Could you please tell us a bit about yourself and how you got into writing? I am a writer one way or the other. I worked as a magazine journalist under Singapore editors, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for several years in the Nineties before I gave up mainstream life to travel to obscure places. I …
Hema Macherla
The Asian Writer meets Hema Macherla
Meet the Agent: Madeleine Milburn (Nee Buston)
Tell us a bit about yourself and how you landed the position of literary agent? I graduated from St Andrews University in Scotland in 2004 and headed straight to Germany on a European Training Services scheme where I worked for a small independent publisher called Trojan Books. I spent most of my time researching the …
A Writing Start by Vijay Medtia
STARBUCKS, near the corner of Albert Square is crowded with people taking a break from their office work; smart men and women reading a book or a newspaper. There were many strangely named coffees and at the beginning I was confused; espresso, cappuccino, caramel macchiato- all expensively priced. The cups would be too big for …
Meet the seventeen year old novelist, Nityasya Belpurkar
You’re the youngest published writer to be featured on The Asian Writer – do you consider yourself as a young writer? And what perception do people have of you? Of course I do. I think it’s a bit of a shock for whoever has heard of the book. Also they assume that I’m really smart which is …
Anjali Joseph
Tell us a bit about your journey as a writer so far? I was born in Bombay into quite a bookish environment and with many fervent adults around. I grew up there for a few years and then in England, and always wrote stories and other things. When I was fourteen I had a …
Nikesh Shukla
We’ve been here several times before discussing your writing. What’s happened since we last spoke? Now, I actually have a book out, Coconut Unlimited. It’s out in October on Quartet Books. Since we last spoke, I’ve signed a book deal, started developing a sitcom for a TV channel, eaten my bodyweight in idlis, now I’ve …
Happy Birthday to Me: a collection of contemporary Asian writing
The Asian Writer’s first collection Happy Birthday to Me : A collection of contemporary Asian writing is due for release on October 30th 2010. The collection features new writing by emerging writers on the theme of celebration, a selection of interviews from the last three years of The Asian Writer as well as an advice …
Asit Maitra
When did you start writing poetry? I started writing poetry when I was about 18. What was the first poem that you wrote, that you thought was good? My first poem that I thought was good (and published in the Sunday Supplement of a local Bengali newspaper) was titled ‘Bhanga chair’, (broken chair), a raw …
Fatima Al Matar
When did you start writing poetry? I started writing poetry in my early teens. What was the first poem you wrote that you thought was good? I can’t really remember the first poem I wrote which I thought was good as I started writing quite young and my standards have changed dramatically since then. However …