William T. Vollmann's Perseverance: Surviving Personal Tragedy and Professional Setbacks to Complete CIA Novel
By
benbreen
Toasted golden, schmeared with insight. Top of the rack.
Summary
The article profiles novelist William T. Vollmann's personal and professional struggles, including surviving colon cancer, losing his daughter, being dropped by his publisher, and suffering serious accidents, while he perseveres to complete a massive novel about the CIA called 'A Table for Fo' after 12-15 years of research and writing. The piece examines his battle to publish this American epic despite numerous personal tragedies and professional setbacks.
Key quotes
· 4 pulledWilliam T. Vollmann spent 'twelve or fifteen years' researching and writing a novel about the CIA called A Table for Fo
The prognosis wasn't great but he went ahead with the treatment. A length of intestine drawn out and snipped. It was awful but it worked.
Then his daughter died. Then he got dropped by his publisher. Then he got hit by a car. Then he got a pulmonary embolism.
But things are looking up.
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