Process and method in Waiting for the Barbarians

This paper has two parts. The first part is introductory and involves setting out ideas related to process and method, considering how they might shed light on Coetzee’s often repeated claim that fiction can offer us access to the truth, that there is a “truth in fiction” that offers insights not available through other forms. The second part describes some of the processes and methods of composition that are apparent through paying close attention to the manuscripts of Coetzee’s third novel, Waiting for the Barbarians, and develops a reading of some of these materials and elements of the finished novel.