Interviews Photo by Diane Picchiottino / Unsplash That Famous Abyss (Wunderkammer, 2020) is a book of exclusive interviews with Enrique Vila-Matas by cultural journalist Anna María Iglesia, covering such themes as why write, the places of literature, the art of disappearing, and the poetics of failure. The result is a text that is equally reflective as it is biographical and intimate, filled with the great names of literature and art alongside personal anecdotes and memories of the author. The following exchange appears in chapter 1, “Why Write?” Anna María Iglesia: Why do you write? Enrique Vila-Matas: Do I need to tell the truth? Iglesia: Of course not. In fact, this is not a biography. Vila-Matas: Much better, then. Iglesia: A few years ago, when asked this same question by a journalist, you answered: “In some remote time, some ancestor made that first loop. We are nothing but their imitators, a link in the uninterrupted chain of tradition. So the one who needs to be asked as to why I write is that ancestor; ask him why he wanted to move beyond that knot.”[i] Vila-Matas: Well, I imagine that finding that ancestor will prove impossible for you. I see it like someone who spoke in the name of God. As far as I can go, I think, is to try to speak in the language of poetry, that language without name. Look, in reality, I’ve spent my whole life unaware of why I write, to the degree that, when my parents died, I discovered in... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2021-11-29 21:46:44 UTC ]
Actress-turned-author Lena Dunham is trying her hand at writing fiction as she prepares to release a collection of short stories next year. Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2016-08-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The Daughter of Odren will be published in new omnibus edition of the much-loved fantasy sequence to mark the 50th anniversary of The Wizard of EarthseaA story from Ursula K Le Guin’s world of Earthsea that has never been published in print before is due to be released to mark the 50th... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2016-07-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Transworld has signed a new contract with international bestselling writer Lee Child for three further thrillers plus a volume of short stories and a novella. New books in the deal will feature maverick ex-military policeman Jack Reacher. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-06-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
US actor Bryan Cranston will return to television executive producing and starring in a series based on the short stories of science fiction author Philip K Dick, Variety magazine has reported. Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2016-05-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Deaver has written 37 novels, three collections of short stories, and dabbled in everything from folk music to an audio-only drama. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2016-03-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Penguin Random House Children’s will this summer publish a second collection of short stories from Terry Pratchett. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-03-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
How many have you read? Test yourself by seeing if you can match first lines to the titles of the Monitor's favorite novels (and one collection of short stories) from 2015. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2015-12-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Author Stuart Evers recently collaborated with U.K. folk trio Daughter, writing three short stories that provide the visuals for three music videos promoting Daughter's second album. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-12-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
In the French city of Grenoble, there are unusual vending machines that don't dispense soda or snacks -- they print out short stories that look like paper receipts instead. These machines were built by a publishing company called Short Éditi... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2015-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
A little time alone can go a long way in spurring your creative thinking and strengthening relationships.I recently got back from a week of solitude in a house off Buzzards Bay in Massachusetts. I was there to focus on finishing my book of short stories without distraction, conversations,... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2015-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Instagram has seen its share of photo essays, profiles and short stories. But no one has used the image-sharing network to publish an entire novel - at least not until Matilda and Harry. Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2015-10-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
When sickly Bostonian Edward J. O'Brien put together the first "Best American Short Stories" anthology in 1915, short stories were considered junky pop culture. He was hoping that his project would elevate the short-story form. He had no idea he was launching a series that would last a century... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2015-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Writer Jane Gardam is to be awarded the Charles-Chichester Award for a Lifetime's Excellence in Short Fiction at a special event held at this year's Charleston Small Wonder Short Story Festival. Gardam, who is the author of short stories as well as novels including the Old Filth trilogy, will... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-07-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Welsh writer Carys Davies [pictured] has won the €25,000 Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award for her collection The Redemption of Galen Pike, published by the independent Salt Publishing. The award is the single most lucrative prize in the world for a collection of short... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-07-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Short stories are gaining ground in the UK, but authors working within the format are finding it more difficult to break into the public consciousness than novelists, writers have told The Bookseller. Awards that cover all forms of fiction such as The Folio Prize, won in 2014 by George... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Serpent's Tail has signed two books from Orange Prize-winner Valerie Martin, a novel and a collection of short stories. Commissioning editor Rebecca Gray signed UK and Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada) from Peter Straus at RCW, on behalf of Molly Friedrich at the Friedrich Agency. Short... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-05-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Hyde Park Editions is launching a new series of children’s books, The Hyde Park Squirrels, written by its m.d. Nick Croydon and illustrated by Petra Brown. The books are about two squirrels: Luke and Holly Bushytail. In the first book, Luke Goes to London, Luke leaves his rural life to go to... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Jonathan Cape has acquired a book of short stories by Daisy Johnson at auction. Editorial director Alex Bowler signed UK and Commonwealth rights to two books by Johnson from Jack Ramm at Eve White Literary Agency. Johnson is a 24-year-old prizewinning graduate of Oxford University’s Fiction... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Margaret Atwood's first stand-alone novel in 15 years will be published in September, alongside a new collection of short stories. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2015-03-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Catherine Aird has been awarded the Crime Writer’s Association Diamond Dagger award. The Diamond Dagger winner is chosen by the CWA committee from a shortlist of writers judged worthy by their peers. Shortlisted authors must have sustained excellence in their careers and made a significant... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this