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The Library of Unwritten Books

Whisky Priestess

18:26 / 07.05.04

Library of Unwritten Books

Record your imaginary book to be included in a touring exhibition.

Artists Caroline Jupp and Sam Brown are collecting one thousand imaginary books which will tour the UK from Portsmouth to Dunbar later this year. The tour will follow in the footsteps of Sam's namesake, an early mobile library
pioneer, Samuel Brown of Haddington.

Spread the Word has invited Caroline and Sam to take up residency in their office this summer to provide you with an opportunity to take part in the
project. This is your chance to talk about your abandoned novel, unrecorded memoir, or private obsession. Your unwritten book will be recorded in interview and transcribed to make a mini-book, which will be added to the
touring library.

Each participant will receive a copy of their own book.

Half-hour sessions are available on a first-come-first-served basis. Booking essential through Spread the Word.

DATES: Friday 21 May; Sunday 23 May; Friday 28 May; Sunday 30 May; Friday 4 June; Friday 11 June; Sunday 13 June; Friday 18 June
TIMES: Half hour sessions between 11am - 5.30pm
VENUE: Spread the Word, 77 Lambeth Walk, London SE11 6DX
PRICE: FREE
NOTE: The artists will be also be in residence at the Whitgift Shopping Centre, Croydon on Thursday 27 May and the Chimes Shopping Centre, Hillingdon on Thursday 3 June on behalf of Spread the Word to record people's unwritten books
Book through Spread the Word on 020 7735 3111

Interviewers: Caroline Jupp and Sam Brown

Caroline Jupp and Sam Brown work in collaboration, using art as a catalyst for producing new social models. They have been presenting possibilities for alternative libraries since 2001. Previous public art commissions have
included Library of Prototypes, a collection of unrealised projects presented at: the disused Isokon building; Grozio Salonas, a free hairdressing salon in Lithuania; Allotment Archive, an urban gardening survey in Lambeth; developments, the reconstruction of found objects in Vauxhall (including used chewing gum); and Foursights, a postcard pack of overlooked urban views. Both artists have
exhibited throughout Europe and the UK, and contributed to international art symposiums in the Baltic States.

Spread the Word, 77 Lambeth Walk, London SE11 6DX
t: 020 7735 3111 f: 020 7735 2666 www.spreadtheword.org.uk

Whisky Priestess

18:28 / 07.05.04

Forgot to say - mods feel free to move to the Creation when it's run its course, but meanwhile I'd like loadsapeople to see it.

XXII:X:II = XXX

22:50 / 07.05.04

Waaaa, I wanna do this but I'm hopelessly stuck in the US. I've got about 30 books inside me. I'm a walking endtable bookcase, is what I am.

VJB2

unheimlich manoeuvre

23:43 / 07.05.04

i was going to recommend http://www.invisiblelibrary.com/ but it has gone...

it was a collection of unwritten works that only appear in other books.

Whisky Priestess

11:14 / 08.05.04

Damn ... that sounds interesting ...

VJB2, if you tell me your unwritten book I'll take it along and do it for you. I'm not telling them any of mine because I live in hope that they'll get written someday.

XXII:X:II = XXX

23:25 / 08.05.04

Hahahahaha...

Not a chance.

It's not as though I don't hope to realize these books at some point myself. I thought the point of this exercise was to realize these unwritten books as some sort of way in which to goad oneself into actually producing them. Creative visualization with visual aids, donchu know.

VJB2

Whisky Priestess

09:58 / 09.05.04

It's OK, I promise not to steal your brilliant ideas! And I can post you the little booklet they make of your book if you like. It was just an offer to go out of my way to do you a favour, no need to treat me like a supervillain ....

Whisky Priestess

10:01 / 09.05.04

As far as I can tell the point is to hunt out the stories that are likely never to be written, because their tellers are not writers - I think they're aiming for a massive cross-section of the community here, i.e. anyone who's ever wanted to write a book, rather than people who have serious ambitions to be professional writers (although their tales are as valid as anyone else's, of course). It's taking the elitism out of authorship!

15:19 / 09.05.04

Unfortunately, there may be a book or more inside me, but I'm fucked if I know what it is. If I was able to express the idea for a book, I'm fairly sure I'd be able to write it too. Feeling the potentiality for a book I imagine doesn't really cut it.

09:09 / 10.05.04

This is a brilliant idea, and I really like the sound of a lot of their other projects too (especially the prototypes one). Thanks for the tip-off, WP. I would definitely do this if I thought I could make it to London. Not that I have a specific book inside me, but I'm sure I could cobble one together from all the bits and bobs I've got floating around.

Do you think that having someone else go along to the session for you would be okay with the actual artists? I'm thinking that if it's an interview, there are going to be questions asked that only the would-be author would know the answers to. Otherwise they could just ask for a written synopsis or summat.

09:42 / 10.05.04

I'd quite like to do this. Although my ideas usually tend to form when I'm actually writing, I'm sure I could come up with something after a quick brainstorming session with a lot of caffeine. I might have to write a few words down though, or would that be cheating?

I remember how much I used to babble about aspects of my first Nanowrimo novel to people.. "There's this town where it snows, but only for an inch, and the snow never goes. If people try to clear it up, it just snows again, but only for an inch. Then there's this guy that can grow extra limbs. If he can't hear a bit of music properly, he'll just grow another ear. And then there's the girl who has a snail sellotaped to her leg.." This is from an actual novel though, so an imaginary novel would probably end up even more wacky, and I'd probably be able to babble about it for a bit.

So, is anyone going, and is it possible to book a certain day? (Since I'm not in London, I'd want to have such a thing organised in advance.)

Goodness Gracious Meme

12:04 / 10.05.04

This sounds like an excellent project, thanks for mentionnig it, WP/plugging the artists...

Might try and make one of those, as I've got umpteen book ideas that will never get written.

13:25 / 29.06.04

The Unwritten Books are in Porstmouth from the 3rd July at the Aspex Gallery. Will be interesting to see what they are like.

13:29 / 29.06.04

Oops, I mean Portsmouth. There will be the opportunity to contribute your own unwritten book between 20th and 31st July.