Ferdia Lennon on the Usefulness of Being Lost
In Conversation with Lindsay Hunter on I'm a Writer But
Welcome to I’m a Writer But, where writers discuss their work, their lives, their other work, the stuff that takes up any free time they have, all the stuff they’re not able to get to, and the ways in which any of us get anything done. Plus: book recommendations, bad jokes, okay jokes, despair, joy, and anything else going on that week. Hosted by Lindsay Hunter.
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Today, Ferdia Lennon discusses the historical background of his debut novel, Glorious Exploits, skepticism and the divine, reading the classics, coming back to writing, using contemporary Irish dialect to write a novel set in the Peloponnesian War, and more!
From the episode:
Ferdia Lennon: I think the best work comes about where you’re slightly engaging at the edge of your own knowledge. You’re trying to figure something out. If you knew exactly what it was, you might be able to write it on a napkin–you wouldn’t necessarily write a whole novel. Being a little bit lost is probably very necessary to writing.
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Ferdia Lennon was born in Dublin to an Irish mother and a Libyan father. He holds a BA in History and Classics from University College Dublin and an MA in Prose Fiction from the University of East Anglia. His short stories have appeared in publications such as the Irish Times and the Stinging Fly. In 2019 and 2021, he received Literature Bursary Awards from the Arts Council of Ireland. After spending many years in Paris, he now lives in Norwich with his wife and son. Glorious Exploits is his debut novel.
