Aaron Hamburger

This spring, in addition to releasing my novel Nirvana Is Here, I’ve also published a new short story, “Kimono Story” in the Maine Review. I tend to go back and forth between novel-writing and story-writing, which leads me to consider the difference between the two. I once heard author Lorrie Moore say the difference is that the end of a novel looks forward and the end of a story looks backward. I’m still not too sure what she meant by that, but how I interpret that is that a story is a small self-contained unit while a novel because it covers a much broader canvas, suggests the possibility that time might continue in either direction (before or after the novel’s plot ends). As a writer, though I find that both formats take equal levels of work and concentration, somehow I feel like the novel form allows me to relax just a bit more as I’m working. Maybe it’s because I feel less pressure to see the whole thing at once when at work on a novel than when at work on a story. There’s something so magical about a short story that’s just right, like a beautiful, perfect jewel. Whereas in a novel, I’m more willing to overlook a flaw here and there.

As my new novel is now making its way into the world, the literary journal Midwestern Gothic recently published an interview with me about the writing process and some of my thoughts about the book. Some of the topics we covered included the nature of nostalgia, how to write about trauma, race, the #MeToo movement, and faith. One interesting point that we discussed was the idea of sympathy, particularly for characters that at first may not seem so worthy of it. It’s interesting how often writers will talk about this point. Author Breena Clarke describes the tactic of “radical empathy,” while George Saunders says revision means “asking myself what could I know about these characters that would enable me to love them more.” I think that spirit is not only useful for writers but for all of us these days, particularly in our online lives. The next time you feel the urge to call out someone online, maybe try Clarke’s tactic and ask Saunders’s question. What could I know about someone that would enable me to love that person more?

As I’m getting ready for the release of Nirvana Is Here, I’ve been writing several piece of creative non-fiction thinking about the book’s creation from different perspectives. One of these pieces, which is in the Washington Post, deals with the legacy of Kurt Cobain and the band Nirvana, and the way in which their music and their public persona impacted my life. It’s interesting how a certain piece of art will hit you at a time in your life when you’re ready for it, and that combination, like alchemy, is transformative. As I wrote Nirvana Is Here, I found it interesting how while writing fiction inspired in part on things that happened to me in the late 80s and early 90s, the music kept coming up, hence the title of my book. It was an integral part of my experience.

Beginning May 16th with a reading at the Drunken! Careening! Writers! series at legendary KGB Bar in New York City, I’ll be traveling around the country, doing readings, signings, panels, and workshops in support of Nirvana Is Here. Check out this schedule to see if I’m coming to your hometown.

I’ve been thinking a lot about how writers portray characters who come from a different life experience. Working on my new novel Nirvana Is Here, I found there were a few key questions to ask that proved helpful. You can read more about this in this piece I wrote for Medium. In a nutshell, to quote the writer Breena Clarke, the key here is what she calls “radical empathy.”

My story “Refugees” has been nominated by the editors of the Bennington Review for a Pushcart Prize! I’m thrilled and grateful for this recognition.

I’m thrilled to announce that my novel Nirvana is Here has been acquired by Three Rooms Press! It’s slated to be published in 2019. A brief description is below.

Have you ever looked up an old crush online to see where they are now? As his marriage to another man is falling apart, renowned Medieval Historian Ari Silverman arranges a meeting on Valentine’s Day to reconnect with the young man of his high school dreams, now married to a woman and the CEO of a popular dating site. Along the way, he recalls their relationship during the grunge-era 90s, and comes to some fateful decisions about his life in the present. Nirvana is Here touches on issues of identity, race, the #metoo movement, and family with poignancy and humor, combining the sensuality and haunting nostalgia of Andre Aciman’s Call Me By Your Name with the edge of the songwriting of Kurt Cobain.

John Patrick Bishop interviewed me recently for his Debut Writer Blog, and we had a great conversation about getting started as a writer and some of the formative experiences and lessons I’ve learned during my journey. One sample: “If you as a writer can guess where your story is going to go, then the reader can probably also guess, so you have to keep kind of surprising yourself.” Check out the interview here!

My short story “Refugees,” coming out in the new issue of Bennington Review, is about a family grappling with the advent of the Trump era. In this piece, I’m attempting to portray how the political and the personal intersect, an ongoing project in my work. These days, it seems almost impossible to ignore what’s happening in the news. As artists, how do we capture this unique cultural moment in ways that have lasting impact on future readers who have their own concerns? I believe the answer is not to hide from topical references, but rather to intertwine them with character, to find the nuance that is so often lacking in the public discourse.

My nonfiction essay “Sweetness Mattered” is now available online at the Tin House website. In some ways it’s my contribution to the #metoo movement, but in others, it’s a meditation on love, redemption, and how we’re all entitled to a bit of sweetness in our lives, even in the darkest times.