Readings

The Literary Turf of Jay McInerney

Speaking with the author of Bright, Precious Days about resisting contempt for your characters, differing degrees of infidelity, and the health of the novel in 2017.

Learning and Unlearning: On Writing About Sex Work

There’s an easy way to avoid the clichéd, harmful, and just plain wrong narratives about sex work: actually talk to sex workers.

Selling the Sun King

Mass intimacy requires a dilution of one’s complexities. In order to become a celebrity, a person necessarily becomes a personage.

The Gift of Denis Johnson

For two years after one of my closest friends killed herself, I thought my grief and guilt were meant only to be handled privately. Tree of Smoke reeled me back into the world.

'If I'm Writing About Anybody, it's a Political Statement': An Interview with Elizabeth Strout

The Pulitzer Prize-winning author on her new book, Anything is Possible, being a natural observer, not judging your characters, and stand up comedy. 

'Everything I Do Is In The Same House, Just On Different Floors': An Interview with Kyo Maclear

The author of Birds Art Life on spark books, the art of stillness in children's literature, and collaborating with illustrators. 

One More Time Around: Remembering Chris Cornell

The singer walked a line between overt masculinity and brooding sensitivity—fearlessly exploring the dark, wailing with the voice of a man who could sound like he was trying to escape his own body.

'I've Had These Feelings and This Fight for My Entire Life': An Interview with Jen Agg

The restaurateur and author of I Hear She's a Real Bitch on reclaiming the narrative, writing as catharsis and redacted nudes.