Alexis Patri 3:00 p.m., September 12, 2021
Amélie Nothomb publishes "Premier sang", her 30th novel in 30 years and her 100th manuscript.
Guest of Isabelle Morizet on Sunday in the program "There is not only one life in life", the novelist reveals the recipe for the funny magic potion which allows her to start writing as soon as she wakes up at 4 a.m., every morning.
INTERVIEW
Isabelle Morizet receives an author as sympathetic as she is mysterious on her show
There is not only one life in life
: Amélie Nothomb.
The writer, who publishes her 30th novel
First Blood
, sits down at her table every morning to write as soon as she wakes up, at 4 o'clock sharp.
A feat made possible thanks to a "magic potion" of which she reveals the astonishing recipe on Europe 1. "My secret, my magic potion, is tea. The tea, much too strong", she sums up, before to give more instructions to those who would like to follow his example.
>> Find Isabelle Morizet's shows every weekend from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. on Europe 1 as well as in podcast and replay here
"I have tried all legal and illegal substances," she reveals.
"Yes, I tried the illegal drugs too, why not? Frankly, it's good that the most effective substance for me, tea, is perfectly legal."
Forget about your delicious rooibos tea with timed infusion at the right temperature, however.
Amélie Nothomb-style tea is very different.
"Nobody wants to drink that"
The writer needs "a black tea prepared much too strong and drunk at the rate of half a liter, on an empty stomach".
"It's not sipped. You drink it all at once. It's very unpleasant," she admits.
"No one wants to drink half a liter of too strong tea on an empty stomach."
Yet it is this recipe that allows him to write effectively so early in the morning. "This tea makes your head explode and provides a kind of bubbling energy which is absolutely essential for me to write." A very personal example that Amélie Nothomb does not necessarily recommend to reproduce at home.