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André Mangeot
has
a previous short story collection, A
Little Javanese
(Salt, 2008), as well as two poetry collections: Natural
Causes
(Shoestring, 2003) and Mixer
(Egg Box, 2005). He lives and works in Cambridge, and is a member of
the performance group The Joy of Six.
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Interview
with André Mangeot (2011)
The
Short Review:
How long did it take you to write all the stories in your collection?
André Mangeot: Though it was my poetry that first appeared in book form (Natural Causes, 2003 and Mixer, 2005),
I’d been writing fiction for many years before this. Two novels in my
twenties which are still unpublished (possibly a good thing, I was still
experimenting and learning the craft) and lots of stories. Nearly all
of these were set abroad, often in far-flung places. From the days
when I lost myself in the novels of Graham Greene, Paul Theroux’s early
African and far Eastern novels,
these were the kind of places and cultures I wanted to experience and
write about myself. Places where little seemed familiar or certain,
sometimes not even safe. People forced to live on the edge in some way –
whether they were locals or outsiders. From the mid-eighties to
early-nineties I travelled widely and absorbed everything I could as
potential material/backgrounds for writing. Russia , Central America ,
Indonesia , north Africa. England in general, and what I recognised as
my relatively comfortable life, seemed unbearably fortunate and dull –
as prospective subjects or settings, these held no interest for me. I
was desperate to see over the horizon, the more distant and unfamiliar
the better. And certainly I hoped the other lives and scenarios I found
there might intrigue potential readers, draw them in as they had me.
Which is a long way of saying that four of the stories that
ended up in True North were written during that period (one appeared at the time in London Magazine,
my first serious publication and a great source of encouragement) but
most remained unpublished until Salt accepted them, as two books, in
2007. Over subsequent months I made a few revisions to the stories
already written and wrote three new ones (Rain, Monkey Knife Fight and True North)
based on more recent discoveries. So – and it’s almost frightening to
realise – from start to finish this book took twenty-five years to write
– or at least to appear! But this has been a blessing in some ways.
As with the first volume (A Little Javanese 2008, reissued in paperback earlier this year),
Salt has designed and produced it beautifully and I feel that both books are now as good as they could be.
TSR:
Did you
have a collection in mind when you were writing them?
AM: Not
really, no. Most of the stories I wrote as one-offs, hoping for
magazine publication or to enter short story competitions. (Two of those
in A Little Javanese were
runners-up for prizes some years ago). But I realised they shared this
preoccupation with foreign lands and protagonists in some form of moral
crisis, so I felt they might work well together one day. The stories I
submitted to Salt quite recently (soon after they began to publish
fiction) had no particular order at that time. Salt suggested splitting
them into
two separate collections, so that was when the real decisions on
ordering started, what should go in each book.
In the end, A Little Javanese
contained two long stories, one almost a novella, and this left certain
stories and other decisions for the second volume. At that point, with
the arc of the book in mind, I realised I needed to write some
additional, new stories for True North.
TSR:
How did
you choose which stories to include and in what order?
AM: After
much thought I dropped three stories that were in the original
typescript since they no longer provided enough contrast to other
stories that had to form the core of the second book. I had quite a few
drafts of other, unfinished stories to hand and chose to work on three
specific ones as these seemed likeliest to provide the balance of
subject, setting and mood I was looking for. Once completed, the final
order suggested itself. The first story and the last are clearly
crucial to get right in a collection (indeed, the first and last pages
in any book) and I’m happy
that Rain and True North lead one in and out in the right way.
TSR:
What
does the word "story"
mean to you?
AM:
Something
that grabs my attention from the start, transports me directly into
whatever world and lives it depicts. Something that resonates accuracy,
truth and illuminates these. Something that moves naturally yet also
surprises. The mark of any good story is that one doesn't want it to
end, and once it does, you're eager to read it again.
TSR:
Do you have a reader in mind when you write stories?
AM: Not
a specific reader, simply trusting there are like-minded people out
there, who share an enjoyment of the same sort of writers and writing as
I do. They don’t have to share my or my characters' point-of-view, but
the stories should move them strongly, either way. First and last, the
writer has to be their own ideal, and most critical, reader. How can
one submit a story, poem or novel for publication unless and until
you're thrilled to be writing and reading it yourself? Reading aloud is
a critical test. It must have its own music. And
provided you’ve invested all your energy and emotion in creating it,
told the story as you’d wish, you have to believe that somewhere
there'll be editors, publishers and readers who’ll pick up on
that energy and excitement.
TSR: Is
there
anything you'd like to ask someone who has read your collection,
anything at all?
AM: If
readers are happy to tell me what they enjoyed, or what failed to work
for them in anything I've written, that's of great value. Would they
seek out my other books, now or in future? If their response is
positive, I’d ask them to consider recommending my work to others and/or
posting a review on the book’s Amazon page. This is especially helpful
in spreading the word for writers who, as yet, find it hard to attract
reviews in the national press.
TSR: How does
it feel knowing that people are buying your books?
