Laurel Zuckerman's Paris Weblog

Anne Korkeakivi, author of An Unexpected Guest, talks with Paris Writers News

I first met Anne Korkeakivi in C. Michael Curtis' short story seminar at the Paris Writers Workshop and was immediately struck by her sly humor, kindness and obvious literary talent. Since then, Anne has published many wonderful short stories in literary magazines such as The Yale Review and The Atlantic.  Recently, to our delight, she served as a distinguished judge for Best Paris Stories.

 Her outstanding novel, An Unexpected Guest, has just been released to critical acclaim and reader enthusiasm.  Foreign rights have  been sold in Australia, Italy, Russia and Serbia, and numerous literary publications have singled the novel out, including starred reviews and a Publisher's Weekly Pick.

Here, then, is Anne Korkeakivi, former Paris expat and author of An Unexpected Guest.    

***

Laurel Zuckerman : You’re an American married to a Finn living in Geneva. Where are you from?

 Anne Korkeakivi : I was born in New York City, and was raised there and in western Massachusetts.

LZ : Do you remember that feeling of falling in love with a book as a kid? Who were your favorite authors…

AK : I can't recall a pre-reading time. As a child, I read a lot of classic authors, both American and British, and also magical authors. I re-read the entire Narnia series by C.S. Lewis annually, and was crazy about D'Aulaire's beautiful illustrated Book of Greek Myths.

LZ : What started you writing? How did you learn?

AK : I'm not sure I recall a pre-writing time either. I used to lie awake at night as a very little girl writing stories in my head, a new scene every night. I was a mini-insomniac.

 LZ : Your short stories have been published by The Atlantic, The Yale Review, The Bellevue Literary Review, The Brooklyn Review, and others, and you were recently a Judge on the Best Paris Stories contest. What do you look for in a short story? How to distinguish the banal from something really special? In short, what makes a story great?

AK : It takes more than craft to make a short story great for me. It also takes heart.

LZ : An Unexpected Guest is your first novel. What inspired you to tell this story? 

AK : Basically, the idea sprung from a perfect storm of a visit to Paris at the height of the Iraq War that had me walking down the Rue de Varenne (the eventual epicenter of the novel's action), thinking about the ramifications of a series of news items then making headlines, and an uneasiness I felt as an American expat.

LZ : How did you get into Clare’s thoughts? Is she based on someone you know?

AK : Clare is entirely her own person. I think about my characters for a long time before I start writing. By the time I do, they pretty much have lives of their own.

LZ : Could you tell us about your research process? (ED note: The author once sent me to the Central Police Station of Paris to check details for a certain scene!)

AK : Well, I rely on clever generous friends for starters...  Before I cornered you, I cornered an acquaintance who had worked at the British Embassy in Paris. I research endlessly when I write: books, articles, interviews, travel, the internet, etc. Sometimes I just listen to people from certain places talking - to hear cadences.

LZ :  You recently wrote about the challenge of dealing with multiple languages in a Wall Street Journal article. How did you solve this in An Unexpected Guest, where so many different nationalities come together?

AK : Clare, my main character, is a translator by profession, which came in handy on several occasions. But, quite seriously, I gave this question a lot of thought. It wanted the book to be realistic, which demanded the use of some foreign language. But I didn't want it to be opaque or appear pretentious. There is a sprinkling of French in the book, and also a couple phrases in Italian. But nothing, I hope, that doesn't feel natural and clear. 

LZ : You tend to be a perfectionist. At what point were you able to say to yourself, it’s done! and let your agent read it?

AK : Are those two things supposed to be the same? For me, it was more like "it's ready for me to bear to have it looked at."

 

LZ : Reviewers have compared An Unexpected Guest to Virginia Wolff’s Mrs. Dalloway. What thoughts does this inspire?

AK: Gratitude.

 LZ : Are there writing retreats or workshops you could recommend?

AK : I've participated in two week-long workshops at the Paris Writers Workshop and was granted a month-long stay at Hawthornden International Retreat for Writers in Scotland. These were very rewarding experiences for me. But I can't claim to have much expertise on the subject, as I don't have anything to compare them with.

 LZ : What are your goals as a writer? Have these evolved?

AK : To write the best books I possibly can.

 LZ : Do you force yourself to read a book to the end once you’ve started?

AK : I used to, but lately I'm learning to just say no.

 LZ : Is it true that you loath ebooks?

AK: Not at all. I use a kindle often when I travel. But nothing substitutes for the experience of visiting a brick-and-mortar bookstore and browsing the tables and shelves and, in an indie bookstore, chatting with the bookseller. Or of holding a real book in my hands, admiring the cover, feeling between my fingers exactly where I am in a book. What a huge gaping void if we were ever to lose those things. Go visit your local bookseller, everyone. Please! Support them!

---

 Anne Korkeakivi was born and raised in New York City but currently lives in Geneva, Switzerland, with her husband, who works at the United Nations, and two daughters. Her short stories have been published by The Yale Review,The Atlantic, and The Bellevue Literary Review, among other magazines, and she is a Hawthornden Fellow. She has also lived in France and Finland, as well as in a few additional corners in the U.S.

Praise for An Unexpected Guest: "With this seemingly slight day-in-the-life tale, Korkeakivi produces a knowing comedy of manners, a politically charged thriller and a genuinely moving study of the human heart.' -Kirkus, Starred Review

Thank you American Library in Paris for a wonderful BEST PARIS STORIES book launch!

BEST PARIS STORIES brings together the winning short stories of the 2011 Paris Short Story Contest with works by Jeannine Alter, Bob Levy, Lisa Burkitt, Nafkote Tamirat, Marie Houzelle, Jo Nguyen, Julia Mary Lichtblau, Mary Byrne, Jane M. Handel, and Jim Archibald.

By turns humorous, bittersweet, historical or surreal, each of these carefully selected stories invites us to explore a different facet of Paris.

 SLIDESHOW OF PHOTOS FROM THE BEST PARIS STORIES LAUNCH AT The American Library in Paris on May 29th.

 

Will Bruno Michel Iksil, the London Whale, join Fabrice Pierre Tourre and Jerome Kerviel as French fall guys in financial scandals?

Breaking news: May 11, 2012  J.P. Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon admitted that the bank had lost $2 billion in bad trades and could face an additional $1 billion trading losses in the second-quarter. * More breaking news: July 13, 2012 "JPMorgan’s chief investment office has lost $5.8 billion on the trades so far, and that figure may grow by $1.7 billion in a worst-case scenario," - Bloomberg. More breaking news: it's finally happening:  (as predicted three months ago in article below) JP Morgan is starting to yell that traders hid positions, and will try to put blame on them...see Reuters "Traders May have hidden losses"

 

From teapot tempest in April to $2 BN loss in May to $5 BN + in July :  Dimon still boss

April 8, 2012: A  French-born J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. employee named Bruno Michel Iksil has unsettled credit default swap markets with his gigantic bets on the solvability of certain companies.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Iksil, dubbed "The London Whale*" for his enormous bets, has made $100 million for Morgan in the past few years with daring bets on credit default swaps (CDS).

