30jili Wednesday’s college basketball schedule features plenty of excitement, including a matchup between the Cornell Big Red and the Syracuse Orange, and there are our best bets against the spread for 10 games below. Watch men’s college basketball, other live sports and more on Fubo. What is Fubo? Fubo is a streaming service that gives you access to your favorite live sports and shows on demand. Use our link to sign up for a free trial. Not all offers available in all states, please visit BetMGM for the latest promotions for your area. Must be 21+ to gamble, please wager responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, contact 1-800-GAMBLER .( MENAFN - AFP) A federal jury in the United States on Friday delivered a key win to mobile commputing titan Qualcomm in a licensing dispute with Arm, although proceedings between the chipmakers ended in mistrial. The jury ruled that Arm central processor designs that Qualcomm had acquired when it bought technology company Nuvia had been properly licensed. Arm had contested that claim, demanding Qualcomm pay a higher licensing fee under a bilateral agreement between the two chipmakers, rather than the lower fee in Arm's agreement with Nuvia. The difference in royalties purportedly saved Qualcomm tens of millions of dollars. British chipmaker Arm said it would seek a retrial. Qualcomm bought Nuvia, a CPU design company, in a $1.4 billion deal that closed in 2021, according to the California-based chip maker. The acquisition was seen as a key move in Qualcomm's expansion into the laptop market. The federal jury did not, however, reach an agreement on whether Qualcomm breached a licensing agreement with Arm. "We are pleased with today's decision," Qualcomm said in a statement posted online. "The jury has vindicated Qualcomm's right to innovate and affirmed that all the Qualcomm products at issue in the case are protected by Qualcomm's contract with Arm." In response to an AFP inquiry, an Arm spokesperson said they would seek a retrial "due to the jury's deadlock." "From the outset, our top priority has been to protect Arm's (intellectual property) and the unparalleled ecosystem we have built with our valued partners over more than 30 years," they said. Qualcomm shares were up about 2 percent in after-market trades to $155.99 while Arm shares shed more than one percent to $130.50. MENAFN20122024000143011026ID1109018589 Legal Disclaimer: MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.An ode to hot dish, with Food Network star Molly Yeh

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SAN JOSE, Calif. , Nov. 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced that Nimrod Ben-Natan , President and CEO of Harmonic, and Walter Jankovic , Harmonic's Chief Financial Officer, will participate in a fireside chat at the Raymond James 2024 TMT and Consumer Conference in New York City , on Monday, December 9, 2024 at 8:20 a.m. PT / 11:20 a.m. ET and host investor meetings throughout the day. Mr. Jankovic will also host investor meetings at the Barclays 2024 Global Technology Conference in San Francisco , on Thursday, December 12, 2024 . A live audio webcast of the fireside chat will be available on Harmonic's website at investor.harmonicinc.com . An archived webcast will remain posted on the Company's investor relations website for 30 days. Further information about Harmonic and the company's solutions is available at https://www.harmonicinc.com/ . About Harmonic Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT), the worldwide leader in virtualized broadband and video delivery solutions, enables media companies and service providers to deliver ultra-high-quality video streaming and broadcast services to consumers globally. The company revolutionized broadband networking via the industry's first virtualized broadband solution, enabling operators to more flexibly deploy gigabit internet service to consumers' homes and mobile devices. Whether simplifying OTT video delivery via innovative cloud and software platforms, or powering the delivery of gigabit internet cable services, Harmonic is changing the way media companies and service providers monetize live and on-demand content on every screen. More information is available at https://www.harmonicinc.com/ . Harmonic, the Harmonic logo and other Harmonic marks are owned by Harmonic Inc. or its affiliates. All other trademarks referenced herein are the property of their respective owners . View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/harmonic-to-participate-in-upcoming-december-2024-investor-conferences-302316838.html SOURCE Harmonic Inc.Taking stock of the out-of-state squads in the 2024 Hoop City ClassicThe Republican-controlled US House of Representatives has passed legislation that will avert a midnight government shutdown, defying President-elect Donald Trump's demand to also greenlight trillions of dollars in new debt. or signup to continue reading The House voted 366-34 on Friday to approve the bill, the day after rejecting Trump's debt ceiling demand. The Democratic-controlled Senate will also need to pass the bill to advance it to President Joe Biden, who the White House said would sign it into law to ensure the government will be funded beyond midnight, when current funding expires. The legislation would extend government funding until March 14, provide $US100 billion ($A160 billion) for disaster-hit states and $US10 billion ($A16 billion) for farmers. However, it would not raise the debt ceiling - a difficult task that Trump has pushed Congress to do before he takes office on January 20. A government shutdown would disrupt everything from law enforcement to national parks and suspend paycheques for millions of federal workers. A travel industry trade group warned that a shutdown could cost airlines, hotels and other companies $US1 billion ($A1.6 billion) per week and lead to widespread disruptions during the busy Christmas season. Authorities warned that travellers could face long lines at airports. The package resembled a bipartisan plan that was abandoned earlier this week after an online fusillade from Trump and his billionaire adviser Elon Musk, who said it contained too many unrelated provisions. Most of those elements were struck from the bill - including a provision limiting investments in China that Democrats said would conflict with Musk's interests there. "He clearly does not want to answer questions about how much he plans to expand his businesses in China and how many American technologies he plans to sell," Democratic Representative Rosa DeLauro said on the House floor. Musk, the world's richest person, has been tasked by Trump to head a budget-cutting task force but holds no official position in Washington. The bill also left out Trump's demand to the nation's debt ceiling, which was resoundingly rejected by the House - including 38 Republicans - on Thursday. The federal government spent roughly $US6.2 trillion ($A9.9 trillion) in 2023 and has more than $US36 trillion ($A58 trillion) in debt, and Congress will need to act to authorise further borrowing by the middle of 2025. Sources said the White House has alerted government agencies to prepare for an imminent shutdown. The federal government last shut down for 35 days during Trump's first White House term over a dispute about border security. Previous fights over the debt ceiling have spooked financial markets, as a US government default would send credit shocks around the world. The limit has been suspended under an agreement that technically expires on January 1, though lawmakers likely would not have had to tackle the issue before the spring. Advertisement Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date. We care about the protection of your data. Read our . Advertisement

