Deborah Treisman

Treisman was born in Oxford, England, and spent her first years in England. She grew up in a family of scholars. Her mother was the noted cognitive psychologist Anne Treisman.{{Cite news |last=Genzlinger |first=Neil |date=2018-02-13 |title=Anne Treisman, Who Studied How We Perceive, Dies at 82 |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/13/obituaries/anne-treisman-who-studied-how-we-perceive-dies-at-82.html |access-date=2022-09-12 |issn=0362-4331}} Her stepfather, Daniel Kahneman, won a Nobel prize in economic science. When Treisman was eight, her family relocated to Vancouver, British Columbia.

Treisman submitted her own writing to The New Yorker at the age of 11. Her submission was rejected.{{Cite web |date=2018-07-30 |title=40 Under 40 - Deborah Treisman |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/awards/deborah-treisman |access-date=2022-08-29 |website=Crain's New York Business |language=en}} She began her studies at the University of California at Berkeley at the age of 16 and went on to earn her degree in Comparative Literature.{{Cite web |date=2018-07-30 |title=40 Under 40 - Deborah Treisman |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/awards/deborah-treisman |access-date=2022-09-12 |website=Crain's New York Business |language=en}}

In 2003, Treisman took the helm of the magazine's Fiction section after then-Fiction Editor Bill Buford transitioned to other staff work and writing projects of his own. She was hired by Buford and served as his Deputy Fiction Editor from 1997 to 2003. At the age of 32, Treisman was the youngest person to be the esteemed magazine's Fiction Editor and only the second woman to do so since Katherine Sergeant Angell White was at the post from the magazine's inception in 1925 until 1960.

Prior to her tenure as Fiction Editor, The New York Times reported that The New Yorker published more male than female fiction writers. There was speculation at the time that Treisman might push the section to publish not only more women but also experimental and international writers. In an interview at the time, Treisman maintained a neutral stance, "We are not short on great work, but why not have variety and why not have the best? With 52 stories a year, we have that kind of flexibility." While data on the gender of authors published at The New Yorker only stretches back to 2010, the nonprofit organization VIDA: Women in Literary Arts reports that at that time, only 26.7% of the magazine's authors were women. In its most recent report in 2019, VIDA showed that 45.0% of The New Yorker contributors were women, 54.9% were men, and .1% of contributors were gender nonbinary.{{Cite web |title=The 2019 VIDA Count • VIDA: Women in Literary Arts |url=https://www.vidaweb.org/the-count/2019-vida-count/ |access-date=2022-08-29 |website=VIDA: Women in Literary Arts |language=en-US}} In 2005, the magazine centered their annual Fiction issue on stories of international writers, highlighting such voices as Chile's Roberto Bolaño and Japan's Yōko Ogawa.{{Cite magazine |date=2010-06-04 |title=Ask the Editor Live: Deborah Treisman |url=https://www.newyorker.com/books/ask-the-author/ask-the-editor-live-deborah-treisman |access-date=2022-09-12 |magazine=The New Yorker |language=en-US}}{{Cite magazine |title=The New Yorker December 26, 2005 Issue |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2005/12/26 |access-date=2022-09-12 |magazine=The New Yorker |language=en}}

One story, "Cat Person", published in a December 2017 issue of The New Yorker, follows disturbing developments in a relationship between a 20-year-old woman and an older man. The story, written by Kristen Roupenian, sparked an unprecedented readership for a fictional story (an estimated 2 million readers) and heated discussions on social media about consent, gender, and power. The large readership is attributed by some to the story's publication at the height of the #MeToo movement. In an interview with Scroll.in in early 2018, Treisman described her response and decision to publish the story: "It was an intense read and maybe uncomfortable. My first instinct might have been to say no for that reason but it was actually the best reason to say yes. So I decided to take it."{{Cite web |last=Sharma |first=Kanika |title='It was uncomfortable. The best reason to say yes': Deborah Treisman on publishing 'Cat Person' |url=https://scroll.in/article/863963/it-was-uncomfortable-the-best-reason-to-say-yes-deborah-treisman-on-publishing-cat-person|date=January 6, 2018 |access-date=2022-09-12 |website=Scroll.in |language=en-US}}

