Lit Hub Weekly: November 22 – 24, 2021

• “I had loved writing while sitting cross-legged on various sofas, the computer in my lap, but now that those days are over, I can see it is a very small loss.” Ann Patchett on creating the workspace your body needs. | Lit Hub

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• David Mitchell on the stories of A. S. Byatt, which “amend, or even rewrite, any putative Rules of the Short Story time and again.” | Lit Hub Criticism

• SECRETS OF THE BOOK DESIGNER: How Sunra Thompson took inspiration from pulp fiction covers to reimagine Albert Camus’ The Plague. | Lit Hub

• MeiLan K. Han breaks down the “highly orchestrated symphony” of breathing. | Lit Hub Science

• Thankful for small presses, because without them, we might never have heard of these authors. | Book Marks

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• Brandon Taylor reviews the adaptation of Passing. | sweater weather

• Listen to Neal Stephenson discuss climate change, the metaverse, and how fictional stories can shape our future. | Wired

• “One way to think about the act of annotating is that you are that meddlesome party gossip.” Merve Emre discusses the pleasures and challenges of annotating Mrs. Dalloway. | Public Books

• Twelve pennies and a dream: the story of the publishers who made Shakespeare world famous. | The Independent

• In defense of not finishing books you don’t like. | Vogue

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• The story behind the Biblioburro, a “rural traveling library” that delivers books throughout the Colombian countryside. | Atlas Obscura

• Josh Emmons tries to name the “sad amazed amused alarm that something excellent can come into the world and be roundly ignored.” | LARB

• Imani Perry on the subversive storytelling of Charles Chesnutt, who “acted as a ventriloquist for those who left no written record.” | The Atlantic

• “All of my protagonists are always close to me in some way.” Nnedi Okorafor on her latest novel, Africanfuturism, and disability representation in sci-fi. | Bustle

• Elisa Gonzalez considers the perks of alienation. | The New York Times Magazine

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• “At some level, it feels a little like Mad Men for a younger generation.” Lili Anouk discusses her (Donna Tartt-disapproved) podcast, Once Upon a Time… At Bennington College. | Vulture

• “Baudelaire’s is a supreme music, written by a man who could write hell because he heard heaven.” Wyatt Mason on Baudelaire and translating poetry. | Poetry Foundation

• Remembering the surprising friendship between Hunter S. Thompson and Oscar Acosta. | Los Angeles Review

• After pulling two LGBTQ-themed books from high school libraries, a school district in Kansas City, Missouri, is reversing the decision under pressure from students and the state ACLU. | Associated Press

• “A very important part of the creative process is being able to keep your own company and be alone.” Julie Klausner talks about solitude, writing, and comedy. | The Creative Independent

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Also on Lit Hub:

In the Last Interview series, John Lewis discusses the symbolism of the Edmond Pettus Bridge • Why the new Murakami adaptation is a masterpiece • A close reading of Bob Dylan’s song-poem about the JFK assassination • How Hunter S. Thompson put the Dadaism in sports writing • On Ted Lasso’s reverential tone toward literature • Sarah Mullens on the West Virginia stories that authors are failing to tell • What we’d lose by privatizing public libraries • On the life and work of iconic Cuban novelist Jose Lezama Lima • A conversation with graphic novelist Brecht Evens • What Lovecraft Country gave to Black audiences • A new way of thinking about the presence and work of Black women teachers • How Persephone Books makes space for women writers • Ian Williams on books that make good literary neighbors • Lara Vergnaud on the task of translating musicality • Jenny Valentish recounts her journalistic journey into BDSM • Searching for words that capture obscure sorrows • So you want to write a novel? Stephanie Gangi recommends starting with a mission statement • Jonathan Gottschall on the drug-like trance of reading • How Black spirituals gave rise to new musical genres • Behind the Scenes of David Fincher’s Fight Club