The Pittsburgh Steelers star edge rusher TJ Watt wasn’t happy when he didn’t win the 2023 Defensive Player of the Year Award. Instead, Cleveland Browns star pass rusher Myles Garrett was crowned the best defensive player in the NFL for the 2023 season. It was strange considering TJ, by every metric, dominated Garrett in terms of production. These stats have been used to measure a defensive player’s dominance for decades, but in the 2023 season, it felt like no matter what TJ did, Garrett was going to win the award. That’s why TJ was so upset, but he didn’t say much other than a cryptic social media post before the event. TJ's brother, JJ Watt, was a bit more vocal but still always super respectful of Garrett’s greatness. While JJ expressed his frustration in interviews, he kept the focus on Garrett’s impressive season rather than attacking the voting process. Despite the public respect, it was clear that both Watts felt their brother’s dominance was being overlooked in favor of Garrett. The tension between the two sides has further grown after Garrett has seemed to take shots at the Watt brothers. Garrett dominated the Steelers during the Browns' 24-19 win over Pittsburgh. Browns beat writer Mary Kay Cabot revealed on The Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show on Tuesday that Garrett was really upset by how the Watt brothers handled him winning the award. According to Cabot, Garrett felt personally hurt by the way the brothers responded to his recognition, despite their mutual respect for one another. This has added another layer to an already intense rivalry between the Steelers and Browns. "What happened was TJ Watt poked the bear when he tweeted about those NFL Honors awards last February," Cabot said Tuesday. "That really stuck in Myles' craw. It hurt him. JJ Watt, his brother, kinda chimed in on that. Myles firmly believed that was his moment. They stole his thunder. TJ stole his thunder." Garrett was disappointed to see anyone speak out against him winning the award, stating that he’s never had issues when someone else has won it over him. Cabot believes this frustration fueled his dominant performance against Pittsburgh on Thursday night, where he recorded three sacks and one forced fumble. "He's never thrown shade at a TJ award," Cabot said. "I think he was really, really upset by that. He used that as fuel in that game and boy did it work for him." The first part of this is a bit surprising. The Watt brothers handled the entire situation with a great deal of respect. Sure, you could critique how TJ addressed it, but considering his frustration, he remained remarkably respectful. That frustration stemmed from a heated debate that TJ wasn’t as dominant as Garrett according to some newer, less traditional metrics. In fact it would be more fair to argue that TJ could have said way more than he actually did. Steelers' TJ Watt And Brother JJ Did Nothing Wrong What both JJ and TJ were trying to convey was not to speak negatively about Garrett, but instead show support for the great season that TJ had. A season they both felt should have been rewarded with the DPOY crown. When you compare the stats, it becomes clear why the Watt brothers felt the need to speak out about the DPOY snub. On paper, it seemed almost unfathomable that Garrett would win the award over TJ. On Thursday night, Garrett outshined TJ in a major way, and he's riding high, taking subtle jabs at both TJ and JJ. The Browns are sitting at 3-8, while the Steelers are 8-3. While TJ may not have outperformed Garrett that night, it’s likely that he’ll have the last laugh. Steeler Nation is eagerly awaiting TJ's response on the field to the criticism following his quiet performance against the Browns. This article first appeared on SteelerNation.com and was syndicated with permission.

Gaetz withdraws as Trump's pick for attorney general, averting confirmation battle in the SenateThe Blackhawks claimed they would replace injured defenseman Seth Jones by committee, but aside from bumping every healthy defenseman one rung up the depth chart out of necessity, they actually haven’t. Instead, young Alex Vlasic has taken over Jones’ role, operating as the Hawks’ No. 1 defensemen during five-on-five play and quarterbacking the first power-play unit (although the Hawks have drawn very few opportunities). In the four games missed so far by Jones, the NHL’s time-on-ice leader before he suffered a right foot injury that will sideline him for another three-plus weeks, Vlasic has exceeded 23:30 of ice time every game and logged exactly 26:34 twice. “It’s definitely a big load to handle, but I feel like I’ve done a pretty good job,” Vlasic said Tuesday. “You’ve got to pick your spots jumping up in the play and make sure you’re not taking too long of shifts, especially against better teams, so you don’t get hemmed in.” This situation isn’t ideal for the Hawks right now, but it is excellent experience for Vlasic, whom the franchise will depend on to anchor their defense for years to come — regardless of whether he, Artyom Levshunov or someone else develops into their true No. 1 defenseman post-Jones. The 23-year-old Wilmette native is enjoying another stellar season despite the Hawks’ team struggles, even if he’s not quite as close to Superman as he imagined back in training camp. “In the ‘D'-zone in the beginning of the year...he had a couple hiccups,” assistant coach Kevin Dean said earlier this month. “He was [thinking], ‘I’m going to defend this guy and I’m going to take this pass away,’ and he wasn’t doing either. “He’s getting his brain around [the idea that], ‘I just do my job and do it well.’ And he’s terrific: He’s big; he’s smart; he’s athletic. He can skate, he can move pucks and his shot has really developed.” Vlasic unleashed a 101.9 mph shot — the fourth-hardest in the NHL this season — against the Ducks last week, rewarding him for his efforts this past summer to strengthen and improve his shooting . His hardest shot last season was 90.5 mph. “I noticed it before training camp, just stepping on the ice watching him: ‘Whoa, his shot [is good],’” Dean said. “Last year, he would take five shots, and two of them would be like, ‘Wow, that was really hard.’ ... But now he certainly seems more consistent.” The most important aspects where Vlasic can fill Jones’ shoes, however, are retrieving dump-ins and then exiting the defensive zone with possession. That can help the Hawks avoid getting stuck in the zone — a frequent problem for them. Vlasic has averaged 26.7 retrievals per 60 minutes this season, per All Three Zones. That’s one of the highest rates in the league. Jones (22.9) and Wyatt Kaiser (21.9) are the only other Hawks defensemen significantly above the league average of 19.9. Moreover, Vlasic and Jones have averaged 10.2 and 10.3 defensive-zone exits with possession per 60 minutes, respectively. They’re the only two Hawks defensemen significantly above the league average of 7.0 in that category. Dean has talked with Vlasic about the value of body position to help with both of those things. If an opposing forward skates behind the net to chase the puck, Vlasic can form a wall between the forward and the puck using his 6-6 frame alone. “He’s getting more comfortable using his body on the retrievals,” Dean said. “He’s a guy who can see the ice and can escape that forechecker to get time to make a play. He’s only going to get better with that, too. He’s not overthinking it. [When he identifies] the first option, it’s on and off his stick pretty well.” Defensive work In the defensive zone, Vlasic does have a tendency to believe he can do two things at once sometimes. The Hawks appreciate that confidence but are trying to convince him that’s not realistic; he’ll be best served focusing on defending one person at a time. Boxing out around the net has been one focus area. Earlier in the season, he would devote himself so wholeheartedly to boxing out that he would turn his back to the puck at the point and have no idea where the play was headed. "[I’m] learning how to box out while still having your head facing wherever the puck is,” Vlasic said. “You might have to let that guy go if the puck comes to you or if the [point] guy starts skating down at you, if your forward gets beat. Because we don’t play man-on-man in the D-zone, [you have to] make sure you’re not solely focusing on one guy.” There are situations, however, where he shouldn’t leave the net-front guy to cover a defenseman skating down. The Flyers’ first goal Saturday against the Hawks was one such scenario: Vlasic stopped boxing out Sean Couturier to react to wide-open Rasmus Ristolainen receiving the puck on the weak side, and then Ristolainen fed Couturier for a simple tap-in. “It’s very situational where you have to realize if the guy has a good angle or if he has a lot of time,” Vlasic said. “It’s a gray area for sure, but that specific time, I might just have to recognize that we’ll give up that shot from way outside the dot and make sure nothing goes across the crease.” Dean has also emphasized to Vlasic the importance of going through opposing forwards’ hands when trying to dispossess them. Vlasic’s ultra-long stick and reach makes him elite at poke-checks, but the Hawks don’t want him to rely solely on that approach. “Sometimes I get away with that, but when you go against guys that are good at puck-protecting and have big, strong frames, if you just go for the puck, they’ll be able to shield it away from you,” Vlasic said. "[You have to] make sure you’re always trying to go through the hands first and follow through with the stick.”