This now risks becoming a problem as it dawns on market participants that he might have bet wrong. What happens if any of these companies do in fact default?

Before going further, it should be pointed out that any idiot can make money for a while selling CDS. That's one of the reasons they're such trouble makers.  

"Profits" on "premiums" to "protect against default" are recorded yearly before anyone knows how the long term bet will turn out. Sellers pocket the payments and announce profits (on which they earn bonuses!).  As long as there's no default, all is good. But, when default happens--bam!--the seller must pay out. And then, surprise, catastrophe. On a scale that can bring down a global financial institution, like, for example AIG in 2008. -- Or Deutsche Bank and Goldman had US taxpayers not bailed them out by honoring 100% of AIG's insane commitments. In fact, trouble can start even earlier--once market participants begin to suspect these bets may go bad. That's what's happening now...

How big are the French trader's bets? WSJ says big enough to move the index. It is frankly impossible to imagine that Iksil took these crazily risky positions without permission (even encouragement) from his managers. So why the focus on him?

Is this once again blame-the-Frenchman time?

Finance fans will remember the multi-billion dollar accusations of fraud against Goldman Sachs who sold its clients toxic mortage backed securities that it had specifically designed to fail for the sole and unique purpose of betting against them.

Who got blamed for massive and long term fraud by this financial giant? One man: Fabrice Pierre Tourre. French fall guy.

The Frenchman Tourre was the only person named when financial regulators charged the US investment bank Goldman Sachs with fraud. 

 And now here comes J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.

Chief Executive James Dimon earns top pay on Wall Street for his role in guiding JP Morgan to profits--$22.4 million for Dimon in 2011 alone.    But what if profits derive from ill-considered bets that can wreck the company? (Hedge funds are happily buying the CDS Iksil is selling, betting he's wrong.)

If the past is any guide, the CEO gets to keep the money--and blame the Frenchman!

That's precisely what Société Générale did when Jérôme Kerviel dropped $5 billion in bets that did not pay off.  

Though, admittedly there were two significant differences with the Tourre and Iksil cases.

First, Kerviel did everything he could to hide the trades (though one can be excused for wondering how a bank like Socgen could fail to see billions of high risk bets by a so-called  "rogue trader" ). 

The other difference, of course: in Société Générale, everyone was French.

 (For more on J.P. Morgan and the London Whale, see Wall Street Journal article by Gregory Zuckerman and Katy Burne )

 ***

Whale--or Voldemort? Why can't he be named....?

These just in:

According to the Forex Pros site, the so-called "London Whale" (baleine de londres) is likely hedging JP Morgan's own bonds". "...it is premature to conclude that JPMorgan has taken a large loss..Most likely they have something on the other side of the trade that the market doesn't see."

* "Whale"  Business Insider tells us,  is the unflattering nickname given to idiot rich people that drop millions at a casino. "And," reporter Joe Weisenthal adds,

"apparently 'The London Whale' isn't his only nickname. The trader became such a big client of credit-derivatives dealers that some started calling him Voldemort, the Harry Potter book-series villain so powerful he simply was referred to as 'He Who Must Not Be Named,' said one fund manager, who asked not to be identified because his firm does business with JPMorgan. The whole thing, with hedge fund traders using nasty nicknames to describe the guy via the press, seemed odd from the beginning. This only makes it weirder."  - Business Insider

According to bygonelondon.com : "Iksil works in London in the bank’s chief investment office, which has assembled traders from across Wall Street to its staff of 400 who help oversee $350 billion in investments. While the firm describes the unit’s main task as hedging risks and investing excess cash, four hedge-fund managers and dealers say the trades are big enough to move indexes and resemble proprietary bets, or wagers made with the bank’s own money." 

For more analysis of The London Whale's positions and the debate over the Volker Rule, see bygonelondon.com and, especially, Business Standard, which says some traders estimate that Iksil may have built a position on one index of as much as $100 billion.

"This year, Iksil has been betting on an index of 121 companies that all had investment-grade ratings when the benchmark was created in September 2007, the market participants said. Trading in that index surged 61 percent the past three months, according to data from Depository Trust & Clearing Corp.

The net amount of wagers on the index, which is tied to the creditworthiness of companies such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and now-junk-rated bond insurer MBIA Insurance Corp., soared to almost $145 billion at the end of March from $90 billion three months earlier, according to DTCC, which runs a central registry for credit-default swaps and reports weekly aggregate volumes.

"Iksil's trades have been so large that they're widening gaps between the relative value of the indexes and the average price of contracts tied to companies in those indexes, according to the market participants. That has frustrated some hedge funds that had bet the gaps would close, the people said." - Business Standard

 -----------------------

* Update May 15, 2012 For readers interested in understanding how JP Morgan lost $2 BN (perhaps more,) see this excellent article in Wall Street Daily by Mathew Weinschenk. (It would appear that JP Morgan bet that the spread between the cost of shorter term and longer term CDS would narrow, but, for various reasons, it didn't work out. Oops.)

* Update May 17, 2012 WSJ article by Gregory Zuckerman (no relation) suggests that  JP Morgan CEO Mr. Dimon lies when he claims "the CIO group's intent was to hedge the company's exposures in a difficult credit environment." In fact, earlier winnings from bold bets, whetted appetitefor more,  causing management to tolerate high risk in search of gains.

* Update July 13, 2012Bloomberg article by Dawn Kopecki and Michael J. Moore "JPMorgan’s chief investment office has lost $5.8 billion on the trades so far, and that figure may grow by $1.7 billion in a worst-case scenario," WSJ article by Saabira Chaudhuri and Dan Fitzpatrick  : "J.P. Morgan said on its conference call Friday that it would recoup, or claw back, two years of compensation from those responsible for the London CIO losses. The Journal reported this week that clawbacks at the bank would target the CIO traders and their former boss, Ina Drew, a longtime top lieutenant of Mr. Dimon who left the bank following the trading-loss disclosure".

 

Stephen Clarke's God Save Ze President Featured on Amazon.fr Kindle ebooks first page

Kindle ebooks have really and truly arrived in France!

Check out Amazon.fr's Kindle ebook page and you will see a first class presentation of the kind most authors only dream about for expat humorist Stephen Clarke's new book, God Save Ze President.

This is the kind of marketing authors should pay attention to. Beautiful presention, and an innovative proposal:

"From the 11th of April, discover a new episode each week...special launch price of 0.99 centimes."

Kudos to Mr Clarke's team for this classy and innovative partnership with Amazon kindle.

