TROP-PLEIN: Overflow

A DEBUT NOVEL THAT OPENS A DOOR INTO THE WORLD OF MALE EMOTIONS AND THE CONSTANT TUG-OF-WAR BETWEEN REMEMBERING AND FORGETTING.

On the eve of his 43rd birthday, the age at which his father died, an unnamed narrator decides to examine his memories, one by one, discarding those that risk holding him back in life and keeping the ones that still seem relevant. This novel tells the story of his reckoning process in 43 short chapters, each chapter a piece of the puzzle that is memory: vivid, fleeting or vanished.

EXCERPT
If I could cast off even one twenty-sixth of the contents of my memory, I might feel some relief.
It's time to bite the bullet. Arbitrarily I erase every trace of this letter of the alphabet from my mind.
From now on, there'll be nothing left of it. I tell myself it's not essential; I can finish my sentences without it. There's no going back after this, but I'm owning it. Is it really that pressing for me to do this now? Maybe not. But I'm planning ahead. I don't want to put it off until another time, like I always do. Freeing up the space in my mind will make room for something else—something new, and it had better be good. For the days that remain, which I hope will be numerous, I announce this change. The absence of this long, dumb, upright bar, a capital letter, will probably go unnoticed. Right? See, it's already gone. The workarounds aren't obvious. Loose or tight, I don't miss this letter at all. I hold on to no remnants of its accent, and I feel free. I'm excited about this project of mine.

Martin Talbot is a director and screenwriter. In 2018, he directed the TV series File d'attente (Waiting in Line) for TV5.