Literature

HE SAID SHE SAID

How Succession’s Harriet Walter Imagined Alternative Lives for Shakespeare’s Women

December 20, 2024

The acclaimed actor joined poet Jonathan Wells to discuss her new book, in which she imagines soliloquies Shakespeare’s female characters might have delivered.

herve guibert by jordan weitzman

REAPPRAISAL

“It’s Intimate, But Also Perverse”: Inside Suzanne and Louise, Hervé Guibert’s Lost Photo Novel

December 13, 2024

This fall, Jordan Weitzman of Magic Hour Press reissued “Suzanne and Louise,” the beloved 1980 photo novel by French writer Hervé Guibert.

HEX

How a Real-Life Stalker Inspired Author Ella Baxter’s Furious Art World Satire

December 5, 2024

The author of “New Animal” joined Paul Dalla Rosa to talk publicity, art monsters, and putting a hex on her stalker with her sophomore novel, “Woo Woo.”

IN CONVERSATION

Yigit Turhan and Carine Roitfeld on Beauty, Butterflies, and Body Horror

November 15, 2024

To mark the release of his debut novel, the author joined the legendary fashion editor to talk about pissing off advertisers, the nature of beauty, and being horny for horror movies.

WOMEN

Lili Anolik Takes Us Inside the Literary Rivalry Between Joan Didion and Eve Babitz

November 14, 2024

The author of a new book exploring the parallel lives of writers Joan Didion and Eve Babitz joined us to talk about the two literary icons and their visions of Los Angeles.

IN CONVERSATION

Jeff VanderMeer Tells Victor LaValle Why He Returned to Area X

November 8, 2024

The two writers got together to discuss their horror-fiction roots and why VanderMeer decided to return to the setting of his beloved “Southern Reach” trilogy ten years later.

MARTYRDOM

“Art Makes the Unbearable Bearable”: Romana Londi, in Conversation With Ottessa Moshfegh

November 5, 2024

To mark the opening of her exhibition at Rhinoceros Gallery, the Italian painter talked to novelist Ottessa Moshfegh about pain, pleasure, and depictions of martyrdom.

FIRST LADY

“At Least Her Dress Is Pretty”: Brontez Purnell Reviews Melania Trump’s New Memoir

October 30, 2024

The experience of reading Melania Trump’s new memoir, Brontez Purnell writes, was one of “lobotomized boredom punctuated with turbulence and terror.”

HOLE

Author Nate Lippens on Trauma Narratives and Serial Killers

October 25, 2024

“I love really intimate writing, or at least the illusion of diary or memoir,” says the author of “Ripcord,” publishing with Semiotext(e). “But the novel frees you up.”

POETRY

Poet Ariana Reines Isn’t Afraid of Saying the Wrong Thing

October 21, 2024

To mark the publication of her latest book, “Wave of Blood,” the poet talked to us about Gaza, insanity, and the process of stitching together a genre-resistant text.

IN CONVERSATION

Lucy Ives and Chris Kraus on Unicorns, Fantasy, and Flaubert

October 16, 2024

To mark the release of her new essay collection, the novelist told her friend and fellow writer Chris Kraus how her identity was forged in the public libraries of New York City.

LIT

In the Novels of Susan Minot, Women Get to Be Delusional Too

October 16, 2024

To mark the release of her latest novel, “Don’t Be a Stranger,” author Susan Minot talked to us about obsession, maternity, and the importance of doing stupid things.

GAY

How Marwan Kaabour Wrote the Definitive Guide to Queer Arab Slang

October 11, 2024

The London-based graphic designer and linguist paid us a visit on his North American book tour to talk about “The Queer Arab Glossary.”

LIT

Rachel Kushner on Creation Lake, Political Fiction, and Staying Off Twitter

October 10, 2024

The award-winning novelist joined us to talk about her latest book, “Creation Lake,” and the writers who inspire her, from Don DeLillo to Cormac McCarthy.

IN CONVERSATION

Johanna Hedva and Maggie Nelson on Kink, Capitalism, and the Hope-Doom Binary

October 2, 2024

To mark the release of their new essay collection, “How to Tell When We Will Die,” the writer, artist, and activist caught up with their old friend Maggie Nelson.

memoir

In Health and Safety, Emily Witt Writes the First Draft of Recent History

September 19, 2024

The author joined us to talk about her new book, “Health and Safety,” a memoir of her time in Brooklyn’s vibrant, drug-fueled underground party scene.

LIT

Garth Greenwell on Art, Sex, and the Human Urge For Self-Destruction

September 18, 2024

Before releasing his third work of fiction, “Small Rain,” the award-winning author talked to Ruth Madievsky about finding the strange pleasure in self-annihilation.

LIT

“Masturbatory Is a Compliment”: Tony Tulathimutte on Corniness and Rejection

September 17, 2024

“Nobody is at their best in the events that are depicted,” the author says of the characters in “Rejection,” his latest work of fiction. “They all go on the shit tier, unfortunately.”

LIT

“Every Sentence Matters”: Eugene Marten, in Conversation With Blake Butler

August 16, 2024

The author, who borrowed the anti-hero from Errol Morris’s documentary “Mr. Death” for his novel “Layman’s Report,” talked to Blake Butler about “the impossible art.”

LIT

“Eating Ass For Breakfast”: Precious Okoyomon, in Conversation With Eileen Myles

August 15, 2024

To mark the launch of their first poetry collection, the Nigerian-American artist called up their mentor Eileen Myles to talk Catholic guilt and being an American in Paris.