Arnon Grunberg and Abdelkader Benali on Libris Literature Award: ‘A good book isn’t finished’
Last Thursday, four UvA students interviewed former winners about the Libris Literature Prize longlist. How does a prize-winning author like Arnon Grunberg think about literature? ‘I am anti-romantic!’
The last readers quickly take their seats in the packed room at de Nieuwe Liefde on Thursday evening. The present former winners of the Libris Literature Award have secured their place at the front. Next to nominee Roxane van Iperen there is still a place. Three former winners will be interviewed by four UvA students on occasion of the announcement of the Libris Award nominees.
Those students are doing the dual master’s in editor/editor. ‘Why, for God’s sake?’, Arnon Grunberg wonders in amazement, when interviewed by them later in the evening. ‘To make faltering writers and faltering books, better,’ student Sybren Sybesma answers the writer sharply.
Forming a cabinet
Major absentee from the literary evening is jury president Kim Putters, who was actually supposed to dedicate the ‘State of Literature’. On Wednesday, however, Putters was appointed the new informateur of the formation. ‘He is now reading the constitution to Geert Wilders,’ explains presenter Daan Doesborgh. Hence, Joep van Ruiten, a jury member and journalist at the Dagblad van het Noorden newspaper, delivers Putters’ words. Except for one sentence on culture and identity, which, given Putters’ current position, would be better scrapped, Van Ruiten realises.
However, Putters does let it be known that he read with interest some common themes in the longlist of nominees. Books on climate change, Holocaust, Gaza, Ukraine, ageing, father-child relationships and little corona, but quite a lot of trauma from the authors. And some books he almost couldn’t finish because they provoked so much irritation in him. ‘But even that leads to conversation,’ said Putters, thanking these authors for their ‘unintentional contribution’ to his anger. In doing so, Putters also let it be known that paper quality was very variable this year. ‘Some books somehow folded far too quickly’.
Writing is continuing breathing
Abdelkader Benali, winner of the Libris Literature Prize in 2003, says he actually likes it once a book is closed. ‘Nothing nicer than putting the written book in your e-mail to the publisher, clicking send and never looking at it again,’ the writer told interviewing UvA students Geertje op de Hoek and Bram Schillemans. ‘Sometimes writing is also just a bit of ‘breathing through’,’ Mariken Heitman adds. She won the prize in 2019 with Wormmaan, which was partly based on her debut novel Wateraap.
‘So are your works autobiographical too?’, Schillemans asks the familiar question. ‘Sure, everything is somewhat autobiographical; after all, I write it myself. But for instance, I really don’t want to be confronted with the idea of my daughter reading this!’, Benali laughs. Heitman goes on to say that she prefers not to read things that are too personal, which is why from now on she chooses passages herself. ‘Your books are meant for intimacy between reader and book. When I had to share something autobiographical with an audience, I was suddenly sitting there in all my nakedness.’
Furniture piece of the editors
Schillemans and Op de Hoek are particularly interested in the writing process, which is co-shaped by editors. But despite doing a master’s degree that trains in editing, Op de Hoek says it is impossible to read everything writers bring to the table. ‘I read 40 books a year. That’s a lot, but then I still only reach a fraction of the literary work in my lifetime.’ The master’s workload doesn’t help with that either. Consequently, Sybesma has not been able to read much of the longlist either. ‘I once read Wormmaan. And of the longlist, I am only halfway through ‘Nirwana’ by Tommy Wieringa.’
Still, much of the work does have to come from the reader, Benali stresses. ‘The reader has to fill in the fray himself. A good book isn’t completely finished.’ The editor’s role here is mainly to look critically at his text. ‘Once I had to delete an entire column at the last minute. Then I wrote a whole new piece in a traffic jam on my phone with my thumb.’
But ultimately the writer decides what the final text looks like, Arnon Grunberg believes. However, if you can’t consult with an editor enough, it’s best to change editors. ‘You should not become a kind of piece of furniture of the publisher.’ The writer, who won in 2007 with Tirza, was interviewed secondl along with Katrijn van Hauwermeieren, by students Sybren Sybesma and Kiki Bolwijn. Editor Van Hauwermeieren adds that ‘especially with a debut novel’, the hand of the ‘editor’ also remains clearly visible.
Sex and other gifts
To Sybesma’s question whether Grunberg has ever received a billiard table or a dishwasher as a present from such an editor after finishing a book, as used to happen, the writer jokingly replies: ‘I’ve heard stories like that, but I’m still waiting for my first house.’ Grunberg then turns to the audience: ‘But I do count on my older readers. You can certainly put me in your will. I am quite willing to do other work for that too, for example.’
Grunberg’s debut Blauwe Maandagen was therefore originally ‘paid in lunches’ for the writer. Though he did not manage to make it longer and longer, as, for instance, a gambling-addicted writer like Dostoevsky did, in order to score more sandwiches. ‘But asking for a donation I would never do. That’s a kind of sex work,’ the author abhors. ‘Nothing wrong with that,’ student Bolwijn bites him on that. ‘I agree; I said indirectly that I would be happy to perform certain massages,’ Grunberg tries to retort.
Flawed romantic
When Bolwijn then asks him whether writers are still romantic, Grunberg replies: ‘I am anti-romantic’. Bolwijn therefore asks the audience to raise their hands if they think they are romantics, to which not a finger in the audience stays down. ‘Well, fascism used to be Romantic too,’ Grunberg objects. He grins: ‘By which, of course, I don’t mean that everyone here is a fascist!’ But the writer does indeed have to be broken, maybe romantic, at least not perfect, to put down a good book, Grunberg agrees.
So it turns out that a Literature Award winner has to be faltering after all. Sybesma therefore offers to help Grunberg with his flaws. As long as the writer ‘has lunched enough’. Grunberg chuckles: ‘You might make a good editor yet.’ But if Sybesma would still want to ask the interviewee for his number at drinks, he would have to face another of the writer’s flaws. Grunberg has already slipped away at the evening’s social finale.
