Year in Review

Looking over the various reviews, interviews, etc I published in 2012, it looks like out of the 14 publications that I would classify as reviews I gave unreserved praise to 4 of them. Another 4 I could see substantial value in, though I had a mixed opinion of the enterprise as whole. And the other 6 I’d say ranged from dismissive to outright harsh. I’m not sure exactly what proportion here is “best,” but this looks like a pretty good breakdown to me.

In addition, I published more essays than in previous years, something that I’m hoping to continue into 2013 as my writing rests less on criticism and moves in a more creative direction.

I was excited to be in two new venues in 2012, which were The Washington Post and The White Review. In addition, I returned to the SF Chronicle, which I hadn’t written for in some time. And, obviously, signing a book deal with Zero Books was an exciting thing.

I co-launched a podcast with Daniel Medin of American University in Paris called That Other Word. We conducted seven interviews in 2012, covering translators, booksellers, editors, and publishing professionals in five different countries. They included Lorin Stein, Benjamin Moser, Antoine Jaccottet, and Sylvia Whitman.

In terms of The Quarterly Conversation, we conducted a symposium on Harry Mathews with contributions from seven writers, including Laird Hunt, Ed Park, and Daniel Levin Becker. We launched a film section with several essays on films. We published the usual assortment of reviews and interviews (including one with Laszlo Krasznahorkai). We published essays on W.G. Sebald, Rachel Shihor, Ivan Vladislavić, and Susan Sontag, among many others.

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