Gene Wolfe | The Book of the New Sun
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Published 2023-05-14
Science fiction and fantasy author Gene Wolfe discusses The Book of the New Sun, his reasons for focusing on science fiction and fantasy, and the likelihood of our society's realizing the potential of such stories.
06/29/1982
Interviewers :
Nancy Kress
Rich Calvin
SUNY Brockport
All Comments (21)
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This lady is light years better than any interviewer alive today.
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Based interviewer with the “where do you get your ideas” joke. She had some tremendously insightful questions. It was so cool that the both of them had read his entire series before the interview was conducted.
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Best prose writer I've ever read, regardless of genre. Book of the New Sun feels so baroque and archaic, but somehow so fresh and intuitive 40 years later. It wears its influences on its sleeve, yet there is nothing else remotely like it, and I daresay there never will be. I'm in complete awe of these books because I can't begin to fathom how in the holy fuck he wrote them.
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2 minutes in Gene casually gives one of the most beautiful definitions of the meaning of life as if he’s commenting on the weather.
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Gene really glowed up as he got older and started rocking the 'stache. Great interview. RIP, GW.
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Obviously Gene Wolfe is a true genius in every sense of the word, but I feel we should also give some kudos to the interviewers for their excellent questions. They also allowed him to fully answer the questions without cutting him off. It’s sad that this type of interview is so uncommon now a days.
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HAHAH that start, the flute, the two interviewers staring like robots to the camera while Gene is sitting there casually looking at them Man I can't stop thinking about the book of the new sun.
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Fantastic interview. Gene’s responses were shining with clarity and intelligence.
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Never read his books. Completely enthralled listening to his thoughts. What an intelligent man!
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Gene wrote works that kinda demand multiple readings. Once you figure the puzzles out, you realize how much of a genius he was. So many readers give up on BOTNS without even finishing the first book, but you have to read all of them to gain any understanding. Even then you should read them all again (including Urth of the New Sun).
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Fantastic interview. The interviewer in the middle seat was a rockstar.
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5:16 the hero as werewolf and tracking song - two amazing pieces of speculative fiction
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This interview looks like one of the Between Two Ferns interviews, in some aspects. For instance, the scarcely hidden animosity between the perspectives of the interviewer(s) and the interviewee. Wolfe obviously disdains certain types of mindsets that try to create formulas for writing and categories in which to place works of fiction. This does end up making for an interesting interview, in a quirky kind of way. Thanks for sharing!
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A man after my own heart, I suppose I may have found one of my new favorite authors. Only a few chapters into the 1st book and I am enthralled
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Thank you for uploading this interview.
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I love the writing of Gene Wolfe and a lot of the time I have no idea what is going on.
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Of course, Gene Wolfe is fantastic. But so is the interviewer, Nancy Kress. I think that's in part because Kress herself is a Hugo and Nebula award winning SF and fantasy writer. Likewise she was a professor of literature for a time as well. 😊
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I love these books
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What a treat! I've read loads of his books but never heard him speak.
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The lady is looking for the meaning of life and the man is looking to write his course syllabus, but Gene delivers both
