book launch review BY INDEE WATSON
On Tuesday May 11th, I had the pleasure of attending The New Abject: Tales of Modern Unease, an online launch event and publishing discussion for Comma Press’s new anthology, under the same title. The anthology hosts the writing of 19 different authors, approached by Comma Press to write upon their own interpretation of the abject, from the bodily abject to the socially abject.
The event was hosted through York St John University by Rob O’Connor, a Publishing, Literature and Creative Writing tutor for the university. The night began with a discussion with Becca Parkinson, an engagement manager for Comma Press and indie publisher in Manchester. Becca introduced Comma Press as a company, emphasising their mission statement; Comma Press is “committed to a spirit of risk-taking, and aims to put the short story at the heart of contemporary narrative culture,” something very much apparent from the short story readings that followed.
The first of these readings was by Gia Holmes with her short story Universal Stain Remover. Focussing in on the bodily abject, Gia Holmes discussed her inspirations and thoughts behind her piece, including the shedding of people and the stains we leave upon our surroundings. Gia stated she had always found herself residing in places where the stains and dirt of humanity were clearer, including the grounds of a church renovation, a caravan, and a boat.
Gia then touched upon the power given to her through her can of stain remover, and its ability to move the years of dirt and history that may have built up somewhere. This power is given darker meanings in her short story, of which she read a segment from its opening. I, for one, cannot wait to get my hands on a copy of this anthology to read the true meanings behind her Universal Stain Remover.
Our second reader of the night was Saleem Haddad. His story, titled An Enfleshment of Desire is centred around the social abject, set in Beirut during the October 2019 protests. His story follows a Lebanese man who lives in New York but finds himself visiting the area in which the protests are taking place, all whilst being involved in a sexual affair. Saleem Haddad combines the abject with desire throughout this piece; the two completely contrasting elements find themselves entangled in deeper meaning, blurring the once distinct lines between the two. From such a daring piece of writing, Saleem read several different sections, all of which gripped me from start to finish, and I know the complete short story will do the same.
These readings were followed by a short Q&A with the audience. This gave us the chance to find out about their horror inspirations, more about their reasonings behind their own stories, and how lockdown has affected their writing. As illustrated by both of these pieces, and I’m sure by many others included in the anthology, the pandemic has caused people to have no choice but to look in on themselves and their own fears and anxieties. With not one inch of the world left untouched by the pandemic, inside oneself is the only place to turn.
As Saleem stated during the event, “the abject is all about what we’re feeling when we see a part of ourselves, outside of ourselves,” and that is what the pandemic has allowed everyone, writers and otherwise, to do.
This anthology has given voice to this self-reflection and has allowed writers to articulate the abject fears, desires and secrets that have come to light during this past year. It will most certainly be encouraging me to take a look at my own thoughts regarding this, and hope something as beautiful as Gia Homes and Saleem Haddad’s stories comes out of it.
Until then, I cannot wait to read the other amazing stories told in this anthology. And I encourage you to read them too.