David Shields
David Shields
David Shieldsis an American author of fiction and nonfiction...
book should endure
A book should either allow us to escape existence or teach us how to endure it.
narrative allies honest
I'm not interested in collage as the refuge of the composition-ally disabled. I'm interested in collage as (to be honest) an evolution beyond narrative.
groups care littles
In my own little way, I feel like I'm part of a group of writers who care deeply about pushing the essay forward.
novel mediums prose
My medium is prose, not the novel.
airline along beijing chinese critical embassy ensure ensuring factors ministry national partners smooth talking visa
Along with the Jamaican embassy in Beijing and the Ministry of National Security, we are ensuring the appropriate visa issuing protocols are in place. We are also talking with our airline partners to ensure a smooth trip. These two factors are critical on the Chinese end.
farm potato seen since
I've never seen a potato farm since I've been down here.
compensate field giant hard less super
It's hard to compensate for a super giant field with something much less than a super giant field.
memories fiction
Anything processed by memory is fiction.
book reading order
If I'm reading a book and it seems truly interesting, I tend to start reading back to front in order not to be too deeply under the sway of progress.
thinking literature serious
I take literature as a really serious human activity. It's not just a playful thing. It can be hilarious and wonderful and performative, but I think it's really serious.
thinking rooms plot
The absence of plot leaves the reader room to think about other things.
distance rumor matter
I don’t know what’s the matter with me, why I’m so adept at distance, why I feel so remote from things, why life feels like a rumor.
momentum narrative mosaics
Momentum, in literary mosaic, derives not from narrative but from the subtle, progressive buildup of thematic resonances.
believe writing data
Everything I write, I believe instinctively, is to some extent collage. Meaning, ultimately, is a matter of adjacent data.