“I write the way you might arrange
flowers. Not every try works, but each one launches another. Every constraint,
even dullness, frees up a new design.” – Richard Powers
Born in Illinois on this date in
1957, Powers is noted for exploring the effects of technology on
writing. “I think that if the novel's task is to describe where we
find ourselves and how we live now,” he explained, “the novelist must take
a good, hard look at the most central facts of contemporary life - technology
and science.”
Powers partially grew up in Thailand
where his father had a key position at the International School in Bangkok. While
there, he developed both writing and musical skills, becoming proficient in cello,
guitar, saxophone and clarinet, studying voice and vocal performance, and
immersing himself in reading, setting his path as a writer.
Among his best-known books is the
wonderful Time of Our Singing about the musician children of an
interracial couple who meet at Marian Anderson’s legendary concert on the steps
of the Lincoln Memorial in 1939. In addition to showcasing his
writing skills, the book shows off Powers’ knowledge of music and physics,
explores race relations and looks at the burdens of talent.
Powers has authored 14 novels –
including the Pulitzer Prize-winning Overstory; and the National Book
Award-winning The Echo Maker. His most recent
book (out in 2024) is Playground, also nominated for a Booker Prize.
Now teaching at Stanford, his advice
to his writing students is to delve into whatever opportunities
arise. “If you're going to immerse yourself in a project for three
years, why not stake out a chunk of the world that is completely alien to you …
and go traveling?”
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