While the day-to-day may feel monotonous, especially now, there is much to be noticed along the way. Paul Rousseau discusses just this and more in today's chat about his pages penned in pandemic.
What does the pandemic currently look like in your city?
Rising cases, few available hospital beds.
What are some favorite books you've read during quarantine?
The Beast; The Poetry of Strangers, A History of Violence, Blindness, and several others.
Have there been any movies, tv shows, podcasts, etc. that have helped keep you at ease the past few months?
No.
How has the pandemic affected your writing?
Given it urgency.
Are there any projects you are excited to keep working on? If so, can you give us any details (no spoilers please!) about your project?
Many writing projects. One is my experience as a medical students in Central America during the 1970s.
If asked ten years from now what the past few months have taught you about being a writer, what would come to mind?
Solitude is a thin plait of existence that untwines all-too-easily into loneliness.
Have there been any fellow writers or people in your life who have helped you stay connected during the pandemic?
On social media, many supportive writers.
Is there anything that excites you about the changes being incited in the publishing world in light of recent events?
Greater amount of BiPOC writers are being recognized.
Are you a plotter, pantser, or somewhere in between? Has this changed during the pandemic?
In between, but tending toward pantser. No.
Where is your favorite place to write? Has this changed during the pandemic?
Bedroom right now, I am between living situations.
If you curated a playlist for writing life in the pandemic, what top 5 songs would be on your list?
I'll get back to you. But Imagine would be on there.
While the future is just as unknowable as ever, what is something you are most looking forward to this year?
Like many, the arrival of a vaccine and therapeutics against the virus.
Is there any advice you would give to young writers during this time?
Take walks without headphones, notice your surroundings.
Is there anything else you would like to share?
My submission is a hybrid between prose and a prose poem. It is simple, and hopefully, evocative.
ABOUT Paul Rousseau
Paul Rousseau is a semi-retired physician and writer, published or forthcoming in The Healing Muse, Blood and Thunder, Intima. A Journal of Narrative Medicine, The Human Touch, Please See Me, Months To Years, The Examined Life, Burningword Literary Journal, Cleaning up Glitter, The Centifictionist, Dr. T. J. Eckleburg Review, Another Chicago Magazine, Tendon, and others. Lover of dogs.
To learn more, follow Paul and his writing journey on Twitter.
Thanks for chatting, Paul!
