Dickens and Prince: A Particular Kind of Genius

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Prince performing at Wembley Arena, London, on the Parade tour, 1986. Photograph: Michael Putland/Getty Images The clever British storyteller …[has] excellent taste and a smart, irreverent sense of humor.” — The Boston Globe NADWORNY: Yeah, kind of a meditation on your own career and creative process and kind of how these works influenced you. And Hornby’s project — looking for commonalities between apparently disparate entities — is an endeavor we probably all out to be doing much more of in these days when, to quote Prince, “You turn on the telly and every other story / Is tellin’ you somebody died.” Sign o’ the times, indeed.

So he was busy turning a short story he had written into another full-length serial that became The Old Curiosity Shop. Money and business weren’t affecting either of them creatively. But there would come a time when they became consumed by both. No one else had such a relentless work ethic and produced such a staggeringly original and enormous body of work. Where did their magic come from? How did they use it? And, in the end, did it kill them? And at the moment it’s hard to see Prince fading away, especially if he releases two good albums a year for the next few centuries.

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An ardent fan letter from Hornby that makes you want to re-read Great Expectations while listening to Sign o’ the Times.” — Vogue Despite being in the top 0.1% of their profession, both felt that they were being robbed, and unlike a lot of artists they attempted to do something about it. In Prince’s case, he metaphorically destroyed himself because he was so angry. ‘A breathtaking performer’: Prince in concert, 1984. Photograph: Bill Marino/Sygma/Getty Images But the addiction to work went on, for both of our central characters. We know that Prince’s favourite thing to do after a show was to play another show. Sometimes these were advertised in advance, sometimes the location spread through word of mouth. I never went to an aftershow show, although I have heard recordings of several of them. I always meant to. I thought I had time.

Oh, and money was an issue for both of them when they were growing up. There were and are so many poor people in the world that it doesn’t feel like much of a big deal, but they were truly great artists and childhood poverty should have stopped them from achieving as much as they did. HORNBY: Well, Prince never stopped recording. He woke up in the morning, and he recorded. And there is an estimate that there's enough - a new album every six months for the next 40 years or something, everything that's in his vault that wasn't released. He recorded too much for his record company. And he went on these tours, which, once he'd finished the show, his people would have found him somewhere else to play. So the show's finished at 11, and then it starts another one at 1 in the morning and play a two or three-hour show with the band. That's when he did a lot of cover versions, and it was much looser. But yeah, who does a show after they've done a show and then wakes up in the morning and records 20 songs? Beneath the surface of this fascinating biography, there lies a warm and wise craft book about what it takes to make great art in any century.” — Esquire In this joyous and illuminating book, the million-copy bestselling author brings together an unlikely pairing to explore the story of their creative genius Hornby is a writer who dares to be witty, intelligent, and emotionally generous all at once.” — The New York TimesYou’re writing almost as much for cinema and TV as you are novels now, from Brooklyn to Love , Nina and State of the Union . In which medium do you feel most at home? Hornby’s] love for the work, for the sheer unbelievably prodigal output of both artists, is intense. And when he does write about Prince and sexuality, he is almost jarringly illuminating, particularly when he wrestles with Prince as shapeshifting sexual avatar.” — Daily Beast But time was in short supply, for both of them. As you may remember, neither of them lived to see 60. The first edition of the serial version of Oliver Twist, published from 1837. Photograph: Pictorial Press Ltd/Alamy You've done exhaustive research into life and times with both these artists. What about them most surprised you?