Belle & Sebastian frontman Stuart Murdoch has announced details of his debut novel.
Description “part memoir and part fiction,” Nobody’s Empire It follows Stephen, the lead character with chronic fatigue syndrome just like Murdoch. It is scheduled to be released in 2024.
“I drifted into writing Nobody’s Empire,” Murdoch stated in a press release. “It felt like the right time to tell this story in long-form, even though I have been singing about it for years. As I wrote the book, I imagined that I was doing it for ME/CFS sufferers. The story became increasingly important as it progressed.
“I needed it as much as it needed me and I leant heavily on it for solace. Therefore, when it was picked up by Faber for publication, I was elated and very relieved. Hopefully, this is the start of a beautiful relationship!”
It’s a great honor to be an author of f..f..Faber! The book will be polished for you by next year. We’ll also get some good art done.😊 https://t.co/ROzRp31C1C
— stuart murdoch (@nee_massey) The 13th of September 2023
Earlier this year, Belle & Sebastian cancelled their American tour, citing Murdoch’s health.
The statement read: “Hi folks. It’s Stuart from Belle and Sebastian here. Unfortunately, we have had to cancel our North American tour in 2023.
“As you might be aware my health took a dive around November 2022. “While I’m hoping to get better in the next few months, I felt that it was safer to cancel the tour to leave myself a path for recovery than to take a chance and cancel last-minute.
“We had a great plan in place, to release our second LP in six months and hit America up again! While the record made it out, we’re going to have to wait a bit longer until we can tour it. We apologise again for the inconvenience we have caused you. Sincerely yours, Stuart.”
In the first quarter of 2023 the band will release a brand new, surprise album. ‘Late Developers’The single was shared by a number of people ‘I Don’t Know What You See In Me’. It’s the Scottish indie veterans’ 12th studio album and was released on January 13.
Eight months since their previous record, the band has released a new album. ‘A Bit Of Previous’, Murdoch recently told NME You can also find out more about us here. ‘Late Developers’ was born of the same sessions in the band’s native Glasgow in 2021. The group’s rehearsal space was converted into a makeshift COVID safe studio after plans to record in Los Angeles had to be abandoned because of the pandemic. Murdoch explained that following the time of lockdown he began sessions. ‘A Bit of Previous’ “with about 30 songs”.
