FUSAC in novels, can you believe it?
Three Novels mention FUSAC!
We are so amused to have touched people lives to the point of them including a mention of the FUSAC magazine in their novel. Just recently FUSAC was alerted of a mention of the magazine in another novel. This one is called The Parisian Carousel. In this book FUSAC is mentioned three times.
« He flicked through the apartment rental adverts in the FUSAC8 magazine. Along with the goldmine for-rent section where landlords and wealthy expats with vacant Paris apartments listed sublets, it had adverts for jobs, maids, nannies, and singles. He wondered if he should be looking in the regular, or short-term, furnished, non-furnished or to-share sections. … Reading the FUSAC, he learned that in Paris, a deposit was usually the equivalent of at least one month’s rent, sometimes more. He hoped to find a landlord that would accept just a single month’s rent instead of two for the deposit. The logistics of map reading, studying FUSAC, and the free-flowing champagne from appetizer through dessert were making him sleepy. He recalled the phrase ‘one in the air equals two on the ground’. As the cabin lights dimmed after dinner, Franklin reclined in the large comfortable seat, and his heavy eyes shut… He forced himself to make a few apartment-related phone calls from the FUSAC magazine advertisements and lined up four appointments… »
Here’s a glimpse of the story by Patricia Killer and Franklin Ryanne.
Franklin Ryanne, a young gay Harvard graduate and rising PR star, arrives in Paris to embark on a promising career—and to finally uncover the mystery behind the French family he has waited a lifetime to meet. But when his taxi drops him off for a job interview in the dreary industrial suburbs, he realises that the magical city he imagined may have a darker side.
Unexpected circumstances lead Franklin to confront an unfathomable secret. Irish Lara, a flamboyant and long-time Paris resident, opens doors to intriguing locations as Franklin explores the haunts of Wilde, Hemingway, and Wallis Simpson. His quest to decode the past leads to encounters with a real-life clairvoyant, a spanking party, and even being drowned on a French movie set.
Navigating the Mafia-style politics of his new job—always with a perpetual smile—feels like something out of a Molière comedy. His Parisian life also includes glamorous costume parties, weekends in the countryside, and mastering the dating rituals required to seduce “ze Frenchman”: lean, sexy, philosophical culture machines.
Among strangers who begin to feel like home, Franklin finally starts to belong. But as the glitter fades and truths come to light, he must decide: will he complete his quest—or be carried away by the carousel of love, longing, and reinvention?
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There was even a French mention of FUSAC in novels! In 2000 French journalist Jean-Paul Jody wrote the novel Stringer, published by Editions Babel. FUSAC was mentioned in the novel on page 16 as the main character was seaching for an apartment in Paris:
« …Trois étages plus haut, la chaudière de mon cerveau bouillonnait. J’ai repris mes esprits avant de sonner. Des pas légers ont glissé jusqu’à la porte et se sont arrêtés. Quelqu’un me lorgnait à travers l’oeilleton. J’ai tendu l’exemplaire de FUSAC dans lequel la fille avait fait paraître son annonce. La porte s’est entrouverte… »
The very first novel in which FUSAC was mentioned was called Stringer. It was in French, written by a journal ist name Jean-Paul Jody. Qu’est-ce qu’un stringer ? Un vidéaste indépendant qui capture jour et nuit les images les plus sordides du quotidien américain pour les monnayer, assez modestement, auprès des chaînes de télévision. Le stringer court de drame en tragédie. Paparazzo du fait divers sanglant, il devient logiquement le révélateur privilégié de la folie d’un système. Dangereux du fait de ce qu’il communique, il court aussi le risque de devenir victime. C’est ce qu’apprend à ses dépens Filo, un jeune Français venu perdre ses rêves et ses principes à Los Angeles, quand il met le doigt dans l’engrenage et participe à cette course à l’image la plus racoleuse. Une description réaliste des dessous du monde du journalisme à sensation dans la cité des anges. Jusqu’où peut-on traquer l’information ? Un roman glauque et solide sur le monde grouillant et souterrain de l’info de série B.
A second episode of FUSAC in novels came along in 2021 Marcie Maxfield wrote the autofiction EM’S AWFUL GOOD FORTUNE. I’m not sure if this title is ironic or not – it could be ironic in that many people view overseas assignments as good fortune, but for Em it was awful or it could refer without irony to the ultimately happy ending. Maybe it’s both… In any case this is not your typical story of an American Abroad. Paris! Tokyo! Hong Kong! Shanghai! Em’s husband Gee accepts a series of exciting overseas jobs that take the family from pillar to post. But Em and the kids Ruby and Rio would really rather stay at home. He takes the jobs it because it is how he provides for his family and he can’t find gigs at home. Em hates it because her life and career are put on hold as she feels she is relegated to be mom, nanny and organizer of overseas moves. The husband and trailing spouse have different points of view which leads Em to find some relief and happiness in an affair with Bleu in Paris. The affair leads Em and Gee to seek marriage counseling and they find their therapist in FUSAC! This nonlinear story is a novel but it’s also a reflection on the « tagalong spouse ». This is not your typical story full of glamour about the American abroad. What so many see from the exterior as a exciting opportunity turns out to be an all out struggle. Setting up life in a new place, with uneasy kids, not speaking the local language, multiple déménagements, constantly making new friends, uprooting again and again and lack of meaningful work or career is a long and lonely road not for the faint of heart and certainly not for a fragile marriage. Tagging along is an emotional roller coaster that affects the whole family. Perhaps the marriage counseling should’ve been done before the overseas move. At one point Em thinks “Every time Gee gets a new post I try to make it work, and it never does, not really. Someone always loses something. Tagalong math. Gee plus his job means me minus my career or me minus the kids. Or Ruby plus the house but minus her parents. Or Gee minus, well Gee never loses that’s the fundamental core of tagalong math.” In the long run the marriage survives but the author’s fierce, authentic and personal voice comes through loud and clear with a message: marriage and especially a tagalong marriage can be a tough ride, you’ve been warned. Publisher: She Writes Press
Do you have any memories of FUSAC you’d like to share? We are getting close to our 40th birthday a would like to hear from you! Patricia Killer told us: « I found two jobs, rented apartments, and bought and sold furniture thanks to its pages—first in print and of course later online. » Send your reflections to fusac.pub@gmail.com. We would love to hear from you.