Conversations with Gordon Lish

Description

Known as "Captain Fiction," Gordon Lish (b. 1934) is among the most influential—and controversial—figures in modern American letters. As an editor at Esquire (1969-1977), Alfred A. Knopf (1977-1994), and The Quarterly (1987-1995) and as a teacher both in and outside the university system, he has worked closely with many of the most pioneering writers of recent times, including Raymond Carver, Don DeLillo, Barry Hannah, Amy Hempel, Sam Lipsyte, and Ben Marcus. A prolific author of stories and novels, Lish has also won a cult following for his own fiction, earning comparisons with Gertrude Stein and Samuel Beckett. Conversations with Gordon Lish collects all of Lish's major interviews, covering the entire span of his extraordinary career. Ranging from 1965 to 2015, these interviews document his pivotal role in the period's defining developments: the impact of the Californian counterculture, the rise and decline of so-called literary "minimalism," dramatic transformations in book and magazine publishing, and the ongoing growth of creative writing instruction. Over time, Lish—a self-described "dynamic conversationalist"—forges an evolving conversation not only with his interviewers, but with the central trends of twentieth-century literary history. This book will be essential reading not only for students and fans of contemporary fiction, but for writers too: included are several interviews in which Lish discusses his legendary writing classes. Indeed, these pieces themselves amount to a masterclass in Lishian literary language--each is a work of art in its own right. List of Books by Gordon Lish Contents Introduction Chronology Gordon Lish Interviews Gordon Lish • Gordon Lish / 1965 Gordon Lish • Amy Penn / 1988 Captain Fiction: Super-Teacher Gordon Lish • Gail Caldwell / 1988 Captain Fiction Rides Again: The Further Adventures of Gordon Lish • Lisa Grunwald / 1989 Feeling Uniformly Jewish: An Interview with Gordon Lish • Mario Materassi / 1990 Interview with Gordon Lish • Patricia Lear / 1990 Gordon Lish • Alexander Neubauer / 1994 Gordon Lish • Douglas Glover / 1995 A Conversation with Gordon Lish • Rob Trucks / 1996 Self-Interview • Gordon Lish / 1996 An Interview with Gordon Lish • Deron Bauman / 1996 Molly Bloome Talks with Gordon Lish • Molly Bloome / 2002 Interview with Gordon Lish • John Lee and Vernon Chatman / 2009 Gordon Lish, The Art of Editing No. 2 • Christian Lorentzen / 2015 An Interview with Gordon Lish • David Winters / 2015 Index