Attagirl!

 

 

     A friend asked me recently why I enjoy listening to writers talk about their books; what does it add, he wanted to know. I went today to hear Margaret Atwood, and I pondered his questions as I sat in the audience. My acquaintance with her work is slight as I've read only one of her novels, the superb Alias Grace (which the Book Group discussed at the beginning of the year) and her non-fiction Negotiating with the Dead, but I know much about her range and reputation.
    Today she read part of an unfinished short story - and she admitted she hasn't finished it because she doesn't know which way to take it and says it may get no further and lie in a drawer ! - she talked a bit about the writing process and a lot about her background, her family, the things which influenced her in her career path. She is a very funny lady with a dry wit and a laidback style and that combined with both wide and deep intelligence make her a pleasure to listen to.
     She discussed her invention LongPen which is now finding uses far beyond authors' signing sessions, the interruption to her publishing schedule caused by the US presidential election and the effect of that on the smoke alarm system in a Canadian hotel; how to make crystals with a supersaturated salt solution, and where to go (she discovered this for research purposes only, of course) if you want to get revenge on someone. She drew on elements of her grandparents' lives when writing Alias Grace, and she mentioned the quilts, which are a recurring motif in the book, though their precise significance wasn't touched on. So the hour was hugely varied, interesting and enjoyable and will, I think, inform in a subtle way my reading of her work. But even without 'enhancing' for me any future Atwood books, being there was great fun, and that's as good a reason as any for going, don't you think?