Ann Patchett | On Solitude, Writing & Indie Bookstores
Good Life Project
Jonathan Fields / Acast
4.5 • 3.4K Ratings
🗓️ 25 June 2020
⏱️ 54 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and the Iowa Writer’s Workshop, Ann Patchett is the multi-award-winning and New York Times Bestselling author of eight novels, including The Patron Saint of Liars, Bel Canto, Run, Commonwealth. and The Dutch House, along with nonfiction works, including Truth & Beauty, about her friendship with the writer Lucy Grealy, What Now? an expansion of her graduation address at Sarah Lawrence College, and This is the Story of a Happy Marriage, a collection of essays examining the theme of commitment. In 2019, she published her first children’s book, Lambslide, illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser. Patchett's work has been translated into more than thirty languages. In November 2011, yearning to stem the flow of great bookstores from Nashville, Tennessee where she lives, Patchett opened Parnassus Books with her business partner Karen Hayes. She has since become a spokesperson for independent booksellers, championing books and bookstores. In 2012 she was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. Interestingly, Patchett does not carry a cell-phone, has never texted, been on social media or, at least in the last few decades, watched TV. We dive into all of this in today's conversation.
You can find Ann Patchett at:
Website : http://www.annpatchett.com/
Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/parnassusbooks
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Would it surprise you to know that my guest and |
| 0:09.3 | Patrick, the author of seven novels, including the patron saint of Lyres, Belkanto, run, state |
| 0:14.8 | of wonder and commonwealth, along with three nonfiction books and her first children's |
| 0:20.6 | book, Lambslide? |
| 0:22.0 | Would it surprise you to know at all that she has essentially not watched TV in decades, |
| 0:28.6 | because not on a smartphone, has never been on social media, and never intends to start |
| 0:33.2 | being on social media, and has a bit of a love affair with solitude. |
| 0:37.7 | Well, apparently, that is part of her secret sauce of what makes her her and allows her |
| 0:44.1 | to do the stunning work that she does in the world. |
| 0:47.6 | A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and the legendary Iowa writers workshop, Anne has |
| 0:52.8 | been the recipient of numerous different awards and fellowships, including England's |
| 0:57.7 | Orange Prize, the Penn Faulkner Award. |
| 1:00.1 | Her books have been New York Times bestsellers, been translated into more than 30 languages |
| 1:05.4 | turned into movies. |
| 1:06.6 | She has appeared in conversation with everyone from Colbert to Oprah to Martha Stewart and |
| 1:12.0 | so many others. |
| 1:13.8 | And this is super cool. |
| 1:14.8 | In November of 2011, really frustrated at the loss of great bookstores in Nashville, she |
| 1:20.2 | partnered with a friend to open an independent bookstore, Parnazus Books in Nashville, Tennessee, |
| 1:25.6 | where she lives. |
| 1:26.6 | Anne has become a bit of a spokesperson for independent booksellers, really championing |
| 1:32.0 | books and bookstores. |
... |
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