- Rizvina Morseth de Alwis on a writer’s social responsibility
By Shailendree Wickrama Adittiya
The responsibility of a writer can be discussed in detail, especially if one considers the expectations of the reader as well. One can argue that a writer must hold a mirror to society, but Gratiaen short-listed author Rizvina Morseth de Alwis does not see this as a responsibility; to her, it is an eventual outcome.
She explains that this is a result of writers being a part or product of society and said that, as a writer, she casts a critical gaze by holding a mirror to society and focusing the spotlight on issues that bother or affect her, or those that are of interest to her.
“In that sense, through my stories, I raise questions that matter to me and hope they also are issues that the readers would relate to and help effect some kind of change, if at all,” de Alwis said.
Her third story, which is still unpublished, was shortlisted for the Gratiaen Prize this year. Titled Talking to the Sky, the story was triggered by the 2019 Easter attacks and the aftermath of it, when there was a huge backlash against the Muslim community in Sri Lanka. She added that the story also looks at what happened within the community prior to the Easter attacks, and the anti-Muslim sentiment that was simmering in the country.
“When one reads the story, I hope, one would see that those strands of me trying to show the diversity within the community and how the community in the last several decades has changed or is changing, whether it is in the way we dress, eat, or whatnot. Culture is not static, it evolves, but there is a very marked change or trend towards Arabisation and there are several reasons for it, of course,” the author said, noting that one of the reasons would be migrant workers.
She explained that her gaze is not only inward, looking at the community, but also outward. Her inward gaze is critical, coming from a fairly liberal Muslim community that also includes extremely conservative extended family members. She has not only been critical of the way her religion has been interpreted, especially after the Easter Attacks, but has also been critical of certain practices, especially sexist practices, within the community. She explained that there is a movement within the Muslim community against these, for instance, the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act, which women activists are trying to change.
However, de Alwis went on to say that with rising anti-Muslim sentiments in the country, she also found herself having to defend her faith and identity, which led to a contradiction or dilemma. She hopes this is reflected in her story as well.
At the heart of it, however, Talking to the Sky is a story about family and love and what faith means to different people.
Prior to Talking to the Sky, the author has been shortlisted for the Gratiaen Prize in 2011 for It’s Not in the Stars, which was published in 2015, and for The Memory of Loss, the publication of which is being delayed by the current crisis in the country, which has made publishing unfeasible due to cost.
Being shortlisted for the Gratiaen Prize has been a confidence booster, de Alwis said, adding that it could also help reach a larger readership. Looking back at her first novel, de Alwis said she feels she has grown as a writer, adding: “I think being shortlisted for the Gratiaen played a big role in giving me that confidence to proceed with my craft and hone my writing skills.”
According to de Alwis, all three stories have a feminine sensibility, especially her latest one, which unfolds through the perspective of a mother and a daughter. “I would say they are a composite of different women I know, including myself,” de Alwis said, but added that none of her stories are autobiographical, and are completely fictional.
However, she draws from her own experiences, interactions, and community, making her stories about the different people who have influenced, inspired, or triggered her.
“Writing for me has always been a reflective exercise, a space of my own to chill and reflect on my life. I have always been writing, from as far as I can remember, but I actually started sharing my writing relatively recently,” de Alwish shared.
Her first book was written a long time ago, when she was much younger, but only submitted for the Gratiaen Prize in 2011 and published in 2015. This is because, until September 2021, she was working fulltime and wasn’t based in Sri Lanka. The writer was attached to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), which meant that for around 15 years, she was mostly based overseas. Her last posting was as the country representative for Cambodia.
She lived and studied in Sri Lanka until the completion of a degree from the Peradeniya University. After her post-graduate studies, she did her Master’s degree at London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) in the UK. Thereafter, she started working and living in many countries and said she has a cosmopolitan background in a sense.
This has enriched her experiences and perspectives, especially since the work she did focused on women’s reproductive health and sexual rights, as well as gender-based violence and discrimination based on gender and ethnicity. “All that has shaped my own visions and principles and values in life so they kind of have made me who I am and that is reflected in my writing as well,” de Alwis said.
Despite working overseas, however, the author was always in touch with Sri Lanka because her family remained in the country. She would visit them a few times a year.
She currently works as an independent consultant.
Due to her work, she couldn’t engage in writing full time. With her first two stories, writing was a back-and-forth exercise, a lingering activity. However, she was able to write her third story much faster.
In terms of publishing her first novel, de Alwis says it was quite rushed and she wasn’t even in the country when it happened. She didn’t have trouble finding a publisher, which she did with her husband’s help. With her second story, she didn’t have the time to work on publishing it until two years ago. Despite almost signing a contract with a well-known publisher, de Alwis had to put a hold on these plans due to the cost skyrocketing with import bans and a shortage of paper.
“This makes it very unfeasible for the publisher to invest in fiction,” she said, adding that there was always the alternative option of e-books. “But I am someone who loves my books to be tactile so I’m holding off and waiting. At the moment that’s where I am. But I think the current crisis has hit the publishing industry pretty badly.”
Her writing process is quite interesting; she doesn’t necessarily start writing with the intention of publishing, although this is greater now than it was before. “If I have to write something, I will write regardless of whether it is going to be a story that is sellable or not,” de Alwis said, adding that today, writing has become even more important, given everything happening in the country.
“In terms of substance and in terms of process, I feel a sense of urgency to put down my thoughts lest I forget. I have this urge in me to document my feelings and thoughts about what’s happening,” the author shared.
She elaborated that while she doesn’t do this all the time, there are stories always brewing in her head. These, she jots down, even if she is not writing a story per se. She compared writing to talking to herself.
“There are several ideas brewing in me but when it is ready, my pen will tell me to start putting it down,” de Alwis said.
