An Interview with Zurina

Brigitte Whiting

I’m Zurina and currently live in Casablanca, Morocco. I've also lived in other countries— Egypt, South Africa, Turkey, USA. This nomadic existence drew me to writing. I wanted to anchor my kids to South Africa, my home country, and help them understand our history, culture, and language. I initially wrote stories for them, with local South African names, some local words and local faces.

I work full time, which does not leave a lot of space for writing, but I think about words all the time. I have no formal education in writing. My mother never went to high school but she perfected her language through practice. There was always a book by her bed. Nothing fancy— lots of Catherine Cookson and Koontz. Why the latter? I don’t know. She was a widow and lived with two young children. She later confessed that she stopped reading Koontz because he scared the bejeez out of her. She clearly gave value to books. Perhaps that is why I love books so much. We never read together.

Tell us something about yourself. What do you bring from your background into your writing?

To me, writing was initially about telling stories to my children. I was keen to use some local slang in these stories. I wanted them to connect with their heritage. Also, we used to visit our family once a year and the local words helped orientate my kids. My stories for children are often about mothers and kids engaged in a bonding activity like drawing or singing or reading. After writing several stories I realized that I was trying to paint the connection between mothers and children – which is a strong part of my upbringing – and the concept that not all stories about Africans need to depict some form of struggle. Even in the struggle and poverty, there are familial connections that are just about being and loving and caring. In fact, the touchpoints between family members anchor your sense of being and who you are. The images on the television showing struggle and engorged bellies and flies sitting on snot-nosed kids are part of Africa, but only part. There are so many other parts that depict community, survival, love, caring, grit, and the concept that we are all part of each other. I wanted to write those stories.

As my kids grew older, I realized that they live in a bubble far from my home and history. I then thought about writing short stories about the first place I called home – an area always abuzz with people. The language – a blend of other languages – has a musicality. We laugh, even when we are in pain, even when the army is camped outside our homes, even when we cannot see a bright future. I thought I would compile these stories into a collection for my children. I then I realized that I don’t actually know how to write a story. This pained me. It fed into my feeling that I was always trying to overcome some educational deficiency from the past. South Africa and its legacy of segregation always seemed to be lurking, waiting to show me how little was actually spent in developing me as a human with voice.

Determined to learn, I did a search on the internet and found WVU. This has been my main learning platform.

What do you write? Specific genres?

Over time, I discovered that I like literary fiction. I’d like to say that I write literary fiction, but that seems too bold. I try to write literary fiction. I also like to write flash. I enjoy writing about the essence of one moment. It’s not always a story, but it’s something that moves me and the only way I can process the feeling is through words (or at least trying to find the words). More recently, I also started writing essays – thoughts and observations that strike me as I travel to different places. I constantly try to make sense of the world by referring to my reference—my original home. I’m comparing, contrasting, analyzing human behavior. I am drawn to understanding why we do what we do. My essays could be called creative nonfiction. As my writing skills improve, I cannot help but describe what I see around me, what I’m feeling, how it impacts. I’ve also written “poetry.” I put that in quotation marks because I know little about the craft of writing poetry, though I do enjoy poetry (so very, very much). There is a poetry book on my desk—at home and at work—in my bedroom and our living room. I know I can find a description for any emotion and thought in the words of Langston Hughes, Lucille Clifton, Maya Angelou, Joy Harjo, Pablo Neruda, Rumi. I do wish I knew how to write poetry so that I can finish the many “poems” saved on my computer.

As I learn more about writing craft, one of my goals is to edit/revise/rewrite my old stories and get them ready for publication into that compilation of stories/essays for my children.

What classes are you taking at WVU, and how have they helped your writing?

I’ve been a member of WVU for about a decade, but I was not active all those years. Life interrupts—work, moving from country to country, raising children, divorce, losing my mother. Large parts of those years are drowned under the depths of work and raising my kids without a support network because we are far from family. Even in the lean periods I am constantly thinking about writing or reading. When we move, I ship hundreds of books to our new location. After I joined WVU, I tentatively signed up for classes, but often did not have the time or confidence to finish them. More recently, especially, the past 5 years, I spent more time trying to learn.