AM:
A
great sense of fulfilment – that connection you were seeking when you
first tapped the keyboard is finally achieved. But a certain anxiety
too. Now the story/poem/novel has a life of its own and each reader can
make of it what they will. Naturally one hopes for some positive
responses, in particular from those who don’t know you, who are simply
responding to the writing.
TSR:
What are you working on now?
AM: New poems (working towards a third collection) and a novel-in-progress.
TSR:
What are
the three most recent short story collections you've read?
AM: There Are Little Kingdoms by Kevin Barry; Wild Child by T.C Boyle; Fascination by William Boyd.
Interview
with André Mangeot (2009)
The
Short Review:
How long did it take you to write all the stories in your collection?
Andre Mangeot: The
stories in A Little
Javanese - and most of those in a second volume due out
later this year; around a dozen in all - were written some time ago.
They took roughly five years I suppose. I was travelling a great deal
then: taking temporary jobs here in the UK, heading for as long as I
could to explore other countries. I remember being hungry - ravenous
might be more accurate - for places, people, experiences that were as
distant and different as possible from what I had known up to then. I'd
tried a few stories "writing what I knew" (suburban, middle-class
England), even finished a first novel, but was fully aware I knew very
little - certainly not enough to write anything of real depth or
conviction. And the little I did know seemed bitingly dull and
unoriginal in terms of material. It was pretty clear I had to broaden
my horizons. I also discovered through those journeys that it works
better for me, is more stimulating, to start with a blank canvas; no
real preconceptions or knowledge of a place. To simply arrive somewhere
and begin to absorb it. Ideas, characters, potential locations and
stories: these develop fast from the moment of arrival as long as the
place is sufficiently unfamiliar, in a way that rarely happens nearer
home.
TSR: Did you
have a collection in mind when you were writing them?
AM: No,
not at first. As
a result of these journeys, I did feel my writing - all my senses
really - had finally come alive though. There were three or four
stories that seemed stranger, more intriguing than anything before.
Someone suggested I send a couple to Alan Ross at London Magazine and
it was a huge boost that he liked and accepted them. Confirmation I was
on the right track. Even once I had enough stories for a book I found
that very few publishers considered short story collections as the way
to launch a new writer; they all wanted a novel first. My first one
wasn't good enough (even to me), I wrote a second that was runner-up
for a new writer prize and had several publishers interested, but it
just never happened. The stories went back in a drawer and didn't
resurface till a couple of years ago when I noticed that Salt had begun
to publish short stories as well as poetry. (I was more familiar with
the poetry world by now as I'd had two collections out). I sent the
typescript in and had a very positive response. It was good to know the
stories held up.
TSR: How did
you choose which stories to include and in what order?
AM: When Salt told
me they'd prefer to split the typescript into two shorter books rather
than a single volume, this threw up a new challenge. Deciding which
stories to place in each book, never mind their order, was really quite
tough. You're looking for contrast and balance in so many ways.
Knocking out one story, switching two others around - it can change the
whole feel of the book, for better or worse. In the end my main
criteria was stark and dramatic contrasts in setting, atmosphere,
temperature (literally & metaphorically) - so in Javanese it seemed
effective to have the austerity of a harsh Moscow winter/communist
regime alongside the humidity and colour of Java and Central America.
Ditto with the opening two stories: the frenetic, slightly threatening
cityscape of New York next to rural France. And I've tried to alternate
short and longer stories. It meant a few revisions here and there. For
volume two I had to drop a couple of stories that no longer seemed to
fit, so right now I'm writing some new ones.
TSR: What
does the word "story"
mean to you?
AM:Something that
grabs my attention from the start, transports me directly into whatever
world and lives it depicts. Something that resonates accuracy, truth
and illuminates these. Something that moves naturally yet also
surprises. The mark of any good story is that one doesn't want it to
end, and once it does, you're eager to read it again.
TSR:
Do you
have a "reader" in mind when you write stories?
AM:
First and last, the writer him/herself has to be their own most
critical reader. You can't think of submitting a story, poem or novel
for publication unless and until you're happy reading it yourself. And
reading it aloud - just as critical a test. It must have its own music.
Of course you're hopeful that if you get the story told as you wish,
there'll be like-minded readers out there, those who pick up on the
energy and emotions you had in creating it. But frankly that's out of
your hands.
TSR: Is there
anything you'd like to ask someone who has read your collection,
anything at all?
AM:It's
almost enough to know that others have read, are reading, what one has
written. By that stage, the connection you were seeking when you felt
compelled to start is already achieved. The story/poem/novel has a new
life of its own - and now each reader can make of it what they will.
But if they're happy to tell me what they enjoyed, or what failed to
work for them, in anything I've written, that's of great value.
TSR: How does it feel knowing that people are buying your book?
AM: See above
TSR: What are
you working on now?
AM: Further stories for volume two, a
novel and a third poetry collection.
TSR: What are
the three most recent short story collections you've read?
AM: Bear and His Daughter by Robert
Stone; Le Horla by
Maupassant; Slowly, Slowly in the
Wind by Patricia Highsmith.
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