Sarvat Hasin is a writer who grew up in Pakistan and now lives in London and works at the Almeida Theatre. Her first novel, This Wide Night, was published by Penguin India and longlisted for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature.
Her second book, You Can't Go Home Again, was published in 2018 and featured in Vogue India's and the Hindu's end of year lists.
She won the Moth Writer's Retreat Bursary in 2018 and the Mo Siewcharran Prize in 2019. Her essays and poetry have appeared in publications such as Outsiders, the Mays Anthology, English PEN and Harper's Bazaar.
Her novel, The Giant Dark, was published in 2021 and shortlisted for the Royal Society of Literature's Encore Award.
This years Dhaka Lit Fest marks the 10th year of partnership between Dhaka Lit Fest and The British Council.
As a part of this special event, Sarvat Hasin was invited by The British Council to take part in the fest and share her experience with the audience.
How has your experience been with the Dhaka Lit Fest audiences so far?
Hasin: It's been beautiful. I've had one event, which was out on the lawn, and I love the space. When we are in the middle of the festival, everything is happening around it.
I love it because people can just come and go. I have done numerous festivals around Asia and found them utterly different from the audiences in the UK.
I enjoy the part where you must command the audience's attention as they will not sit there to be polite; if they find it boring, they will check their watches. Finally, I love the casual nature of the event.
People in Dhaka are curious, engaged, and asking questions when they want to learn something.
We have seen your great interest in mythology in your writing. Can you share the background behind the specific interest?
Hasin: I was one of those kids who had picture books of all Greek myths, Egyptian myths, and things like that. When I grew older, I read anthologies and the classics. I think there is something in those old stories and how they repeat and have endured for such a long time.
I find it interesting that it's often boiled down to human nature and the base-level need to express emotions. For example, a figure is a poet with a beautiful voice whose wife dies the day they get married. He is distraught by grief and goes to the underworld to bring her back.
That's the story for anyone who has lost someone they have loved, whether a partner, parent or child. It's the story of grief that makes people want to undo the laws of nature.
Your last book was 'The Giant Dark,' published in 2021. So, are you working on anything new right now?
Hasin: I am, and it goes pretty slowly because writing is generally slow. Every book has its rhythm, and you must learn how to write it in a way worth looking up. You can't repeat yourself.
You have to learn something new as you write it; other times, you must forget what you have known. The process takes a long time, especially for me, as I have to live with the idea in my head for a while before I can start processing the thoughts onto the page.
How would you encourage young people to get more into writing, mainly experimenting with fiction and non-fiction?
Hasin: Reading! - read, read, and read! That's the only way.
There are many reasons why people want to write. I wanted to be a writer because I love books. Books are my favourite things; once something is your favourite, you want to be as close to it as possible.
The most immediate way to do that is to write. Read broadly. Don't just read what your teacher or parents want you to read, even if it can be a big thing in South Asia due to academic pressure. But choose those books that you want to read for fun.
People say you should read Stephan King or the classics. Classics are good, and you should read them, but more importantly, read the things you find interesting.
You don't have to write like a great author such as Charles Dickens or anyone else; you have to write the way you would be interested to read it, and it is wonderful if that is a comedy, crime, thriller, or romance. Your writing will be interesting when you write a piece that means something to you.
Are there any authors or books that inspire you to write?
Hasin: When I was younger, I was inspired by Latin American writers and their tradition of medical realism. I love Garcia Marquez,Israel Mendez and Carmen Maria Machado. I immersed myself in it, and some of my previous work reflected them. Now I love reading contemporary fiction. I am highly inspired by recent times authors.
When I was younger, there weren't many writers, such as South Asian women. The pool was tiny, and now it is expanding every day. I love reading the works of my peers and being inspired by them. I read a lot of plays as my day job is in the theatre. I find it helpful because you learn story structure differently.
What are the biggest challenges you face while writing any book?
Hasin: Every book has its new challenges. The most significant challenges are often at the novel's beginning. Suppose a story is between 70,000 to 100,000 words, so I would face most challenges in the first third part because I am still teaching myself about the plot.
In your head, the book exists. The book and the character exist once you get the idea and see people loving it. Then time passes between the idea in your head to being published.
But you will never get to the standard you have set in your head - it's impossible, according to my experience. How you connect things while writing and how the reader connects them while reading it might be completely different. But you have to do both to finish it.
