Proust inspired interview of Mohammed Hasan Alwan - VILLA-GILLET // AIR // LES ASSISES INTERNATIONALES DU ROMAN 2012
 

Diversity of voices, diversity of languages : one week of events and readings in Lyon and in the Rhône-Alpes region.



Proust inspired interview of Mohammed Hasan Alwan

What became true of your childhood dreams ?

Not the Superman one of course ; Not even the one of becoming a hardworking miner with a thick moustache. But, at least, I wanted to be a writer and here I am.

 

What is your greatest (or worst) addiction ?

Love is both my greatest and worst addiction. It is great when I am in love as it makes me have same feeling of an aunt standing on the top of a sugar mountain. It is the worst addiction when I am alone, rejected, and needy.

 

What is your favourite swear word ?

I don’t swear, which usually makes my male friends uncomfortable and my female friends ashamed.

 

Which word do you hate most, and why ?

I hate words that I fail to understand. Some words were not meant to be part of the language yet someone forced them in and, thus, they became incompatible with my fluid interaction with language.

 

If you were a figure of speech, which one would you be?

I want to be the “Non, je ne regrette rien” part in Edith Piaf’s song.

 

Which side of your personality do you keep hidden at first, and why ?

The sarcastic side, as I came to realize - the embarrassing way - that not everybody appreciates sarcasm. Also, sarcasm seldom works across-cultures.

 

What would be your ideal literary encounter (book, author, reader, etc)?

I would rather not to say. I have answered similar questions before and all the people who have appeared in my answers died shortly after that.

 

What guilty reading pleasure do you indulge in ?

I enjoy reading rude humour targeted at ideological figures whom I oppose their views. It makes me feel guilty because I personally believe that rudeness is not the healthy way to conduct a dialogue.

 

Which writer will you never read?

The writer who tries to manipulate my senses to send a message, mostly promoting a dividing ideology

 

Which sound or noise do you enjoy most ?

A baby’s giggle

 

How would you describe your book collection in one word?

The trial-and-error collection

 

What would your ideal epitaph be?

On his deathbed he wasn’t scared, but curious. 

 

LEARN MORE ABOUT MOHAMMED HASAN ALWAN