NEW YORK (AP) — It took Pilar Quintana four years and a few drafts to write “The Abysses” (“Los Abismos”,) the winner of the 2021 Alfaguara Novel Prize. Quitana’s worries regarding maternity, and an “irrational” terror of becoming an orphan she felt as a child, inspired the Colombian author to write this story about a young girl who reflects on her parents’ troubled marriage with extraordinary perception and sensitivity. The 49-year-old author, whose previous novel was shortlisted for the 2020 National Book Award in Translated Literature, spoke recently with The Associated Press about the prestigious award, her creative process and her international success in the complicated times of the pandemic.
