She is described as the Jane Austen of her generation, the so-called “millennials.” At 33 years old, with only three novels, Conversations between friends, normal people (L’Olivier, 2019 and 2020, both adapted to series) and Where are you, wonderful world? ? (L’Olivier, 2022), Irish author Sally Rooney has become an extraordinary publishing star, translated into nearly forty languages. For the worldwide launch of her fourth novel, IntermezzoThe writer grants “Mundo de los Libros” the only interview she was willing to give in France.
Like your previous novels, Intermezzo is highly anticipated. How do you feel about publishing a new book, when the pressure is so high?
The period before publishing a book is not a pleasant experience for me. It is a source of stress that I find difficult to cope with. I think I failed to get used to it, but I did come to understand and accept that the moment when a book is published constitutes a major interruption in my daily life, which will inevitably be difficult and stressful. When my first books were published I didn’t understand why I was so stressed, I blamed myself for not coping better and that sort of thing. Now I am preparing myself for five or six unpleasant months before my life returns to normal. Since I only publish one book every two years, I consider this an acceptable compromise, because in between it gives me time to work. At least that’s what I tell myself.
“Intermezzo” tells the story of two brothers, Ivan and Peter, just after their father’s funeral. Ivan, 22, is a talented chess player, while Peter, 32, is a lawyer, and they seem to have little in common. Although love is one of your main themes, you have never written about love and hate in the context of brotherhood (even more so in relation to the loss of one’s father). What attracted you to this topic and why?
Writing about these characters is not a conscious decision. I didn’t sit down at my desk with the intention of “dealing with a topic” or “exploring the theme of brotherhood” or anything like that. One day, several years ago, I imagined the story of a chess player who goes to a small rural arts center to play a simultaneous game. [séance où le joueur dispute plusieurs parties à la fois]. I started writing about it, and as I understood the characters better and better, I realized that the chess player had an older brother. I started writing about the brother and his entourage, and my novel developed from there. At no point did I think, “I have something to say about brotherhood.” » In my novels, I don’t have anything in particular to say about anything. I simply want to bring my characters to life for my readers, the same way they came to life for me.
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