Prior to her work at The New Yorker, Treisman was the managing editor at Grand Street and worked on the editorial staff of The New York Review of Books, Harper's Magazine, and The Threepenny Review.{{Cite web |date=August 29, 2022 |title=Deborah Treisman: Laureate of Irish Fiction Selection Panel |url=https://www.artscouncil.ie/Arts-in-Ireland/Literature/Deborah-Treisman/ |website=The Arts Council}}

The New Yorker: Fiction is a podcast hosted by Treisman and produced by The New Yorker.{{Cite news |last=Lowe |first=Simon |date=November 7, 2016 |title=Words in your ears: the 10 best books podcasts |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2016/nov/07/words-in-your-ears-the-10-best-books-podcasts |access-date=February 18, 2024 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077 |archive-date=September 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923201450/https://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2016/nov/07/words-in-your-ears-the-10-best-books-podcasts |url-status=live }} In each episode a writer is invited onto the show to read one of their favorite short stories from The New Yorker's archive. The reading is then followed by a discussion with the host.{{Cite web |date=June 8, 2013 |title=Featured Podcast: New Yorker Fiction |url=https://junkee.com/featured-podcast-new-yorker-fiction/11344 |access-date=February 18, 2024 |website=Junkee |language=en-US |archive-date=December 29, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131229052038/http://junkee.com/featured-podcast-new-yorker-fiction/11344 |url-status=live }}

In each episode, a guest reads a short story from the archive of The New Yorker followed by a discussion between the guest and Treisman.{{Cite web |last=McQuade |first=Laura Jane Standley, Devon Taylor, Eric |date=December 22, 2015 |title=The 50 Best Podcast Episodes of 2015 |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/12/the-50-best-podcast-episodes-of-2015/421572/ |access-date=February 18, 2024 |website=The Atlantic |language=en |archive-date=December 22, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222164630/https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/12/the-50-best-podcast-episodes-of-2015/421572/ |url-status=live }} The podcast is able to consistently have well known writers on the show because The New Yorker has continued to publish short stories for such a long time.{{Cite web |title=The New Yorker's Fiction Podcast: Where Great Writers Read Stories by Great Writers |url=https://www.openculture.com/2012/06/the_new_yorkers_fiction_podcast.html |access-date=February 18, 2024 |language=en-US |archive-date=February 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240215222935/https://www.openculture.com/2012/06/the_new_yorkers_fiction_podcast.html |url-status=live }} The show has featured guests such as David Sedaris, Ben Marcus, and Salman Rushdie.{{Cite web |date=December 19, 2018 |title=11 podcasts for holiday binge listening |url=https://www.artshub.com.au/news/features/11-podcasts-for-holiday-binge-listening-257017-2361761/ |first=Sabine|last=Brix|access-date=February 18, 2024 |website=artshub.com.au |language=en-AU |archive-date=February 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240218171823/https://www.artshub.com.au/news/features/11-podcasts-for-holiday-binge-listening-257017-2361761/ |url-status=live }} The show releases episodes on a monthly basis.{{Cite web |last=Warner |first=John |date=August 30, 2017 |title=5 podcasts every book lover should hear |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2017/08/30/5-podcasts-every-book-lover-should-hear/ |access-date=February 18, 2024 |website=Chicago Tribune |language=en-US |archive-date=February 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240218171923/https://www.chicagotribune.com/2017/08/30/5-podcasts-every-book-lover-should-hear/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |last=Hunt |first=Elle |date=November 23, 2021 |title=The long and short-form of it: podcasts that will teach you how to write |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/nov/23/the-long-and-short-form-of-it-podcasts-that-will-teach-you-how-to-write |access-date=February 18, 2024 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077 |archive-date=May 28, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230528180200/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/nov/23/the-long-and-short-form-of-it-podcasts-that-will-teach-you-how-to-write |url-status=live }}

