A Conversation with Nathan Englander and Zadie Smith

[image error]On Thursday, I went to a benefit hosted by Matawi, an organization started by my friend Rachel Silver (one of those people who actually makes a difference in the world…you know the type?) Her aim is to send young Somali women to college and she is succeeding: A large group of people converged on The School of Visual Arts to hear Nathan and Zadie talk about writing, books, authors, dreams, characters, procrastination and success. It was fascinating. Both are brilliant and quick and Nathan is so down-to-earth and funny (he joked that he was wearing a "tankini" the first time he met Zadie, on the Isle of Capri.) A group of inner city high school kids was in attendance, and one asked Zadie what she needed to do to become a writer. I was interested to hear what she was going to say, because it's one of those professions that doesn't have a clear-cut point of entry. Her response was along the lines of, "Read lots of books, to find out which ones inspire you. Then get a pencil and paper and sit down and write. It doesn't require expensive gear or gadgets and it's something you can do for the rest of your life." She made it sound very doable and even though you and I know it's really a life of misery and torture and porn-watching and Debtor's Anonymous meetings, I appreciated hearing her simple words of inspiration. I think their talk will eventually go up online, so I'll post it here if it does.