I am a member of the 29 Rue de Fleurus group. This is my anchor. This is where I experiment. This is where I share all the ups and downs, successes and failures. I do not doubt that I would have given up on writing if I was not part of this group. They help me through everything, including building my writing confidence. I am a lifetime member of WVU because of this group.

Have you published anything?

I tend to write for myself. Perhaps to prove that I can write. But I have had some small success publishing short pieces: a couple of pieces included in Write Yourself out of a Corner by Alice LaPlante; “Promises” in 50-Word Stories; “The Hunt” in Bunbury Issue 18; and “Kirstenbosch” in Akashic Books.

What would you tell anyone who has aspirations to publish something?

Writing is about doing it. I’ve spent so much time thinking about it, beating myself up about it, giving up on it, being annoyed with myself about it. However, in the end, just like anything we do, it only gets done when we actually do it. In terms of process, I think it’s true that the first hurdle is to get the words on the paper. More recently I tell myself, get any words on the paper – write a bad first draft of something. The real writing takes place after the first draft is on the paper. Thinking about writing in this way frees me to jot down anything. It doesn’t really matter if it’s good or bad or if there’s a story or not. Getting the initial words on the page creates space in my mind for other things. It’s like letting the air out of a pressure cooker.

The other thing I’ve learned is that I have to do me. There are so many talented writers in the world and I used to lament the fact that their writing highlights how much I do not know. I used to think that I had to write like them. I’ve tried. It does not work. My stories flow when I write like me, in my voice and my word order. When I stay true to me and my voice, I feel my writing and that is enough—in fact, that is more than enough. Surprisingly, when I do that, I tend to get positive feedback on my writing.

I’ve learned a lot of craft at WVU. A LOT. I arrived without the tools for analyzing writing (I read, but was not a good reader) or the ability to harness key craft concepts into my own writing. WVU has everything we need to succeed. The key ingredient to that success is ME or YOU. We have to show up and try and keep trying.

Is there something you'd like to see offered at WVU?

I sometimes wish there was a place where we could submit finished work for in-line edits.

What is the biggest surprise you've experienced at WVU?

I thought I would learn about craft. The most surprising part is that WVU helped build my writing confidence. Even more surprising, I’ve made friends. Really! I could not have imagined this. It’s a gift and I am really very grateful.

A writer's tip or two you'd like to share.

Writing is not easy. Showing up is the key. That is the hardest part. Sometimes we shy away from a topic because we do not want to excavate parts of our lives or the human condition that pain us. I think that is where the gold lies and we are doing ourselves a disservice when we do not put in the work to get that onto the paper. Of course, I write this so easily, but am guilty of avoidance on a daily basis.

It is natural to be demoralized about writing from time to time (or most of the time). During those periods, I encourage myself to take classes. I try to keep some connection to writing.

Mostly, I tell myself to get something on the page. Anything. One word. When I manage to do this, I always feel like I succeeded, even if no real product results from what I’ve written. It helps to declutter my mind, making space for other ideas and thoughts.

Also, we tend to get different types of feedback from our classmates. Some can be very generous, which is amazing. I learn a lot from those classmates and am grateful for their generosity of time, spirit and care. I feel they’re invested in my learning and think they are modelling a core concept of WVU—we learn from each other.

An interview with Malkeet Kaur

 Brigitte Whiting

 Tell us something about yourself. What do you bring from your background into your writing?

I live in the state of Selangor, Malaysia. I tried law school and decided it wasn’t for me and told my parents I wanted to write. For one and a half years, I did the London School of Journalism correspondence course. After I completed my Diploma, my sister showed me a job advertisement in the newspaper for a junior journalist. I applied, got called for an interview and was lucky to get the job. It was 1988 and the country was going through a bad economic recession. Initially, my job required me to write articles for corporate newsletters. Eventually, the employer felt comfortable with me doing articles for the Golf and Racquet publications. Over the next 7 years I wrote all kinds of articles – golf, badminton, squash, tennis, motorsports (for the Shell newsletter), and yes, lifestyle articles as well. It gave me an all-rounder experience.

In 1995, a former colleague asked me to join him at a new golf publication that had started up a couple of years earlier. Golf Times was the Malaysian Edition of Golf Magazine USA. Five years later, I became the Editor. I became a golf writer, the only woman golf writer in the country then.

