Born 1878 in Switzerland, Robert Walser was at various times in his life a bank teller, office clerk, scribe, house servant, machinist’s assistant, and archivist. Although he wrote four novels and some poetry, his production consisted mainly of hundreds of small prose pieces. Being small was a key concern. His writing got smaller and smaller until, before he ceased writing altogether, he wrote a tiny script with letters about one millimeter high. By this time he had committed himself to a sanitarium where he remained for 27 years, mostly not writing. Always an avid taker of walks, Walser died in a snowdrift while out for a walk in 1956.

Paul North teaches literature and critical theory in the German Department at Yale University and is the author of Bizarre Privileged Items in the Universe: The Logic of Likeness (Zone Books), The Yield: Kafka’s Atheological Reformation (Stanford University Press), The Problem of Distraction (Stanford University Press), and the translator of Robert Walser’s Answer to an Inquiry (UDP).rnrn

Friese Undine was born in Los Angles but now lives in New York. While primarily a painter, Friese also produces three-dimensional pieces and has written and performed works for theater. His work has been exhibited in the USA and internationally.