Limina: A Journal of Historical and Cultural Studies (Jul 2009)
The Craft at Work: An Interview with Stefan Laszczuk
Abstract
Novelist Stefan Laszczuk was a PhD student in creative writing at the University of Adelaide when he penned 'I Dream of Magda'. A beautiful rumination on family and loss, in 2007 the novel won The Australian/Vogel Literary Award, Australia’s grand literary prize for unpublished manuscripts by writers under 35. Although the award carried with it prestige, prize-money and publication with Allen & Unwin, it was also reward for many years dedicated to the craft of writing. No stranger to literary success with his acclaimed previous works 'The New Cage' (2002) and 'The Goddamn Bus of Happiness' (2004), the Melbourne-based Laszczuk spoke to Brooke Dunnell and Annie Morgan about tapping into his creative potential, shaping and nurturing the creative drive in a university environment, and his broader concerns about supporting Australia’s emerging writers.