Chandigarh, Dec 26 (PTI) Political leaders cutting across parties on Thursday condoled the death of former prime minister Manmohan Singh, who passed away at the age of 92. Singh’s death was announced by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi, where he was admitted in the Emergency ward at 8.06 pm in a critical condition after “sudden loss of consciousness”. Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini said Manmohan Singh’s contribution to the development of the country will always be unforgettable. He said Singh will always be remembered for his simplicity. “I pray to God to give peace to the departed soul and give strength to the loved ones in this difficult time,” Saini posted on X. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann described Singh’s passing away as “a big loss for the country”. The absence of this great economist who brought India’s economy back on track will always be felt by the countrymen, Mann posted on X. Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda described Manmohan Singh as a great economist and pioneer of economic reforms in India. In a post on X, Hooda said, “I am saddened by the news of the demise of former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, a great economist of the world, a pioneer of economic reforms in India and one who, through his work, took the country forward on the path of progress and gave it a distinct identity across the world.” Hooda, a Congress leader, described Singh’s passing away an irreparable loss and expressed his deep condolences to his family and supporters. Punjab Finance Minister and AAP leader Harpal Singh Cheema said he was deeply saddened by Singh’s death. “A visionary economist and a statesman, his contributions to India’s growth and global standing will always be remembered. May Waheguru Ji grant peace to his soul and strength to his family #Manmohan,” Harpal Cheema said in a post on X. Former Punjab deputy chief minister and Congress leader O P Soni also condoled Manmohan Singh’s death and said India has lost a great leader. Speaking to PTI over phone, Soni recalled Manmohan Singh’s “special love” for Amritsar and Punjab. “While passing away of such a great leader is a loss to the entire nation and the world, Punjab, in particular, will feel the loss more,” Soni said. Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly Partap Singh Bajwa termed Singh as one of the “most humble and dignified leaders India has known”. “A man of few words but immense wisdom, his leadership steered India through significant challenges with grace and integrity. His unwavering commitment to civil discourse and democratic values and contributions to India’s progress will forever be remembered. “Rest in peace, Sir. The nation mourns the loss of a true statesman and a gentle giant of Indian politics,” Bajwa posted on X. Congress’ Sirsa MP Kumari Selja described Manmohan Singh’s death as an irreparable loss for the entire country. She said for her “it is like the departure of an elder and guide of the family”. “Under his leadership, India embarked on the path of liberalisation, globalisation and economic development, which positively impacted the lives of crores of Indians,” Selja said. Selja, a former Union minister said, “It was not only a privilege to work with him but also an opportunity to learn from him every moment. His example of simplicity, patience and selfless service will always inspire me. The country will always remember his contribution.” Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala said, “Dr. Manmohan Singh, the gentlemen politician and an epitome of probity & simplicity, leaves behind an unfathomable void”. “I was a beneficiary of his abundant affection and sagacious guidance, both in matters of politics as also his world view on India’s economy. Dr. Manmohan Singh will be deeply missed by every Congressperson and every Indian for his wisdom, understanding and foresight. His resolve for the ideological fight for principles of INC shall remain etched in our hearts,” Surjewala posted on X. Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring described Manmohan Singh “a true statesman and exceptional economist”. Singh’s contributions to India’s progress will forever be remembered, Warring said. PTI SUN VSD KSS KSS This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content. var ytflag = 0;var myListener = function() {document.removeEventListener('mousemove', myListener, false);lazyloadmyframes();};document.addEventListener('mousemove', myListener, false);window.addEventListener('scroll', function() {if (ytflag == 0) {lazyloadmyframes();ytflag = 1;}});function lazyloadmyframes() {var ytv = document.getElementsByClassName("klazyiframe");for (var i = 0; i < ytv.length; i++) {ytv[i].src = ytv[i].getAttribute('data-src');}} Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() );The City of Owen Sound is putting money into the playground and splashpad at Kelso Beach at Nawash Park. The half a million dollar investment will replace the existing 25 year old playground structure and renew the splashpad – which at 15 years old requires some servicing. Partnering with the city to make the project possible, the Scenic City Order of Good Cheer has pledged a minimum of $250,000 comprised of five annual donations for $50,000 each. This will match the city’s existing budget of $250,000. "We value our partnership with the Scenic City Order of Good Cheer. All of their efforts to provide facilities for youth and families make our community a better place to live,” said Mayor Ian Boddy. The project is scheduled for design in the coming year, and construction in 2026. Shopping Trends The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us. Editor's Picks 20 Great Last-Minute Gifts From Amazon Canada That Won't Break The Bank 22 Tiny (And Wonderful) Gifts To Stuff Your Stockings With This Year 28 Crowd-Pleasing Gifts For The Pickiest People On Your List Home 14 Of The Best Home Security Devices You Can Find Online Right Now (And They've Got The Reviews To Prove It) 13 Of The Best Fidget Toys For Adults 16 Cozy Home Essentials That Cost Less Than $100 Gifts The Clock Is Ticking — Shop These 25 Last-Minute Amazon Prime Gifts Now If You Have An Amazon Prime Account, These 70+ Crowd-Pleasing Gifts Will Still Arrive Before Christmas If You Have An Amazon Prime Account, These 50 Brilliant Stocking Stuffers Will Still Arrive Before Christmas Beauty 20 Products Your Dry, Dehydrated Skin Will Thank You For Ordering 14 Hydrating Face Masks That’ll Save Your Skin This December 12 Budget-Friendly Products To Add To Your Winter Skincare Routine Deals The Silk & Snow End Of Year Sale Is Officially On — Here's What To Add To Your Cart The Best Early Boxing Day Deals On Amazon Canada For 2024 This Smart Security Camera System Will Help You Keep An Eye On Your Home (And It's On Sale For 50% Off Right Now) London Top Stories Dreaming of a white Christmas? Owen Sound to invest half a million in community splashpad and playground Warming up your car before you head out? Here's how to make sure you're not a target for auto theft. The Forest City has been a forest of cones, and with these projects on tap for 2025, get ready for round two New Canadians displaced after fire destroys east London townhome Feeling Festive? Check out this display of over 300 lit Christmas trees Sarnia Police Auxiliary Unit works to return stolen shopping carts to businesses London Ont. Liberal MPs say that Trudeau is taking time to reflect on his future CTVNews.ca Top Stories Can the Governor General do what Pierre Poilievre is asking? This expert says no A historically difficult week for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Liberal government ended with a renewed push from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre to topple this government – this time in the form a letter to the Governor General. 