An Encounter With Sigrid Nunez
After devouring the tables filled with food, the audience had no choice but to take their seats. They marveled at the introduction of a respected writer who was well into her life. Sigrid Nunez is a woman with an unusual writing talent and an even more unusual personality. On October 23rd, she came to Baruch College for a reading of her latest book, “The Last of Her Kind.” She managed to maintain a soft voice throughout the reading, even through the many grim scenes of the book. After she was finished, the floor was opened for a Q&A. It was here where she revealed most about her personality and writing style.
When Nunez spoke, her gentle voice resonated throughout the room. She had little emotion in her words but spoke personally and informally, showing no fear of using obscene language. It was as if we were not her audience but her friends in a typical conversation. The feeling in her speech also gave an eerie feeling that the horrible events had relevance to her life. It was clear to see that the book had autobiographical aspects.
Nunez is attempting to create a new type of genre, the fictional biography. This somewhat resembles a memoir but doesn’t contain clean, factual evidence. In “The Last of Her Kind,” Nunez based the events on her own life but created fictional characters. As she created the characters for her book, she likes to use her own personal experiences. She wanted to write about characters who come of age in the late 60s and early 70s because she would be able to talk about all the issues from that time period.
It was in the Q&A where Nunez revealed most about her writing style and personality. Unlike many writers, she does not use an outline when writing her stories. For her, writing is instinctual – she is not really sure about what she writes but just writes it. By the time a section is finished, there is no reason to go back and revise. Nunez had always wanted to be a writer, writing poems ever since she was a little girl.
Unfortunately, the life of a writer did not turn out to be as she expected. The process of publishing, editing, and reviewing could not exactly be described as pleasant. But writing seemed to be an escape from her life. There were hints in her answers that suggested she had a troubled upbringing. Based on her story, it could be inferred that she probably encountered some form of abuse in her earlier years. She admitted to doing some surprising things, such as attending Woodstock and doing acid – more than once!
During the Q&A, she touched upon one of her previous books, “A Feather on the Breath of God.” The title was taken from a quote by Saint Hildegard. The reason as to why she chose this title was not clear. One interpretation is that the journey of life is much like the journey of a feather; unpredictable and uncontrollable. The novel was more autobiographical than her other works. Her writing style was peculiar, skipping from one topic to another without the use of transitions. When asked why she wrote it this way, Nunez replied that she thinks as she writes and writes whatever comes to mind.