बहुत से लोग जो लघु कथाओं के पुनरुत्थान को देखना चाहते हैं—उनका मानना है कि लघु कथाएँ, और कभी-कभी कविताएँ भी, हमारे आज के जीवन शैली के अनुकूल हैं, जहाँ हमारे पास समय छोटे-छोटे टुकड़ों में बँटा हुआ है। मुझे उम्मीद है कि वे सही हैं, लेकिन मेरा मानना है कि हमारा गद्य पढ़ना, अगर कुछ है, तो इस बिखराव से बचने के एक तरह के ठिकाने के रूप में और अधिक संजोया गया है।
A lot of people who want to see the short story have a renaissance of readership - they tend to think of short stories, and sometimes poems too, as being well-suited to the way we now live, with all of these broken-up bits of time. I hope they're right, but my sense is that our fiction reading has become, if anything, more cherished as a kind of escape from fragmentation.
A lot of people who want to see the short story have a renaissance of readership - they tend to think of short stories, and sometimes poems too, as being well-suited to the way we now live, with all of these broken-up bits of time. I hope they're right, but my sense is that our fiction reading has become, if anything, more cherished as a kind of escape from fragmentation.
चेखव की कहानियाँ उस पल के बारे में होती हैं जब किसी का जीवन पटरी से उतर जाता है और उसकी जो भारी कीमत चुकानी पड़ती है—वह भी हमेशा के लिए। चेखव की एक आम कहानी कुछ ऐसी ही होती है। रात के चार बजे बिस्तर पर लेटे हुए जिस चिंता से आप तब तक जूझते रहते हैं, जब तक कि आप इतने मानसिक रूप से मजबूत नहीं हो जाते कि खुद को समझा सकें और उठकर शॉفر ले सकें तथा दफ़्तर जा सकें।
Chekhov's stories are about the moment that a life goes off the rails and the price that will be paid - forever. That's a typical Chekhov story for you. Something that you're used to lying in bed worrying about at four in the morning, before you have the psychic defenses to kid yourself and tell yourself to get up and shower and go to the office.
Chekhov's stories are about the moment that a life goes off the rails and the price that will be paid - forever. That's a typical Chekhov story for you. Something that you're used to lying in bed worrying about at four in the morning, before you have the psychic defenses to kid yourself and tell yourself to get up and shower and go to the office.
मेरे लिए किसी भी पत्रिका के बारे में सबसे पहला सवाल यह पूछना होता है कि क्या उसकी सचमुच कोई ज़रूरत है, क्या वह ऐसी चीज़ें छाप रही है जो कोई और नहीं छाप सकता, या उतनी बेहतरीन तरीके से नहीं छाप सकता। बस, यही बात है।
For me the question that you have to ask, about any magazine, is whether it's needed, whether it's publishing things that no one else could publish, or publish equally well. So there's that.
For me the question that you have to ask, about any magazine, is whether it's needed, whether it's publishing things that no one else could publish, or publish equally well. So there's that.
मुझे नहीं पता कि लोगों को क्या पढ़ना चाहिए। सिर्फ आप ही जानते हैं कि आपको क्या पढ़ना चाहिए।
I don't know what people should be reading. Only you know what you should be reading.
I don't know what people should be reading. Only you know what you should be reading.
मैगज़ीन के छप जाने के बाद, मैं उसके मुद्दों के बारे में ज़्यादा नहीं सोचता। मुझे तब अच्छा लगता है जब लोगों को वे पसंद आते हैं। अक्सर, जब लोग आलोचना करते हैं, तो मैं खुद को उनकी बात से सहमत पाता हूँ। मुझे लगता है कि कुछ अंक दूसरों की तुलना में ज़्यादा दमदार होते हैं। मुझे उम्मीद है कि हम अंक-दर-अंक कुल मिलाकर थोड़ा बेहतर हो रहे हैं।
I don't think much about the issues after they come out. I like it when people like them. Often, when people have criticisms, I find myself agreeing with them. I think some issues are stronger than others. I hope we're getting a little bit better, overall, issue by issue.
