‘I Don’t Think Of Short Stories As A Secondary Option, Ever’

From Outlook India:

“With young children,” as Jhumpa Lahiri puts it in her elegant, understated way, “the days can be rather mercurial.” That hasn’t stopped her from finding the time to write a third book. In an interview with Sheela Reddy on the launch of Unaccustomed Earth, the Pulitzer winner talks about the two great loves of her life: her children and her writing.

Lahiri

You once remarked that winning the Pulitzer was like being a kid and winning a senior citizen’s award. Do you feel more comfortable as a Pulitzer winner now that you have written your third book?

Not really. It (Pulitzer) will always remain a very strange and in some senses very early, one may say premature, period for the writer I was at that time.

But it must help in terms of confidence levels?

Writing is so humbling, there’s no confidence involved. It helps to have some experience, a greater degree of familiarity with the process of writing. I think each time you start a story or novel or whatever, you are absolutely at the bottom of the ladder all over again. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done before. 

More here. (Note: I just read this magnificent collection of short stories and highly recommend it).