 (Here's what you see if you click on ebooks in Amazon.fr today Saturday, April 7 --it will of course change)

Ebooks Kindle

Meilleures ventes | Nouveautés | Ebooks par thèmes | Ebooks gratuits | Ebooks en anglais et autres langues | Journaux et Magazines

Exclusivité numérique : le nouveau roman de Stephen Clarke en 6 épisodes

"Stephen Clarke, l'auteur de l'inoubliable "A Year in Ze Merde", est de retour - et cette fois il s'attaque... au nouveau président de la République française ! À partir du 11 avril, découvrez chaque semaine un nouvel épisode de ce roman-feuilleton aussi palpitant qu'hilarant. Les trois premiers épisodes sont déjà disponibles en précommande :

God save ze Président - Episode 1...

Stephen Clarke

Prix Kindle: EUR 0,99

 

Paris Writers News April 2012 Update : tonight three terrific events!!

This month, news from Anne Korkeakivi, Cara Black, Best Paris Stories, Her Royal Majesty, Lisa Burkitt, Mark Strand, Gilles Weinzaepflen, Sean Cole, Stephane Hessel, Elaine Sciolino, Tom Byrne, Spoken Word, Tama Carol, Margo Hammond, Nachid Rachlin, Marilyn Waite, Zoë Skoulding, Lily Tuck, Darren Frey, Edward Giradet, Kate Tempest, Jeanette Winterson, Chris Pavone, Kate Staples, SOS Help, David Lebovitz, Cat Jahnke, Heather Stimmler-Hall, and the Paris Writers Workshop!

* follow us on twitter @ParisWriters *

 

NEWS and NEWS BOOKS

 

We are delighted to announce the publication of An Unexpected Guest, by friend and Best Paris Stories Judge Anne Korkeakivi. An Unexpected Guest was included in Library Journal's list of "especially promising" debut literary novels for Spring 2012, and was an April book pick by Good Housekeeping.  You can read about Anne's "first time" reading in front of a large audience and (in the WSJ!) about the challenges of dealing with foreign languages in fiction. Watch for our upcoming interview!

The distinguished mystery writer Cara Black (also a Best Paris Stories Judge!) will receive the Medaille de la Ville de Paris!  In addition, her new book (the 12th!), Murder at the Lantern Rouge was a Publisher's Weekly starred review. 

 BEST PARIS STORIES will be issuing Kindle singles for several of the short stories in the anthology, a practice pioneered by The Atlantic Monthly, with a story  "Folding Paper" by Anne Korkeakivi, mentioned above)! 

Check out our new interview with Denyse Beaulieu, author of The Perfume Lover, as well as past PWN author  interviews. If you would like to interview authors, please let us know at [email protected]

*   April is Poetry Month!! As well as Scriptfrenzy!  *

 

SELECTED LITERARY EVENTS

(for events in French and more poetry and music, see the Paris Reading and Event List)

Tue 3 April, 2012 7:00 pm –- Pulitzer Prize-winner and former U.S. poet laureate Mark Strand will read AT Village Voice Bookshop

 Tuesday 3 April   19h30 AAWE and MESSAGE @ The Library Panel discussion about the transition from maternelle or pre-school children moving up to CP.

 3 April 19h30 Ivy Writers Paris invites you to a bilingual reading in French and English with Gilles Weinzaepflen (French), Sean Cole (American) and Susana Gardner (Swiss-American). AT: « Le Next »17 rue Tiquetonne, 75002 Paris M° Etienne Marcel / RER Les Halles

 Wednesday 4 April   19h30  Stephane Hessel will discuss ‘Indignez-Vous’ and the movement he spawned. Evenings with an Author: American Library in Paris

 4 April, 18h Almost Invisible: Paris Former Poet Laureate of the United States and Pulitzer-winning poet Mark Strand  AT The Grand Salon The American University of Paris 31 avenue Bosquet 75007, Introduced by faculty members Neil Gordon and Jeffrey Greene, with bilingual reading and discussion. For reservations: [email protected] or [email protected] 

 Wed 4 April, 2012 6:30 pm – PARIS -- Elaine Sciolino, author of La Séduction: How the French Play the Game of Life  , Am Cham Paris

 Wed 4 April, 2012 – PARIS - AUP - Why Artist's Books? 7:00 pm, American University of Paris

 Thursday 5 April   19h30 Talk About Art: Tom Byrne explores the history of & how to become a gallerist in Paris. American Library in Paris

Saturday 7 April   10h00-19h00 Used Book Sale at the Library only on Saturday this month. American Library in Paris

 9 April 20h onward: SpokenWord Paris: Open mic in English, open to all languages. AT: Chat Noir, 76 rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, 75011. Métro Parmentier/Couronnes. 

 Tuesday 10 April   19h30 Close-ups: Film through the Ages - Tama Carroll presents Musicals Part 2, The Next Generation. American Library in Paris

 Wednesday 11 April   19h30 Earth Day talk, featuring Marilyn Waite, who will discuss world-wide water resources. Evenings with an Author AT The American Library

 11 April 19h Poets Live celebrates the international quarterly Poetry Wales, with editor Zoë Skoulding and contributors to the magazine from Wales and Paris AT: Carr's Pub & Restaurant 1 rue du Mont Thabor, 75001 Paris Metro : Tuileries

 11 April 9:00pm until  3:00am The Book Club at Le Carmen: On The Road At Cafe Carmen 22 Rue de Douai, 75009 Paris  -"What books did you bring?"  The question could seem incongruous here, amidst the sex-shops of the Paris 9th. And yet: across the high threshold of an unmarked wooden door, you enter a candle-lit, almost fairytale like décor, with painted ceilings and plaster angels observing the scene from on high. Near the entrance, a human-size birdcage greets guests. Read more about Rosa Rankin Gee's and Jethro Turner's incredible event for booskters in Paris Nightlife Goes Literary. 

 Thursday 12 April   19h30 National Book Award winning author Lily Tuck presents ‘I Married You For Happiness.’ Evenings with an Author AT The American Library

 12 April 18h Philosophers in the Library: Lectures and discussion (no experience necessary) Our new series in the library starts off with Darren Frey On God and Evil: The History of Theodicies. Darren Frey graduated in Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh and in Religious Studies at Harvard University. He has taught Philosophy and Religious studies at Emerson College and Deep Springs College, and now lives in Paris. AT: Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

 12 April 19h Edward Girardet who will discuss his latest book, Killing the Cranes: A Reporter’s Journey Through Three Decades of Reporting in Afghanistan, published by Chelsea Green. AT Village Voice Bookshop

 16 April 19h Kate Tempest, one of the UK’s most thrilling young performance poets, AT Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

 16 April 20h onward: SpokenWord Paris: Open mic in English, open to all languages. AT: Chat Noir, 76 rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, 75011. Métro Parmentier/Couronnes. http://spokenwordparis.blogspot.com/

 19 April 19h Jeanette Winterson, one of the world’s great storytellers, will talk about her memoir Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? AT: Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

 19 April 19h Chris Pavone will present and sign his novel The Expats AT WH Smith

20 April 16h  Chris Pavone, author of new spy thriller The Expats, "captures in wonderful detail the texture of expatriate living while delivering a riveting story of great-game deceptions wrapped inside the smaller deceptions of marriage" * Note signing-only AT: Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

23 April 20h onward: SpokenWord Paris: Open mic in English, open to all languages. AT: Chat Noir, 76 rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, 75011. Métro Parmentier/Couronnes.

