We reached out to Irmak Zileli, a renown author in Turkey. She prepared a reading list with reasons why for young writers. Enjoy!
1- The Hero’s Journey, Joseph Campbell
As a reader and a writer I wonder the roots of his descriptions and the historical and anthropological origins of his story telling. When building a narrative, I believe it is important to grasp how these sources are at work. This book is a bedside one due to this reason.
2- Man and People, Ortega Y. Gasset
Philosophy is one of literatures irrefutable sources. Ortega Y. Gasset, one of the most important philosophers of our modern age discusses the relation of man and that individuals relationship to “everyone”. A novel is the art of the individual and for anyone trying to put forward a work in the spoken arts, it is important to develop a deep perspective in the individual’s relationship to self and society. This book provides for eye opening inspirations in that regard.
3- Tomorrow In The Battle Think On Me, Javier Maries
Marias, in my opinion, is one of the foremost talented novelists of modern world literature. His main works are in fact the trilogy of Your Face Tomorrow but my suggestion to those unfamiliar with his work is not to start with those. When you get comfortable with his world of language and narrative, you will want to read all of his books anyways. Marias I believe is the master of involving history, politics and philosophy when telling a story.
4- Son Adım, Ayhan Geçgin
Çağdaş Türkçe edebiyattan da bir öneri yapmak isterim. Ayhan Geçgin çağdaşım yazarlar içinde büyük saygı duyduğum bir romancı. En sevdiğim romanı ise Son Adım. Bu romanda son derece politik ve felsefi bir meseleyi, kimlik meselesini işliyor. Bunu yaparken ise asla edebiyattan taviz vermiyor.
5- Women, Dreams and Dragons, Unsula K. Le Guin
Ursula K. Le Guin is one of the wisest writers of world literature. Aside from her fictional works, her works thinking about fiction have also been very educational for me. The first and foremost one is Women, Witches and Dragons. This book where the author is deepening her poetics is a guiding force for everyone if you ask me…
