Raising the profile of South Asian writers since 2007
What an honour to be asked to speak here, at the inaugural Asian writer festival. Celebrating ten years of celebrating work by Asian writers, a true testament to Farhana’s spirit and tenacity. And that will be the theme of this talk. Spirit. The passion for what we do. And tenacity, the motivation to keep …
This month’s feature puts a spotlight on UK based writers who have found publication success in India. We spoke to India’s youngest literary agent, Kanishka Gupta of Writers Side, to gain an insight into how the UK publishing industry is perceived by those trying to place their books in the UK market. As a literary …
This month’s feature puts a spotlight on UK based writers who have found publication success in India and yet, at home, their novels remain unpublished. Here, we profile just three writers, Anita Srivakumaran, Mona Dash and Sarvat Hasin but there are many, many more. These writers not only face logistical challenges in terms of marketing …
We’re celebrating our tenth birthday with an all-day festival on Saturday October 21st 2017 at Royal Asiatic Society in London. For one day only, The Asian Writer will bring together the contents of its website – interviews, masterclasses and features on literary trends – in a live format. Featuring: Roopa Farooki, Mahsuda Snaith, Vaseem Khan, …
The DSC Prize for South Asian Literature 2017 shortlist was announced last month. Authors in contention for the $25,000 prize include Man Booker Prize winner, Aravind Adiga, debut novelist, Anuk Arudpragasam and Desmond Elliot Prize winner, Anjali Joseph along with American writers Stephen Alter and Karan Mahajan. Ritu Menon, Chair of the jury commented, “After deliberating …
There are reported to be over 13,000 slaves in Britain, and over 40 million worldwide, so why are they missing from contemporary fiction? A few years ago, I came across an online article about modern day slavery, and I was shocked by what I discovered. The more I read about it, the more aggrieved I …
The long-list for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature 2017 has been announced. The long-list of 13 novels was unveiled at the Oxford Bookstore in New Delhi and represents a diverse mix of established writers and debut novelists. This year the list includes seven Indian writers, three Pakistani writers, one Sri Lankan writers and …
One of my stories had been selected for BareLit anthology, but that’s not the reason I packed a jam sandwich and caught a morning train to attend its festival last April. Only a month before, the government had announced that it was initiating an official EU withdrawal process. Like so many people I was feeling …
Once upon a time there was Woodstock and Glastonbury. For those literary minded there was the Hay Festival of Literature & Arts and the Edinburgh Book Festival. Now there isn’t a continent across the globe that doesn’t host a festival of one sort or another. Ranked third in the world by The Writers Academy is The Zee Jaipur …
The first Karachi Literature Festival held at Southbank (May 20) brought together Pakistan’s finest writers, old and new, and a passionate audience eager to discover new voices. When I first heard that KLF was coming to the Southbank Centre this year, I was filled with excitement. The programme included a mixture of familiar names, Mohammed …