Journal B: Do you like swimming?
Caroline Wahl: I like being in the water, but I’m not an ambitious swimmer. I’d rather splash around.
You live in Rostock. Do you go swimming in the Baltic Sea in winter?
There are people who do that. But I’m a wimp. When I go swimming, it’s in the heated indoor pool.
For Tilda, the protagonist of your novel, swimming is an important part of her everyday routine. She swims 22 lengths every day at the local indoor pool. That’s why the novel is called “22 Lanes”. Was this title already decided from the start?
No, the working title was “Runover Radishes”. At some point, Ida, Tilda’s sister, begins to set the dinner table and carve radishes for it. Tilda comes home and notices the radish florets, which she thinks look more like road-killed radishes. That’s why that was the working title, but my editor said it sounded too much like those Leberkäse books by Rita Falk (laughs).
To the book
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Midsummer in a colorless small town: In addition to studying math and having a part-time job at the supermarket checkout, swimming in the outdoor pool every evening is one of the few bright spots for Tilda. Here she can briefly switch off from her everyday life, in which she has to look after her little sister Ida and her alcoholic mother. She doesn’t allow herself to dream of a free and carefree life. Then Viktor shows up and suddenly everything gets out of sync.
In your novel you depict a difficult family situation. The mother, we can reveal this much, is seriously alcoholic and cannot take care of her daughters. Instead, twenty-year-old Tilda looks at her younger sister Ida, who is in fifth grade. What holds this family together?
I believe that despite everything there is a solidarity between the three. So not just between Tilda and Ida, who protect each other and stick together. But the sisters also stand by their mother. The unconditional love between the sisters includes them too. Tilda tries to maintain a certain normality for her sister’s sake. She knows that the mother will not get well. But there is still a spark of hope. And you notice from time to time that she would like to do better, but the alcohol is just too strong.
Despite everything, Tilda doesn’t get any outside help. Why actually?
Because she wants to protect her mother and sister and do it alone. She is also suspicious of the outside world and is afraid that the little one will be taken away from her. Tilda is such a pragmatic person who wants to keep everything together, so outside help is out of the question. The only one who is allowed to help, who is also allowed into the house, is Viktor.
Despite all the terrible things that happen and all the sadness, sometimes the world is magically beautiful.
I find it impressive how you manage to maintain a certain cheerfulness and lightness despite all the heavy topics in the novel.
It was a difficult time when I wrote this story and writing was a kind of shelter. I really enjoyed spending time with the two sisters, especially because they manage to not lose sight of the beautiful things despite the adversities that are thrown their way. And through this I also regained my eye for beauty. Despite all the terrible things that happen and all the sadness, sometimes the world is magically beautiful. You shouldn’t forget that. Everything is always shit and beautiful at the same time.
About the author
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Caroline Wahl was born in Mainz in 1995 and grew up near Heidelberg. She studied German in Tübingen and German literature in Berlin. She then worked in several publishing houses. In 2023, her debut novel 22 Bahnen was published by DuMont, for which she was awarded the Ulla Hahn Author Prize, the Grimmelshausen Sponsorship Prize and the Family Novel Book Prize from the Ravensburger Verlag Foundation. In addition, 22 Bahnen became the independents’ favorite book of 2023.
You wrote the story in the present tense and first person. Did you choose this form from the beginning or did it only emerge as you wrote?
With the character of Tilda, this shape was clear from the start. I wanted something immediate that jumps out at you. And this dramatic representation of literal speech was also clear. There are no “whispers”, no “silence” or goose feet in the way, there is only what has been said. And I think that suits Tilda and the narrative voice. That it now is and now has to go out. There is such brutality, urgency and detachment to it.
What research did you do for the book?
I mainly researched alcoholism. Since I don’t come from a family with an alcoholic, I was initially afraid that I would be accused of appropriation. That’s why I did a lot of research. Spoken to people who work in the addiction ward, to doctors. Watched, read and listened to a lot.
As if writing stories about yourself was the most obvious thing to do. Above all, storytelling is great for opening up new worlds.
At the beginning of the book there is the dedication “For my mom, who is always there.” Wasn’t your mother afraid that everyone would suddenly think she was an alcoholic?
(laughs) He didn’t care at all. Which surprised me a bit too. But I think that’s because there isn’t a single parallel between her and Tilda’s mother. At first I wanted to dedicate the book to my mother and sister because they both read the story from the beginning. And then I thought: If I dedicate this to both of them, then everyone will think this is my story. That’s the question you’re always asked: whether the novel is autobiographical. This question annoys me. As if writing stories about yourself was the most obvious thing to do. I think that telling stories is a great way to open up new worlds.
You previously worked in a publishing house and studied German. When did you start writing?
I wrote as a child, it was my means of expression. But never with the self-confidence that I wanted to do this professionally. Because I never had anyone to encourage me. And then, when I was working in a publishing house, I realized that I would like to change sides and write a novel.
And then you sat down and it worked right away?
That’s how it always appears to the outside world. After my master’s degree in German literature and my publishing internship, I thought about doing a second master’s degree in literary writing in Leipzig or Hildesheim. I applied there too, I received a rejection from Leipzig and I was invited from Hildesheim, but instead I accepted the position at Diogenesverlag in Zurich. The rejection was obviously disheartening. But in Zurich I thought to myself: If only now. I’m not feeling well now. And I can also write without Leipzig or Hildesheim.
(Photo: Frederike Wetzels)
How does the perspective from publishing work differ from the one you have experienced now as an author?
Of course it’s a completely different perspective. I definitely like the role as an author better (smiles). Everyone cares about you and makes sure things are going well. All you have to do is write and go to the agreed appointments. But it helped me a lot that I worked in a publishing house. This de-romanticized being a writer and I knew the processes behind the creation of a book.
And now you make a living from writing.
That really is the most beautiful thing of all. I no longer have to justify why I stay at home and write.
What does your everyday writing routine look like?
I’m very strict with myself. I write in the morning and afternoon. I always take a break at lunchtime, go out briefly, shop, maybe swim or run. Afterwards you have energy again to continue writing. The nice thing is: I can really write anywhere. In Rostock, with my parents, on vacation. I really appreciate it. Writing is a kind of home that I take with me everywhere.
You shouldn’t take yourself too seriously.
Your next novel “Windforce 17” is coming out in May. People often talk about the difficult second book – especially when the first was so successful. How did you experience that?
Oh, not at all. This is such a myth that I don’t feel at all. When the editing of “22 Bahnen” was finished, I immediately continued writing. Because I really wanted to continue being an author and see if it worked again. When I write I don’t think about the readers, I just think about the story. It’s almost meditative. In the evenings you sometimes think about how the second book will turn out. But you shouldn’t take it so seriously either. There are so many great books that just get lost. That’s why you always have to be grateful when things are going well. And if it doesn’t work: keep going.
Do you have any advice for young people who want to write and publish a book?
Just stick with it. (Thinks briefly) The problem is that I never got any advice myself. I’m very proud today that I stuck with it despite the rejection from Leipzig and without outside support. Reading impressions are so subjective. If you send the text to a few people and they don’t like it, that says so little about the text. Leipzig and Hildesheim are great and it is a path that can be a stepping stone for many. But there are also many other ways.
2024-03-16 04:21:16
#shit #beautiful #time
