chere are evenings in London when the wind blows gently at dusk and the promise of summer is breathed in the air, together with the scent of wisteria. It happens that an unusually gentle breeze can blurring the line between fantasy and reality and that – as in an imaginary game on meetings of eminent diners – we find ourselves at dinner with a group of writers who have shaped contemporary literature. Tracy Chevalier – than with his The girl with the Pearl Earring introduced Vermeer to a new audience – she is seated next to David Nichollsauthor of One daya novel that with five million copies is among the best-selling books of the early 21st century.
Across a table shining starched white, cutlery and orchids, Jessica Felloweswhich brought readers into the world of the Mitford sisters, has alongside Edward St Aubynauthor of the saga de The Melrosesfive autobiographical novels about the heir of an aristocratic family, the violence he suffers at the hands of his father and the fall into the abyss of drugs (on TV the protagonist was played by actor Benedict Cumberbatch).
Here then William Boydwho met King Charles at school in Scotland, and was selected in 1983 by Granta magazine among the 20 of the UK’s best young writers along with Ian McEwan and Martin Amis and is the author of Every human heart and a slew of other successful novels. Natasha Solomonswho gave voice to the Mona Lisa in I, Mona Lisashe is sitting near Sonia Falirothat with The good girls told the tragic story of two sunshine-beauty teenage cousins slain in an Indian village against the backdrop of a society with a perverted sense of honor.
In the end, Susan Stokes-Chapman who defines herself as the greenest of the group but who with her debut novel, Pandoraa thriller mixed with a love story, flew to the top of the Sunday Times ranking.
A dinner among bestsellers
A bestselling dinner, one might say. In which iO Donna participates exclusively. The holidays are looming on the horizon, which are not always a break for a writer. For Fellowes it will be a different summer from the others: «The Mitford mystery books have allowed me to organize my life to be free in July and August to spend more time with family, but now they are gone». From a break, from a trip, something can be born.
In the center is Jessica Fellowes, 49, who “created” the Mitford sisters with David Nicholls, 56, author of One Day. Photo: Mimi Mollica
Chevalier returns to Venice with his latest novel, a city known and visited every two years in the family. “When he was little we took our son there on vacation, who fell in love with it and asked to come back regularly”. Thus was born a tradition that leads to a book set in Murano, a historical novel centered on the magic of glass and the industry that already centuries ago exported the name of the city to the world. Writing about Venice, underlines the author of The Winchester needlewoman And The fruits of the windpresents significant difficulties. «There are the pitfalls of overused phrases and concepts, such as the city and its lights, the canals, and this forces you to look for new formulas».
The story reread by the writers
The water of the North Sea appears perhaps less in literature but for Chevalier, as well as for Solomons, it is at home: both live near the Dorset coast. In summer it is better to stay away from the beaches, however: «There are too many people» underlines Solomons, who after the Gioconda she dedicated herself to Romeo and Juliet with a review of Shakespearean history from a feminist perspective. The plot is examined from the point of view of Rosalina, a Capulet with whom Romeo falls in love before falling back on his 13-year-old cousin. Romeo, in the guise of the womanizer, does not come off well. For Solomons, it is Shakespeare himself who indicates that the story contains an unhealthy element. «Juliet is the only character in all of the Bard’s work whose age is stated. I think it was her intention to underline the fact that Giulietta is little more than a child and that this must be an uncomfortable fact for the reader ».
The books? Like a child growing up
The conversation flows and, between one course and another, new harmonies are born between writers who in some cases knew each other only through their own works. Social media? A stresseven if «one cannot afford not to be there» specifies Stokes-Chapman. Museums? “Today it’s hard not to think about the provenance of the objects on display and from which cultures they have been stolen,” underlines Faleiro.
THE literary festivals? «Be careful in choosing which ones, not all of them are worth it» underlines Boyd, giving some indiscretion on recent stages. The covers and titles? Sore button. A writer recently sent back a cover and asked to design one that would fit a novel written by a man.
Is there still a gap between males and females then? “When the book is yours you have to plant your heels and resist, because if you give them a finger they take the arm,” Boyd points out. «Evelyn Waugh when she delivered her manuscripts of hers she suggested six titles to her she gave the publisher the possibility to choose one» thus making sure that the final choice suited him. Like a growing child, «a novel, once delivered, has an independent lifeFellowes says. «He Si conquers his readers and cuts his goals. You watch it from afar hoping you can be proud of it».
From book to TV… without interviews!
Benedict Cumberbatch in Patrick Melrose.
And when does a book transition into film or television treatments? Some fall on their feet, admits St Aubyn with a smile. The Adventures of His Patrick Melrose was adapted for the small screen by Nichollswho is next to him at dinner and who, clearly, is a writer of great versatility if with We made it shortlisted for the prestigious Booker Award.
“David, you were an actor, right?” asks St Aubyn. “No, I tried to be an actor,” replies Nicholls, with a touch of humor. «I don’t feel at ease on stage» specifies Boyd, who also does not deny himself to the live audience and who with Sebastian Faulks he is perhaps among the most popular writers to try his hand at a novel in the James Bond series. “I feel the same discomfort despite my past,” replies Nicholls.
Where did the cursed writer go? Write it is, after all, a solitary activity and exposing yourself in person, even when you do it on the page, is complicated. St Aubyn, candidate for Booker with Mother’s Milkthe fourth chapter of the Melrose cycle, underlines that he harbors a certain dislike for interviews. He who managed to metabolize the trauma of a childhood full of abuses with the help of psychoanalysis, says he can’t draw the line between therapy and storytelling. “I don’t know where to stop and so I’ve had some bad experiences.” He recalls with horror, for example, a reporter asking him if having a child made him fear repeating the mistakes of an rapist father, or another who was interested primarily in his experiences with illegal substances. «An interview in my opinion should be a conversation». Will he be escaping London for the summer? “I have only one house, in the city, and that’s fine with me.”
And after dinner, early to bed
Dessert is served and, with reference to home, Nicholls looks at his watch. Past 10pm. “Do you think it’s rude to leave?” he asks him. “No, it’s late for a working day,” St Aubyn reassures him. A writer’s work, after all, is never done. If once there were those who found inspiration by staying up late in bars, today a healthier discipline, with regular hours, is in fashion. “So excuse me, I’m going, I have a novel to finish.”
Is it possible to know what he is writing? “Absolutely not” smiles. superstition? An understandable silence. After thanks to Neri Pozza, the guest publishing house, and warm reciprocal greetings, the evening draws to a close. The writers leave the restaurant – some walk towards the subway, some slip into a taxi – the air of London envelops them and, as when a spell is broken, only the night traffic of Piccadilly returns.
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