The show released a few trial episodes in early 2007 and the show officially debuted later that year in October.{{cite web |last1=Treisman |first1=Deborah |title=A Decade of the New Yorker Fiction Podcast |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/decade-in-review/a-decade-of-the-new-yorker-fiction-podcast |website=The New Yorker |access-date=February 18, 2024 |date=December 24, 2019}} The episodes are about an hour in length and the subject matter is occasionally for a mature audience.{{Cite web |last=Gomez |first=Caroline Chamberlain |last2=McGrane |first2=Clare |date=June 24, 2019 |title=Two podcasts you should listen to this week: 'In the Dark' and 'The New Yorker: Fiction' |url=https://www.kuow.org/stories/two-podcasts-you-should-listen-to-this-week-in-the-dark-and-the-new-yorker-fiction |access-date=February 18, 2024 |website=kuow.org |language=en |archive-date=June 24, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190624222710/https://kuow.org/stories/two-podcasts-you-should-listen-to-this-week-in-the-dark-and-the-new-yorker-fiction |url-status=live }}

At the Hot Docs Podcast Festival in Toronto in November 2024, the show did a live episode where Margaret Atwood read Varieties of Exile by Mavis Gallant.{{Cite web |last=Gwynne |first=Amber |date=January 3, 2024 |title=15 literary podcasts to make you laugh, learn and join conversations about books |url=http://theconversation.com/15-literary-podcasts-to-make-you-laugh-learn-and-join-conversations-about-books-218792 |access-date=February 18, 2024 |website=The Conversation |language=en-US |archive-date=January 10, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240110173417/https://theconversation.com/15-literary-podcasts-to-make-you-laugh-learn-and-join-conversations-about-books-218792 |url-status=live }} Sarah Bannan praised the show in The Irish Times saying "the writers are superb. So too are the stories."{{Cite web |title=Sarah Bannan selects her top 10 literary podcasts |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/sarah-bannan-selects-her-top-10-literary-podcasts-1.2213862 |access-date=February 18, 2024 |website=The Irish Times |language=en |archive-date=August 13, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160813034125/http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/sarah-bannan-selects-her-top-10-literary-podcasts-1.2213862 |url-status=live }} The show was nominated for a Webby Award in 2020.{{Cite web |title=Nominee. The New Yorker's Fiction Podcast. The New Yorker |url=http://winners.webbyawards.com/2020/podcasts/general-series/scripted-fiction/114239/the-new-yorkers-fiction-podcast |access-date=February 18, 2024 |website=Webby Awards |language=en |archive-date=May 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230529023852/https://winners.webbyawards.com/2020/podcasts/general-series/scripted-fiction/114239/the-new-yorkers-fiction-podcast |url-status=live }}

In 2017, Bloomsbury USA published The Dream Colony: A Life in Art, a book Treisman co-authored with the artist Walter Hopps and Anne Doran. The Dream Colony is a memoir and visual catalogue of Hopps' life as a curator of art in the second half of the 20th century. In his early twenties, Hopps founded the Ferus Gallery in Los Angeles, which spotlighted West Coast artists. He went on to curate collections at such galleries and institutions as the Pasadena Art Museum (now the Norton Simon Museum of Art), the Washington Gallery of Fine Art, and the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Treisman describes Hopps in an interview with The Paris Review: "I think he saw art not as a historical progression—a series of movements over time, each one leading to the next—but as something that happens, in a sense, all at once, a world in which a Renaissance Pietà exists alongside a Duchamp urinal or a Warhol soup can."{{Cite web |last=Nadel |first=Dan |date=2017-06-15 |title=Writing Walter Hopps: An Interview with Deborah Treisman |url=https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2017/06/15/writing-walter-hopps-interview-deborah-treisman/ |access-date=2022-09-12 |website=The Paris Review |language=en}}

In 1990, Hopps signed on as Art Editor for Grand Street. There he worked with Treisman, who became the Managing Editor in 1994, and Doran, who later became the Assistant Art Editor. Treisman describes the trio's process of creating the book as one of collaboration: Doran would record her interviews of Hopps about his life and the artists he engaged with over his career, and then Treisman would "listen and transcribe whatever seemed useful, turning it into more coherent sentences and paragraphs as [she] went and ignoring whatever wasn’t relevant to the book."

