[Not] Reading When Writing

When I’m writing, I’m not reading fiction—it’s too distracting to try to immerse myself in someone else’s imagination—but I do read…a lot, and only long form journalism from a variety of sources. This makes me a great dinner guest, because not only am I informed, I’m also funny. I horde articles and features on my Kindle Voyage (which I pronounce in French even though I don’t speak French), which is signed by former Kings goalie Jonathan Quick.

He signed it at an event for season ticket holders a few years ago. When he signed it, he mentioned he also had a Kindle, and that’s the only thing he and I have in common. Quick and his Kindle were traded to the Vegas Knights a few weeks ago and I’ll keep my opinions about it to myself, but I do have them.

Journalist Anna Louie Sussman recently wrote about the same subject with different perspectives for two different outlets. For The Cut’s “A World Without Men,” she wrote about South Korean women who’ve decided not to pursue romantic or intimate relationships with men, and how they’re questioning and rebelling against entrenched notions of what it means to be a woman in South Korea. In her piece for The Atlantic, “The Real Reason South Koreans Aren’t Having Children,” she delves a little deeper into the entrenched sexism and misogyny that’s contributed to South Korea’s negative birth rate.

Both articles are well worth reading, and reading them reminded me of The Unit: A Novel by Ninni Holmqvist (translated from the original Swedish by Marlaine Delargy). In this book "...women over the age of fifty and men over sixty—single, childless, and without jobs in progressive industries—are sequestered for their final few years...[and]...are expected to contribute themselves for drug and psychological testing, and ultimately donate their organs, little by little, until the final donation."

When I first read it shortly after it was published, I was more than a little unnerved by the premise of the book, but with how things are nowadays, honestly, something like The Unit could happen. While it sounds bleak, Dorrit, an understated but likable main character, draws you in with her pragmatic yet engaging perspective on not only her life, but those of the friends she makes while she’s a resident of the unit.

I'll be sharing my writing progress with updates on my Facebook , Instagram and Twitter accounts throughout the month and will share a more in-depth account in my next newsletter.

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Published on April 14, 2023 07:33
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