Published online courtesy of Worms, author of The Surviving Cells Brian Willems speaks with fellow American author Arielle Burgdorf (Jeanne, Moist Books) about translation and survival: https://www.wormsmagazine.com/wormhole/arielleburgdorfandbrianwillems
Interviewing each other about their recent novels, they touch upon subjects including translation, the writing process, difficulties and pleasures of the body, illness, and belonging. While the two novels are distinct in topic and tone, some of the commonalities brought out in the following dialogue include: the way that translation impacts many aspects of life, not just the movement of a text from one language to another, the difference between writing about what could be considered "home" and "elsewhere," and the negotiation of identity through ideas such as slipperiness and survival.