Ann Ireland’s new book, The Blue Guitar, has just been released by Dundurn, an Ontario literary press. The author spoke to Lynne Van Luven via e-mail from her winter pied-a-terre in Mexico.

I’ve been following your career as a fiction writer since A Certain Mr. Takahashi (1985), and I notice that you seem intrigued by the dynamics and power differentials in learning situations where we have a student/instructor relationship. Could you comment on that?

When I was young, [I had] various teachers who exerted a strong influence on my greedy mind. In a way, I wanted to become the person I admired. This must have been creepy for those concerned. I saw getting close to the teacher as being a short cut to a certain degree of sophistication and knowingness. Now, as a long -time writing instructor (Ryerson University’s continuing education division) I have a strong radar for students who want to get too close, and I find myself backing off. I know too well . . .
In my new novel, The Blue Guitar, I wanted to investigate how caring for someone who has had a severe breakdown creates an uneasy power imbalance in a relationship. It can be tantalizing to save someone, to feel his dependence.
When the younger, cared-for Toby decides he wants to make big steps on his own, it is an affront to his lover, Jasper, who is afraid that Toby will be hurt again. And yes, perhaps [even] more afraid that Toby will manage on his own. So easy to confuse Control with Loving.

Ann, The Blue Guitar — in this era of endless television reality shows as well as oppressive celebrity culture — addresses the tensions and fears behind competition, in this case among a group of classical guitarists. Can you talk a little about your view of the pressure to excel in culture today?

I wouldn’t confuse celebrity with achievement, but perhaps these two concepts are getting mucked about these days. It’s dead easy to achieve celebrity via the Internet. Heck, I have been flailing about on Facebook and various social media sites, getting out the word on The Blue Guitar, and I feel the narcissism in this sort of activity. More me! Here I am again! Another ‘like’ on my author’s page!
I recall, when I was a little girl and drawing my name on the dusty surfaces of mirrors, my mother would recite: ‘Fools’ names and fools’ faces/always appear in public places.’
I hear that voice whispering into my ear, constantly. However, real achievement– playing the recital of your life after putting in ten thousand hours of practicing – that is another matter entirely. That is climbing the mountain; that is sticking your flag at the summit. It’s the result of immense personal effort and even, dare I say, ‘talent.’ Talent exists. Maybe even a talent for celebrity.

Toby, your main protagonist in The Blue Guitar, has had a breakdown due to competition stress a decade ago, but is driven to try again. Do you see him as more “heroic” than Lucy, who’s a talented amateur who just wants to push herself beyond playing at weddings.

I’m not sure that I see Toby as more ‘heroic’ at jumping back into the fray, after such a god-awful mishap ten years ago when he played in Paris. He is a huge talent and knows it. Lucy is not a huge talent and knows it. Each of them imagines a life that would change drastically if s/he were to win this competition. Yet they are at such different points in their lives, Lucy being middle-aged mother of two teenaged sons, Toby not quite 30, feeling the last ten years have passed him by. I’m not sure for whom I’m cheering. Lucy was the ‘me’ character, except she’s way more accomplished as a musician. She operates at the competition in my stead –if only I had more courage, more musical talent . . .

You understand “competition nerves” very well. Do you play an instrument yourself?

I have played most instruments known to man in my life – and none of them well. Classical guitar, piano, oboe, cello, banjo, recorders. I don’t play in front of people, or hardly ever. Nerves tend to play havoc with my performance. In high school, I liked playing in orchestras, band, trios, quartets. It’s one of those ‘if I had another life to live’ deals.

Ann, you’ve been publishing fiction for over 20 years now. What’s your opinion of the current bouleversement in Canadian publishing?

Thanks; I had to look up that word. Maybe that’s because I’m writing this from Oaxaca City, Mexico, and Spanish is in my ears. You are speaking, no doubt, of the upheaval due to e-books and the end of the old ways: warehousing books, packing them into cartons and sending them across the country to book stores, then the unsold ones getting packed up again and sent back to the warehouses . . . It wasn’t viable to continue that way, books being a commodity that were sold on consignment.
Technology has slammed all of this and I think it may be a good thing. Writers MUST make sure they get a fair shake on e-books. E-books don’t have to be printed, shipped or warehoused. They are much much cheaper to produce. Yes, the publishers still have to acquire/edit/market books and print ‘tree books,’ and those costs remain. But there is no getting around the fact that the e-books circumvent many of the traditional costs. In the future we may see more writers’ co-operatives, selling e-books and print on demand books with no middleman.
I also note that the smaller, independent publishers are quicker on their feet and more flexible – and they don’t have to answer to the mother ship in Germany or New York or wherever.