Peter Owen . . .

There is a fine interview with Peter Owen in 3AM Magazine. Part I. A fine publisher of Blaise Cendrars (amongst others). And French House (boozer in Soho) regular (well, I used to see him in there on Thursdays) . . .

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David Mitchell . . .

I have it on good authority that David Michell's next novel is going to be pretty damn good . . .

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Last Interview . . .

Melville House are bringing out the final interview with Roberto Bolaño.

I can't wait to read this.

"With the release of Roberto Bolaño’s The Savage Detectives in 1998, journalist Monica Maristain discovered a writer “capable of befriending his readers.” After exchanging several letters with Bolaño, Maristain formed a friendship of her own, culminating in an extensive interview with the novelist about truth and consequences, an interview that turned out to be Bolaño’s last.

Appearing for the first time in English, Bolaño’s final interview is accompanied by a collection of conversations with reporters stationed throughout Latin America, providing a rich context for the work of the writer who, according to essayist Marcela Valdes, is “a T.S. Eliot or Virginia Woolf of Latin American letters.” As in all of Bolaño’s work, there is also wide-ranging discussion of the author’s many literary influences. (Explanatory notes on authors and titles that may be unfamiliar to English-language readers are included here.)

The interviews, all of which were completed during the writing of the gigantic 2666, also address Bolaño’s deepest personal concerns, from his domestic life and two young children to the realities of a fatal disease."

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Paris Today . . .

Courtesy of Stewart Home.

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Manchester Youth . . .

Sometimes, people ask me just what it is I got up to in my youth up in Manchester. I always find this a very hard question to answer, but this video by the Happy Mondays seems to sum it all up perfectly:

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Fiction Award . . .

As some of you will know, I was the guest editor at Publishing Genius’s fiction blog Everyday Genius for the whole of last month. I thoroughly enjoyed working with poet, publisher and polymath Adam Robinson. He’s doing some pretty amazing things (unearthing the brilliant Shane Jones for a start). I think, as guest editor, I published some decent writing – I guess I wanted to inject a little British (and Irish (and Scottish)) tom-foolery and brio into the proceedings. I think I succeeded in doing that, looking back, as I have been, over the work published.

So, I am pleased to announce the inaugural winner of the ‘Lee Rourke best fiction award for fiction published during the month of October at Everyday Genius’* is the meta-fabulist and wonderful, all round good egg HP Tinker.

Yes, that’s right, HP Tinker.

Here is the line-up for October. Click on a name and be delighted:

Stuart Evers │ Steve Finbow │ Peter Wild │ Shiona Tregaskis │ Ellis Sharp │ Grace Andreacchi │ Adrian Slatcher │ Heidi James │ HP Tinker │ Ben Myers │ Matthew Coleman │ Jenni Fagan │ Tom McCarthy │ Darran Anderson │ Adelle Stripe │ Maxi Kim │ Hendrik Wittkopf │ Shya Scanlon │ Aimee DeLong │ Andrew Gallix │ Melissa Mann │ Ethel Rohan

* this award is sponsored by ‘Everyday’ by Lee Rourke.

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New Books . . .

Came home to Steve Finbow's debut novel 'Balzac of the Badlands' and 'Protest! - fiction by Steve Finbow, Melissa Mann and Joeseph Ridgwell' today . . .

I've been wanting to read Steve's novel for some time now, so it's great to get my hands on a copy. I'll be reviewing it for 3:AM Magazine as soon as I can (have to finish my Brandon Scott Gorrell review first, which is aeons late now).

I feel a special mention must go the to prodution values on 'Protest!' (published by Beat the Dust Press). It's a beatuful-looking book, really great to see a small independent press putting so much into their books. Well done Melissa!

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