Ask me (almost) anything: questions from Nick Potts
Dear Mr. Rushdie. Here are a few questions. I would love to know what you think.
It is 2021, and a young Salman Rushdie has just put the finishing touches to his first novel ‘Grimus’. How would you try to get this published today? Would you do anything differently? What, if anything, has changed since 1975? What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
It wasn’t easy to get published. I lacked a good agent, I knew almost nobody in the world of books, and I was very uncertain. In the end I entered a science fiction competition and though I didn’t win it made the publishers involved with the competition (Victor Gollancz Ltd) want to publish my book. This is a very bad way to begin. I would say: try to get your work into a literary magazine or two. Try to find an agent. There really isn’t any new, better way. Some people become famous on the internet and get a book deal as a result. I have no idea what sort of life in books such people will have.
Given ‘Grimus’ has elements of science fiction, have you considered writing more sci-fi? (I see that Truffaut made ‘Fahrenheit 451’). How about a drama script for live theatre or a film screenplay?
There are sci-fi elements in several of my books: Quichotte, and The Ground beneath her Feet, for example. As for your other questions, I have written a play and I hope it will be produced next year; I wrote the screenplay for the film of Midnight’s Children; and I’m in the early days of discussions about a possible TV series.
Which writer (dead or alive) would you like most like to meet? What would you ask them?
I guess, very obviously, Shakespeare, and I would have nothing to ask. I would only wish to thank him for his genius.
Have you met Olga Tokarczuk or Samanta Schweblin? What do you think of their work?
I have met neither of them and I have not read Schweblin. I am however a great admirer of Olga Tokarczuk’s work.
Given your piece on Umberto Eco, do you think you would have got on with Charles Dickens? Mr. Dickens: a fourth musketeer or more of a Cardinal Richelieu?
I yield to nobody in my admiration for Charles Dickens. I very much hope we would have found each other congenial. I love his gift of naming (Wackford Squeers, Ebenezer Scrooge, Magwitch, Oliver Twist) and the breadth and depth of his engagement with his society. He could write about people across the social scale, from murderers to archbishops, and set his books in every stratum of English society. It’s something I have tried to learn from. (The naming, as well.)
What is the future of fiction? What is the future of the novel as an art form?
The future of fiction is assured. The novel will survive and thrive.
What is your next project after ‘The Seventh Wave’?
I’m writing a new novel; as I said above, I have a play going into production; and about the YV series, it;’s too early to say.
It is 2021. Which aspect of the human condition is the most interesting, most challenging, or most relevant to explore? Why?
What I find fascinating is that while the human condition - the way we live in the world - changes constantly, human nature remains unchanged. It is in the tension between our unchanging natures and our metamorphic times that my interest lies.
Thank you for your questions. I hope you find the answers interesting.
Thanks for all this wonderful Substacking! Not a question, but I thought this the best place to try and let you know I reviewed (alongside a mélange of others) your recent book, Languages of Truth, for Areo Magazine. (Incidentally, I also reviewed Quichotte in the same outlet in 2019, which you appreciatively re-tweeted!)
https://areomagazine.com/2021/10/22/constitutions-frontiers-revelations-and-truths-new-books-by-jonathan-rauch-a-c-grayling-erik-hoel-and-salman-rushdie/
Dear Mr. Rushdie. Thank you so much for taking the time to respond to my questions. Though this is most likely an ephemeral moment for you, it will be one that I will cherish for a long time.
It is so exciting to hear that you have written a play. Live theatre is so important and, as I understand it, right now, it faces financial oblivion. We need amazing writers like you to help preserve this cultural force. I really believe these 2 - 3 hours performances can cast spells and change minds. I wonder what your play is about.
It is really interesting to read your comment about learning from Charles Dickens, especially his wide and extensive coverage of society. And his gift of naming. I recently read ‘Our Mutual Friend’. Where to begin? Like you say, his engagement with his society is remarkable.
I know that you picked Shakespeare but can you imagine walking into a room and seeing Mr. Dickens sipping a cup of tea? There is an empty chair opposite and he is expecting you. For some reason, I picture his raven squawking in the background. I wonder what he would say about ‘Midnight’s Children’? (This novel is also prolific in scope!). Better still, what would he write about if he were alive today? It is fascinating to read your comments on the human condition, and the fact that, whilst society continues to undergo tumultuous change, human nature is ‘unchanging’ (and your interest lies in the tension between these two). On some level, the experiences of a modern-day Oliver Twist, Uriah Heep, or Madame Defarge might not be that different.
I am currently reading your ‘Languages of Truth’. For other subscribers to this substack, who might not have had a chance yet, it is so interesting! Not sure why, but the Carrie Fisher piece stuck with me. Maybe it’s because I spent my childhood believing that Obi-Wan Kenobi was the only hope. Or maybe in these languages of truth, it was just so honest, and sincere. I am sorry about your friend’s passing. I have also thought a lot about how you compare the dream of becoming a writer with your childhood dream of flying out of your bedroom window in Bombay. It is also fascinating to learn about your experiences before ‘Midnight’s Children’ was published and your anxieties about its reception. This is the Salman Rushdie that is the most interesting.
Thank you so much again, Mr. Rushdie. It has been such a privilege. If this is the moment just before the door closes shut, I just want to say that I hope you keep ‘flying’ through ‘bright and buoyant air’ for many years to come.
Best regards
Nick