I don't think much about the issues after they come out. I like it when people like them. Often, when people have criticisms, I find myself agreeing with them. I think some issues are stronger than others. I hope we're getting a little bit better, overall, issue by issue.
अगर मैं युवा पुरुषों का साहित्य के प्रति नज़रिया बदल पाता, तो मैं चाहता कि वे सिर्फ पलायन के लिए न पढ़ें, बल्कि इसलिए पढ़ें क्योंकि साहित्य सेक्स, प्रतिबद्धता और बुढ़ापे जैसी चीज़ों के बारे में अधिक सच बयां कर सकता है। यह उन चीज़ों के बारे में ज़्यादा सच बोल सकता है जिनके बारे में हमारे माता-पिता ने हमसे (और खुद से) झूठ बोला था, और उन चीज़ों के बारे में भी जिनके बारे में हर किसी को झूठ बोलना पड़ता है। फिक्शन और कविता में इन सबका पूरी सच्चाई से सामना किया जा सकता है।
If I could change the attitude of young men toward literature, I would want them to read not just for escape, but because literature can be more truthful about things like sex, commitment, and aging. It can be more truthful about the stuff that our parents lied to us (and themselves) about, and the stuff that everyone has to lie about. It can all be dealt with truthfully in fiction and poetry.
If I could change the attitude of young men toward literature, I would want them to read not just for escape, but because literature can be more truthful about things like sex, commitment, and aging. It can be more truthful about the stuff that our parents lied to us (and themselves) about, and the stuff that everyone has to lie about. It can all be dealt with truthfully in fiction and poetry.
यदि आप सेक्स के बारे में उस तरह लिखते जैसे जिम [साल्टर] नॉन-फिक्शन में सेक्स के बारे में लिखते हैं, तो आप एक असामाजिक व्यक्ति बन जाएंगे।
If you wrote about sex the way Jim [Salter] writes about sex in nonfiction, you would be a sociopath.
If you wrote about sex the way Jim [Salter] writes about sex in nonfiction, you would be a sociopath.
मैंने मनोदशा के संतुलन के बारे में कभी नहीं सोचा था। आप देख सकते हैं कि हमने इसे वर्णमाला के क्रम में किया है, इसलिए यदि इसमें कोई आकार या कोई बहाव है, तो वह बिल्कुल यादृच्छिक है। लिंग... इसके बारे में हमने ज़्यादा नहीं सोचा था। यह देखना अपने आप में दिलचस्प था कि अक्सर महिलाएँ महिलाओं को और पुरुष पुरुषों को चुन रहे थे। और कभी-कभी वे ऐसा नहीं करते थे और वह भी काफ़ी मज़ेदार था। मुझे अंदाज़ा नहीं था कि इस बात से मुझे इतनी उत्सुकता होगी, जब तक कि मैंने खुद इसे होते हुए नहीं देखा।
I hadn't thought about the balance in mood. You see that we did it in alphabetical order, so if there's any kind of shape, or any kind of flow, it's random. Gender...we didn't think much about it. It was sort of interesting to see that women often were choosing women and men often were choosing men. And sometimes they wouldn't and that was fun. I didn't know that I would be excited by that, until I saw it happen.
I hadn't thought about the balance in mood. You see that we did it in alphabetical order, so if there's any kind of shape, or any kind of flow, it's random. Gender...we didn't think much about it. It was sort of interesting to see that women often were choosing women and men often were choosing men. And sometimes they wouldn't and that was fun. I didn't know that I would be excited by that, until I saw it happen.
