Ten Questions for Vanessa Hua
“If I had known about the twists and turns beforehand, I like to think I would have kept going, but maybe it’s better not to know.” —Vanessa Hua, author of Forbidden City
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From the Magazine
Conjuring Egypt With Music
The author of Country of Origin listens to old-school Arabic music to help her render the mood of Egypt at the dawn of the postcolonial period.
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Craft Capsule: On Google Maps
The translator of Migratory Birds and Permafrost uses Google Maps to immerse herself in the settings of her translation projects.
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The African Poetry Digital Portal
Founded in 2017, the African Poetry Digital Portal serves as singular resource for studying contemporary African poetry. Now, with a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the project’s leaders aim to expand their offerings.
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Craft Capsule: The Multi-Genre Mindset
The author of Southbound and The Parted Earth shares her approach to balancing projects in multiple genres.
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Between Worlds: A Q&A With Poet Kiki Petrosino
The author of White Blood: A Lyric of Virginia discusses definitions of poetry, ancestral silence, and unpacking American history’s “white blood.”
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Craft Capsule: Obsessions, Hobbies, Dreams
The author of The Prettiest Star shares strategies and questions that help him get to know his characters.
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Craft Capsule: Catalogues, Cetaceans, and Casey Kasem
The author of The Prettiest Star explores a variety of archives to help him capture the specific spirit and look of the eighties.
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Craft Capsule: Cut for Time
The author of The Prettiest Star recommends keeping a novel-dedicated notebook for ideas, research, and informal experiments.
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House Hunting: Finding a Home for Your Characters
A fiction writer’s habit of imagining the lives of people who live in her favorite houses leads to serious research for her novel.
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