My interview with Douglas Wolk took place in October 2007, following the publication of his Reading Comics: How Graphic Novels Work and What They Mean. Naturally, we mostly discussed comics.
Tag: Interview
Interview with Helen Townsend
The author of Above the Starry Frame talks about her “faction”, her characters, the Eureka Stockade and what it means, on the major themes of her book, and lots more.
Interview with Ross Duncan
Ross Duncan, author of All Those Bright Crosses talks about the development of his book, themes, morality, his historical setting, the relationship between law and writing, and lots more.
Illumination, An Internet Interview with Greg Thomas: On Culture and Canons, On Jazz and Being an African-American Male
Gwendolyn Midlo Hall in Africans in Colonial Louisiana: The Development of Afro-Creole Culture in the Eighteenth Century (Louisiana State University Press, 1995), William Pollitzer in The Gullah People and Their African Heritage (University of Georgia Press, 1999), and editor Jacob Gordon with The African Presence in Black America (Africa World Press, 2004)—have focused on African cultural habits and values that long survived in America; and, as much has been written regarding the lives, artistry, and politics of the descendants in America of enslaved Africans and free blacks, that is of African-Americans, many of whom had and have complexions more diverse than the word black would indicate, most of what is written now about African-Americans is little more than a footnote: and those who add something comprehensive or new to public knowledge must be commended. Greg Thomas’s essay on canonization in jazz and literature respects both aesthetics and the context in which art is created and valued; and the essay is a fine piece of critical commentary, clear, reasoned, sure; and it identifies Marsalis and Gates as cultural heroes—not simply in light of their good intentions but in light of their genuine achievements…
Interview with Dr Ruth Wajnryb
Collins’ language consultant, Dr Ruth Wajnryb talks about the making of the latest dictionary, being a professional eavesdropper, on the perishable language of youth, the metrics of word inclusion, the use of language for manipulation, the language of silence, how we should all use dictionaries, her next surprising project, and lots more.
An Interview with James Sallis
James Sallis is pretty much the complete man of letters. Probably best known as a crime writer – in which role Ian Rankin has called him “one of the best of the best” – he has written sci-fi and literary fiction too. His non-fiction includes poetry, biography and criticism. And nor should one overlook here his work as a translator: if you should ever read Queneau’s Saint Glinglin in English, in the edition published by Dalkey Archive Press, you will be reading James Sallis’ prose. This wide-ranging interview – touching on various aspects of Sallis’ work and life, on the writing process itself and on the fate of the city of New Orleans – took place in July 2007.
Interview with Phil LaMarche
The author of American Youth talks about his novel and its positive reception, cultural differences in perception, his characters, his narrative voice, the relationship between teaching and writing, his literary influences, on filming his work, his next project, and more.
Interview with Dorothy Porter
Dorothy Porter talks about her new novel El Dorado, on the “obscure and effete in poetry,” the reasons for and difficulties with writing novels in verse, her narrative technique, and much more.
A Place Where Love Can Grow, by the band Faith, featuring Felice Rosser
What is music for? That is a question one rarely asks out loud and yet it is a question that every piece of music must answer. After first hearing the album <A Place Where Love Can Grow, I thought of it as creative, intelligent, consistent, and interesting…
Interview with Jackie French
In this fascinating and extensive interview, the author of Pharaoh (to mention just one of Jackie French’s extensive titles), talks about the writing and researching of Pharaoh, the critical importance of history and books to children, the thread that connects all her work, her unlikely hero, on maintaining passion in life, a big preview of her next book, and lots more.