Lee Rourke

Q&A with Lee Rourke

Lee, how would you sum up The Canal in one line?

A heady intersection of boredom, violence and technology.

What inspired you to write this particular story?

The locale; canals are irresistible to me. I am also interested in the tension that exists when two strangers meet, or somehow find themselves sharing the same space – anything and nothing can happen. Which is something I wanted to explore when I first set out to write The Canal.

Boredom is the main theme of the book. How, as a writer writing about boredom, do you avoid producing something that is boring?

Boredom offers an infinite amount of possibilities for me to explore. Although with The Canal, its basic theme and thrust, I am interested in two fundamental facets of its existence, and especially its hold upon us: those who try to fight it and those who try to embrace it. I guess it is the friction caused when these two types meet that never allows something like boredom, something that is both simple and complex, to ever be... boring.

How do you alleviate your own boredom?

I try and I fail – pretty much like everyone else. But reading helps me to pass the time, as does writing, and obvious things like watching mindless TV shows. But, I honestly feel that the best way to alleviate boredom is to simply try and embrace it.

Is there anything about the novel that you would change, if you could?

I don't think so, it pretty much speaks for itself and I am very happy with it. I figure there is no point going back to something once you have let go – it exists on its own terms now, and I could never think of tampering with that.

What can readers look forward to next from you?

I'm just finishing a second novel, called Amber, which is about pylon engineers, dwelling and shelter set in the US, London and Brighton on the south coast of England. I also have a collection of short stories finished called I Like To Be Stationary which (unlike the title suggests) is a collection of revolt, and a novella called Dead Land which is about friendship.

What do you enjoy reading?

I read pretty much anything that seems (to me at least) to be operating on an axis of philosophical, theoretical and literary observation – but mostly authors like Samuel Beckett, Jean-Philippe Toussaint Tom McCarthy and Gabriel Josipovici. And also philosophers and theorists such as Maurice Blanchot and Simon Critchley. And lots and lots of contemporary fiction.

What advice would you give to aspiring authors?

I would say read, read, read and never feel that you have to write for an audience: I would suggest that you write for yourself. But mostly write; always find the time to write. Keep writing. Write reams.

Tell us something unusual about yourself.

I am very ordinary and humdrum – which, I think, is quite unusual these days.