25 April 15h Bring your children (2-6 year-olds) to the library at Shakespeare and Company for an hour of music, songs and stories in English (for all nationalities even those who don't speak English!). Led by the magic Kate Stables, mum and singer/songwriter from This is the Kit. There will be instruments to play and noise to make! Then for children over 7 years, there will be a game club afterwards with cards, scrabble, uno and many more games you might be tempted to play... * 3-4pm Music, rhythm and stories with Kate from This is the Kit (kids’ hour in the Library): For 2-6 year-olds (siblings welcome too) with parents. 4 euro donation appreciated. *4.30pm-5.30pm Games Club for 7yrs and up. 2 euro donation appreciated. AT: Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

 29 April 18h Come to SOS Help's special benefit evening - the owners of the restaurant Verjus have kindly donated their premises, and other sponsors have donated appetizers and desserts. There will also be entertainment : a talk by David Lebovitz, music from Cat Jahnke and Heather Stimmler-Hall as MC. At 60€ per person your evening includes: "Apéro dinatoire" with wine and appetizers, a talk by David Lebovitz, music by Cat Jahnke, MC'd by Heather Stimmler-Hall. All proceeds benefit SOS Help,the emotional support line in English. Tickets on sale via online: www.soshelpline.org AT: Verjus Restaurant 47 rue Montpensier, 75001, Paris Métro: Pyramides

29th.April 19h30 : Andrew Auerbach: "The Novelist" (stage play in English) AT CARRS

30 April 20h onward: SpokenWord Paris: Open mic in English, open to all languages.. AT: Chat Noir, 76 rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, 75011. Métro Parmentier/Couronnes.

 

WORKSHOPS AND RETREATS

 May 3-6 Write your own version of "A Moveable Feast" while staying at a Loire Valley chateau. Join U.S. book critic and travel writer Margo Hammond for a travel memoir workshop May 3-6 that includes writing sessions and publishing tips. Cost of 950 euros covers three nights at the chateau, two group lunches, a group dinner and morning classes held in the chateau's orangerie. Details:historicrentals.com/seminars.

 June 24-27, 2012  Paris Writers Workshop (PWW)   This year’s writers-in-residence faculty are: Samantha Chang (Novel), Kate McMullan (Writing for Children/Young Adults), Mimi Schwartz (Creative Nonfiction), Kathleen Spivack (Poetry), Christopher Tilghman (Short Story).  ( Click here for more information on faculty and presenters.)  The workshop will be held  at the American University of Paris. Find out more at www.pariswritersworkshop.org or email [email protected]. The special discounted early bird rate is available until March 31. Workshops traditionally fill up quickly. 

 

 August 1-14-12-  Nahid Rachlin's Fiction Workshop (open to memoir), in Assisi, Italy,  at Art Workshop Interational. Write, Revise, Polish, in Assisi, Italy, August 1-14, open for credit and non-credit. For more details about Nahid's course click here. For general info about Art Workshop Internationalclick here.  COST:  2 weeks: EARLY BIRD—$4,560 ($351 per day); after April 18, 2012—$4,785 ($368 per day) the price includes lodging, shared double room with bath in an air-conditioned four-star hotel, breakfast, four-course dinner, tuition, instruction and studio, lectures, and all gratuities, pick up from airport.

September 20-23,  2012 Festival America : every two years in Vincennes

CALLS FOR SUBMISSIONS

 Tale of Three Cities  -  Deadline April 18, 2012

Paris Literary Prize - Deadline September 1, 2012

France: The Obin Report on Religious Signs and Manifestations in French Schools

The Obin Report (Rapport Obin)  submitted to the Minister of Education in 2004 by Jean-Pierre Obin, General Inspector of Education, studied the impact of religious signs and manifestations in French public schools. Its conclusions regarding the spread and impact of Islam on the young and the dangers to national cohesion were so alarming that the report was temporarily shelved. Due to fear. 

Fortunately, after a year of silence, the French education ministry finally found the courage to publish the report on the internet. As a result, we can now read the original PDF file on the official site of the French education ministry, in French and, using Google translate, in any other language, including English.

Anyone wanting to understand the mechanisms of what has been called the "Islamisation" of the young in French public schools should read this report.

It is especially relevant in the wake of the Toulouse massacres of Jewish children and French soldiers perpetrated in the name of Islam by the 24-year-old Frenchman of Algerian origin Merah.

Jean Pierre Obin, the author of the report, wrote a book in 2011 entitled Etre enseignant aujourd'hui, available in paperback and Kindle

 

***

There is another, even more chilling report, entitled The Development of Fundamentalist Islam in France, Security and Social Aspects, which explores the ghettoisation of Muslims, the spread of fundamentalism, the origins and psychological profils of French jihadhists, the financing of fundamentalism in France, and the risks of terrorist attacks.

This 2005 report, was issued not by Education Nationale but by a private Think Tank called Cf2R, Le Centre Français de Recherche sur Le Renseignement. It's author is Eric Denécé, a former intelligence agent and author of numerous books, including in 2011 Commandos & Forces Spéciales.

Written six years before the Toulouse attacks, it offers precise insights into their preparation.  

 

Calls for submissions ! Her Royal Majesty, Tale of Three Cities, Paris Literary Prize Novella Contest

Writers!

Here are three calls for submissions that may interest you.

Good luck!

  Her Royal Majesty  -  Deadline: March 31, 2012

Tale of Three Cities  -  Deadline April 18, 2012

Paris Literary Prize - Deadline September 1, 2012

 ___

 MORE INFORMATION

Her Royal Majesty  -  Deadline: March 31, 2012

The theme of the next issue is “The Exotic”, and it will be published in May with a launch party at 59 Rivoli. The deadline for submissions is March 31st. We will read submissions in early April. Please expect to hear back from us mid-April about whether or not your work will be published.

Submissions from all are welcome. We publish all realms of creative work including short fiction, poetry, paintings, photographs, drawings, collages, recipes and the like. Please look through the back-issues on the home page for more of a sense of the work that we are interested in, and drop us a line if you are interested in writing a non-fiction piece. We publish creative non-fiction and essays if the theme is relevant and the writing elegant.

Click here to submit to Her Royal Majesty

When sending us your work, a brief artist biography or supplementary information is welcome but not necessary. Some of our contributors choose to publish anonymously. There is no limit to submissions. Unfortunately, we are not currently in a position to pay anyone for their work. All material published remains the intellectual property of the artist; in publishing this artwork and literature, Her Royal Majesty is exhibiting the work to the public as if on loan.

