Whiskey and Words at Brick Lane Bookshop

29^th May 2012

Natalie Ashett

Natalie Ashett

29 May 2012

“Write drunk, edit sober” – Ernest Hemingway

There’s a long and arduous history between the art of drinking and literacy. All great writers of the 20^th and 21^st centuries had a long, if messy, relationship with alcohol. In the times Oscar Wilde, Ernest Hemingway and George Orwell, absinthe was always the drink of choice.

Through the ages there must have been others. It’s speculation but I would guess that Nietzsche chose vodka, Charles Bukowski was wine, Virginia Woolfe was a red wine, and Irvine Welsh was undoubtedly Buckfast. What we had today though was American writer James Sallis paired with the fierce flavour of Jameson Irish Whiskey for literary event Whiskey and Words held at the rather appropriate venue of Brick Lane Bookshop.

Sallis talked us through his writing process, which he applied to the recently filmed Drive, telling the crowd how he “dives” into a novel and hopes to find something to catch onto along the way. He talked about how each of his stories has developed organically, developing a he writes, and how he often starts out without any real direction or an ending in mind. A main theme within Sallis’ work is that of fragmented societies, and of communities which we as people create ourselves, rather than those that are laid out form from day one like family units. He attributes this to his early life in Pheonix, Arizona which he believes is an artificial city; one that should not exist as to its odd location but manages breathes an odd kind of life that inspires.

Jameson have a calendar of literary events planned throughout the summer in apt locations around London. Places are limited and an early RSVP is always advised. Follow their Twitter feed for news on upcoming events.

Natalie Ashett

Brick Lane Bookshop stocks a great range of books including a whole collection of second-hand classics at £2.50 each. For more on James Sallis visit his site here.