'I'm still thinking pinch me': lost puppy reunited with family after five years After almost five years of searching and never giving up hope, the Tuffin family received the best Christmas gift they could have hoped for: being reunited with their long-lost puppy. Two U.S. Navy pilots shot down over Red Sea in apparent 'friendly fire' incident, U.S. military says Two U.S. Navy pilots were shot down Sunday over the Red Sea in an apparent 'friendly fire' incident, the U.S military said, marking the most serious incident to threaten troops in over a year of America targeting Yemen's Houthi rebels. Big splash: Halifax mermaid waves goodbye after 16 years Halifax's Raina the Mermaid is closing her business after 16 years in the Maritimes. OPP find wanted man by chance in eastern Ontario home, seize $50K worth of drugs A wanted eastern Ontario man was found with $50,000 worth of drugs and cash on him in a home in Bancroft, Ont. on Friday morning, according to the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP). Bluesky finds with growth comes growing pains - and bots Bluesky has seen its user base soar since the U.S. presidential election, boosted by people seeking refuge from Elon Musk's X, which they view as increasingly leaning too far to the right given its owner's support of U.S. president-elect Donald Trump, or wanting an alternative to Meta's Threads and its algorithms. B.C. mayor gets calls from across Canada about 'crazy' plan to recruit doctors A British Columbia community's "out-of-the-box" plan to ease its family doctor shortage by hiring physicians as city employees is sparking interest from across Canada, says Colwood Mayor Doug Kobayashi. It was Grandma, in the cafe with a Scrabble tile: Game cafes are big holiday business It’s the holidays, which means for many across the Prairies, there’s no better time to get locked in a dungeon with a dragon. Cancer centre raises $2.7 million for purchase of 'game changer' surgical robot The Windsor Cancer Centre Foundation has raised a record breaking $2.7 million through the Grow on Windsor Campaign. Kitchener Can the Governor General do what Pierre Poilievre is asking? This expert says no A historically difficult week for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Liberal government ended with a renewed push from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre to topple this government – this time in the form a letter to the Governor General. 'I'm still thinking pinch me': lost puppy reunited with family after five years After almost five years of searching and never giving up hope, the Tuffin family received the best Christmas gift they could have hoped for: being reunited with their long-lost puppy. Driver charged with 'several offences' after being stopped on Waterloo highway A 24-year-old man has been charged after dangerously driving across two Waterloo Regional highways. Barrie One driver faces several charges following Highway 400 crash in Oro-Medonte Traffic came to a standstill Friday afternoon following a single-vehicle collision on Highway 400 in Oro-Medonte. High school teacher charged with sexual assault amid allegations involving a student A 51-year-old teacher from Georgina has been charged with sexual assault following allegations involving a student. Hospice Simcoe mourns loss of COPE service pup, after 7.5 years of service The Hospice Simcoe community is mourning the loss of their Canine Opportunity, People Empowerment (COPE) service dog, Daisy. Windsor Dreaming of a white Christmas? Christmas is right around the corner, and while winter has been touch and go, there’s a good chance that we will not be looking out the window at a winter wonderland this week. Cancer centre raises $2.7 million for purchase of 'game changer' surgical robot The Windsor Cancer Centre Foundation has raised a record breaking $2.7 million through the Grow on Windsor Campaign. Feeling punny? Why not submit your idea for Tecumseh's snowploughs! Whether you want to make a joke, honour the snowy season, or name a snow plough in honour of a local landmark, you can submit your ideas right now. Northern Ontario Robinson Superior First Nations provided settlement offer from Canada over annuities owed Details haven’t been made public yet about the settlement offer presented on Friday by Canada to the 12 First Nations in the Robinson Superior Treaty Territory. Can the Governor General do what Pierre Poilievre is asking? This expert says no A historically difficult week for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Liberal government ended with a renewed push from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre to topple this government – this time in the form a letter to the Governor General. Northern Ont. man illegally killed three moose, one deer A man from the northwestern Ontario community of Dinorwic has been found guilty of multiple hunting offences and fined $6,500, banned from hunting for five years and placed on probation for 18 months. Sault Ste. Marie Sault police seek public assistance in LCBO theft investigation Sault police are investigating a series of thefts at the LCBO on Second Line West earlier this month. Northern Credit Union makes donation to Lady Dunn Health Centre to show gratitude for exceptional care shown to staff Northern Credit Union has announced a $10,000 donation made in honour of the many individuals and organizations who stepped forward to support its team during and following last week’s tragic event. Northern Ont. hospital to close emergency department Sunday A physician shortage is again forcing the closure of the emergency department at the Thessalon Site of the North Shore Health Network. Ottawa BREAKING NEWS | 4 children, 4 adults taken to hospital following ‘potential Carbon Monoxide’ call in Vanier The Ottawa Paramedic Service says eight people were taken to hospital in serious condition after a "potential Carbon Monoxide" call Sunday morning in the neighbourhood of Vanier. Flooding started, ice still thin: Here’s the latest update about the Rideau Canal Skateway Preparations to open the Rideau Canal Skateway are underway, as deep freeze continues to linger around Ottawa this weekend. OPP find wanted man by chance in eastern Ontario home, seize $50K worth of drugs A wanted eastern Ontario man was found with $50,000 worth of drugs and cash on him in a home in Bancroft, Ont. on Friday morning, according to the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP). Toronto Cold in Toronto feels like -18 with the wind chill The frigid weather hanging over Toronto isn't letting up, with temperatures feeling like nearly -30 early Sunday morning due to the wind chill. Toronto police investigating 2 separate east-end shootings, no injuries reported Toronto police are investigating two separate east-end shootings that occurred within 12 hours of each other. Three-vehicle crash leaves 4 people injured in Brampton Four people were injured in a three-car crash in Brampton early Sunday morning. Montreal SPVM investigating possible arson attack in Saint-Leonard Montreal police (SPVM) confirmed that a vehicle was set on fire in the Saint-Leonard borough early Sunday morning. Spill closes Highway 25 near Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine Tunnel A spill forced the closure of Highway 25 northbound Sunday morning at the Hochelaga Street exit, near the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine tunnel in Montreal. Canadiens riding three-game win streak ahead of long stretch away from home The Montreal Canadiens are on a season-best win streak ahead of their longest stretch away from home. Patrik Laine scored on the power play, again, and the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Detroit Red Wings on consecutive nights with a 5-1 victory Saturday. Atlantic 'On death row.' Wrongfully convicted N.B. man has mixed feelings since exoneration Robert Mailman, 76, was exonerated on Jan. 4 of a 1983 murder for which he and his friend Walter Gillespie served lengthy prison terms. Cape Breton police arrest second person in missing man investigation A second person has been arrested in the disappearance of Justin MacDonald in Cape Breton. Icy conditions persist, parking ban lifted in Halifax Halifax has lifted a parking ban for Zone 1 – Central and Zone 2- Non-Central that was enforced Friday and Saturday night to accommodate snow removal following a winter storm. Winnipeg Muslim youth group distributes meals to Winnipeg's most vulnerable In the spirit of giving season, a Muslim youth group made its way through the city’s downtown distributing meals to those in need. 