मुझे ऐसा लगता है कि यह पत्रिका जितने लोगों तक पहुँचती है, उससे कहीं ज़्यादा लोगों तक पहुँच सकती है और इसमें ऐसा बहुत कुछ है जो हर उस व्यक्ति को पता होना चाहिए जिसे अभी तक इसकी जानकारी नहीं है। इसीलिए हम एक ऐप शुरू कर रहे हैं, और इसीलिए हम ब्लॉग चलाते हैं। लेकिन संपादकीय तौर पर, मुझे लगता है कि यह मुख्य रूप से चौकस रहने की बात है। आप वास्तव में कभी नहीं जानते कि आगे क्या सामने आने वाला है।
I have the feeling that the magazine can reach many more people than it reaches and has something to offer that not everyone knows who should know it. That's why we're starting an app, and that's why we do the blog. But editorially, I think it's mainly a matter of keeping your eyes peeled. You just really don't know what's going to come along.
I have the feeling that the magazine can reach many more people than it reaches and has something to offer that not everyone knows who should know it. That's why we're starting an app, and that's why we do the blog. But editorially, I think it's mainly a matter of keeping your eyes peeled. You just really don't know what's going to come along.
मुझे ऐसा फिक्शन पसंद है जो उन मामलों से निपटता है जिनका हमारे निजी जीवन में बहुत महत्व होता है। और सभी लघु कथाएँ ऐसी नहीं होतीं। आम तौर पर, लघु कथाओं—और शायद यह बात थोड़ी विषयांतर हो—लेकिन मुझे लगता है कि लघु कथाओं की एक बुरी छवि जुड़ी हुई है, जैसे कि वे किसी प्रतीक्षा कक्ष की चीज़ हों।
I like fiction that deals with matters that are of burning importance to us in our private lives. And not all short stories are like that. In general, short stories - and maybe this is a little bit off-topic - but I think short stories have this bad association with, like, waiting rooms.
I like fiction that deals with matters that are of burning importance to us in our private lives. And not all short stories are like that. In general, short stories - and maybe this is a little bit off-topic - but I think short stories have this bad association with, like, waiting rooms.
मुझे ऐसे लोगों को अपने आस-पास रखना बहुत पसंद है जो मुझसे बेहतर साक्षात्कारकर्ता हैं और जो वाकई एक बेहतरीन काम करने के लिए समय निकाल सकते हैं। हमने जितने भी साक्षात्कार छापे हैं, वे उन लोगों के साथ हैं जिनमें मेरी गहरी रुचि है।
I love having people around who are better interviewers than I am and who can make the time to do a really great job. All of the interviews that we've published are with people who really interest me.
I love having people around who are better interviewers than I am and who can make the time to do a really great job. All of the interviews that we've published are with people who really interest me.
मैं एक ऐसा पाठक हूँ जो जीवन की उधेड़बुन में उलझने के लिए गद्य (फिक्शन) का सहारा लेता हूँ।
I’m a reader who uses fiction as a way of worrying about life.
I’m a reader who uses fiction as a way of worrying about life.
लघु कथाओं को लेकर जितनी मेरी उम्मीद थी, उससे कहीं ज़्यादा रोमांच मुझे महसूस हुआ है। लघु कथाएँ पढ़ने में मुझे पहले से कहीं ज़्यादा आनंद आया है। यह देखकर कि लघु कथाओं में किस तरह की सोच चल रही है। मुझे उस घबराहट से भी आश्चर्य हुआ जो मैंने महसूस की, खासकर शुरुआत में, जब हम एक अंक को अंतिम रूप देते थे और फिर महसूस करते थे कि हमें तुरंत दूसरा अंक तैयार करना है।
I'm more thrilled by the short fiction than I expected to be. I've found more pleasure in reading short fiction than I used to. By seeing what kinds of thinking are going on in short fiction. I was also surprised by the panic I've felt, especially at first, when we'd put an issue to bed and then realized we had to put another one together.
I'm more thrilled by the short fiction than I expected to be. I've found more pleasure in reading short fiction than I used to. By seeing what kinds of thinking are going on in short fiction. I was also surprised by the panic I've felt, especially at first, when we'd put an issue to bed and then realized we had to put another one together.