After 2000, I began freelancing for a golf pullout in the English newspaper. I also wrote articles for golf websites and later in 2013 was asked to return to Golf Magazine as Editor again for five years. In the meanwhile, I, together with two partners, set up a company that provided public relations, event management, and writing too. I also set up my own golf website, and this year, I was asked to become the Managing Editor for ParGolf Magazine.

My background as a Punjabi Sikh is also an interesting one for most readers. Our community is a small one in Malaysia but there is a lot of history behind how the Sikhs first came to Malaya (as Malaysia was known before 1963). My grandparents were part of that history.

Malaysia is home to Malays, Chinese, Indians (from South and North India), Eurasians, and indigenous people.

What do you write? Specific genres?

So far, I have written mostly longish stories. I hope to progress into flash fiction. The genre I veer towards includes literary fiction and romance.

What classes are you taking at WVU, and how have they helped your writing?

I joined WVU in 2006 when I first did the F2K course.

Taking classes at the WVU has definitely improved my writing skills. This is especially after I took the Lit Fiction classes. It surprised me that I was writing better.

On impulse, I signed up for a poetry course, not knowing what to expect. I don’t really know why or how it happened but writing poetry has become an integral part of me. It is like something inside of me was waiting to be unleashed.

Have you published anything? What are you working on now?

A lot of my non-fiction work is published in magazines, journals and newspapers, and on websites.

What's next on your publishing docket?

My goal is to complete the MFA, write poems, edit my NaNoWriMo story, and write short stories. I am thinking that someday I would like to self-publish my poems.

What would you tell anyone who has aspirations to publish something?

If you are interested in getting published, don’t let anyone tell you that it’s a pipe dream. If you love the writing craft, motivation will come from within you, you will not be able to NOT write. I constantly read a lot of books, online articles or whatever I can get my hands on, of the writing craft. If you want to be published, don’t just sit around and daydream about it. Write something.

Is there something you'd like to see offered at WVU?

I would like WVU to offer a course on writing romances. It can be rom-coms, romantic suspense, paranormal, historical, etc. I would like to be able to write one someday.

What is the biggest surprise you've experienced at WVU?

How everyone is kind and generous with their time by volunteering to moderate and facilitate classes. I hope to do that someday.

There are a number of WVU members for whom English is a second language.

The languages I speak are English, Malay, Punjabi, a little Hindi. I understand a little Cantonese and Urdu (but don’t speak them though Urdu is close to Punjabi). English is my second language. When I was studying in school, every subject apart from English was in the Malay language.

What can the rest of us do to help you, and these other students, with completing the classes?

Reading a lot helps. I still jot down words that I don’t know the meanings of in my phone and look them up. MFA110 is a great course for grammar. I wouldn’t mind if fellow students corrected my grammar and punctuation during feedbacks.

Do you have any suggestions on how to navigate through the difficulties? Any resources that you could share?

If you have that need inside of you to write, you will find the time to do it. Even how difficult something is, I try to do something about it, read, research, anything to get it done. I have been like that since the day I went for my first job interview. When I realized it was for a Golf publication, I went to the national library in Kuala Lumpur and did research on the sport so that I wouldn’t appear ignorant during the interview process. This was before the Internet. Now with the Internet, there is so much information out there. Don’t be lazy about finding stuff out.

A writer's tip or two you'd like to share.

When I am stumped for ideas, I look around me, read stuff to get inspiration. I can be a terrible procrastinator but give me a deadline, I will definitely get going.  Somehow, deadlines get my juices going and the brain moving.

Inspiration comes at the odds moments, when I am taking a shower, or when I am asleep at 3 am. Read the newspapers and note the interesting stories. I tend to eavesdrop on people’s conversations at restaurants. My husband now knows that when I am quiet in a restaurant or public area, I am up to no good. He used to shake his head; now he is just used to me doing it.

BIO: I have been married for 25 years. We have a cat named Mimi that will be twelve in July. We don’t have any children, but we dote on our nephews and nieces. I use a pen name for my lifestyle articles, Kavalyn Kreer. My late mother once told me had she become a writer, she would have used the name Kaval (in Punjabi it means Lotus flower). I added the ‘lyn’ to make it contemporary. Kreer is my maternal grandmother’s family name. 

