Submitted by Bethanne on Wed, 11/21/2007 - 6:28pm
If you glean nothing else from today's interview, you'll learn that Louis Bayard is funny and articulate -- one would expect nothing less from a Princetonian with a theater background. But Bayard is also careful and meticulous as a novelist, and as he discusses how and why he became interested in Edgar Allan Poe, you'll learn a little bit about what makes novelists in general and historical novelists in particular tick.
He talks about "collaborating" with Charles Dickens when writing Mr. Timothy, his previous novel based on the famous "Tiny Tim" character from A Christmas Carol -- but from Tim's adult perspective. In The Pale Blue Eye, of course, Bayard doesn't collaborate with a famous author -- he makes Edgar Allan Poe one of his characters. "What was he doing there?" Bayard wonders about Poe at West Point.
From questions like that are novels born... I hope you enjoy hearing Bayard's thoughts on his work, and as always, I look forward to your thoughts. I also hope that everyone has a safe, peaceful Thanksgiving holiday.
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[...] Patrick’s recently
[...] Patrick’s recently launched blog and interview series for WETA’s Web site. In the video, Bayard discusses his most recent novel, The Pale Blue Eye, his interest in Edgar Allan Poe and [...]
After 35 years of Poe
After 35 years of Poe studies, I'm amazed how many misconceptions are still out there, despite the preponderance of historical evidence. Fascinating? Of course. Excessive? Hardly. But the hardest for me to fathom is the almost habitual misspelling of his middle name. "Allan" was taken from his quasi foster father, John Allan, and yet I see it in your summary and discussion of "Pale Blue Eye" spelled "Allen." Makes one wonder about any claim to historical research. An almost identical mystery novel is forthcoming from Ballantine, and it makes the same mistakes. There is a small universe of Poe scholars out there, and one wonders why they are so infrequently consulted.
Thanks for the catch, John.
Thanks for the catch, John. We've made the correction.
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