'Good deals for Christmas': Turkey prices down from last year With just days to go before Christmas, one of the big items for the big feast could be cheaper this year. Numbers from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada show that during November this year, turkey prices were down from the same time last year. Ace Burpee's Top 100 Most Fascinating Manitobans of 2024 It’s been another year of Manitobans doing interesting, incredible and cool things. The hardest part of compiling this list is cutting it off at 100. Calgary It was Grandma, in the cafe with a Scrabble tile: Game cafes are big holiday business It’s the holidays, which means for many across the Prairies, there’s no better time to get locked in a dungeon with a dragon. Traffic advisory issued by RCMP due to poor driving conditions south of Calgary and north of Red Deer Alberta RCMP issued a traffic advisory early Sunday morning due to poor driving conditions throughout the province. Flames get goals from 6 players in a 6-4 victory over the Blackhawks Jonathan Huberdeau, Connor Zary, Blake Coleman, and Matt Coronato each had a goal and an assist as the Calgary Flames beat the Chicago Blackhawks 6-4 on Saturday. Edmonton 'There’s no support': Domestic abuse survivor shares difficulties leaving her relationship An Edmonton woman who tried to flee an abusive relationship ended up back where she started in part due to a lack of shelter space. Oilers finding ways to thrive in close encounters Leon Draisaitl scored 18 seconds into overtime to extend his point streak to eight games as the Edmonton Oilers overcame a slow start to win their second straight game in extra time, defeating the San Jose Sharks 3-2 on Saturday. It was Grandma, in the cafe with a Scrabble tile: Game cafes are big holiday business It’s the holidays, which means for many across the Prairies, there’s no better time to get locked in a dungeon with a dragon. Regina Gathering held in Regina to recognize Winter Solstice Regina's mâmawêyatitân centre held a day of gathering for the Winter Solstice on Saturday. Canada's first sustainable Tim Hortons location to open in Regina this weekend Canada’s first sustainable Tim Hortons opens in Regina this weekend. The restaurant, located in the city’s east end, features design and operating features that minimize environmental impact. Gravelbourg's transportation program celebrates addition of new vehicle and garage The town of Gravelbourg is celebrating the addition of a new vehicle and garage which will be used in their local transportation program. Saskatoon Sask. police investigating mischief incident after bomb report in school Prince Albert police are investigating a mischief incident after a bomb report in a school Friday afternoon. Prince Albert woman collects donations to make Christmas hampers for community A Prince Albert woman is spreading holiday cheer by organizing Christmas hampers for those in need. Sask. lawyers defend judge for staying fatal THC-impaired driving charge The Saskatchewan Trial Lawyers Association is defending a provincial court judge, who’s facing backlash for staying a charge in a high-profile case involving the death of a child. Vancouver Man wounded in Mission, B.C., shooting One man was injured in a shooting in the Lower Mainland city of Mission Saturday morning, Mounties confirmed. Winds exceeding 120 km/h reported in parts of B.C. coast Residents of parts of the British Columbia coast are again bracing for high winds, with gusts forecasted to reach 110 km/h in some areas. 2 dead after car crash in Burnaby Two people were killed in a car crash in Burnaby early Saturday morning, police confirmed. Vancouver Island B.C. mayor gets calls from across Canada about 'crazy' plan to recruit doctors A British Columbia community's "out-of-the-box" plan to ease its family doctor shortage by hiring physicians as city employees is sparking interest from across Canada, says Colwood Mayor Doug Kobayashi. B.C. woman with photographic memory strives to make unforgettable Christmas displays Although Alisha Pauling is looking through old pictures, she doesn’t need them to remember her Christmases past. She has a photographic memory. Internet stranger's kind gesture restores Canucks fan's faith in humanity A Nanaimo, B.C., couple is in awe at the kindness of an internet stranger who helped them track down a coveted Christmas gift. Stay Connected

Opinion: Teachers lack resources to meet classroom needs, and absences shouldn't surprise usDegrees were handed out to 391 graduates and undergraduates at the University of Nebraska at Kearney Friday at the UNK Health and Sport Center. Interim Chancellor Charlie Bicak conferred degrees. University of Nebraska System President Dr. Jeffrey P. Gold delivered the keynote address. Winter commencement exercises brought together graduates, their friends and families, UNK staff and more. The student speaker was Emily Conrad of Gretna, who graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a management emphasis. A Gretna native, Conrad was an active participant in the College of Business and Technology Living-Learning Community, serving as a mentor and leading community service events and business tours. The student speaker was Emily Conrad of Gretna, who graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a management emphasis. Also addressing the graduates was NU Board of Regents Vice Chair Paul Kenney. The national anthem was performed by Class of 2024 members Abbygail Marshall of North Platte and Megumi Sakamoto of Toyama, Japan, who both graduated magna cum laude. Interview of Carsyn McBride, a two-time tournament champion wrestler this season for Kearney High. Get our local education coverage delivered directly to your inbox.Neel Kamal writes about sustainable agriculture, environment, climate change for The Times of India. His incisive and comprehensive reporting about over a year-long farmers' struggle against farm laws at the borders of the national capital won laurels. He is an alumunus of Chandigarh College of Engineering and Technology. Read More ​How to make Masala Chicken Curry at home​ 10 beautiful animals that are pink in colour 10 easy-to-care-for beautiful freshwater fish for home aquariums 9 vegetarian dishes shine in the ‘100 Best Dishes in the World’ list ​10 rare animals found only in Asia​ In pics: Sai Pallavi's vacation to Australia 8 books that will help develop discipline and good habits in 2025 Sanskrit names for baby boy that sound modern 18 stews and soups shine among the '100 Best Dishes in the World' 9 foods that provide over 30 grams of protein when cooked