___

Tale of Three Cities  -  Deadline April 18, 2012

SUBMISSIONS FOR A TALE OF THREE CITIES #2 ARE NOW OPEN

Following on from the peppermint-green charms of our first issue, stocked by Colette, B Store and The Wapping Project among others, we are looking for stories, photography, poetry, essays, short plays and more for issue #2

We want solid new work that stops us in our tracks. We want to print unknown writers and artists alongside globally-acclaimed ones. We want to make an issue we would sell our shoes to publish, and all we ask is that submissions have a flavour of London, Paris or Berlin*

WHAT WE WANT IS FRESH EYES, AND REAL, UNEXPECTED GLIMPSES OF THESE CITIES. MAKE MUMMA PROUD

Read our manifesto

Read our magazine

SUBMISSIONS CLOSE AT MIDNIGHT CET ON APRIL 18 2012

Submitting words? Send them to [email protected]

Submitting images? Send them to [email protected]

___

 

 

Paris Literary Prize - Deadline September 1, 2012

 

Submitting Your Novella

Please read the Eligibility Terms and Conditions for this prize to make sure you meet all the requirements. Click Here.

Prepare the following texts and have them ready to ensure your submission process goes well when you upload your work on the Prize Submission software.

You will submit two texts: your Pitch and your Novella; these must be submitted in one document. Do not include your name (or any personal information) in this document.

 Your Pitch (maximum 150 words):  Imagine you are pitching your novella to an agent or publisher. What would you tell them? Your pitch will be the first page of your submitted novella and must only include :

 * The title of your novella 

 * Your pitch 

* The word count of the novella

Your Novella (17,000 - 35,000 words): Please make sure you have readand understood all the Entrant and Novella Submission Requirements (A & B)

* Number pages sequentially on bottom right of page

* Put the title of your novella at the top of each page

The document must follow the format requirements below:

* Font name: Times New Roman

* Font size: 12 pt

* Double space

* PDF format - Please convert your document to PDF (if you can) before submitting it. Word documents will be accepted, but there is no guarantee that formatting will not be compromised.

During the process, the Prize Submission software will ask you for a Bio Sketch (maximum 250 words). Please write a brief history of your writing life and anything else you would like us to know. This Bio Sketch will be for the Paris Literary Prize administrators only and will not be accessed by the Prize readers.

Make sure your final document is ready to submit before going to the submission page. Once you have submitted your manuscript you cannot make changes.

Submission Fee

* The submission fee is 50€ for submissions received by noon Paris time September 1, 2012.

* The submission fee for the extended (until noon Paris time, September 15, 2012) deadline is 60€.

Submission Timeline

* All submissions must be received online and paid for by noon Paris time on September 1, 2012 or by the extended deadline of noon September 15, 2012. 

Enter Now

Please CLICK HERE to begin the submission process.

Please note: This page will be updated as necessary, so please check back.

 

 

 

 

 

Call for submissions: a writing contest you can sink your teeth into, deadline April 8

Why is it ethical to eat meat?

Paris Vegans, here's a writing challenge if ever there was one:

A New York Times writing contest judged by the harshest anti-meat writers in the Western world (Peter Singer, Michael Pollan, Mark Bittman, Jonathan Safran Foer and Andrew Light) on WHY IT IS ETHICAL TO EAT MEAT.

If you make it past them, says Ariel Kaminer, announcing the contest in the New York Times, we’ll put your name in lights (or at least in print).

So get thinking. And get writing. You have two weeks and 600 words in which to make sense of our species’ entire dietary history. Bon appétit!

***

Rules: This is a very specific contest. Don’t tell us why you like meat, why organic trumps local or why your food is yours to choose. Just tell us why it’s ethical to eat meat.

Guidelines: Send written entries of no more than 600 words to [email protected]. Entries are due by April 8; no late submissions will be considered.

The Prize: The best essay or essays will be published in an upcoming issue of The New York Times.

The Caveat: Feel free to bat ideas around in the comments section below, but to be considered by the judges entries must be submitted to [email protected].

E-mail queries to [email protected], or send them to the Ethicist, The New York Times Magazine, 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10018, and include a daytime phone number.

 for more info see: Calling all Carnivores

A talk with Paris Writer Denyse Beaulieu, author of The Perfume Lover on writing, scent and seduction

Denyse Beaulieu, author of The Perfume Lover: A Personal History of Scent

This week, Paris Writers News talks with Denyse Beaulieu, author of The Perfume Lover: A Personal History of Scent,

I had the pleasure of meeting Denyse at the American Library in Paris' fascinating Passion Panel on perfume, wine and cheese with Robert Camuto (wine) and Sister Noella Marcellina (cheese). It was a remarkably delightful and informative discussion, due to a successful blend of knowledge, wit and an unusual level of articulateness. I was particularly struck by Denyse's passion for scent (her refrigerator is full of perfumes!) and her surgeon-like precision in speaking about something which for me had always been invisible and elusive. Language, she explained, is essential. "The more you learn to put words to your perceptions, the finer your appreciation will become."

Denyse Beaulieu writes Grain de Musc, a bilingual blog on perfume, and teaches "Understanding Fragrance" at the London College of Fashion. She has published numerous books and articles in English and in French, including Sex Game Book, a cultural history of sexuality (Éditions Assouline) and Les Musées, Le Patrimoine (Documentation Française) and L’Enfant vers l’art (Autrement). Most recently she inspired Bertrand Duchaufour, a reknown perfumer, to create a new scent based on a recollection of a romantic encounter. 

 

Writers on Writing

a talk with Denyse Beaulieu, author of The Perfume Lover

 Laurel Zuckerman: Denyse, you write so beautifully about perfumes, such a remarkable blend of precision and sensuality. How did you learn to write? 

Denyse Beaulieu: I’ve never had any creative writing training. I’ve just always written. And I started getting paid for it very early on, at 16, when I published my first pieces in a couple of Montreal music magazines during the punk era. I wasn’t even old enough to go into the clubs where the gigs were happening! A far cry from perfume, I know, but the point was being able to write about something I was passionate about. Perfume gave me a new field to explore with that same adolescent energy – and all I’ve learned in the meantime, after 25 years in Paris.

LZ: In your book you talk about the importance of finding a common language with the perfume expert. Can you tell us more about it? What is the role of words, of language, in creating a scent?

DB: One of the reasons I started writing about perfume was that it’s just so difficult, really. That was the whole challenge! The part of our brain that identifies smells evolved such a long time before our cortex that the two have a pretty hard time connecting. Perfumers are trained in matching words with smells because they have to memorize thousands of them and categorize them, but that doesn’t mean they’ll all perceive the same materials in the same way. They have developed conventions so they can discuss projects. But there are various classifications of raw materials and they’re not identical. So you can imagine how tricky it can be to communicate with someone who’s got no formal training.

Say you want something that smells green. Which type of green? Fresh-mown lawn? Milky fruity fig leaf? Granny Smith apple? Tart, metallic rhubarb? Cat-pee-like box tree? You try to zero in on the most accurate real-world referent; to put adjectives to the noun, as it were. But you’re limited by what the person in front of you knows. I remember struggling with 20-something American fashion students when I was showing them vanilla absolute, because they’d never smelled cigars, so they couldn’t recognize that facet…

What’s magical though is that as soon as the accurate word is said, you smell the thing. I was smelling daffodils with a friend today, and she picked up freshly-sliced button mushrooms. I leaned in to sniff, and boom! Mushrooms jumped out.

