Emigration as Theme
Emigration leaves a scar, but that scar contains a person's entire story. It's material for a writer
Colm Tóibín
Irish novelist and critic, author of Brooklyn and The Magician
All moments: Colm Tóibín
- Irish Identity — Colm Tóibín
Being an Irish writer means living between past and future. We cannot forget history, but must rewrite it with meaning
- Catholic Imagination — Colm Tóibín
Catholicism gave me a language for understanding human suffering. It's a language of metaphor, mystery, and ambivalence
- Return to Brooklyn — Colm Tóibín
Fifteen years passed between the first Brooklyn novel and its sequel. During that time, Eilis became different, and I found new stories in her life
- Loss as Liberation — Colm Tóibín
Losing one's homeland can be loss, but it can also be the beginning of freedom. In exile, one becomes oneself
- The Writing Process — Colm Tóibín
Writing is solitude and discipline. You must sit for long hours with yourself and listen to the character's voice
- Dramatization as Honesty — Colm Tóibín
If I don't dramatise this, it will never be known. Fiction is how we reveal what reality conceals
Related moments
- Documenting History — Questlove
As a documentarian, I feel a responsibility to preserve the history of Black music and culture
- The Art of Service — John Legend
As an artist, I see my role as serving humanity and raising my voice for justice
- Humble Beginnings — Paul McCartney
Nobody believed in us at first. We just believed in ourselves and the music.
- Always Be a Good Human — Louis Armstrong
I've always tried to be a good human being. That's what matters.
- A Song Is Blood — Paul McCartney
A melody comes to me like someone is singing it to me. It's magic.
- A City That Inspires — Bob Dylan
New York is the pulse. Here I found myself and my music.