आम तौर पर, लघु कथाएँ पहले की तुलना में कम पढ़ी जाती हैं, वे पहले की तुलना में कम छपती हैं और, हैरानी की बात नहीं है कि वे पहले की तुलना में कम पढ़ाई जाती हैं।
In general, short stories are less read than before, they're less published than before and, not surprisingly, they're less taught than before.
In general, short stories are less read than before, they're less published than before and, not surprisingly, they're less taught than before.
मेरा मानना है कि पाठक को जोड़े रखने की ज़िम्मेदारी लेखक की होती है, पाठक से यह उम्मीद नहीं की जानी चाहिए कि उसे लेखक की ज़रूरत ही पड़े, लेखक को खुद यह साबित करना होता है। ये सारी बातें मिलकर शायद काम में एक अलग तरह का मज़ा पैदा करती हैं। मुझे ऐसी चीज़ें पसंद हैं जो दिलचस्प विषयों पर आधारित होती हैं, जो कि सुनने में बिल्कुल स्पष्ट बात लगती है।
I tend to think that the onus is on the writer to engage the reader, that the reader should not be expected to need the writer, that the writer has to prove it. All that stuff might add up to a kind of fun in the work. I like things that are about interesting subjects, which sounds self-evident.
I tend to think that the onus is on the writer to engage the reader, that the reader should not be expected to need the writer, that the writer has to prove it. All that stuff might add up to a kind of fun in the work. I like things that are about interesting subjects, which sounds self-evident.
कभी ऐसा समय था जब आप किसी राइटिंग प्रोग्राम में जाते थे और जो कुछ आप सीखते थे वह लघु कथा लिखना होता था। आप पत्रिकाएँ उठाते थे और पत्रिकाओं से ही लघु कथा लिखना सीखते थे। आजकल छात्र लेखक उपन्यास लिखना सीख रहे हैं क्योंकि वह बाज़ार अब खत्म हो चुका है, इसलिए जो लोग इस विधा की ओर आकर्षित होते हैं, वे वाकई अपने खुद के कारणों से ऐसा कर रहे हैं और यह बात वाकई बहुत रोमांचक है।
It used to be that you would go into a writing program and what you would learn was how to write a short story. You would pick up the magazines and you would be taught from the magazines how to write a short story. Nowadays student writers are learning to write novels because that market is gone, so the ones who are drawn to the form are doing it really for reasons of their own and that's really exciting.
It used to be that you would go into a writing program and what you would learn was how to write a short story. You would pick up the magazines and you would be taught from the magazines how to write a short story. Nowadays student writers are learning to write novels because that market is gone, so the ones who are drawn to the form are doing it really for reasons of their own and that's really exciting.
मैंने कभी नहीं सोचा था कि ऐसी चीज़ प्रकाशित करना समझदारी है जिसे पढ़ने में मुझे खुद वाकई मज़ा न आया हो। या, अगर 'मज़ा' नहीं, तो जो मुझे जोड़े न रखे। मेरी पसंद जैसी भी हो, लेकिन हो सकता है कि मैं एक निश्चित प्रकार की जटिलता से थोड़ा डरता हूँ। हो सकता है कि मैं किसी प्रकार की दिखावटीपन से दूर भागता हूँ।
I've never thought that it made sense to put something out that I didn't actually find really fun to read. Or, if not "fun," engaging. My tastes are whatever they are, but I may be a little bit afraid of certain kinds of density. I may get turned off by certain kinds of show-offyness.
I've never thought that it made sense to put something out that I didn't actually find really fun to read. Or, if not "fun," engaging. My tastes are whatever they are, but I may be a little bit afraid of certain kinds of density. I may get turned off by certain kinds of show-offyness.
