Ulin reports on an odd book event he attended—watching Harlan Ellison receive a haircut [4]. (Los Angeles Times)

“Most writers…shown their cover designs they try not to cry right in front of their editors.” Tim Kreider looks at the current state of book cover design [5]. (New Yorker)

Staffers at Flavorwire list the authors they irrationally despise, including Vladimir Nabokov and Charles Dickens [6].

In light of several high-profile lawsuits, the Telegraph investigates the nebulous world of literary libel [7].

If you’re in New York City next month, the Atlas Review and the Marina Abramovic Institute are hosting a marathon reading of Stanislaw Lem’s [8]Solaris [8]. The eight-hour event takes place at Brooklyn’s Wythe Hotel on August 3rd.

BuzzFeed rounded up a slew of images of writers and their pet cats [9], including Charles Bukowski and Doris Lessing.