Hodgkinson, Tom 1968–

PERSONAL: Born 1968, in England.

ADDRESSES: Home—Devon, England. Office—Idle Limited, Studio20, 24-28a Hatton Wall, London EC1N 8JH, England. Agent—Cat Ledger Literary Agency, 20-21 Newman St., London W1T 1PG, England. E-mail—tom@idler.co.uk.

CAREER: Has worked as a freelance journalist; Idler, London, England, founder and editor, 1993–.

WRITINGS:

(Editor, with Matthew De Abaitua) The Idler's Companion: An Anthology of Lazy Literature, Ecco (New York, NY), 1997.

How to Be Idle, Hamish Hamilton (London, England), 2004, HarperCollins Publishers (New York, NY), 2005.

Contributor of articles to Idler.

SIDELIGHTS: Tom Hodgkinson worked for several years as a freelance journalist before he decided to start his own magazine. The concept for the Idler came while Hodgkinson was reading a series of eighteenth-century essays by Samuel Johnson. In an interview with Richard Marshall for 3 AM online, the author explained the initial seed of the idea. "[Johnson] was describing the character of an Idler and what he was describing was not someone who was just lazy but someone who worked in a different kind of way. So someone who finds it very difficult to get to work on time and work the eight hours might be able to do something good very quickly. He was describing this idea of an Idler as someone who worked by building up a momentum." Hodgkinson took this concept and expanded upon it, using the magazine as a forum to focus on the idea that working endless hours simply to get ahead is not the only acceptable way to organize one's life. Instead, it is possible to be idle, thinking about the work to come, and then put one's mind to the task and get it accomplished in a short period of time. After the job is completed, according to Hodgkinson, there is no shame in returning to an idle state. He also suggests that there is more creativity inherent in drifting until an idea strikes.

Regarding his goals for the magazine, Hodgkinson told Marshall, "The only agenda is the celebration of idleness as a positive force not a negative one. Ideas happen when you're idle. You can't have ideas if you're working all the time. They come when you're lying in the bath or drinking." Speaking with Katie Renz in AlterNet, Hodgkinson remarked that "for most of us, the opportunity to become creative is being squeezed at both ends. We think, 'Well, I've been doing all that work, and now I'm going to reward myself by doing a lot of spending.' What would happen in the days before time was money and money and machines weren't quite so dominant would be you'd have all this other time when you'd do what turned into hobbies."

This concept serves as the foundation for Hodgkinson's book How to Be Idle. The twenty-four essays included here stress the pleasures of an idle lifestyle and argue against the stress and strain of a hectic schedule. Throughout, Hodgkinson frequently quotes poetry and essays that support his claims. A contributor to Publishers Weekly found Hodgkinson's arguments interesting from an anthropological point of view, but concluded that they are ultimately "antiquated and condescending toward the poor slobs who must actually go to work every day." But Wendy Lee, in a review for Library Journal, observed that the author "offers a humorous peek at the worth and wonders of slowing down."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Kirkus Reviews, March 15, 2005, review of How to Be Idle, p. 334.

Library Journal, November 1, 1997, Ronald Ray Rattliff, review of The Idler's Companion: An Anthology of Lazy Literature, p. 74; May 1, 2005, Wendy Lee, review of How to Be Idle, p. 106.

Publishers Weekly, April 11, 2005, review of How to Be Idle, p. 45.

ONLINE

3AM Online, http://www.3ammagazine.com/ (August 30, 2005), Richard Marshall, "An Interview with Tom Hodgkinson."

AlterNet, http://www.alternet.org/ (August 30, 2005), Katie Renz, "An Idler's Life," interview with Tom Hodgkinson.

BookLoons, http://www.bookloons.com/ (August 30, 2005), Hillary Williamson, review of How to Be Idle.

Idler Web site, http://www.idler.co.uk/ (August 30, 2005), "Tom Hodgkinson."