[VIDEO PORTRAIT]

Marion Mazauric

Editor in the Gard

Marion Mazauric works for her own publishing house, Au Diable Vauvert, in her native Gard region. She tells us how this adventure came about, how Provence inspires her every day, and how she accompanies each author through the publishing process. Interview.

How did your love of publishing come about?

I’m a publisher originally from the Gard region of France. I spent my childhood feeling exiled from my family’s homeland, because my parents were teachers and were appointed to Normandy. I spent my childhood waiting for the vacations to come back to the country, I was totally in love with its culture, the horses, the bulls, the garrigue. After 15 years as an editor in Paris with Flammarion, I decided to set up my own publishing house here in the Gard: Au Diable Vauvert.

Portrait de Marion Mazauric, éditrice dans le Gard

What makes your “Au Diable Vauvert” publishing house different?

Au Diable Vauvert is very different from other publishing houses. We’re a long way from the decision-making centers, yet our aim is to develop a literary catalog of interest to the whole of France and even the whole world. The idea is to publish little, to follow the authors, to accompany them. Each book, each author, we defend and accompany in a unique way: very organic, it’s hand-sewn! The irresistible Provençal writer is perhaps the one we don’t necessarily expect, because his name is less well known than his work: Denys Colomb de Daunant, who wrote the text for Crin Blanc. It’s an absolutely magnificent story, which is also the story of the Camargue. The incredible ending is a blend of the two, as the child disappears into the sea, fleeing the world of men, which is too cruel and cramped, to go and live with his horse.

If you had to sum up Provence in one word?

For me, Provence is above all the land of bulls and horses. I have a real passion for horses that goes back to my childhood. First of all, horses, but not just any kind of riding. Working horses, the kind that allow you to herd cattle. What we do in the Camargue, when you love riding and love animals, is magnificent. When I came across the equestrian and rural culture of horses and bulls – it’s a very noble universe – I went all out to find out more about horses, animals and rural life.

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