Writer, teacher. Up next: PENITENT, a novel (2028, Doubleday). Out now: APPLESEED, a novel (2021, Mariner). REFUSE TO BE DONE, a guide to novel revision (2022, Soho Press).
Matt Bell
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1982! The novel has been dead almost since it first came to life.
Today, Deb and I went to Athen’s Panatheniac Stadium (the modern version of which was apparently built for the 1896 Olympics) and went down on the track and each ran a 400m lap. No one was faster/no one else was racing us! Champions both. A fun morning for two runners!
It's 12 euros to get in, and at opening time it was populated entirely by smiling runners taking laps. Good to see your tribe all in one place!
It feels almost ridiculous to say it, but it turns out the Parthenon at sunrise is pretty stunning.
The jet trail might’ve blown their minds too, I suppose!
Visited the Ancient Agora in Athens today, and found the Temple of Hephaestus surprisingly moving. As I was reviewing my photos, it occurred to me that probably no Ancient Greek had a way to make their vision so wide angle as to see it the way my iPhone did this morning.
“If I were a writer, how I would enjoy being told the novel is dead. How liberating, to work in the margins, outside a central perception." —Don DeLillo, The Names
Haha, I made it exactly 35 more minutes. Walked into a room of new pottery (“new,” they’re 2500 years old) and just went NOPE. Next time!
