Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1527558
15 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 6 OCTOBER 2024 INTERVIEW to oneself a perpetual story' brain. And so I take storytelling very seriously. I learned also from cinema the power of the image. It is so important to demonstrate your characters (and your ideas). A sin- gle image placed in the mind of the reader has ten times more power than a sentence without imagery. And behind the image, of course, resides the symbolic. Prophet Song has undoubtedly connected you with a wide swathe of global readers that you may not have had access to previously, some of which you will now be meeting ahead of your participation at the Malta Book Festival. How do you experience this surge of attention as a writer (notably a solitary profession) and do you envisioning changing the way you think and work in any way? When you make a decision to be a writer, you sign up to a life of spiritual pursuit and silent process. It's just you in a room battling lan- guage day after day. Of course, you dream of success — who doesn't? A writer is nothing without readers and poverty is ruinous for health and relationships. But what you can't envisage is the cost of win- ning a prize of such scale as the Booker or the Nobel. The secluded writer finds themselves thrust in- stantly onto the world stage. You become a public figure with a glob- al readership and the demands on your time are enormous. It's been a huge adjustment for me, deeply ex- hausting and a great challenge as I am a co-parent to two kids who are the centre of my world. But what a privilege to be in this position and to meet so many readers. Only a fool would take it for granted. Are you looking forward to the Malta Book Festival? Can you believe I've never been to Malta? It has been in my thoughts often over the years and I don't quite understand how it is that I've never visited. I am greatly looking forward to seeing what I have been missing out on. Paul Lynch will be participating at the Malta Book Festival 2024, organised by the National Book Council (Malta) and taking place at the MFCC, Ta' Qali on 6-10 November. Lynch will be partic- ipating in 'Prophet Song: Booker Prize-Winning Author Paul Lynch in Conversation' on 8 November 8pm, where he will be interviewed by journalist Emma Mattei. En- trance to the event is free of charge. For more information, visit — ktieb.org.mt "Stories are so attractive to us — they are like cheesecake for the brain" "We are no longer alienated in the world, but are now alienated from ourselves"