Adam Johnson on the Many Ways To Tell a Single Story

Adam Johnson, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, discussed the challenge of translating oral traditions into written narratives at The Center for Fiction. Amitav Ghosh, author of the Ibis Trilogy, moderated the conversation. Johnson explained that oral stories often come in fragments, with different perspectives and sequences. He noted that when writing about his own experiences, he initially wrote autobiographically, but eventually shifted to exploring more complex, fictional themes.

Johnson recounted how he encountered defectors who shared their painful stories in disjointed ways, making it difficult for them to articulate their experiences without retraumatizing themselves. He observed that people often share stories in bits, reminiscent of a grandparent telling tales of their homeland during holidays. Johnson aimed to write about North Korea in a way that mirrored the fragmented nature of these stories, choosing to fragment the narrative, change points of view, and leave it to the reader to piece together the story.

This approach, while making the book less accessible to some, felt true to the material and the experiences of the people he interviewed.