Antonia Angress, author of Sirens & Muses
Novel & Short Story Category, sponsored by Jeff Janisch
Each week leading up to the 35th annual Minnesota Book Awards, we are featuring exclusive interviews with our finalists. You can also watch the authors in conversation with their fellow category finalists here.
Would you tell us one or two things about your finalist book that you are particularly proud of, and why?
Sirens & Muses is a novel told from multiple points of view, with narrators of different ages, genders, sexual orientations, and socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. Since the book was published, I’ve heard from readers who are surprised that a 32-year-old female author convincingly depicted the inner life of, for example, a middle-aged man who came of age during the turbulence of the 1960s. Often, these same readers remark on the novel’s power to elicit empathy for deeply flawed characters. I’m proud of the work that went into bringing each of these characters to life in a way that resonated with a wide range of readers.
What advice would you give to an aspiring writer with an interest in your category?
For me, habit is the most useful tool in my writing arsenal. Over the years, I’ve built writing into my regular routine. I write every day in the same way that I brush my teeth every day. I’ve learned that I must show up to work in case inspiration visits, and it won’t unless I’m at my desk ready to receive it. Even when the writing isn’t going well, I’m still pushing my work forward by dint of regularly engaging with it.
Tell us about a favorite book. Why did you find it moving, influential, or otherwise memorable?
Ms. Hempel Chronicles by Sarah Shun-lien Bynum is a deceptively quiet novel-in-stories about a seventh-grade English teacher. When we first meet Beatrice Hempel, she’s new to teaching and to adulthood in general. In nimble, poignant prose, Bynum slowly reveals her heroine’s layers, moving elliptically between her childhood, her classroom, and her personal life. Not a lot happens, but this is one of those magical novels that’s gripping despite its lack of plot. It’s warm, wise, and deeply affecting. I had the good fortune of first encountering Ms. Hempel Chronicles when I was a young schoolteacher, and I’ve yet to read a truer depiction of what it’s like to work with children when you’re barely an adult yourself. But you don’t need to be an educator to appreciate this novel: anyone who’s ever been a student, loved a teacher, or felt nostalgic for their youth will delight in the unforgettable Ms. Hempel.
Tell us something about yourself that is not widely known.
I grew up multilingual, speaking English, Spanish, and French. Some jobs I’ve held include Spanish teacher, art gallery receptionist, nanny, college prep tutor, camp counselor, figure drawing model, and research assistant for a digital humanities project.
The Minnesota Book Awards is a celebration of writers, readers – and libraries. We’d love if you would share thoughts about the role and value of libraries.
When I was a girl, books and libraries offered a gateway into a future I couldn’t yet imagine for myself. But at this moment in history, in libraries nationwide, books like mine are under attack. The movement to ban certain books—many depicting the lives of queer people, women, and people of color—is an assault on free inquiry and everyone’s right to fully experience the transformative power of reading. At the frontlines of this battle stand librarians, defending libraries as sites of knowledge, refuge, and imagination. Libraries have always been a social good, but in these times of rising censorship they are more vital than ever.
Antonia Angress is a graduate of Brown University and the University of Minnesota M.F.A. program, where she was a Winifred Fiction Fellow and a College of Liberal Arts Fellow. Sirens & Muses is her first novel.