Éric Chacour, Kevin Lambert, Louis-Daniel Godin, Emmanuelle Pierrot… The Quebec presence is of unprecedented weight this year in the first selections of the French literary prizes. Goncourt, Médicis, Femina, Wepler and Page 111 all have a local author. A sign of an opening of France, even of Europe, to our literary imagination? The duty asked the question to European journalists passing through Montreal last week, who came to meet, precisely, our literature and its environment.
Michel Tremblay, Vickie Gendreau, Nelly Arcan, Christian Guay-Poliquin were the authors of their first Quebec pages read. “I think the first book, for me, is Stéphane Larue, The plunger », gives as an example Gladys Marivat, from World of books and of Read Literary Magazine.
“I must have read about it before without being aware of it. There, there is a very strong language — and it’s happening in Montreal. » With her colleagues Catherine Fruchon-Toussaint from RFI, Nicolas Julliard from RTS-La Première, Élise Lépine from PointAnne-Lise Remacle of Focus Vivid and Stéphane Jarno of Telerama, she came to do her remedial course in contemporary Quebec literature. A journey of self-confident “little seduction”, organized by the National Association of Book Publishers.
What does this trip change in their visions of our books? “I have the perception of this generation of publishers born at the beginning of 2000, who have a kind of common vision of an engaged literature, which blurs a little the boundaries between genre literature and white literature, between the essay and poetry”, names Mr. Julliard, host of radio programs QWERTZ And Book Districtin Swiss.
I have the perception of this generation of publishers born at the beginning of 2000, who have a kind of common vision of an engaged literature, which blurs a little the boundaries between genre literature and white literature, between the essay and the poetry
A small environment and young authors
For meme Fruchon-Toussaint, these meetings “reconstruct the editorial landscape. The authors that I like and that I discovered from different French publishers belong here to the same house. I realize that I probably like the underground work done upstream on these books, the resonances, and that I would probably like the catalog” of the Quebec publisher.
“It also allows us to realize that it’s a small environment here, and a small market compared to France, and that that changes a lot of things,” notes M.me Marivat. “People in the community seem to know each other. » Anne-Lise Remacle notes for her part “this link in Quebec that we see between literary creation and university creation, which we do not find as much elsewhere in Europe”.
“At home, we will not have an openly feminist publishing house, for example,” says Élise Lépine, from Point, “but we will find The consent, by Vanessa Springora, in a large general practitioner house. And we will also have the opposite, with Frédéric Beigbeder who takes out his Confessions of a slightly overwhelmed heterosexual “.
In comics, Stéphane Jarno sees great freedom in Quebec. “Curiously, in alliance with professionalism. You can find such great freedoms in France in small houses, but they are not necessarily super well organized. »
Vision of France and beyond
Do these European journalists, privileged observers of literature in their territories, see a French opening to Quebec literature? The answers differ: French journalists believe that this openness has always existed.
“Except that each time, we forget,” estimates Gladys Marivat, based on the fact that Antonine Maillet, Gabrielle Roy, Anne Hébert and Dominique Fortier have already won major literary prizes.
“It is simply the increase in editorial production that makes the difference, and not necessarily an intellectual opening which would be linked to prior closure. There, there is a stronger production of Quebec authors distributed directly in France. Suddenly, that’s all we’re talking about. »
We could argue, with supporting figures, that Quebec production has rather declined in recent years, and that the fact of not having seen it before was, perhaps, the symptom of a certain denial. As the discussion progresses, however, the fact that the promotion of Quebec titles has changed quite recently in France becomes clearer. And this turning point is major.
“Suddenly,” emphasizes Catherine Fruchon-Toussaint, “I have access to more Quebec authors who come to France, who are more solidly supported there, we don’t know if it’s from their publishers in Quebec or France. But there is a superior presence offer. » Mme Marivat adds: “And they come with the press officers that we have always known…” “… who know our tropism,” continues Mme Fruchon-Toussaint.
Suddenly, I have access to more Quebec authors who come to France, who are more solidly supported there, we don’t know if it’s from their publishers in Quebec or France. But there is a superior presence offer.
The provincialization of books
For their part, journalists from Switzerland and Belgium, two literary markets which experience realities similar to those of Quebec vis-à-vis France, think on the contrary that there is now “a thaw” in France in the face of other voices. French speakers.
“In Belgium, there are two scenarios for authors who are already recognized,” explains Anne-Lise Remacle. “Being published by a medium or large house in France, with the risk of finding yourself drowned in the mass of authors from Grasset or Gallimard who are not defended. »
“A French press officer at Gallimard, for example, will not do the work with the French media for Belgian titles. For these books he will focus on the Belgian media. It’s almost provincialization,” says M.me Remacle.
“Otherwise,” continues the journalist and presenter, “an author can go to a medium-sized house with the help of an agent – like Antoine Wauters at Verdier, who is the archetype of what should happen but which does not happen in reality only very rarely. »
And finally, “all those authors who choose to be published in Belgium, with very poor distribution, and who are thus made invisible, because Belgian houses are very poorly distributed in France”.
“At home, it looks like Belgium,” continues Mr. Julliard. “We have a few Swiss authors who are starting to break through in France, because they are taken by French houses, like Rinny Gremaud, with Sabine Wespieser, with her generator. »
“Otherwise, we only have one or two publishers, like Zoé, who have the strength to export to France, like La Baconnière, and Hélice Hélas. » If there is an opening to other voices, the space for houses outside France remains very small.
“I’m a little optimistic,” continues Nicolas Julliard. “As we see for Quebec, interest in France is growing for the scene in French-speaking Switzerland. We feel that there are readers who want to come and see what is being done. There is a slight thaw. »
“As long as Quebecers are easily available, there will no longer be a problem; they will be read,” estimates Gladys Marivat. “Afterwards, we can wonder what the Parisian publishers will publish,” she reflects.
“Ah well that! It’s their problem! » exclaims Mme Fruchon-Toussaint laughing. Stéphane Jarno adds: “It might finally make them move a little. That’s how it works too, and it’s good. »