Associating words or images with each other can also lead to olfactory connections. If I say orange blossom, I might think of orange trees in full bloom buzzing with nectar-drunk bees, which will lead me to honey, but also to wax. Bees wax is often associated with incense because of the candles in churches. And there you’ve got some of the major notes of Séville à l’aube, the perfume whose development is one of the narrative threads of The Perfume Lover.

 LZ: For a wearer of perfume, does mastering the language heighten appreciation of the scent? If so, how?

DB: I think it does, because the more you learn to put words to your perceptions, the finer your appreciation will become: it’s as though you were expanding your object, connecting it in richer, more complex ways with your life, with the world… The beauty of the fragrance will speak to you more deeply; you’ll be able to weave more stories around it. By putting words to smells, you’re also cultivating a neglected sense and opening yourself up to a new dimension in the world.

LZ: You explore the connection between perfume and sensuality. What elements do you think are at work? The working of the scent? Other secret ingredients? Or perhaps the message vehiculed by the act of wearing perfume, i.e. the assumption that a person wears perfume in order to seduce and is therefore open to seduction?...

DB: Perfumes, in a way, are our subconscious. Because they’re invisible, they give us the impression that whatever message they’re putting out won’t be perceived. One of those messages, of course, is seduction: for time immemorial, scent has been used in erotic rituals. But it’s not just a matter of getting dolled up for a date. There are some notes in perfumes that subtly conjure the beast under the velvet, because they connect with human smells. Jasmine, for instance. In The Perfume Lover, I explore why our skins love it so much. It turns out we produce very similar and sometimes identical chemicals than those produced by flowers. Let’s not forget flowers are sexual organs! The intoxicating fragrances they produce to attract insects may not work on humans in quite the same way, but there must be a reason why their beauty makes us swoon…

LZ: Perfume and poison, you point out, are historically linked. Could you tell us more? Is that still the case today?

DB: For centuries, people thought epidemics were caused by bad smells, and could therefore be repelled by good ones. Perfume was an invisible armor against the Reaper. I believe that there is still a trace memory of this in our culture. That some part of us may seek certain smells for healing or protection. But in Ancient Greece, the word pharmakon meant both poison and medicine, so that the healing virtues of perfume can reverse themselves: that, too, is in our memories. But today it translates into paranoia about “chemicals” in perfumes. Of course it’s much easier to attack perfume, which is perceived as dispensable and futile, even deceptive since it is an instrument of seduction, than to take on the corporate behemoths that are merrily disrupting our environment. That said, I do believe certain perfume notes are toxic… from an aesthetic point of view!

LZ: When will the perfume your story inspired become available? Are you still involved in the project?

 DB: Séville à l’aube will be launched by L’Artisan Parfumeur in July 2012. The perfumer Bertrand Duchaufour and I will be doing joint events in London to promote the book and the fragrance, and again in October when the book comes out in France. Apart from that, my involvement with the project ended when the creative process did, since it was Bertrand himself who invited me into it.

LZ: Now that you’ve been a muse, do you want to inspire something else? Do you have a muse of your own?

DB: Bertrand was my muse for the book! And I’m currently working on other scents, this time more formally, as a creative director.

LZ: We learn all kinds of interesting things (public baths were shut down for three centuries!) How did you research this book?

DB: I’m not a historian, so I based myself on many books, mainly The Foul and the Fragrant by Alain Corbin, The Gardens of Adonis by Marcel Détienne and Le Parfum des origines à nos jours by Annick Le Guérer. Élisabeth de Feydeau’s Le Parfum: Histoire, Anthologie, Dictionnaire hadn’t been published yet when I was writing but I interviewed her. I also drew on the erudition of Octavian Coifan, the author of the blog 1000 Fragrances, who has done a lot of research on primary sources, is a fount of knowledge and generous about sharing it.

LZ:  How do you work? Do you have a special regimen or schedule you follow?

DB: Every waking hour I can spare until the damn thing is done, basically. Though for The Perfume Lover, the pace of the writing was conditioned by my sessions with Bertrand Duchaufour while we were developing the fragrance. When we didn’t see each other, I wrote about other things. The chapters have been pretty much kept in that order, since it was the evolution of the perfume that conjured themes and recollections.

LZ: What’s your favorite spot in Paris for drinks?

DB : Le Nemours, right at the entrance of the Palais Royal, a proper old-style French café, is where I give most of my appointments. Otherwise, I tend to end up in the English bar of the Westin on the rue de Castiglione, mostly because it’s central, quiet, and untouched by trendiness. A place to talk, not to be seen.

LZ: What’s your next project?

DB: I’m still working on the French translation of The Perfume Lover, which I’m doing myself. I’d love to explore raw materials next. I’m boning up on chemistry right now. The strange thing is, the more I know about the world of scent, the more magical and mysterious it becomes…

 ***

Bilingual, Denyse Beaulieu is a Paris-based fragrance writer and industry consultant who established herself as one of the foremost bloggers in the field with Grain de Musc. She has learned the principles of perfume composition with the help of some of the profession’s most prestigious noses.
Her expertise has been acknowledged by at the London College of Fashion where she teaches an intensive “Understanding Fragrance” course and the Société Française des Parfumeurs where she is lecturer. She was born in Canada, where she first started as a writer by covering the punk rock scene for local magazines, and moved to Paris 25 years ago to do her Ph.D. at the Université Paris VII on the Marquis de Sade.

 

 

Paris Writers News March 2012 Update

This month, news from  Gwyneth Hughes, Amy Thomas, Barry Kirwan, Cara Black, Best Paris Stories, Denyse Beaulieu, Anne Korkeakivi, Paris Writers Workshop, Margo Berdeshevsky, Marco Panzani, Lisa Immordino Vreedlnd, Lisa Pasold, Upstairs at Duroc, Guillaume Klossa, AUP Young writers and translators, Kelly Jakes, Heather Hartley, Rilla Askew, Sasha Dugdale, Jane Draycott, Mimi Khalvati, Olivia McCannon, Stephen Romer, Moving Parts, Bookclub at LeCarmen, Le Printemps des Poètes, Caroline Brothers, Constance Borde, Suyan Zhou, the Young Authors Fiction Festival, The Paris Literary Prize and the SALON DU LIVRE.

 

NEWS

Submissions have opened for The Young Authors Fiction Festival : deadline : April 1, 2012 at midnight!

Open to all students ages 5 to 18.

The American Library in Paris is organizing the Young Authors Fiction Festival, in collaboration with the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). The Fiction Festival is open to all students ages 5 to 18 in the greater Paris area who write in English and is absolutely free of charge to enter. The deadline for submissions is midnight 1 April 2012. To get the details and the submission guidelines, visit the American Library website - see Children or Young Adult program listings on the Events and Programs page. Questions? Contact the YAFF 2012 team at [email protected]

 

Submissions have opened for the 2012 Paris Literary Prize sponsored by Shakespeare and Co and the De Groot Foundation. This is the most exciting prize that exists for novellas. See submission guidelines here.

