“Authors are best known through their books...”

This review is dedicated to the book by a renowned literary critic, lecturer at the A. M. Gorky Literary Institute, and editor of one of the best literary and artistic journals, S. I. Chuprinin. S. I. Chuprinin’s course of lectures for students at the Literary Institute is embedded in the context of the writer’s socio-literary activities, including his articles and books on the destiny of our literature. The book’s content encompasses reflections on the role and mission of the writer, the venues and methods of publishing works, reader feedback, literary editors and awards, freedom of speech, and self-censorship. S. I. Chuprinin discusses fame and ephemeral success, the hierarchy within the literary world, and the mechanisms of promoting a literary brand. He provides numerous details, creating his own history of literature, literary life, and literary culture. Written with emotion and inspiration, this course of lectures radiates the author’s love for his audience. By explaining how the literary space is structured and how to navigate it, S. I. Chuprinin aims to convey to future writers the unpredictability of the writing profession, its significant moral underpinnings, and its responsibility to the reader. The book does not delve into the “spiritual thirst” that drives a writer to create a literary masterpiece, but rather into the everyday aspects of the writer’s work and literary life in general. This rather controversial approach to the writer’s labor, whose existence and purpose have always held a sacred meaning, results in unexpected effects in the reviewed book. Through the lens of the gradual formation of literary reputation and all its components, the author engagingly acquaints the audience and readers with the foundations of artistic creativity, demonstrates the ways literature exists in modern society, and discusses the features of promoting the resulting creative output.

Chuprinin, literary space, freedom of speech, censorship, plagiarism, graphomania, critic, reviewer