Jesús Vera Cristóbal: The voice that letters have

The townsfolk suddenly fall silent, hypnotized, when, freshly arrived at the Bar, Jesús Vera Cristóbal asks for "a long coffee with ice and a slice of lemon" with that deep, melodic voice of his, which even when he's ordering a coffee sounds like he's narrating a story. He pauses for a few seconds, after which he finishes: "And while you're at it, add a few drops of whiskey too." He leans on the bar, enjoying the mid-morning atmosphere ---"with how much of a night owl I used to be, but I'm afraid the years don't forgive"--- and the fact that "reggaeton isn't playing" on the radio.

An relentless devourer of literature of all types and genres, a confessed devotee of the world of letters, the regular has been in many different scrapes ranging from promoting authors to editorial work, including his facet as a writer with which he materialized his narrative debut a few years ago, Náufrago en la ciudad (Castaway in the City). The book combined stories, poems, and reflections where he moved like a fish in water through terrains as disparate as science fiction, noir fiction, or fantasy, to address vitally transcendent issues such as pain, loss, or love.

Today, he focuses his activity on extracting all the nuances of their possible voices from letters. He talks about books on the programs Culturalia and Calaix de Llibres, both on Ràdio Trinijove; he records promotional audios and dramatized readings for various authors and, for some time now, co-hosts a radio magazine on paranormal themes, Voces del ultratumba (Voices from the Grave), "where I give it my touch of irony and sarcasm when appropriate and, of course, all the seriousness that the topic may deserve on the occasions that call for it."

To this radio and vocal activity, he adds the work of editor for the emerging Barcelona publishing house Dédalo. A facet with which he feels particularly comfortable. "I like dealing with authors, the friendship and camaraderie that derive from my relationship with them. That, for me, is priceless."

Navigating the Carambolas

Jesús smiles sideways at the question of how he got into this whole world of books and radio, in an environment that reads less and less and listens rather little. "The truth is that all this about being a literary promoter and putting my voice at the service of books and authors has been the result of the carambolas I've had in that game of billiards that is life," he replies. His voice attracts the people gathered around the bar. "Obviously we are the white ball ---he continues---, the rest are our objectives and the player and the cue would be God, Providence, the Cosmos or whatever you want to call it".

It all started more than two decades ago, when a friend of his told him that they needed new voices for a digital radio station. "To my surprise, they liked me, but after a short time I felt overwhelmed being alone playing songs and presenting them in the 40 Principales style, so I told myself 'if your voice is liked, why don't you record texts, voice them over and make a program with it?'. And I went for it, and it was also liked and, little by little, I started making contacts". From there he jumped to FM and even collaborated for a television program whose name he doesn't want to remember.

"The truth is that all this about being a literary promoter and putting my voice at the service of books and authors has been the result of the carambolas I've had in that game of billiards that is life"

"Ah, buddy, it turned out that culture doesn't sell. They offered me to change my cultural section for TV criticism and I didn't see myself there, so after four programs I left my great career in television," he laughs. The next carom led him to a publishing house whose name he also doesn't seem very interested in remembering, "where I learned as much what should be done in this little world as what shouldn't."

--- Hey, what about writing? Your first book did well!

The regular sips some of his coffee. "I've had a novel buzzing in my head for a few months now, I'm currently in the research phase," he anticipates, without revealing further details.

The city is its people

"Barcelona is my city, I love it and I adore walking its streets, especially Via Laietana and the Gothic Quarter," explains the writer and broadcaster who confesses a strange addiction: "I need to smell the saltpeter of the Mediterranean Sea, even if it's from afar."

Annoyed with the dirt, he doesn't blame only the city council for it, "which also has its share of responsibility," but above all the people "who seem not to know what a garbage container or a wastebasket is." But in general, the local populace is what, perhaps, he loves most about the city: "The people are the history of Barcelona!" he exclaims. "The greeting of a lady going shopping when you cross paths with her, the hustle and bustle of the center, its houses, its parks…", he recites, finishing his coffee with his gaze mentally fixed on the life that populates the streets of this city, which is what gives color and flavor to the experience of living here.

"Barcelona is my city, I love it and I adore walking its streets, especially Via Laietana and the Gothic Quarter"

Jesús Vera Cristóbal smiles broadly. "With half a menu I already do ---he replies--- that one has to keep the figure."