There are three Paris Literary awards: the award for the best Novella and two runner-up awards.

The 2012 Paris Literary Prize award: 10,000 Euros and a weekend stay in Paris, France. The winner will also read from his or her work at a special event at Shakespeare and Company Bookshop in Paris.

Two Paris Literary Prize Runner-up awards: These awardees will receive 2,000 Euros each, a weekend stay in Paris and an opportunity to read from their work at a special event at Shakespeare and Company Bookshop in Paris.

The Paris Literary Prize KEY DATES : February 29, 2012 - Submissions Open.  September 1, 2012 - Submissions Deadline.  September 15, 2012 - Extended Deadline.  June 15, 2013 - Prize Ceremony

Writers, this is a wonderful opportunity to showcase your best work. For more, see here.

***

The 2012 Paris Writers Workshop is now open for registration. It will take place from June 24–29, 2012.

 This year’s writers-in-residence faculty are: Samantha Chang (Novel), Kate McMullan (Writing for Children/Young Adults), Mimi Schwartz (Creative Nonfiction), Kathleen Spivack (Poetry), Christopher Tilghman (Short Story).  ( Click here for more information on faculty and presenters.)

PWW  features: Morning small-group workshops with the writer-in-residence of your choice, depending on your genre. You'll work with this writer/group every morning, with discussions, writing exercises, and review/critique of your work in progress.;  Private consultations with writing coaches and literary agents (sign up early, as these book up fast);  Networking opportunities all week ... with receptions and readings;  Afternoon panels and workshops for the entire workshop community, focused on the tools of writing and paths to publishing (tools of the trade—a panel with our writers-in-residence, a step-by-step workshop to getting published, plot structure, eBooks, self-publishing, blogging/social media, creative nonfiction, and the role of the agent). Afternoon presenters include: Lorella Belli, Jami Bernard, Samantha Chang, Stephen Clarke, Sion Dayson, Mary Duncan, Gretel Furner, Terrance Gelenter, Adrian Leeds, Alexander Lobrano, Kate McMullan, Paul Schmidtberger, Mimi Schwartz, Kathleen Spivack, Christopher Tilghman, and Thirza Vallois. These presentations are free for workshop attendees and are also open to the public for a fee. For more information, click here.

The workshop will be held this year at the American University of Paris. Find out more at www.pariswritersworkshop.org or email [email protected]. The special discounted early bird rate is available until March 31. Workshops traditionally fill up quickly. 

 

New Books*:

Railway Confessions – A Collection of Short Stories by Carolyn Moncel As passengers traveling aboard a TGV train from Paris to Geneva one summer evening, three couples casually disclose very intimate, truthful details that could potentially transform their lives either for the better or for the worst. 

 

 

The Perfume Lover: A Personal History of Scent by Denyse Beaulieu (After Denyse's wonderful talk at the American Library in Paris, watch for upcoming PWN interview here)

 

 

Murder at the Lantern Rouge (an Aimée LeDuc Investigation by Cara Black (see Cara's events here and our PWN interview with Cara on the occasion of her fascinating talk for PAN here.)

 

 

 

Paris, My Sweet: A Year in the City of Light (and Dark Chocolate) by Amy Thomas (see review  "a fun and decadent read" and interview here)

 

 

 

* Please ask our local Paris bookstores--Shakespeare's, Red Wheelbarrow, WH Smith, Abbey Bookshop, Village Voice-- if they have these books. (I regret always using Amazon links to descriptions and reviews but it remains the easiest way to communicate this information to you. I would love to use a bookstore's links... )

 

SELECTED LITERARY EVENTS, READINGS, and WORKSHOPS

(for a more complete listing, in particular for poetry and French or bilingual events, please see Fragment78's excellent Paris Reading and Events Monthly List) 

3 March 11h Barry Kirwan presents The Eden Paradox,  the first book in the sci-fi space thriller The Eden Saga (The Eden Paradox, Eden's Trial and Eden's Revenge). AT Waterstones Bookstore in Camberly (UK). 

 4 March 13h SPECIAL EVENT: Celebration of the life of John Kliphan who died last month. John Kliphan was the creator of Live Poets. The wake will feature readings from his posthumously published collection LOW LEVEL FLYING, to be launched at the event. Profits from the book will launch a memorial fund to support the publication of new young anglophone poets from Paris. AT: The Highlander, 8 rue Nevers, M Pont-Neuf / Odéon

 4 March 19.30 MOVING PARTS second reading of a play by Gwyneth Hughes. Bones of Contention: Will a psychiatrist be able to free Julia from the demands of a ghost who relentlessly torments her? Starring: Jenny Bennitt, Chloe Dunn, Beth Jervis, Chloe Lauverjon AT: Carr's Pub & Restaurant 1 rue du Mont Thabor, 75001 Paris Metro : Tuileries

 5 March 19h With Carcanet Press, five acclaimed poets and translators: Sasha Dugdale, Jane Draycott, Mimi Khalvati, Olivia McCannon and Stephen Romer. AT: Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

 5 March 20h onwards SPOKEN WORD Paris  Read YOUR work in ENGLISH, FRENCH, ITALIAN or any other language you would so like to share poetry in! You are also invited to play a short musical piece or read a poem by an author you admire if you so wish! 20h sign up/hang out 20h30 first round starts 15 min break 21h45 second round starts 15 min break 23h00 third round starts stop at midnight ie. the Cinderella rule (so we can all chat & socialize; the bar stays open till after one). 10 poets/singers/comedians/dancing pets per round The exact start times for rounds depend on people signing up, but stopping at midnight is fixed. AT: the basement of Le Chat Noir, 76 rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, 75011 Métro Parmentier/Couronnes/Oberkampf

6 March WICE World Watch @ The Library: The promise and the reality of International Women's Day. Constance Borde and Suyan Zhou discuss the current state of women’s issues and status in the US and China. AT The American Library in Paris

 7 March  Printemps des poètes, l'Alliance française invite 3 auteurs publiés à Cheyne. Blandine Merle - prix de la vocation 2011 pour Par Obole. Mikaël Hauchamp : Formant série sans trace. Antoine Wauters : Césarine de nuit. Venez-y nombreux ! AT: 101 boulevard Raspail, Paris. Métro Notre-Dame-des-Champs ou Saint-Placide

 

7 March 19h30 Lisa Immordino Vreeland presents the biography Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel. AT: American Library in Paris,10 rue du Général Camou, 75007 Paris, Metro Alma-Marceau or Ecole Militaire

 

8 March 10h30 Writing Workshops with Lisa Pasold at the American Library in Paris: Writing with Your Brain aimed at flexing your writing muscle!  Free to members of the Library, registration is required. AT The American Library in Paris

