New Thomas Ligotti Interview

A recent interview with Thomas Ligotti is up at the Mumpsimus blog. In it, Ligotti discusses his upcoming non-fictional work, "The Conspiracy Against the Human Race," and his ideas on ameliorating human suffering. A philosophical conversation from a thoughtful writer, who also experienced his own lifelong battles with pain. His latest piece was up in draft form for a time on his website. It draws upon earlier musings on the dismal and the suffering from various pessimistic philosophers. Indeed, it goes beyond that to butress the notion that life itself is suffering, an idea recorded since Siddhartha Guatama, while human consciousness makes this torment particularly accute. Ligotti's suggestion of lies and illusions to obscure the torture is even more telling, and still bears a stamp of Eastern philosophy, though notably without the hopeful escape of enlightenment.

Even in draft form, Ligotti is near his best in this new project. He beautifully ties together and summarizes earlier currents of thought from Peter Wessel Zapffe and others. Of even more appeal to horror readers, perhaps, he also discusses horror writers and their work in relation to the deeper philosophers detailed. This section seems like it will become more expansive and intricate in the final version, which will hopefully appear next year. I believe "The Conspiracy Against the Human Race" will be about the size of a small book, and is the first long non-fiction piece of this sort by Ligotti. Keep an eye out for it.

-Grim Blogger