Suspend Your Disbelief

Posts Tagged ‘Jeremiah Chamberlin’

Essays |

Literary Life on the Black Sea: The 2009 Sozopol Fiction Seminar

by Jeremiah Chamberlin

Each year the Elizabeth Kostova Foundation selects five native English speaking (NES) writers and five Bulgarian writers to participate in the Sozopol Fiction Seminar, which takes places in the tiny, historic town of Sozopol, Bulgaria, on the Black Sea. And this summer I was lucky enough to be chosen as one of the NES fellows.It was, in a word, amazing. And though I’m by no means a photographer, I hope that a few of these snapshots might begin to capture the experience of being in such a unique place with so many generous and talented individuals.


Interviews |

Who We Are Now: A Conversation with Colson Whitehead

by Jeremiah Chamberlin

At the Ann Arbor Book Festival, FWR’s Jeremiah Chamberlin talks with acclaimed novelist Colson Whitehead about the process of writing his latest book, Sag Harbor, the art of manufacturing genuine nostalgia, and the duality of veering “between the capricious horribleness of the everyday and the absurd beauty of existence.”


Shop Talk |

recommended lit journal: Waccamaw

by Jeremiah Chamberlin

Earlier this month Waccamaw launched its Spring 2009 Issue. This is the third volume of the online literary journal published at Coastal Carolina University. The mission of the journal is to combine the rigorous quality and attention to detail of print journals with the reach and distribution of the Internet. And this attention to detail is visible not only in the quality of the authors being published here, but also little things like font choices (Georgia) and the off-white background that gives the illusion of reading from a “page.” The journal even has an ISSN (International Standard Serial Number) and […]


Shop Talk |

After the Ann Arbor Book Festival

by Jeremiah Chamberlin

There’s an old adage in these parts: If you don’t like the weather in Michigan, wait five minutes. This was certainly true to form the last several days here at the Ann Arbor Book Festival. Friday dawned beautiful, cloudless and warm. Yet by the cocktail hour the sky was spitting and sputtering. Saturday, too, threatened rain. But other than a few windy gusts that lifted the tents on the Ingalls Mall, the weather held. In fact, by mid afternoon that second day the clouds had gone. And the only rain we received was through the night—the literary Gods were smiling. […]


Shop Talk |

FWR Tupperware Recap

by Jeremiah Chamberlin

A wonderful time was, indeed, had by all. We missed you, Anne. But thanks for sending all the great books! They found many good homes. Thanks also to Johanna Hines from Norton for review copies, and Karl Pohrt at Shaman Drum for some of the same. And, of course, a big thanks to everyone for coming. It was lovely to spend an evening in the backyard together, and a great excuse for me to barbecue a turkey. If only I’d remembered to have someone snap a photo of me in my Fiction Writers Review apron… Most importantly, though, here’s the […]


Shop Talk |

Jeremiah Chamberlin wins Glimmer Train's Family Matters Fiction Prize!

by Anne Stameshkin

Huzzah and huge congrats to Jeremy, FWR’s Associate Editor, whose story “What We Can” has captured the $1200 first prize in Glimmer Train‘s Family Matters contest. Runners-up were, for second place, Yuval Zalkow for “God and Buses,” and for third place, Adam Theron-Lee Rensch for “Everything in Its Right Place.” The full list of finalists is available as a PDF here. Be sure to check out Glimmer Train‘s Summer 2010 issue, where “What We Can” will appear, or get a jump on it and subscribe now to one of FWR’s favorite literary magazines.


Shop Talk |

open letter from Karl Pohrt: How can we save Shaman Drum — and independent bookstores?

by Jeremiah Chamberlin

In the late 1990s, I ran a small, independent bookstore in Madison, Wisconsin, called Canterbury Booksellers. I knew I wanted to be a writer at the time, but I had no idea how to go about the process. Working at the store gave me not only shelter as a writer-in-progress, but also afforded me the opportunity to meet other writers, learn about the publishing industry, and to spend my days surrounded by people who loved nothing more than discussing writing and books. It was, in short, idyllic. But this was also during the era when chain stores were proliferating and […]


Shop Talk |

After AWP

by Jeremiah Chamberlin

It’s a sunny Sunday morning when we wake and ready ourselves to depart Chicago. Gazing out the the window of our room on the 23rd floor of the Hilton, I can see a host of over-sized snow sculptures across the street in Grant Park—enormous frogs kissing, a six-foot tall hamburger, a gigantic head of Einstein, and an anatomically correct heart the size of a Volkswagen that is now broken in pieces, presumably after a bad Valentine’s Day last night. Beyond the park, stretching toward the horizon line, Lake Michigan is the color of blued, tin siding. It might be sunny, […]


Interviews |

Interview with Travis Holland, The Archivist’s Story

by Jeremiah Chamberlin

Travis Holland’s first novel, The Archivist’s Story (2007, Dial Press), is set in Stalinist Russia in 1939. The book has been translated into eleven languages and has received numerous accolades, including: a Guardian Readers’ Pick of 2007, a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers Award, a Best Fiction of 2007 choice by Metro.co.uk, a Best Book of 2007 by both the Financial Times and Publisher’s Weekly, and the 2008 VCU Cabell First novelist award. He currently lives in Ann Arbor, where he is at work on his next novel. Jeremiah Chamberlin spoke with him for FWR on December 18, 2008.




Literary Partners