8 March 18h Sure Thing a short play by David Ives. A man approaches a woman in a café - but the outcome is unpredictable. Will they manage to have a real encounter or will they miss the opportunity of genuine communication?. AT: Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

 

8 March 19h Eva-Maria Berg : Flux.  Printemps des Poètes. en allemand, et en français par Max Alhau. Performance : Isabelle Maurel (danseuse) et Denis Parmain (comédien), avec les « Habits à lire » de Luana Dragoiescu et Eva-Maria Berg.  AT: Goethe-Institut - 17 avenue d'Iéna, 75116 Paris Métro: Iéna

10 March  Saturdays 5pm-7pm The Other Writers' Group: a drop-in feedback writing & readers’ workshop. Writers! Bring 6 copies of your story, poems, etc to get feedback (up to about 10 mins reading time for prose, max 2 or 3 pages of poetry) Readers! Come & listen, give your reaction & join in the discussion. Meets: upstairs at Shakespeare & Company, 37 rue de le Bucherie, Metro St Michel or Maubert Mutualite. Fee; 5 euros a meeting. For more info: http://spokenwordparis.blogspot.com/p/other-writers-group.html

12 March 19h Shakespeare and Co. Caroline Brothers reads from Hinterland, her exquisite, unsettling novel about refugees and what it is to be underage, homeless and invisible in a foreign land . .. AT: Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

 

12 March 20h onwards SPOKEN WORD Paris AT: the basement of Le Chat Noir, 76 rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, 75011 Métro Parmentier/Couronnes/Oberkampf

 

14 March 19h Printemps des Poètes:  Maureen Boyle, Deirdre Cartmill and Moyra Donaldson. AT: Centre Culturel Irlandais, 5 rue des Irlandais, 75005 Paris. RER: Luxembourg

 15 March 19:30 PM UPSTAIRS AT DUROC, ANNE TALVAZ, FIONA SZE-LORRAIN and HELEN BURKE.. AT: THE AMERICAN LIBRARY IN PARIS, 10 rue du Général Camou, 75007 Paris, Metro Ecole Militaire or RER Pont de l’Alma

 

16 March 17h Irish folk singer/songerwriter Fionn Regan to sing amongst the books AT: Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

 

16-19 March SALON DU LIVRE A PARIS for info see site.

 18 March 18h30  Alan Riding. La Fête Continue La vie culturelle à Paris sous l'Occupation, traduit par Gérard Meudal, Ed Plon. Littérature. AT: Maison de l'Amérique Latine 217 Boulevard Saint-Germain 75007 Métro: Solférino

 18 March 19h30 Moving Parts presents Marco Panzani's "Un Amour de Concierge" (stage play in French). AT: Carr's Pub & Restaurant, 1 rue du Mont Thabor, 75001 Paris Metro: Tuileries

  18 March Janet Skeslien Charles will be signing copies of Les Fiancées d’Odessa on Sunday, March 18th, from 12h00 to 13h00 at stand S56. This is the TWELFTH language for her debut novel Moonlight in Odessa!!! (See interview with Janet here.)

19 March 19h Come Dan Bullen the author of The Love Lives of the Artists and Lesley McDowell, the author of Between The Sheets talk about famous literary and artistic liaisons that have captured our imagination. AT: Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

 19 March 20h onwards SPOKEN WORD Paris (now in a new location. AT: the basement of Le Chat Noir, 76 rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, 75011 Métro Parmentier/Couronnes/Oberkampf

 

20 - 21 March 20h00 Word for Word performs Sorry Fugu a short story written by satirist T. C. Boyle and directed by John Fisher. AT: American Library in Paris,10 rue du Général Camou, 75007 Paris, Metro Alma-Marceau or Ecole Militaire

  21 March 18h Justin Torres  AT: Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

 

22 March 18h Please THE YOUNG WRITERS AND TRANSLATORS AT THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF PARIS READING. CHLOE RASH will be introducing the following readers: OLIVIA BAES, JENNIFER CARR, MAXIMILIANE DONICHT, WILL INRIG, and JESSE T. LICHTENSTEIN. AT: American University of Paris 6, rue du Colonel Combes, Room C12 RER: Pont d'Alma

 22 March 19h the monthly Rendez-vous réguliers, les jeudis de l'Oulipo, chers aux amateurs de jeux de l'esprit et de littérature potentielle, continuent d'explorer des thèmes d'actualité, proposant lectures et créations originales. Tonight’s theme “Couplains et reflets" Entrée libre. AT: BNF François-Mitterrand, Grand auditorium, quai François Mauriac, 75013 Paris. Métro: Quai de la gare ou Bibliothèque.

 

 22 March 19h30 Rilla Askew AT: Village Voice Bookshop 6, rue Princesse 75006 Métro: Mabillon

 25 March 12 pm to 16 S.O.S. Book Sale: Paperbacks are only 1€ and hard covers are 2€.  To donate books in good condition, you may drop them off at the venue Saturday, March 24, 12-4pm or Sunday, March 25, 12-4pm. All proceeds to SOS Help  01 46 21 46 46  from 3 to 11pm daily http://www.soshelpline.org AT: Orrick Law Offices 31, avenue Pierre 1er de Serbie 75016 Paris Métro: Alma-Marceau

 26 March 20h onwards SPOKEN WORD Paris AT: the basement of Le Chat Noir, 76 rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, 75011 Métro Parmentier/Couronnes/Oberkampf

 28 March 19h30 Frederick Turner explores how Henry Miller’s Tropic of Cancer was written, banned, and then un-banned only to become an American classic in RENEGADE: Henry Miller and the Making of “Tropic of Cancer” AT: American Library in Paris,10 rue du Général Camou, 75007 Paris, Metro Alma-Marceau or Ecole Militaire

 29 March 18h Donald Ray Pollock for his first literary event in France will read and discuss his new novel The Devil All The Time AT: Shakespeare & Co., 37rue de la Bûcherie, Paris 5ème. M° St Michel

 29 March 19h30 Rencontre with Sorj Chalandon winner of the prestigious Grand prix du roman de l'Académie française for Retour à Killybegs . AT: Centre Culturel Irlandais, 5 rue des Irlandais, 75005 Paris. RER: Luxembourg

 29 March at 20h30 "Big and Small" at the Théâtre de la Ville. In English with French subtitles. Text by Botho Strauss, translated by Martin Crimp. Performed by the Sydney Theatre Company. Performance time: 2h40. Tickets 22€ and 21€ (<30 ans). If you would like to join us this evening, kindly confirm your name and number of tickets to [email protected] (Payment in advance) Participants, kindly pay for tickets during classes. The play runs from 29th March to 8th April. AT: Théâtre de la Ville 16 Quai Gesvres Paris Métro: Chatelet

31 March at 14h00 editor and writer Heather Hartley leads Left Bank Literature, where you'll take inspiration from the writings ofLeft Bank authors to develop ideas in your own prose. Free to members of the Library, registration is required.