On this episode of The London Magazine Podcast, we speak to translator and editor Ann Goldstein, renowned for bringing Elena Ferrante’s work to English readers. A former editor at the New Yorker, Goldstein has also translated works by Primo Levi, Jhumpa Lahiri and, most recently, Donatella Di Pietrantonio’s The Brittle Age.

In the episode, we discuss the oxymoron of the ‘celebrated translator’, her early encounters with Italian through Dante and the story of how she became Ferrante’s translator. Goldstein reflects on Ferrante’s unique syntax and style, as well as the broader challenges of Italian–English translation.

Timestamps

• 0.45 - The oxymoron of the ‘celebrated translator’
• 2.44 - Dante, Italian language lessons and the New Yorker
• 6.31 - Elena Ferrante: how it started
• 8.05 - Ferrante’s style, syntax and appeal
• 11.10 - Ann’s translation process: method vs instinct
• 14.58 - Translating difficult subject matter
• 16.09 - Technical problems in Italian–English translation
• 23.09 - The ‘gold standard’ of translation?
• 25.00 - Dealing with Ferrante fanatics

Follow The London Magazine Podcast here to never miss an episode. To discover more content exclusive to our print and digital editions, subscribe here to receive a copy of The London Magazine to your door every two months, while also enjoying full access to our extensive digital archive of essays, literary journalism, fiction and poetry.

On this episode of The London Magazine Podcast, we speak to short story writer and novelist Gurnaik Johal. Gurnaik’s 2022 collection We Move won the Somerset Maugham Award and the Tata Literature Live! Prize, and his debut novel, Saraswati, is out now with Serpent’s Tail.

In the episode, we discuss maximalism in the novel, the Indian diaspora and the difficulty of writing about current events – ‘this is where I say to any budding writers out there: write historical fiction!’

Timestamps

• 1.35 - The escapism of writing a maximalist novel during COVID
• 3.04 - Gurnaik reads an extract from Saraswati
• 7.43 - Moving from short fiction to the novel
• 9.36 - Research, knowledge acquisition and the editorial process
• 12.53 - How to write about current events that are changing day by day
• 14.24 - Maximalism and ambition in a debut novel
• 19.39 - Seeing India through the eyes of the diaspora
• 23.25 - Comedy and levity in the novel
• 26.54 - Origin stories and myth
• 29.08 - Writing ‘climate fiction’
• 31.22 - The strange timewarp of publishing

Follow The London Magazine Podcast here to never miss an episode. To discover more content exclusive to our print and digital editions, subscribe here to receive a copy of The London Magazine to your door every two months, while also enjoying full access to our extensive digital archive of essays, literary journalism, fiction and poetry.

On this episode of The London Magazine Podcast, we speak to award-winning cultural critic and novelist Leo Robson. Leo’s writing has appeared in the New Yorker, the London Review of Books, Granta and the New Left Review. He works for Literary Review and Granta, and The Boys is his first novel.

In the episode, we talk about evoking London on the page, the strange nostalgia of the 2012 Olympics, the role of humour in serious writing and the virtues of obstinacy.

Timestamps

• 0.32 - The joys of book promotion
• 2.43 - Leo reads an extract from The Boys
• 8.25 - Writing a ‘London’ novel
• 9.51 - The 2012 London Olympics and the legacy of New Labour
• 14.12 - Chronologies, rites of passage and parody
• 16.01 - The writing process and the evocation of place
• 20.49 - Stefan Zweig, Wes Anderson, Alt-J and Mark Fisher’s temporal paradoxes
• 28.22 - Iris Murdoch’s Under the Net and other inspirations
• 30.06 - Light and dark: balancing humour and serious subjects in a novel
• 33.45 - The process: writing cultural criticism vs writing fiction

Follow The London Magazine Podcast here to never miss an episode. To discover more content exclusive to our print and digital editions, subscribe here to receive a copy of The London Magazine to your door every two months, while also enjoying full access to our extensive digital archive of essays, literary journalism, fiction and poetry.

On this episode of The London Magazine Podcast, we talk to writer Mark Bowles. Mark grew up between Bradford and Leeds, and went on to study English at Liverpool and Oxford Universities. His debut novel, All My Precious Madness, was published at the end of last year, and has been nominated for the Goldsmiths Prize and the Authors’ Club Best First Novel award.

In the episode, we hear more about the writing and editing process for All My Precious Madness. We discuss corporate jargon, Mark’s love of espressos and whether or not his book can be called an anti-English novel.

