Gay Fiction Speaks: Conversations with Gay Novelists

by Richard Canning

Book Overview

Today's most celebrated, prominent, and promising authors of gay fiction in English explore the literary influences and themes of their work in these revealing interviews with Richard Canning. Though the interviews touch upon a wide range of issues--including gay culture, AIDS, politics, art, and activism--what truly distinguishes them is the extent to which Canning encourages the authors to reflect on their writing practices, published work, literary...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0231116950
• ISBN13: 9780231116954
• Release Date: February 2001
• Publisher: Columbia University Press
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.0" x 9.0"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Brilliant

These interviews with 12 notable gay authors are powerful meditations on literary creativity and gay identity. The deeply insightful questions--Canning read everything by each of these authors before interviewing them--draw thoughtful, at times surprising responses from a wide range of authors. Readers are left to draw their own conclusions about the sum effect of the interviews, but one result for myself was fresh respect for these men and for their hardworking devotion to art. I am eager to read further volumes of Canning's interviews; it is such a pleasure to read intelligent commentary about novels by gay authors, when so much of what we get is filtered through annoying celebrity-obsessed, therapy-thirsty media like The Advocate and Out.

Unmissable!

Wow! I just got hold of this book, and it's a must for allreaders of gay fiction - in fact, for all readers. It's a collectionof interviews with the novelists you've most probably read, and talksabout how to write, literary influences, reputations. There's somehigh quality literary gossip but lots of serious analysis too. Youcan't believe some of the stuff is 'on record'! The conversations arelively, funny, never repetitive or boring, and they sort of all linkup. You can read the whole thing in one go - it's like a chatroom withall your favourite gay writers. Why has nobody done this before? Icould quibble about some missing authors, but they may turn up involume 2... Meanwhile, this book gave me a massive reading list that Iwant to check out.