(publication date: November 1, 2011)
ISBN: 978-0-936050-32-4
152 pp., 6.875 x 4.25 in., offset, paper cover
Quicksand was written to be an opera libretto. But it was written in the form of a novel. . . . I am devoted to "mystery" stories. I read them one after another, mostly two or three times. Some of the best writers today are writing in this form. So, I thought that I would try to make an opera libretto from a mystery story, told verbatim. That is, the libretto and the novel would be the same: no scenes moved around or actions adapted to the proportions of a libretto, just tell the story the way it's told in the novel. But first I needed a novel. . . . So that meant I had to write a mystery novel. Where do you start? The answer is: I always need a "location" to be inspired to tell a story. Everything in the novel is true, except for a lot of the facts. -- Robert Ashley
What's going on? I left home about three weeks ago for a well-planned tour of some countries in South East Asia. I'm with my wife and some friends from her yoga group. I have an assignment, of course. I can't leave home anymore without an assignment. I can't even take a vacation.
ROBERT ASHLEY is best known for his operas: epic prose poems he sets to music, which have been awarded, commissioned, and performed internationally for over forty-five years. He was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and he lives in New York City. This is his first novel.
Part of Burning Books' THE QUADRANTS SERIES: debut novels by seasoned writers.
LM BK012
ISBN 978-0-936050-32-4
Lovely Music Price: $15.00