In want of an actual update

Neil Gaiman and Steven Brust do the books-as-food thing. A metaphor you've probably seen before, but the discussion is fun.
http://skzbrust.livejournal.com/15979.html

I freely admit that much of my fiction is popcorn. But I like to think of it as good popcorn. Not that movie-theatre stuff, which is always stale and laced with fake butter, or the microwave stuff, which is better than nothing, but not quite right, but hot, freshly popped popcorn, topped with genuine melted butter and just the right amount of salt.