“What’s beautiful about translation is that it forces us to contend with that truth: that we are selecting one of many options. Or, that we can potentially see many options at once. Because, as you say, we’re moving to the side, we’re looking at it through an imperfect lens, or a lens that makes visible the imperfection of looking.”
“Both in life and literature, secrets often are viewed as socially inappropriate, whereas espionage is a line of work that sanctions lying, deceit, and secrets. Masters of the spy genre play with these layers of secrecy.”
“My sense is that the job of a writer is to direct his or her gaze at what we would otherwise hurry past”: Mark Powell chats with R. Mac Jones about the “Rough South” and his new novel, The Sheltering.
“I still think it might have ruined the book if I’d known at the start how the story would end, and that’s one reason it needed to be fiction”: Robert Thomas chats with Lynette D’Amico about his poetic new novel, Bridge (BOA Editions).
“Is it possible for us to solve a problem our ancestors struggled with and by doing so liberate not only ourselves but also them, retroactively, and allow them repose as well? Reversing the direction of time’s arrow was an idea I wanted to explore in this novel.”
“I think you need some measure of faith to write about people, too”: Ben Nadler chats with Catherine Tung about Judaism, punk rock, and his newest novel, The Sea Beach Line.
“Being smart is not the best attribute for a writer”: Tom Franklin and M.O. Walsh discuss writerly professionalism, Southern fiction, and the difficulties of writing a second book.
“Yes, I like to jump on stage and tell stories and be entertaining”: Mo Daviau chats with Nina Buckless about her debut novel, Every Anxious Wave (St. Martin’s Press).
“[A]nd then I see it—the destination. It always rises up out of the dust, closer than I thought it was, and usually as a little bit of a surprise.”
“Horses have an uncanny ability to tap into your feelings, your vulnerabilities, and your strengths.”
In Part II of Peter Geye’s interview with Shann Ray, the authors continue their discussion of Ray’s novel American Copper, as well as the rewards of working with good editors, “what makes fiction go,” the lyric in fiction, and more.
Peter Geye talks with Shann Ray about Montana wilderness, intimate landscapes, and Ray’s debut novel, American Copper.
