Timothy McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern is the new new thing in the world of letters. It’s a quirky publication: a 19th century-style literary journal aimed at Gen’xers, Monty Python fans, and readers of marginalia.
It’s also a refreshing resurrection of an old old thing: a rag that relies on good writing, long form prose, experimental fiction, illustration and humor.
McSweeney’s may fair no better than MIGHT, but Eggers’ oddball venue is attracting some of the best young writers today, without paying them a dime. The McSweeney manifesto believes in indulgence, eschews the recent work of Saul Bellow, and relies on the strength of numbers, provided those numbers are very, very small.
He’s also recently published his first book – his life story which he had the brass to call “A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.” It’s a postmodern examination of everything: life, death, big brotherhood, parenting, and the state of American literature.
(Hosted by Christopher Lydon)
Guests:
Dave Eggers