We caught up with Colm Toíbín on the Brooklyn red carpet in London, and he revealed that he’s working on a new book set in Ancient Greece!
“I’m trying to think of a title, but every time I think of one everyone tells me it’s wrong! So I’ll have to think of a good one,” Toíbín lamented, when we asked what his next novel is called.
Colm Toíbín was at the red carpet for Brooklyn, which celebrated its European premiere Monday night in Leicester Square, London. The event was hosted by the BFI London Film Festival, and sponsored by The May Fair Hotel.
Related: Brooklyn movie review: Saoirse Ronan shines in coming-of-age drama
While he’s keen to see his next work adapted for the big screen, the seasoned author admits that he’d be doing a disservice to the novel if he wrote it with its adaptation in mind.
Fans of Brooklyn will also be delighted to hear that Toíbín has an epilogue of sorts planned for the novel, which reveals what Eilis (played in the movie by Saoirse Ronan) did next.
Check out our full interview with Colm Toíbín below:
In the interview, Toíbín praises the “raw emotion” of the film. “In a time when cinema is ironic and distant, they’ve created something close, and emotional, and raw… it belongs to an earlier time, almost,” he enthuses.
Going on to discuss the novel (beware of spoilers!), we asked if he had an idea of what main character Eilis did after the end of the story.
Toíbín revealed that he has an epilogue planned! “The only thing I know is that in to my head came a scene 20 years later, someone’s coming along and they are two of the most beautiful kids anyone’s ever seen. And they’ll be Eilis’ kids from America. I haven’t used it yet and I don’t know where I’ll use it, but it’s been in my head for a while.”
Finally, Toíbín teases the novel he’s working on right now, which is set in Ancient Greece.