नाम कोई मायने नहीं रखते, बायोडाटा कोई मायने नहीं रखता, पहले क्या छपा है यह बिल्कुल भी मायने नहीं रखता, क्योंकि एक तरह से, आदर्श स्थिति तो यह होती है कि कोई बिल्कुल अप्रत्याशित जगह से सामने आए। और फिर भी, ज़ाहिर है, किसी ऐसे लेखक को ना कहना मुश्किल होता है जो आपके लिए बहुत मायने रखता है और जिसके बारे में आप जानते हैं कि वह आपके पाठकों के लिए भी मायने रखता है।
Names don't matter, CVs don't matter, previous publications don't matter at all, because, in a certain way, the ideal is for someone to come completely out of left field. And still, of course, it is hard to say no to a writer who matters a lot to you and who you know matters to your readers.
Names don't matter, CVs don't matter, previous publications don't matter at all, because, in a certain way, the ideal is for someone to come completely out of left field. And still, of course, it is hard to say no to a writer who matters a lot to you and who you know matters to your readers.
हमारी पीढ़ी 'रिव्यू' को जीवन के एक अनिवार्य हिस्से के रूप में देखते हुए बड़ी हुई है। यह अमेरिका की साहित्यिक पत्रिका थी। हमारी नज़रों में, यह आज भी वैसी ही है। इसने हमारे सबसे पसंदीदा लेखकों को मंच दिया है। इसने त्रैमासिक पत्रिका के रूप में एक खास जगह बनाई है, जो समकालिक भी है और चिरस्थायी भी, जो दिन-प्रतिदिन की खबरों या भीड़ को खुश करने के दबाव से मुक्त है। इन सबसे बढ़कर, 'रिव्यू' ने बार-बार यह साबित किया है कि कल्पना की कृतियाँ भी उतनी ही स्टाइलिश और ज़रूरी हो सकती हैं जितनी कि सबसे सनसनीखेज रिपोर्टिंग, और वे दुनिया की हमारी तस्वीर को फिर से स्पष्ट करने में ज़्यादा मददगार साबित हो सकती हैं।
Our generation grew up with the Review as a fact of life. It was America’s literary magazine. To our minds, it still is. It has launched our favorite writers. It has made a special claim for the quarterly as such, being both timely and lasting, free of the news of the day or the pressure to please a crowd. Most of all, the Review has shown, repeatedly, that works of imagination can be as stylish and urgent as the flashiest feature reporting, and can do more to refocus our picture of the world.
Our generation grew up with the Review as a fact of life. It was America’s literary magazine. To our minds, it still is. It has launched our favorite writers. It has made a special claim for the quarterly as such, being both timely and lasting, free of the news of the day or the pressure to please a crowd. Most of all, the Review has shown, repeatedly, that works of imagination can be as stylish and urgent as the flashiest feature reporting, and can do more to refocus our picture of the world.
हमने जितने भी अंक निकाले हैं, उनमें से लगभग हर अंक में कम से कम एक या दो ऐसी चीज़ें ज़रूर होती हैं जिन्होंने मुझे सचमुच हैरान कर दिया। यह भले ही जुमला लगे, लेकिन हमारे द्वारा छापी गई अधिकांश कहानियों का मुझ पर यही असर हुआ है। हमें हज़ारों की संख्या में रचनाएँ मिलती हैं और मुझे नहीं लगता कि हमने अभी तक ऐसी कोई कहानी छापी है—या बहुत कम ही ऐसी होंगी—जहाँ मोना सिम्पसन द्वारा वर्णित बात न रही हो, जहाँ पहला वाक्य या पहला पन्ना सीधे आपका ध्यान अपनी ओर न खींच लेता हो।
Pretty much every issue that we've put out, there have been at least one or two things that really surprised me. It sounds like bullshit, but most of the stories that we've run had that effect on me. We get thousands and thousands of submissions and I don't think we've published a story yet - very few, anyway - where there wasn't something like what Mona Simpson described, where a first sentence or a first page didn't just really command attention.
Pretty much every issue that we've put out, there have been at least one or two things that really surprised me. It sounds like bullshit, but most of the stories that we've run had that effect on me. We get thousands and thousands of submissions and I don't think we've published a story yet - very few, anyway - where there wasn't something like what Mona Simpson described, where a first sentence or a first page didn't just really command attention.
