Katie Kitamura

tensions and dynamics. But of course, I'm mostly interested in workplace novels because I think one of the things that novels excel at is depicting the relationship between the individual and a larger social structure. And that is what makes novels special. That is what makes novels different to essays, for example.

And I think workplace is a place where you very naturally see the relationship between the individual and the institution. Because whatever the workplace is, it is representative of an institution of some kind. It will tell you about some kind of structural reality about the society that the characters are living in.

And I think workplace is a place where you very naturally see the relationship between the individual and the institution. Because whatever the workplace is, it is representative of an institution of some kind. It will tell you about some kind of structural reality about the society that the characters are living in.

And I think workplace is a place where you very naturally see the relationship between the individual and the institution. Because whatever the workplace is, it is representative of an institution of some kind. It will tell you about some kind of structural reality about the society that the characters are living in.

And it allows you the opportunity to do it through really granular detail, through very, very small things that seem insignificant, whether it is... The quality of the coffee in the break room or whether or not people feel they're surveyed when they're working or what the sight lines are from somebody's desk to another desk or how the office space is organized.

And it allows you the opportunity to do it through really granular detail, through very, very small things that seem insignificant, whether it is... The quality of the coffee in the break room or whether or not people feel they're surveyed when they're working or what the sight lines are from somebody's desk to another desk or how the office space is organized.

And it allows you the opportunity to do it through really granular detail, through very, very small things that seem insignificant, whether it is... The quality of the coffee in the break room or whether or not people feel they're surveyed when they're working or what the sight lines are from somebody's desk to another desk or how the office space is organized.

There are so many ways in which hierarchies of power are built into a workspace. And as a novelist, you then don't have to say hierarchies of power and you don't have to say social structures or institutions. You can just have a character who's at their desk working and is aware that their boss can see their screen. for example.

There are so many ways in which hierarchies of power are built into a workspace. And as a novelist, you then don't have to say hierarchies of power and you don't have to say social structures or institutions. You can just have a character who's at their desk working and is aware that their boss can see their screen. for example.

There are so many ways in which hierarchies of power are built into a workspace. And as a novelist, you then don't have to say hierarchies of power and you don't have to say social structures or institutions. You can just have a character who's at their desk working and is aware that their boss can see their screen. for example.

You know, Audition was written... Broadly speaking, during the Biden administration and during the pandemic, you know, this is clearly not a pandemic novel. And yet it is a novel in which people are sequestered in rooms together with their family and they slowly go a bit crazy. So there's no, you know, there's no there's not a single mask. There's no reference to the pandemic, but it's written.

You know, Audition was written... Broadly speaking, during the Biden administration and during the pandemic, you know, this is clearly not a pandemic novel. And yet it is a novel in which people are sequestered in rooms together with their family and they slowly go a bit crazy. So there's no, you know, there's no there's not a single mask. There's no reference to the pandemic, but it's written.

You know, Audition was written... Broadly speaking, during the Biden administration and during the pandemic, you know, this is clearly not a pandemic novel. And yet it is a novel in which people are sequestered in rooms together with their family and they slowly go a bit crazy. So there's no, you know, there's no there's not a single mask. There's no reference to the pandemic, but it's written.

It draws from the atmosphere in which it was written. Yeah. It was finished well before the election. The power of fantasy is something that is relevant, politically speaking. As I said, I teach, and I remember the day after the election, my students came in and they said, you know, what is the point of a novel right now? You know, we should have all trained to be lawyers.

It draws from the atmosphere in which it was written. Yeah. It was finished well before the election. The power of fantasy is something that is relevant, politically speaking. As I said, I teach, and I remember the day after the election, my students came in and they said, you know, what is the point of a novel right now? You know, we should have all trained to be lawyers.

It draws from the atmosphere in which it was written. Yeah. It was finished well before the election. The power of fantasy is something that is relevant, politically speaking. As I said, I teach, and I remember the day after the election, my students came in and they said, you know, what is the point of a novel right now? You know, we should have all trained to be lawyers.

And I mean, I don't disagree. I think it would be great if we all had legal skills. That seems like a useful skill set to have right now. But I actually think. that novels and writing in general feels incredibly important because it is already clear in the new administration that language is going to be a terrain where a substantial part of this battle is going to be fought.

And I mean, I don't disagree. I think it would be great if we all had legal skills. That seems like a useful skill set to have right now. But I actually think. that novels and writing in general feels incredibly important because it is already clear in the new administration that language is going to be a terrain where a substantial part of this battle is going to be fought.

And I mean, I don't disagree. I think it would be great if we all had legal skills. That seems like a useful skill set to have right now. But I actually think. that novels and writing in general feels incredibly important because it is already clear in the new administration that language is going to be a terrain where a substantial part of this battle is going to be fought.

And I mean that absolutely, literally, in terms of what language people are allowed to use, in terms of how language is manipulated or denuded of meaning. And I think what writers do or can try to do is to use language with precision and care and use language in a way so that it does retain its meaning.