Thank you for reading Hyperallergic! Subscribe to our newsletter Privacy Policy Success! Your account was created and you’re signed in. Please visit My Account to verify and manage your account. An account was already registered with this email. Please check your inbox for an authentication link. Support Independent Arts Journalism As an independent publication, we rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. If you value our coverage and want to support more of it, consider becoming a member today . Already a member? Sign in here. Support Hyperallergic’s independent arts journalism for as little as $8 per month. Become a Member I give different answers whenever people ask what my favorite novel is, but Turkish writer Orhan Pamuk’s My Name Is Red (1998) is probably my most frequent reply. The way Pamuk tells what is at the center of its atom a pulpy murder mystery inside the most pointillist, deliciously orbital structure; the way he joyfully insists upon the vital and complex interiority of every character, however peripheral (the dog’s chapters are among my favorite) feels instructive not just creatively, but also ethically. Taking in Pamuk’s 50-year bibliography feels like an extended fulfillment of this life-doubling promise of narrative art — you get to perceive the world robustly from myriad unprecedented subjectivities wholly separate from your own. To behold Memories of Distant Mountains: Illustrated Notebooks, 2009-2022 , Pamuk’s new book of selected journal entries and paintings translated by Ekin Oklap and published by Knopf, is to witness one of the great literary imaginations of the last 50 years at work. It turns out that making a novel is labor and nothing is inevitable — on one page, we see the Nobel Laureate working out plot details about A Strangeness in My Mind (2014) in the margins of a watercolor of his window view. On another, “This coconut green, the garden, the dogs, the yellow sand, the trees ...” The book is a treasure trove of beloved particulars for the Pamuk-obsessed like me, but it’s also an indispensable document for anyone interested in how art gets made, how inspiration has to find the artist working. It was my luck to be able to speak with Pamuk over Zoom on a sunny Iowa morning earlier this month. Our conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity. Get the latest art news, reviews and opinions from Hyperallergic. Daily Weekly Opportunities Kaveh Akbar: We are ostensibly met here to talk about your new Memories of Distant Mountains . This is a sort of Blakeian book of your journals over your watercolor paintings; it’s a beautiful, extraordinary art object to hold in your hands. Orhan Pamuk: I have been keeping diaries since the age of 10 in Ankara when my mother gave me as a birthday president a diary in which there was a lock, which told me that there is a habit called “keeping a diary.” I was only 10 years old. And then it is related to secret thoughts because there is a lock on it. I tried to write. It didn’t work, but I had an idea of what a journalist was. I am a, I wouldn’t say manic, but a journal reader, from Virginia Woolf to Tolstoy and Thomas Bond. So many people kept journals, and most of the time they’re edited. And I like these texts, but it’s a practicality. I’ve been keeping these Moleskines. I have 30 of these. So one day I said, “Why don’t I do a book with them?” So I picked up the best, say, 400 double pages with pictures — but all the pages are with pictures — from the notebooks that I’ve been keeping from 2009 to today, while I also had many others without pictures. I then tried to form a book, the logic being that the editing of the book, the sequence of the pages, is not chronological but thematical. The book starts with what I wrote in 2016 about landscape. We turn one page, then it continues to what I wrote about the landscape in 2012, then we turn a page. The book is designed by themes, but not, as in many journals or memoirs, by time. And it took a lot of time to compose and put them together. KA: For readers who haven’t picked up the book yet, could you provide some background? OP: The readers should know perhaps that I am a well-known novelist, but till the age of 22, as I wrote in my autobiographical Istanbul book, I wanted to be a painter. A screw was loose in my mind. I thought I killed the painter in me, but after 10 years, I began to paint more and more. As sometimes I jokingly say, I got out of the closet as a painter in the last 10 years. I even have a museum now. So the suppressed painterly side in me, which I thought was more authentic, more genuine ... because to live between the ages of seven and 22 in a family of engineers, civil engineers, I made them accept that I would go to the Istanbul Technical University, but since I like painting, I would also be an architect. And they all said yes. KA: You talk about killing the painter inside you, but now he’s back. OP: I couldn’t kill the painter in me. In fact, it resurrected. One day I entered a stationery shop, got out two big sets of art materials and notebooks, and from then on I was happily painting. But secretly, not proudly showing, and perhaps knowing that essentially I am a better writer while I can’t help it. KA: That’s my thing! I paint too. OP: Oh really? That’s so nice to hear. KA: I have a painting room, and a nice easel my spouse got me. OP: Wow! You’re like me. What is your hierarchy of writers who paint? KA: William Blake. Number one. OP: He’s the obvious one, because he was successful in an equal measure and he was thinking of the page as both painting and text. KA: That’s the obvious correlative with yours — his illuminations, Paradise Lost , working directly with a text. OP: But for me, I always think that August Strindberg, the Swedish playwright, is the best writer-painter. How do you measure that? John Updike studied painting art in Oxford and was interested in these subjects, but he did not paint himself, or he didn’t get out of the closet as a painter. KA: How about painters who are writers? OP: Yeah. Picasso wanted to be like that. KA: Yeah, of course. I love Paul Klee. OP: Oh, of course! Paul is important because I have an exhibition in Germany in Lenbachhaus where they have the best Paul Klee collections. Another Klee collection is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. KA: And his writing is extraordinary. I love his writing so much. OP: He went to North Africa, to Tunisia, in his 30s. And that also, some critics say, influenced his paintings. KA: It’s fun to think about writers who are secretly great painters, and painters who are secretly great writers. But I mentioned that I paint, too, to say that the reason that I write and don’t paint publicly is because I can write well enough to do it in a public way and can make a living at it. Painting, I am not talented. I just like doing it. OP: Okay, I’m embarrassed. I’m exactly like you, but shameless, perhaps. KA: No! No, I think that what you’ve made here is extraordinary. OP: Thank you. Don’t forget that I also have a museum. That is, I imagined a museum. So that was the first time that the dead painter, or the painter that I tried to kill that is inside me, publicly went out. KA: Of course, because you created the perfect museum for him. OP: Yes. I created a museum related to my novel, The Museum of Innocence . KA: Do you want to talk about the museum for the readers who might not know about it? OP: Perhaps because there is a painter in me who never died, one day I had an idea: “Why don’t I open a museum in which I exhibit objects, but the stories of these objects will be told in an annotated museum catalog in which the annotations are put in such a sequence that it may read like a novel without pictures?” Then, just as I was about to finish the novel, I decided — a conservative decision that I sometimes regret — to make the novel look like a normal 19th-century novel instead of an annotated catalog. KA: But this is one of the great geniuses moments in your work. OP: Oh, if you’re going to continue like that, I will be shy. KA: No, sorry. OP: And then you’ll say, “This guy is a maniac narcissist! He says genius!” KA: No, you don’t have to! I’m saying it. OP: Okay, I like it, continue saying it! KA: So many novels have a linear trajectory through which they move through these terminals of narrative, right? But, in The Museum of Innocence and My