Welcome to Literary Friction.

I'm Carrie Plitt here, as always, with my co-host, Octavia Bright.

Hi, Octavia. How are you?

Hi, Carrie. I'm really well. I actually, I'm very relieved because I got a terrible bout of hiccups just before we stand at this recording session. But I got rid of them. I think they were stress related. I'm on a bunch of deadlines at the moment and it's quite intense. And I also actually stress ate a mini magnum this afternoon.

And let me tell you, that was an excellent decision.

But I'm now wondering if it gave me hiccups.

And then the other thing that happened was my solicitor emailed me, addressing me as

Ho, Octavia.

And I laughed so hard.

I almost fell off my chair because I'm just so relieved it's not just me

who makes these like terrible typos. That's amazing. I know. He's also an incredibly serious

and fastidious man. So just the idea of him, dear Malcolm, how about you? How are you doing?

Does ice cream give you hiccups, by the way? I don't know, but it's the only connection I could make. It happened quite directly after the

Magnum. Interesting. I am fine. I mentioned on Armani said last time that I had plans to go into London,

and I did go into London, and it was glorious, and it didn't actually rain the entire time I was there,

which was very lucky considering the forecast. But I also like completely overdid it.

I tried to see way too many people. I got really hung over and then I spent like three days

recovering from it and also panicking that I'd given everyone COVID, I'd somehow

like picked it up on the train in and given everyone COVID and took like three rapid tests,

like three days in a row. So swings and roundabouts here, but I'm good. Still worth it.

Yeah, still totally worth it. But much more importantly than updates on my social life, I'm very excited to say that

our guest on the show today is the novelist Rachel Kushner, who I have been a huge fan

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