Fiction writers Deepa Anappara and Taymour Soomro join co-hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell to discuss the newly published essay collection Letters to a Writer of Color, which they co-edited. The book features 17 pieces by authors of color from all over the world reflecting on aspects of craft and the writing life. Anappara and Soomro talk about how experiences in their MFA program led them to collaborate on the book. Contributors include Kiese Laymon on the second person, Ingrid Rojas Contreras on trauma, Myriam Gurba on art and activism, Sharlene Teo on reception and resilience, Amitava Kumar on authenticity, Mohammed Hanif on political fiction, and Femi Kayode on crime fiction. Soomro reads from his essay about origin stories and Anappara reads from her essay on the ideal conditions for writing. They also discuss other themes in the book: isolation in the writing world, non-Western storytelling, questions of translation, ongoing violence against people of color, and literature as a mode of social education.

To hear the full episode, subscribe through iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app (include the forward slashes when searching). You can also listen by streaming from the player below. Check out video versions of our interviews on the Fiction/Non/Fiction Instagram account, the Fiction/Non/Fiction YouTube Channel, and our show website: https://www.fnfpodcast.net/

This episode of the podcast was produced by Amanda Trout and Anne Kniggendorf.

Selected Readings:

Letters to a Writer of Color, co-edited by Deepa Anappara and Taymour Soomro

Deepa Anappara

Taymour Soomro

Other Names for Love
“Philosophy of the Foot” in The New Yorker
Essays and stories

Others

“On ‘Oprah’s Book Club,’ ‘American Dirt’ Author Faces Criticism” by Concepción de León - New York Times (2020)

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S6 Ep. 23: Letters to a Writer of Color: Deepa Anappara and Taymour Soomro on Finding Community With Each Other