Interviews Matthew Davis Ugandan novelist and short-story writer Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi’s first novel, Kintu, won the Kwani Manuscript Project in 2013 and was longlisted for the Etisalat Prize in 2014. She was awarded the 2014 Commonwealth Short-Story Prize for her story Lets Tell This Story Properly, published by Granta, and the prestigious Windham-Campbell Prize for Fiction 2018 to support her writing. Her first full story collection, Manchester Happened, was published by Oneworld in May 2019. Retitled Let’s Tell This Story Properly, the collection was published in the US in July 2019. She lives in Manchester with her husband and son and lectures in creative writing at Manchester Metropolitan University. While Makumbi was a fellow at the Alan Cheuse International Writers Center at George Mason University this past spring, she talked with Matthew Davis, the center’s founding director. Here they discuss how westerners and Africans read African literature differently, writing for Ugandans, and how eighteen years in England has changed her. Matthew Davis: Jennifer, welcome. I want to start by discussing your novel, Kintu, which is in many ways a modern classic of world literature. It begins in 1750, when Kintu Kidda sets out for the capital to pledge allegiance to the new leader of the Buganda kingdom. The novel follows the descendants of Kintu as they struggle with a curse he unleashed as he made his way to the capital in the... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2019-08-06 13:42:31 UTC ]
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The following is an excerpt from Joy Harjo’s The Art of Memoir and appeared in Lit Hub’s The Craft of Writing newsletter—sign up here. * At unexpected points in life, everyone gets waylaid by the colossal force of recollection. One minute you’re a grown-ass woman, then a whiff of cumin conjures... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-10-21 08:53:59 UTC ]
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Lydia Millet, author of 'A Children's Bible,' joins the L.A. Times Book Club to discuss her new novel, 'Dinosaurs.' Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-10-10 13:00:58 UTC ]
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Jada Pinkett Smith's memoir will take readers on 'a rollercoaster ride from the depths of suicidal depression to the heights of personal rediscovery.' Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-10-06 19:59:48 UTC ]
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As Tony Montana would probably say if he were a literary agent: In this country, you gotta make the money first. Then when you get the money, you get the power. Then when you get the power, then you get the memoir. That’s right! Al Pacino is reportedly in talks to sell his first memoir […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-10-05 14:49:52 UTC ]
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When these sister hybrid houses merge their knowledge and expertise, their authors—and the entire publishing industry—benefit. (Sponsored) Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-09-11 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Rabih Alameddine’s The Wrong End of the Telescope is out now in paperback from Grove Atlantic, so we asked him about writer’s block, the best books to re-read, and procrastinating. * How do you tackle writer’s block? I don’t, nor do I wish to anymore. Not unless I have an external deadline,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-09-09 08:53:14 UTC ]
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Translated by Charlotte Whittle At some point in the last century, I arrived in Paris and that very day bought a copy of Madame Bovary in a bookstore called Joie de Vivre in the Latin Quarter. I stayed up nearly all night reading it and by dawn I knew what kind of writer I wanted […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-29 08:52:14 UTC ]
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Wang is set to appear in conversation with Crystal Chen of the New York Public Library. The live stream is set for Tuesday, September 6 at 1 PM ET. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-08-29 04:00:00 UTC ]
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As some of you may already know (and sure, some of you may not care) Bob Dylan is publishing a book this November about his “philosophy of modern song” called… The Philosophy of Modern Song. If you are among those who do care (like me) the table of contents of the Nobel laureate’s foray into […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-26 15:37:43 UTC ]
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While other future novelists were discussing iambic pentameter and leitmotifs, Gina Chen immersed herself in computer science. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-08-25 09:00:11 UTC ]
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“It was an ‘I‘ of early days long gone who lived in these places, and that ‘I’ has already succumbed, for our days die before us.” Continue reading at The Paris Review
[ The Paris Review | 2022-08-22 15:42:39 UTC ]
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The proposed merger of Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster could lead to fewer voices — including marginalized voices — being published. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-08-18 10:09:48 UTC ]
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The following first appeared in Lit Hub’s The Craft of Writing newsletter—sign up here. At a literary festival a few years ago, during question time after a panel discussion, an audience member told me, “You’re one of those intuitive writers,” stepping hard on the adjective. Aren’t we all... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-12 08:52:32 UTC ]
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If you have unprocessed trauma, $50,000, and a sense of adventure when it comes to your mental health, a new “wellness recovery program” created by Augusten Burroughs—author of the best-selling memoir Running With Scissors—may be right up your alley. The week-long program, called Focus-Directed... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-08 14:41:32 UTC ]
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Write-minded: Weekly Inspiration for Writers is currently in its fourth year. We are a weekly podcast for writers craving a unique blend of inspiration and real talk about the ups and downs of the writing life. Hosted by Brooke Warner of She Writes and Grant Faulkner of National Novel Writing... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-01 08:51:12 UTC ]
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Yang is set to appear in conversation with Karen Wang of the New York Public Library. The live stream is set for Tuesday, August 2 at 1 PM ET. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-07-29 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Jennifer Grey discusses her bestselling memoir, "Out of the Corner," and the "Dirty Dancing" sequel. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-07-27 22:08:56 UTC ]
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I remember the first time I met Courtney Maum. It was nearly ten years ago, a spring or maybe summer day in Brooklyn, Carroll Gardens. We were both in our twenties, no books published yet, just a few free essays here and there, just starting our writing careers with the fierce intensity of Jack... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-07-18 08:52:29 UTC ]
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The 'Dirty Dancing' star discusses the upcoming sequel, her memoir and the Supreme Court's 'fundamentally wrong' abortion ruling. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-07-14 14:00:17 UTC ]
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“I grew up working class and money was a factor in everything we did,” says the poet and novelist, whose new book is the memoir “Crying in the Bathroom.” “That’s why I always write about the financial realities of my characters.” Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-07-07 09:00:11 UTC ]
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