Name is Red , you move from a speaker to the dog, you know? It’s this orbital motion where all the propulsion is centripetal. OP: Yes, which comes to my idea that I like writing novels. But what I like more is imagining novels. That is, you’re just asleep, lying on your sofa with your dog, then you’re thinking, “This part will be told by this, then there will be a chapter which no one understands” — or they will understand, of course, when they’re doing a second reading or reading carefully — and then you plan this. Then I switch to this kind of composition of the novel. Before you begin to write, imagining your set composition is even more joyful than executing a novel. You compose, you know what you’re going to do, you’re going to write this, but sometimes you cannot. That’s the bad part. That’s what they call here “writer’s block.” And you imagine there’s no block. The imagination is boundless. A serious writer’s tragedy is his hands, his fingers, his pencils do not obey and listen to what’s in his or her mind. KA: What do you do to clear that synapse? OP: I advise: Just don’t insist too much because it will be frustrating. My advice to writers is, please develop your story a lot before executing to write it. Chapter it, then pile up notes about that chapter. And also don’t listen to the advice of a writer who is 70 years old! KA: That’s always my thing, whenever a student asks me anything, I always say, “I wouldn’t have listened to me.” I would’ve said, “I know what I’m doing. Leave me alone. I have my library to teach me. I don’t need you.” That brings me to the fact that it feels to me like you are in many ways this Borgesian writer for whom the physical book itself is the magic. You know how when you read Nabokov or Borges, you feel their profound affection for the book object itself? OP: For Nabokov, Borges, yes. In fact, in his novel Ada , Nabokov had also alluded to Borges. While, on the other hand, I admire Borges a lot, but he never understood the novels. He once said, “Henry James would have written a long novel about this, but let me tell you this in a short story.” KA: Exactly. He wrote extraordinary poetry, too. OP: Yeah. But on the other hand, he tells this story in three pages. So Henry James is, and is not unnecessarily, 597 pages. It’s just Borges doesn’t have the joy, or he maybe does, but he is a bit cynical. For Borges, a novel is not its story. It’s something else. KA: That’s true. But there’s a way in which he was a vacuum. He was just this voracious mouth that wanted to consume stories — the more efficient, the better, right? There’s this piece from him I love where he’s talking about the Qur’an as the supreme Arab text— OP: “There are no camels, there are no camels.” KA: Right! He says because there are no camels, the Qur’an is supremely Arab. “Mohammed, as an Arab, had no reason to know that camels were particularly Arab.” But in fact, there are camels everywhere in the Qur’an! It’s clear that Borges read two chapters that happened to not mention a camel. And so he says, “I got what I need there.” OP: It’s that he was talking to people who had never read the Qur’an. KA: Of course. So he can say there are no camels in the Qur’an. But I love this because it shows he got the idea and he moved on. OP: But it’s good to illustrate one idea and I like that. KA: Yeah, he kind of channels Schopenhauer to say that, though there are no nightingales in Argentina, Keats heard the nightingale for everyone. I say this to say that the utter joy in wringing out from the universe what would never exist had it not been for your being there in that moment — that is everywhere apparent in the pages of Memories of Distant Mountains . We are experiencing a process of live cognition. It’s like reading Klee’s journals, or Woolf’s, that sense of utter delight. And I don’t mean everything is about pink puppy tails and babies wagging their toes, but that delight in having created where otherwise there would be nothing, something I associate with Borges and Woolf, two of my favorite writers, and I very much associate with you as well. OP: Yes. Thank you so much ... I don’t know what to say! KA: No, I know! I’m sorry, I’m just barking like a happy walrus. So can you talk a little bit about how you curated these pages? OP: First, humanity invented journal keeping, as my mother’s gift to me at the age of 10 suggests, to write secret ideas. You bury your treasure. You write a note. You have some thoughts you want to write down, because they will be unacceptable by society. So you have to have a secret place. And a diary was, has always been, even there was nothing secret there, been a secret place. In the 1930s, French writer André Gide published parts of his diary, and suddenly he legitimized publishing your journal when you’re alive. I am a journal-keeper, and keeping journals is, I would say, easy. I fill a page like this, there are no pictures here in half an hour. And in this half an hour, most of the time, I’m waiting to go out with my wife. She’s late. I’m waiting for a taxi. I have some empty time. There are times I say to myself, “I haven’t written to my journal for five days. Why don’t I sit down and give two hours?” I carry these notebooks in which I draw and write. It feels like carrying my writing desk and my watercolors and painting materials with me. And I’m happy I am doing it. And I’m always saying to my friends, “Why don’t you keep a journal?” I go to my wife, I go to my friends, “You know what we did in three years, two months ago?” And I read it aloud. And, again, it’s partly related to self-importance, partly that this is an original idea that I may never develop. I have an idea. I write that down, that idea. At the beginning when I was keeping these notebooks, it was not for publication, but after a while I realized that I was also addressing some future readers, one day. KA: Of course. And you also now have control over it too, right? As opposed to some posthumous collection coming out. OP: Yes. After I go, they’d immediately publish the pages that I don’t want to be published. KA: Of course. I think about this. I also think about my generation for whom all of this is digital now. And no one is going to want to read our emails. OP: Why? There may be some people who are interested. We may be writing some of our best lines in an email. Italo Calvino called himself a graphomaniac. A graphomaniac is someone who is obsessively writing. And he never went down in his quality, the cloth was Calvino cloth, of course. KA: I associate that with Dickinson too, right? Where there’s the seamlessness between her letters and her poetry. OP: You produce that cloth all the time, but sometimes then the story, the composition, the total meaning is not clear. Diary or publication of diaries is about honoring these little fragments of pages that you understand will not form a whole by itself. And I decided that I would publish some of it, hoping that some people would be interested — some people like you would be interested. KA: So many of the paintings that we see in these pages are landscapes of sorts of the view out a window, or the city view. You write in the book about how painting starts with visualizing what you can’t remember, and so, functionally, what is being painted is time , instead of a landscape. OP: Yes. Let me clarify. If you paint the same landscape all the time — which I do from here, from my New York or Istanbul window, looking at Hudson or Bosphorus, or the landscape of your table — then you begin to write about, in a way, time. KA: Can you share a little bit about this experience? When we see Istanbul in your novels, we see it across time. We see you experiencing it as a young man and then as an older man. One of the things that I think about in relation to your work, and to being an Iranian writer situated in America, is that if I was in Iran today and I