21st Century Literature discussion

In much of today’s literature, we see a strong focus on fast pacing, external conflict, and visible drama.
But I often wonder about the quieter elements—the pauses, the unspoken emotions, the internal fractures that shape a character from within.

For me, silence is not emptiness.
It is a space where memory rearranges itself, where thought deepens, and where a story often begins before it is even written.

So I’d love to ask:

— Do you feel that contemporary literature still values silence and introspection?
— Which 21st-century books capture inner depth in a memorable way?
— As readers, do we still crave the quiet, reflective moments in storytelling?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.

— Raphaël Zéla

I actually think a lot of twenty-first century fiction is introspective. I'm not sure about silent... what would silent look like for you in a book?

The first writer who pops into my head as writing quiet fiction is Colm Toibín. Particularly, among the ones I've read, in Brooklyn and Nora Webster.

Rachel Cusk also stands out in that sense. Her books are occasionally so cerebral they are lacking in other places. When it works it works though.

I'm agreeing with Emmeline that without knowing your specific definitions, the question is hard to answer. If I am understanding you though, here are some recent books that might fit.

One Boat Jonathan Buckley
Will There Ever Be Another You Patricia Lockwood
Stone Yard Devotional Charlotte Wood
Western Lane Chetna Maroo
Lincoln in the Bardo George Saunders

All of these have some degree what you speak of but in each case the author has made an effort to visualize the inner working thoughts and emotions. But without some examples, I am not sure to what you refer.

Thank you, Emmeline — your perspective adds a lot of clarity to the discussion.

When I speak of “silence” in literature, I don’t mean the absence of sound or action, but rather the emotional stillness where a character’s inner world becomes louder than the external one.
Moments where nothing “happens” on the surface, yet everything shifts internally — memory rearranges itself, a realization forms, or a fracture deepens.

Colm Tóibín is an excellent example. Brooklyn and Nora Webster both carry that restrained emotional depth — a quiet tension beneath everyday life. Rachel Cusk too, with her precise, cerebral style, often writes from that contemplative space I’m drawn to.

Thank you for sharing these. Your examples help sharpen the question I’m trying to explore.

— Raphaël

Thank you for this thoughtful list — it helps anchor the conversation in concrete examples.

You’re right that my definition needed more context.
By “silence,” I mean those narrative spaces where the author trusts the reader to feel what is not explicitly stated — where introspection, hesitation, or emotional pause becomes part of the storytelling rhythm.

Stone Yard Devotional and Lincoln in the Bardo especially resonate with the kind of interiority I’m thinking about — works that visualize the mind’s undercurrents without overstating them.

I appreciate the thoughtful recommendations. They give me a clearer sense of how different authors approach quiet, reflective fiction in this century.

— Raphaël

I can recommend

Austerlitz . W G Sebald .
Anything by Clare Keegan
The Colony by Audrey Magee
Cold Enough for Snow by Jessica Au
Pew by Catherine Lacey
Anything by Hisham Mater
Anything by Carys Davies
Anything by Anuk Arudpragasam
Float by Ann Carson
Anything by Marilynne Robinson
Anything by Dasa Drndiç
The Solitude of Thomas Cave by Georgina Harding
Anything by Kathleen Jamie
Anything by Yoko Ogawa

I also appreciate novels where a lot is said between the words . I forgot one of my favourites : Patrick Modiano whose prose mirrors the gaps in the landscape left by people and buildings in Paris after WW2 .

Raphaël wrote: "In much of today’s literature, we see a strong focus on fast pacing, external conflict, and visible drama."

There's so much being published today, I'd be embarrassed to make a general statement about "much of today's literature". I do appreciate fiction that presents quiet surfaces, but is rich and dark. For example,

Samuel Moss, The Veldt Institute
Renee Gladman, Houses of Ravicka
Nicholas Rombes, Lisa 2, v1.0
Naben Ruthnum, Helpmeet

Thank you so much, Heste, for sharing this thoughtful list.
Many of these authors—Sebald, Carson, Ogawa—are creators of the kind of quiet, atmospheric literature that stays with the reader long after the last page is turned.

I appreciate your focus on writers who say so much between the words.
That subtle, lingering silence is something I deeply admire and try to explore in my own writing as well.

Modiano is an excellent addition—his ability to evoke memory, absence, and the invisible traces left by history is truly unmatched.

Thank you again for contributing such meaningful suggestions.
I’ll certainly look into the titles I haven’t read yet.

— Raphaël Zéla

Thank you, Bil, for sharing this thoughtful perspective.

You’re absolutely right—today’s literary landscape is incredibly vast, and it can be difficult (and perhaps unfair) to generalize. Your point about “quiet surfaces that are rich and dark” resonates deeply with me. That contrast between stillness and depth is something I’m always drawn to as a reader and as a writer.

I appreciate the titles you mentioned—The Veldt Institute, Houses of Ravicka, Lisa 2, and Helpmeet. They seem to embody exactly the kind of layered, introspective storytelling that invites the reader to look beneath the surface.

Thank you again for contributing such a grounded and insightful response.
It adds a lot to the conversation.

— Raphaël Zéla