Interview

'There's Some Kind of Evil Behind Every Great Work of Art': An Interview with Alex Ross

Talking to the author of Wagnerism about uncovering counter-narratives, keeping a healthy skepticism of your relationship with art, and totalitarian intolerance of eccentric creativity.

'The Ethics of Being a Poet': An Interview with Jenna Lyn Albert

The author of Bec & Call on the role of poet laureates, the political power of writing, and capturing a sense of place in her work. 

'Denial of Liberty is as Much a Part of America's Founding as Freedom': An Interview with Jonathan Daniel Wells

Talking to the author of The Kidnapping Club about narrativizing a history many tried to keep quiet and why New York was such a potent pro-slavery city.

‘Folklore Has Always Been About Futurity': An Interview with K-Ming Chang

The author of Bestiary on mythmaking, how grossness co-exists with beauty, and changing your destiny.

'A Fossil of Our Youth': An Interview with Marlowe Granados

The author of Happy Hour on charm as currency, the resilience of feminity, and getting away with things. 

'When I Go Into the Forest, I'm Always Reading Into It': An Interview with Jessica J. Lee

Talking to the author of Two Trees Make a Forest about changing ideas of home, our bodies as maps, and how the natural landscape influences human connection.

'A Good Deal for One Person is a Bad Deal for Someone Else': An Interview with Eula Biss

The author of Having and Being Had on the place where sensibility meets ideology, mid-life retrospective reckoning, and writing yourself into realizations. 

'Books Are Not Substitutes For Real Life': An Interview with Yaa Gyasi

Talking to the author of Transcendent Kingdom about the effect of perspective on readerly sympathies, the politicization of addiction, and the superficiality of "listening and learning."

'Despair is a Second Contagion': An Interview with Elisa Gabbert

Talking to the author of The Unreality of Memory about predicting disaster, criticism of self-contemplation, and a post-truth world.

'When Humans Get Involved in Anything, it Can Lead to Mistakes': An Interview with Sarah Weinman

The editor of Unspeakable Acts on the problems inherent in true crime reporting, the human desire for narrative, and the failings of the criminal justice system.