was writing the exact same stuff that I was writing, but in Farsi, I would feel excluded from a global conversation of letters. Whereas being an Iranian in America allows me to participate. OP: Good question. I think I am extremely lucky because after the age of 40, my books began to get translated into English, and they were relatively successful. Better publishers always wanted my work. I had a father who wanted to be a poet like you, who failed and ended up a businessman, who respected my decision to be a writer. When I was 24, he would say, “Well, it’s easy being a famous writer in Turkey. What about international, global recognition?” My father would challenge me with words like that. Unfortunately, he didn’t see my Nobel Prize! Either way, I would be so happy if he had seen it. But he would also say that I would get it before anyone else. I had a father like that, and he had a big library. I owe him a lot. I owe a lot to my mother, too. When they divorced, my mother raised us. KA: You write about this beautifully. What’s the difference between being a famous writer in Turkey and being an internationally famous Turkish writer with a Nobel Prize? OP: I’ll give you an example: What I write about should have global resonance. I have self-consciously thought about this, especially when I was writing A Strangeness In My Mind , which was about the making of a shantytown in Istanbul. At that time, I was, relatively speaking, famous and successful. So I went to Brazil and saw favelas of Rio de Janeiro. I went to Bombay and saw Dharavi, which is also a favela and a business place. And I researched and researched about Turkey’s shantytowns, which were relatively better, I would say, whatever “better” means, more comfortable. I said to myself that when I’m picking up details of Turkish shantytowns, I will also consider what is more — “universal” is a kitschy word — but what are the general problems? At that time when I was writing A Strangeness in My Mind , around 2012 to 2016, I was already thinking of my novel as a global novel, but not when I was young. When I was writing my Black Book or early novels, I was only addressing Turkish leadership. But the fire that my father put in me that I had to be internationally successful was there all the time. KA: And it’s cool to see the names of characters from A Strangeness in My Mind in your notes. We see you contemplating its main characters, Mevlut and Rayiha, presumably as you write them. OP: Yes. These are the parts of [ Memories of Distant Mountains ] that I really care about. The whole effort of a fiction writer, especially when writing a long novel like me, is forcing yourself to identify with your characters like a really naive person. They make fun. I have to be Mevlut. I have to be one of my characters. I have to see the world and the beauty — or not the beauty, but convincing power — the beauty of the sentence is something else — but the convincing truth. The authenticity of the subject matter really depends on the writer’s identification with the character. You write about places that you don’t belong to by culture and class, or by geography, or even sometimes by language. It gets harder and harder if there are these distances. While on the other hand, we don’t want to read about the middle-class writer’s personal life all the time. In fact, the joy of being a writer is, I am not this person . I’m not Mevlut. I’m a middle-class writer, but I’m doing so much to identify with him. First, I will respect this person as a humanist. Second is my capacity to see the world through my character’s point of view. Be that person. These are the most attractive, interesting, playful sides of being a novelist. Not only do you have to identify with the character so that you will think what he or she will do next, but you also — this is another part we may talk about — you also have to write it beautifully. KA: Of course. No one wants to just be hit on the head with a cudgel of narrative, right? You have to earn the reader’s attention. Horace says that language should delight and instruct. And we are in a time when many of the sociopolitical circumstances of our reality feel very dire and urgent. In America, I don’t know if this is the same in Turkish literature, but it feels like lots of writing is really galloping headfirst into instruction and perhaps neglecting the delight a little bit. OP: You think so? This is what they used to say about left-wing writing in Turkey in the 1970s: “You are always very pedagogical or propaganda. What about beauty?” In the non-Western world they expect you to be more didactic, educational, useful. Especially in my early time, I was always criticized for not being political enough. I was considered in the first two decades of my writing in Turkey a bourgeois writer, while other writers, more political, more leftist, more radical, consider themselves doing an ethical job. While I’m trying to defend the autonomy, the beauty of the sentences. It was very hard. KA: Snow becomes the riposte to those criticisms of you because it is more overtly — I don’t think that there’s such a thing as apolitical language — but it is more explicitly political in its narrative. But I also think it’s interesting because you talk about visiting the favelas and visiting Bombay, but when you talk about writing Snow ... it’s almost like in writing those characters, you are writing on the cusp of between provinciality and modernity. OP: Provinciality is a great subject of mine, and it’s deeply related to the fact that there was an Ottoman Empire which dissolved very fast on the edge of Europe. So Europe is very close, but as a Turk you’re also living a very poor life, you’re not important. You don’t have any power over history. Who cares about you? These are questions that you also ask. And you’re now talking about a global readership: Oh, I’m so lucky. I have to thank God many times. Yes, I have that privilege. But only 1% of the world is global, the rest is provincial and feels deeply so. Then you realize provinciality is also a great subject that addresses the hearts of the people. It’s also a very taboo subject. The provincial will never say, “I’m provincial.” KA: Exactly. OP: “I’m like you! My heart is like yours!” That is the most they can say: “I’m like you.” KA: It’s the cumulative exhausting effect of having to insist all the time, “We’re just like you. I’m just like you. I’m just like you.” It’s in contemporary Persian literature. Or right now you see all of these voices from Palestine saying, “We love our children just like you. That’s how we love our children. And look what you’re doing to them!” OP: Which they’re saying, unfortunately, so that they’re killed less. KA: Of course, because you have to impress that upon empire. Empire doesn’t understand. The interiority of someone that you can’t imagine is an interiority that you treat brusquely. You treat the security of that person with ambivalence. Which is why it is excruciating to have to continually say, “You know how you love your children? That’s how we love our children. You know how you love your husband? That’s how we fell in love.” So much of the world lives in this provinciality, illegible to empire. We hope you enjoyed this article! Before you keep reading, please consider supporting Hyperallergic ’s journalism during a time when independent, critical reporting is increasingly scarce. Unlike many in the art world, we are not beholden to large corporations or billionaires. Our journalism is funded by readers like you , ensuring integrity and independence in our coverage. We strive to offer trustworthy perspectives on everything from art history to contemporary art. We spotlight artist-led social movements, uncover overlooked stories, and challenge established norms to make art more inclusive and accessible. 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