Henry Miller's Tropic of Cancer: Creating the 'New Man' Out Of Chaos

Interview with the author Barry L. Russell

Author Barry L. Russell in Kingston, Ontario, Canada

Barry L. Russell, Kingston, Canada, 2020

I love my job as a graphic artist and book cover designer, not only because it's about art, but because I like to communicate with different and interesting people, such as the authors.

I recently had the opportunity to meet Barry L. Russell, a Canadian author who has published many books, stories, and articles. He's been published in DailyArt Magazine and Nexus journal. As an indie author, he publishes at KDP Amazon. Barry L. Russell has also lectured on American writer Henry Miller in Chengdu, China.

Together we created the concept for the new cover of his book "Henry Miller's Tropic Of Cancer: Creating The New Man Out Of Chaos," which turned out to be an exciting challenge. The cover had to be something different, to grab and talk about his manuscript at first glance. The result is this fantastic conceptual abstract artwork.

Tropic of Cancer, Miller’s first Paris book, has never really been understood by the critics or anyone else for that matter, simply because what he said is not something that most people think about. Only the damned souls of artists like himself, who suffered the loss of everything, know what goes into a great artistic masterpiece. The act of writing, Tropic of Cancer, changed Miller’s perceptions of life and love forever. It was the book that made him into a ‘new kind of man’ out of his own and the world’s chaos.

Book Cover Design by Donika Mishineva - artofdonika.com

But to find out precisely what the cover means, you'll have to take a look at Barry L. Russell's amazing book. You can download a free sample here.

And here is what Barry L. Russell shares with us in the interview he did, especially for this blog with the assistance of Aaron Parsons.

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What inspired you to write this book?

My inspiration came when I first read Henry Miller's book 'Plexus' when I was about 18 years old. I suddenly realized I was listening to somebody who was making more sense than the world around me.

Tropic of Cancer, Miller’s first Paris book, has never really been understood by the critics or anyone else for that matter, simply because what he said is not something that most people think about. Only the damned souls of artists like himself, who suffered the loss of everything, know what goes into a great artistic masterpiece. The act of writing, Tropic of Cancer, changed Miller’s perceptions of life and love forever. It was the book that made him into a ‘new kind of man’ out of his own and the world’s chaos.

What is the hardest part of writing your books?

The most time consuming part is doing a lot of reading beforehand. Writing takes years of practised too, of course.'

Which of your books was the biggest challenge for you, and why?

Well, all the books are a challenge for me, each one I write. Each has their own problems with their own solution, and I dedicate as much as myself as I can to each one of them.

But, which one would you say you were the most invested in?

The one I got invested in the most was the book about Henry Miller's book, 'The Tropic of Cancer'.

Why?

Oh, he was a very complicated writer, and one needs to do a lot of research about his life and read a lot of the books he recommended to understand exactly where he's coming from.

Can you list some of your favorite authors or books?

The books that I've read, which is hundreds and hundreds of books, have come from many lists of great books to read. They're usually not best-sellers, though.