There's a conversation between Jay McInerney and Christopher Bollen in the new issue of Interview, about writing, and reading, New York, from The Great Gatsby to Bright Lights, Big City, and now, Christopher's debut novel, Lightning People, which is out next month (and I'm publicizing. As you know, I choose among the projects I am offered to find the ones that make the most sense to me, and what I wanted more than anything this fall was a New York story that could mean something to people right now).
McInerney, on writing Bright Lights, Big City... "It was interesting that at that time, as a novelist, you could deliver cultural news, because there was an underground. There were worlds in New York that weren't relentlessly subjected to the spotlight of journalism. There was really nobody covering that scene."
Bollen, on writing Lightning People: "I didn't want to write a book about young, fresh, hopeful people here. I wanted to get them when all of that optimism was starting to sour –– when there isn't anymore time to reinvent."
Pick up the magazine for the rest; and the book, for much more.
I agree--the more interesting interlude in NYC is that moment when there's nothing in the New Yorker you want to see. But there's always time for reinvention.
Posted by: terese | August 24, 2011 at 02:34 PM