AN INTERVIEW WITH THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE
I’ve been interviewed about The Nervous Breakdown by Mark Athitakis of The National Book Critics Circle. Here’s an excerpt:
What prompted the launch of the Nervous Breakdown in 2006? Were there gaps in literary coverage, either in print or online, that you felt needed to be filled?
To a degree, sure. Part of it was rooted in a dissatisfaction with the deficiencies and inconsistencies presented by the old model. But on simpler level, it was a response to technology and opportunity. The tools were there. Writers could make their own publications. Readers were online. No waiting necessary. No permission needed.
As a way of contextualizing how fast things have changed: Back in 2006, when The Nervous Breakdown started, a majority of authors didn’t have websites. Fast-forward to the present day, and it’s almost unthinkable that an author wouldn’t be operating online. Nowadays, it seems like only the luckiest of writers are able to make a living without having to maintain some kind of web presence. It’s almost like a mark of distinction when a writer can abandon the web or refuse participation.
