- Shehan Karunatilaka on his new book and being a writer
A well-written book in the right hands is a mental passport, and in the case of fiction, this passport gives you an all-expenses-paid tour to any number of different universes. The last two years, for many, have underlined the importance of the humble book and the power it has to combat isolation, reinforce ties between people, and expand our horizons while stimulating our minds and creativity.
Yesterday (23) marked World Book Day, (also known as World Book and Copyright Day or International Day of the Book), an occasion marked annually by UNESCO since 1995. Locally, April has also been an inspiring month for readers with The Gratiaen Trust – one of Sri Lanka’s leading platforms for recognising and promoting creative writing in English by Sri Lankan authors resident in the country – announcing its longlist for the 2021 Gratiaen Prize.
This year’s Gratiaen Prize longlist nominees include ‘A Place Called Home’ by Uvini Atukorala, ‘all of the oranges’ by Marianne David, ‘The Unmarriageable Man’ by Ashok Ferrey, ‘The Birth Lottery’ by Shehan Karunatilaka, ‘The Lanka Box’ by Ciara Mandulee Mendis, ‘Talking to the Sky’ by Rizvina Morseth de Alwis, and ‘Pictures I Couldn’t Take’ by Vivimarie Vanderpoorten.
The Gratiaen Prize’s longlist is always a mix of writers old and new, with some publishing for the very first time, and others who have several published books to their name and have even gone on to win the Gratiaen Prize in the past.
One such renowned author on this year’s longlist who previously won the Gratiaen Prize for his debut novel ‘Chinaman: The Legend of Pradeep Matthew’ in 2008 is Shehan Karunatilaka. ‘Chinaman’ famously uses cricket as a device to write about Sri Lankan history, telling the story of an alcoholic journalist’s quest to track down a missing Sri Lankan cricketer of the 1980s. Incidentally, ‘Chinaman’ was recently included in a collection of 70 books from across the Commonwealth chosen to mark Queen Elizabeth II’s platinum jubilee. In this list, Shehan joins other prolific Sri Lankan writers like Michael Ondaatjee and Anuk Arudpragasam.
His newest work, nominated for the 2021 Gratiaen Prize, is ‘The Birth Lottery and Other Surprises,’ an anthology of twisted tales about Sri Lanka’s many pasts and its possible futures. The stories feature an eclectic cast of rockstars, robots, colonials, soldiers, housemaids, corporates, lovers, gangsters, presidents, prisoners, cannibals, and time travellers. Each story aims to entertain and surprise, mixing absurdity with pathos, while playing with genre, voice, and reader expectations.
Shehan is currently part of the University of Iowa’s International Writing Program (IWP), a unique platforms that connects well-established writers from all around the globe, bringing international literature into classrooms, introducing American writers to other cultures through reading tours, and serving as a clearinghouse for literary news and a wealth of archival and pedagogical materials. Since 1967, over 1,500 writers from more than 150 countries have been in residence at the University of Iowa.
In celebration of World Book Day, Brunch reached out to Shehan to learn more about his new book ‘The Birth Lottery and Other Surprises’ and for a peek at the writer himself.
Excerpts of the interview below:
Q: How does it feel to be on the 2021 Gratiaen Prize longlist?
It’s not my first rodeo, but it’s always nice to be listed. If not for the Gratiaen deadline, I’d never finish anything.
Q: What inspired ‘The Birth Lottery’?
It’s a collection of stories compiled over the last 20 years. Some were written during the pandemic, one is older than Billie Eilish. A mix of genres, moods, and voices about Sri Lanka and its absurdities. It was meant as fiction. But Lanka’s current predicaments are more absurd than anything I could have ever imagined.
Q: Has it been published yet, and if so, where is it available?
It’s being published by Little, Brown UK and Hachette India. It should be out this year if we are still reading books in six months’ time.
Q: What would you say is the most remarkable thing about ‘The Birth Lottery’ and the themes it explores?
That it’s finally finished. That’s always remarkable to me. It’s not my place to remark on remarkables, but the tales deal with rockstars, robots, colonials, soldiers, housemaids, corporates, lovers, gangsters, presidents, prisoners, cannibals, and time travellers. Remarkable stuff.
Q: What would you say defines you as a writer?
I use 7B pencils and A3 paper. I take years to finish projects. I try to be funny, but I end up sounding sad.
Q: You’re currently part of the Iowa University International Writers Program – what’s the experience like?
It’s surreal to be in a quiet midwestern town while there’s a revolution back home. I’m shuddering in the cold, watching in awe at these spectacular protests and in shock at the tone-deaf leadership and the bumbling Opposition. The clock’s ticking and we’re still politicking. Absurd.
Iowa’s a wonderful place for writers, full of libraries, trees, and characters. But I have been spending most of my time scrolling through this slow-motion car crash back home, terrified of what comes next. I have been writing lots, though not sure if any of it is useful. The country needs problem solvers more than it needs poets.
Q: What advice would you give to other Sri Lankan authors looking to publish for the first time?
First, write the damn thing. Write about what’s happening now. About Sri Lanka’s many mistakes. About the country you’d like to see or about the dystopia that it is. Write a brilliant book that’ll entertain a stranger. Do that well and publishers will find you.
My advice on publishing is useless, as I come from a time before smartphones. We used to post manuscripts in envelopes. Now there’s BookTok and who knows what else. One author, Yudhanjaya Wijeratne, made a fortune on an audiobook called ‘Salvage Crew’ that bypassed the whole system. Perhaps you don’t even need a publisher these days.
Do your own research, as financial advisors say. If only we’d listened.
