Author Sara Gmuer sat down with New Books in German to talk about language, music and the characters in her novel, Eighteenth Floor, one of NBG's recent recommendations.
Sarah Rimmington: How did you get the idea for Eighteenth Floor?
Sara Gmuer: The story came together gradually. I knew from an early stage what kind of atmosphere I wanted to create, and what kind of settings and environments I was interested in. I’ve long been concerned with issues like poverty, success, friendship and self-fulfilment, and at some point it became clear that they belonged in the novel.
You’ve said that Eighteenth Floor allowed you to grow up as a writer. How did that happen? What changed for you as you wrote, how did you develop and grow?
I typed out my first novel with my two middle fingers. It was me against the world. In Eighteenth Floor I strike a more conciliatory note. I just sound more adult. But the actual change happened before I started writing. I became a mother. Everyone talks about how motherhood changes your body, but the biggest change is in your mind.
Yes, you became a mother (a more than a full-time job!), and you said you wrote Eighteenth Floor “on the side”. What was that creative process like?
I wrote everywhere and inbetweentimes. I wrote when everyone had finally fallen asleep, or in the foyer while the children were at the cinema. I also kept copying passages onto my phone, so that I could think about them when I was out and about.
Your protagonist, Wanda, is caught between two worlds, too: she has a kind of double life, “two lives in the one city” as you say. In this context, you’ve spoken about whether having children is compatible with self-fulfilment. Do you think it’s possible to reconcile these two ambitions, either for Wanda or in general?
The real question is, what will you have to pay? There aren’t many structures that can pick up the costs. Wanda wants both lives, but she has to keep on explaining, justifying, fighting. That’s what it’s like in real life, too.
Language has always come first for you. Your first novel, Karizma, has been described as a rap novel, and you’ve described rap as your “training camp” and a kind of “daily workout”. Would you say your writing is still influenced by rap – and music?
Language does still come first for me. I just love good sentences. Whether they’re in a book or a song. Music is still an influence for me and Eighteenth Floor even has its own soundtrack (shown in the YouTube video below).
I read that when you were younger, you were a huge fan of the cult French film La Haine (Hatred) by Mathieu Kassovitz. The Plattenbau district in Eighteenth Floor reminded me strongly of that film. Was that deliberate? And what was it about La Haine (apart from Vincent Cassel, of course) that particularly fascinated you?
It wasn’t a conscious reference, but the parallels are there. I was very impressed by the power and authenticity of La Haine. That feeling of being on the margins, standing on the sidelines and yet wanting to be seen, is a factor in Wanda’s life, too.
One of the main themes of Eighteenth Floor is friendships among women, especially women who are under pressure or in difficulty. Are you optimistic or pessimistic about these kinds of relationships? Can we make real friends in these circumstances or not?
I believe that one of the key components for true friendship is time. So if you spend a lot of time together, if you find yourselves in similar situations, if you depend on each other and really know how the other person ticks, you have very good foundations for real friendship.
Why doesn’t Aylin’s mum have a name in the novel?
The novel is written from Wanda‘s point of view and for her, it’s a kind of defence mechanism. She unconsciously keeps her distance, so that she doesn’t have to get too involved with Aylin’s mum. If she got too close, she’d have to admit that they have more in common than she’d like to think.
Eighteenth Floor brings so-called marginalised people centre stage, along with issues like poverty, hunger, anxiety and depression. Do you think it’s important to tell stories about these kinds of characters and issues more often?
I don’t have an agenda when I write. I tell the stories of people who interest me. And if that puts the spotlight on characters and issues that might otherwise be overlooked, so much the better. Visibility leads to understanding, empathy and sometimes even change.
Visibility leads to understanding, empathy and sometimes even change.
Sara Gmuer
Would you say Wanda’s dreams come true in the end?
I don’t want to give readers any spoilers! But Wanda stays true to herself, she comes a long way, and she comes to understand that home isn’t a place, it’s a person.
And finally, can you tell us what you’d like to write next? Do you have any plans?
I’m currently on a book tour and I’m finding the book industry incredibly exciting. That might well be the setting for my next novel.
We can’t wait to read it. Thank you so much for talking to us!
Sara Gmuer’s Eighteenth Floor is a New Books in German recommended book. Read our full recommendation of the novel here.
Author photo © Urban Ruths (http://www.urbanruths.de/)
Sara Gmuer was born in 1980 in Locarno and moved to Germany after graduating from the Zurich Film Acting School. She has appeared in films by Dominik Graf and Die Ärzte, and has performed as a rapper on stage. Writing songs and lyrics has enabled her to find her own literary voice. She lives in Berlin with her husband and children.
Find out more: https://saragmuer.com/; https://www.instagram.com/saragmuer/
Sarah Rimmington is a literary and academic translator from German and French to English, and works as a reviewer, writer, copy editor and proofreader for New Books in German. She studied German and French at Queens’ College, Cambridge and has a Master’s in Contemporary European Culture. She loves contemporary German-language fiction and is particularly drawn to poetic and lyrical writing, offbeat forms and themes of identity and exclusion.
