Long fiction

So yeah, I did finish ‘Solo’, in spite of the hefty page count. It’s billed as a hundred years in one life, but this doesn’t quite feel like what you get. Still… What I like about this novel is, it’s not afraid to be a little bit weird, to take an idea and run with it, maybe go a bit over the top here and there. Its anarchic structure means you sort of end up with two books – different yet connected, flipsides of the same tune in different styles.   

Reading Solo

I must admit the sheer size of this book scared me a bit. It’s not that I read short stories for attention deficit reasons — if I get into a good novel I’ll stay up all night to read it. This particular book, though, would take more than one all-night stint to finish. It’s about a man who is a hundred years old, and his attempts to make sense of all the changes (political, cultural, scientific etc) he lives through in his lifetime. The other night at Costa, while waiting for things to kick off at the Pulp Net Short Story Cafe, I asked Rana if he knew the Costa Book of the Year award was recently won by another novel with a 100-year-old narrator. He laughed and said he’d been on a panel at a literary festival the other day, and the guy next to him was Sebastian Barry. That is when they discovered the link between their novels. More on Solo later, if I finish it.

2009 winner – Willesden Prize

Inspiring night at Costa Coffee for the Short Story Night, with writers Jo Lloyd, Jill Widner, and Margot Taylor. Wise words from Rana Dasgupta who this year replaced Zadie Smith as judge of the Willesden Herald prize and awarded top place to Jo Lloyd (pictured) for her story ‘Work’.

After praising the shortlisted stories Rana offered the advice that: “Short stories don’t have to be small in their scope.” Brains behind the Willesden Herald Stephen Moran arrived on cue with a box of books fresh from the printer. How he published it so fast remains a mystery, but he had a smart-looking anthology ready double-quick, and in the counter-recessionary spirit blowing round people chose not to go out for dinner, and spent on paper instead. Every last book was sold (Rana’s new novel as well as the Willesden Herald anthology). It was fun to meet the writers, all of whom came a long way to read. Big thanks to Rosemary Gomez who worked wonders with sound, and Steve who took photos when my camera battery dried up. (Perhaps it’s time to trade in the indestructible Nokia brick for something fragile that doubles as a camera.)

In April the short story night would have fallen Easter Monday, so a break seems highly probable. Check Pulp Net for more info on future events.