Why did Les Edtions du Délirium decide to publish Love and Invention?
We'd known Ben for a few years. He'd done work for us as a translator, consulted on English language projects and also on a couple of occasions he had been in residency with Délirium where he'd worked on a book, constantly talking, asking questions and filming things.
The book later turned out to be LOVE AND INVENTION and the subject matter wasn't just interesting to us, it was kind of written in parallel to us and, at least parts of it, in our presence. Ben's work has a way of not fitting correctly in to categories and this for some has been a worry, but for us it is delicious. Art comes from people who are prepared to push the boundaries or just ignore them altogether.
Ben's writing is robust, as is his story-telling - he's been writing for years, not just fiction but also for advertising, journalism and all kinds of copy, and the weight if his experience shows.
The key themes of the book are ones we love: the dream of flight, dancing, inventing things, questioning existence, love… It's a beautiful book with rich characters and a clever and delicately constructed plot. We love the unusual and Quixotic and this book ticks all the boxes.
When Ben approached us to publish him, we didn't hesitate. We said yes straight away.