ਛوٹی कहानियों के साथ न्याय करना और भी मुश्किल होता है, क्योंकि अक्सर लोग उन्हें दिन के समय, बाकी कामों के बीच में पढ़ते हैं। वे अंतराल (बचा हुआ समय) में पढ़ी जाती हैं। इसके बावजूद, छोटी कहानियों का विषय-वस्तु अक्सर 'रात' के समय जैसा ही होता है।
So, short stories have an even harder time, because they tend to get read during the day, between other things. They're interstitial. And yet the content of short stories tends to be very much "nighttime" content.
So, short stories have an even harder time, because they tend to get read during the day, between other things. They're interstitial. And yet the content of short stories tends to be very much "nighttime" content.
पढ़ने की आदत के लिए असली खतरा वो समय नहीं है जो हम दोस्तों के साथ बिताते हैं, बल्कि वो समय है जो हम ऑनलाइन बिताते हैं।
The real threat to reading isn’t the time we spend hanging out, it’s the time we spend online.
The real threat to reading isn’t the time we spend hanging out, it’s the time we spend online.
हमारी पहुँच कभी बहुत बड़े पैमाने पर नहीं रही। हम हमेशा से लेखकों और समझदार पाठकों की पत्रिका रहे हैं। हमें कभी ऐसी कहानियाँ नहीं छापनी पड़ीं जो दस लाख लोगों को लुभा सकें। और अंत में आपके पास एक ऐसी परंपरा बच जाती है जो लंबे समय तक टिक सकती है—जैसे प्रलय के बाद भी बच रहने वाला कॉकरोच।
We've never had a giant circulation. And we've always been a magazine for writers and for sophisticated readers. We've never had to run stories that would appeal to a million people. And what you end up with is a kind of tradition that might have staying power - the cockroach after armageddon.
We've never had a giant circulation. And we've always been a magazine for writers and for sophisticated readers. We've never had to run stories that would appeal to a million people. And what you end up with is a kind of tradition that might have staying power - the cockroach after armageddon.
जब मैं एक बुक एडिटर था, तो मुझे अक्सर यह सुनना पड़ता था कि मेरी पसंद कुछ गंभीर या लीक से हटकर है। ये शब्द खुद-ब-खुद मेरे दिमाग में नहीं आते थे, पर मुझे यह बात इतनी बार कही गई कि मुझे यकीन करना ही पड़ा—कि मुझे ऐसी चीजें पसंद हैं जो कुछ अन्य लोगों को अजीब या परेशान करने वाली लग सकती हैं। मेरा काम ऐसी चीजें प्रकाशित करना है जिनकी मुझे सचमुच बहुत परवाह है। इसका मतलब यह हो सकता है कि वे हर किसी को रास न आएं।
When I was a book editor, I got used to being told that my tastes were dark or edgy. These are not words that would've occurred to me, but I was told that enough that I have to believe it's true - that I like things that some other people find off-putting or upsetting. My job is to publish stuff that I really, really care about. That might mean that it doesn't sit well with everybody.
When I was a book editor, I got used to being told that my tastes were dark or edgy. These are not words that would've occurred to me, but I was told that enough that I have to believe it's true - that I like things that some other people find off-putting or upsetting. My job is to publish stuff that I really, really care about. That might mean that it doesn't sit well with everybody.
आप पीछे मुड़कर सामान्यीकरण करने की कोशिश कर सकते हैं, लेकिन अंत में आप वही बातें कहेंगे जो हर संपादक हर छपने वाली चीज़ के बारे में कहता है। कुछ वैसी ही बातें—जैसे आवाज़, तात्कालिकता, और वास्तव में कहने के लिए एक कहानी का होना।
You can go back and try to generalize, but then you end up saying things that all editors say about everything that ever gets published. Something about voice, about urgency, about actually having a story to tell.
You can go back and try to generalize, but then you end up saying things that all editors say about everything that ever gets published. Something about voice, about urgency, about actually having a story to tell.