Timestamps

• 0.37 - Mark Bowles in The London Magazine archives
• 2.58 - A passage from 'All My Precious Madness'
• 7.54 - Voice in the novel
• 10.15 - The virtues of exaggeration
• 13.50 - Ideas do not fully precede their expression
• 15.48 - Surprises when writing the novel
• 18.36 - Mark's love of espressos at Bar Termini
• 22.27 - 'All My Precious Madness' as a pro-European novel
• 24.24 - Aphorisms
• 29.58 - His next book?
• 31.57 - What Mark's been reading and enjoying recently

Follow The London Magazine podcast here to never miss an episode. To discover more content exclusive to our print and digital editions, subscribe here to receive a copy of The London Magazine to your door every two months, while also enjoying full access to our extensive digital archive of essays, literary journalism, fiction and poetry.

On this episode of The London Magazine Podcast, we talk to designer and magazine aficionado Jeremy Leslie. Jeremy’s platform, magCulture, sells a huge range of magazines from its London shop and online, posts regular reviews and essays via its journal, runs annual conferences in London and New York, as well as recording a regular podcast of its own. A passionate advocate for editorial design, Jeremy has established himself as a commentator on the subject through the magCulture online Journal and a series of books.

In the episode, we discuss the origins and growth of magCulture, as well as Jeremy’s personal favourite magazines. Jeremy also addresses the myth of ‘the end of print’ and shows how the industry has indeed changed, but for the better.

Timestamps:

• 1.03 – magCulture, murder and The London Magazine
• 2.44 – The origins of magCulture
• 5.52 – Early magazine influences
• 10.48 – Devalueing print: the end of NME
• 12.40 – Curating magCulture: what makes a good magazine?
• 16.50 – The myth of 'the end of print' and how magazines have changed
• 22.16 – What's doing well and what's lacking in magazine culture
• 24.49 – Current favourite magazines

Follow The London Magazine podcast here to never miss an episode. To discover more content exclusive to our print and digital editions, subscribe here to receive a copy of The London Magazine to your door every two months, while also enjoying full access to our extensive digital archive of essays, literary journalism, fiction and poetry.

On this episode of The London Magazine Podcast, we talk to poet and editor Paul Stephenson about his debut collection, Hard Drive, that has been shortlisted for the Polari Book Prize this year. Paul has previously published three poetry pamphlets (Those People, The Days that Followed Paris and Selfies with Waterlillies), and he occasionally teaches for the Poetry School.

We discussed absurdity and the limitations of language, poetry as a source of healing in times of grief and Paul’s broad use of form.

Timestamps:

0.05 – Intro

0.54 – Writing on trains and while travelling

2.07 – Paul reads ‘Anglepoise’, ‘The Thesis’, ‘Signature’, ‘Collecting you from Golders Green’ and ‘The Hymn of Him’

7.38 – Poetry as healing in times of grief

10.31 – Use of form: Oulipo restraints

12.03 – Logistics of putting together a poetry collection

15.08 – Absurdity, Auden and Alice Notley: the limitations of language

19.06 – Humour and emotion in poetry

22.32 – How to edit a poetry collection

26.00 – Labelling the collection as a ‘queer’ book

28.09 – The numerous meanings of the title: ‘Hard Drive’

29.29 – Things that had to be left unsaid in the collection

30.45 – The next book? Contemporary dating and situationships…

33.37 – Poets and art Paul’s been enjoying recently

35.22 – Paul reads ‘Writing to your Mother’

On this episode of The London Magazine Podcast, we talk to Joshua Jones, writer and artist from Llanelli in south Wales. Joshua was a Literature Wales Emerging Writer and a Hay Festival Writer at Work. He has published various poetry pamphlets, including Three Months in the Zebra Room and The City on Film, both out this year.

On this episode, we talk to Joshua about his book, Local Fires. A collection of interconnected short stories and his first work of fiction, Local Fires was shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize and the Polari First Book Prize.

We chatted about the benefits of multiple POVs and interconnected stories, how not to get sued when writing autofiction and Joshua’s love of Chicago indie rock band, Joan of Arc.

On this episode of The London Magazine Podcast, we talk to Claire Carroll, a regular London Magazine contributor who writes experimental fiction about the intersection of nature, technology, and desire. She is also a PhD researcher at Bath Spa and Exeter Universities, where she explores how experimental writing – particularly short stories and prose-poetry – can reimagine how humans relate to the natural and non-human world. On this episode, she joins us to talk all about her new short story collection, The Unreliable Nature Writer. To discover more content exclusive to our print and digital editions, subscribe here to receive a copy of The London Magazine to your door every two months, while also enjoying full access to our extensive digital archive of essays, literary journalism, fiction and poetry.