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Trick One – Clingfilm (Saran wrap for US readers) over the toilet. Lift the seat, stretch clingfilm tight, replace seat et voila! Works best first thing in the morning when the victim is still sleep-befuddled but you have until 12 noon today to try this out on any especially annoying colleagues/ex-friends…

Trick Two – Tape over (or rather under) the tap. Get some heavy duty silver tape and carefully stick it under the faucet leaving a small gap facing you/your victim. When the tap is turned on the water is forced out in a spray. Great fun to try on a rival just before a particularly important meeting.

As well as my own two well-tried and tested offerings, The Guardian newspaper traditionally runs an April Fool to tickle its readers. The soya latte brigade positively tremble as they try to work out which story is the ringer. Given the Guardian’s eclectic style, this can often prove difficult. I think, however, that I have spotted this year’s effort. It’s on trend, it’s apt and it’s written by one Rio Palof. Work that one out!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/apr/01/guardian-twitter-media-technology

We debated this issue in the last Litopia After Dark podcast:

http://tinyurl.com/d6mbhd

Suffice to say, we concluded that, sadly, Chris Ryan is in the minority and it is mostly female authors who have to hide under a pseudonym or, more commonly, a pair of initials (cf JK Rowling). It seems that boys (and we’ll include men in that sweeping statement) still prefer their books, or at least their heroes, to be written by members of the same sex. Alison Flood writing in the Guardian came to pretty much the same conclusion:

http://tinyurl.com/b7nvkm

I would contend that many readers would be unable to tell which gender had written a book if the author’s name were to be removed. One of my favourite internet toys, The Gender Genie, upholds my theory that styles of writing do not conform to gender bias. Each time I try it, it firmly tells me that I am a man. And who am I to argue? You can have a go yourself here:
http://bookblog.net/gender/genie.php