Elusive dreams

By Naguib Mahfouz

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I am still writing Dreams of Convalescence, the series, now turned into a book, of which fresh episodes appear monthly in the Cairo-based magazine Nisf Al-Donya. The series is based on actual and not imagined dreams. So if I forget what I dreamed I cannot write. This is a problem. When I was sick recently I found it harder to recall what my dreams were about. Dreams are elusive things and there is no guarantee you will be able to recall them once you are awake. Often you forget even those you know were rich in detail.

I have written some 200 dreams so far and not all of them have been published. I always keep some aside, an insurance of sorts against dry spells. I use them when fresh dreams are few and far between. Recently I've come increasingly to think that dreams are like people -- they appreciate good company. When you are sick you are much less fun and the dreams go elsewhere to play.

Based on an interview by Mohamed Salmawy.