...The second
book which I have ready is called
Dubliners. It is a collection of
twelve short stories. It is possible that you would consider it to be of a
commercial nature. I would gladly
submit it to you before sending it to Messrs Constable and, if you could promise to
publish it soon, I would
gladly agree.
Unfortunately I am in such circumstances that it is
necessary for me to have either of the books published
as soon as possible.
I do not think that any writer has yet presented Dublin to the world. It has been a capital of Europe for thousands of years, it is supposed to be the second city of the British Empire and it is nearly three times as big as Venice. Moreover, on account of many circumstances which I cannot detail here, the expression 'Dubliners' seems to me to have some meaning and I doubt whether the same can be said for such words as 'Londoner' and 'Parisian' both of which have been used by writers as titles. From time to time I see in publishers' lists announcements of books on Irish subjects, so that I think people might be willing to pay for the special odour of corruption which, I hope, floats over my stories.
Correspondence Regarding Joyce's "Dubliners":
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