In 2010, Treisman and the rest of The New Yorker's Fiction editorial team (Cressida Leyshon, Willing Davidson, Roger Angell) set the task for their annual June Fiction issue as "naming twenty North American writers under the age of forty who [they] felt were, or soon to be, standouts in the diverse and expansive panorama of contemporary fiction."{{Cite book |title=20 Under 40: Stories from The New Yorker |publisher=Farrar, Straus, and Giroux |year=2010 |edition=Edited by Deborah Treisman |location=New York}} The next several issues of the magazine featured stories from those writers, and those stories were eventually anthologized in the book 20 Under 40: Stories from The New Yorker, published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux in the same year. The list featured 10 women and 10 men who, at the time, had at least one complete book or manuscript and a story on hand for the magazine to publish. Names on the list included Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Daniel Alarcón, Joshua Ferris, Yiyun Li, ZZ Packer, and Salvatore Scibona.{{Cite news |last=Bosman |first=Julie |date=2010-06-02 |title=20 Young Writers Earn the Envy of Many Others |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/03/books/03under.html |access-date=2022-09-12 |issn=0362-4331}}

In her introduction to the anthology, Treisman acknowledges the limitations of lists and explains what set the included writers apart: "These writers are not all iconoclasts; some are purposefully working within existing traditions. But they are all aiming high. In a culture that is flooded with words, sounds, and pictures, they are fighting to get our attention, and to hold it. They are digging within themselves—and around themselves—to bring us news both of the world and of the human heart."

On occasion, Treisman has contributed to The New Yorker's Talk of the Town section after the passing of notable fiction writers who contributed to the magazine. In particular, she wrote about her experiences working with David Foster Wallace{{Cite magazine |last=Treisman |first=Deborah |date=September 29, 2008 |title=David Foster Wallace |magazine=The New Yorker |volume=84 |issue=30 |pages=26}} and about Mavis Gallant's legacy and contributions to the short story.{{Cite magazine |last=Treisman |first=Deborah |date=March 3, 2014 |title=Mavis Gallant |magazine=The New Yorker |volume=90 |issue=2 |pages=27}} Treisman has also translated works from French into English by such authors as Patrick Chamoiseau{{Cite journal |last=Chamoiseau |first=Patrick |date=1998 |title=The Old Man Slave and the Mastiff |journal=Grand Street |volume=63 |issue=19 |pages=6–19 |doi=10.2307/25008238 |jstor=25008238 }} and Linda Lê.{{Cite journal |last=Lê |first=Linda |date=2002 |title=The Dead Won't Let Us Go |journal=Grand Street |volume=70 |pages=90–96|doi=10.2307/25008595 |jstor=25008595 }}{{Cite journal |last=Lê |first=Linda |date=1999 |title=Voice Crisis |journal=Grand Street |volume=17 |issue=3 |pages=27–34 |doi=10.2307/25008430 |jstor=25008430 |via=Gale General OneFile}}{{Cite journal |last=Lê |first=Linda |date=1998 |title=The Three Fates |journal=Grand Street |volume=17 |issue=1 |pages=110–124 |doi=10.2307/25008345 |jstor=25008345 |via=Gale General OneFile}}

• Hopps, Walter, Treisman, Deborah, and Doran, Anne. (2017). The Dream Colony: A Life in Art. Bloomsbury USA.
• (2010). Deborah Treisman (ed.). 20 Under 40: Stories from The New Yorker. Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.

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• [https://www.newyorker.com/podcast/fiction The New Yorker: Fiction]

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