Currently, I handle the ParGolf website: ParGolf Magazine

An Interview with Miriam Manglani

Brigitte Whiting

An Interview with
Member of the Year - Kasturi Patra

by Joyce Hertzoff

You’ve recently had a novel and a couple of short stories published. 2020 wasn’t a good year for most of the world, but you ended it on a high note. Tell us about your novel and short stories.
I wrote the first two drafts of this novel in 2018 and then left it in the backburner. Around the same time, I joined WVU and I got more interested in writing literary short stories, so I’d been doing that ever since. However, when there was a novel pitch competition by the Indian publisher, Half Baked Beans, my husband inspired me to send the pitch. I really didn’t expect it to win the competition but it did. The book is about to be released in a few months’ time.

A few of my short stories got published in 2020. All of these stories began in WVU. I’d run with a prompt and then let it take me on a creative adventure.

For example, I wrote Reunion as a homage to Richard Ford’s Reunion. This is a part of an anthology and will be found on Amazon. I wrote it in the Homage Story class. Broken Dolls and The Atlas began in the Literary Fiction class. Dadu’s Beedi which is forthcoming in Lakeview International Journal also began in the Literary Fiction class. Lucky was written in a Flash Fiction class.

All my published stories in 2020 have been inspired by the classes, exercises, and discussions in WVU and the Sweethearts of the Rodeo workshop.


Do you prefer working on longer or shorter pieces? Why?
I love working on short stories more because there’s so much to learn in terms of the writing craft. I feel that the more I revise, edit, apply certain techniques, tweak the structure, POV, voice, etc. the more I grow as a writer.


What are you working on now?
Currently, I’m working on a collection of linked short stories based in ‘90s Kolkata and the present day Delhi and Kolkata. The stories are linked by themes such as female friendships, coming of age, mother-daughter relationships, growing up in nineties India as a woman, and so on. The women in these stories have different personalities but the one thing that they have in common is the way they try, sometimes even desperately, to rise above their experiences/conditions. They refuse to be defined by whatever happened to them. Just as in life, they succeed at times, and fail at others. There will be characters that feel more lovable than others, however, my aim is that they are all realistic and are people that the readers can empathize with, even though they might not be lovable. It will be a character-driven collection with certain social messages, however, it will not be preachy in any way.
Some of my published stories that I mentioned before are a part of this collection.


What courses and forums at WVU have helped you along the way?
The Literary Fiction class which I think I’ve taken thrice so far!  Also, the Linked Stories course and workshop which I’d taken twice.

I also enjoyed the Narrative Design class, some of the classes on flash fiction, and the series of classes based on Lisa Cron’s Wired for Story.

I am a part of the Sweethearts of the Rodeo study group and I owe a lot to the group for my growth as a writer. I learn a great deal from each of the talented writers over there. Their feedback helps me strengthen my stories and become a better writer. We do weekly writing prompts and that has been the one steady writing practice in my life even during my busiest or roughest phases. Sweethearts is my true “home” in the literary world. 😀

What advice would you give writers who are just starting out? • Read extensively. I do not know of any other way to become a better writer. • I thank my stars almost every day for leading me to WVU. Whatever little I could achieve in terms of writing was because of this place. Writing communities are extremely important and so are the giving and the receiving of feedback for our work. • Be open-minded to critiques because that’s the best way to learn and improve. At the same time, be confident about your vision of the story, and don’t try to incorporate each and every feedback you receive. Only include the ones that you think go with your vision.

• Write every day. If you’re not writing, then edit or revise. I don’t believe in writer’s block and my personal experience is that the more I write, the more ideas come to me. I’ve set myself a goal of writing or editing 500-1000 words every day for six days a week. I completely adhere to this quote by Cheryl Strayed: “Writing is hard....Coal mining is harder. Do you think miners stand around all day talking about how hard it is to mine for coal? They do not. They simply dig.”

• Be gentle with yourself. Writing is lonely and hard. Be open to learning but don’t judge yourself too harshly. Celebrate your successes no matter how small they are.

• Take time out for self-care. Meditation, vision journaling, and exercising are the three things that I do almost every day. They hugely help me with my writing and with navigating life in general.

• Other writers are your friends and not your rivals. The more you’re open to helping and learning from your peers, the more your work will improve. We are all unique human beings with unique stories to share. Someone else’s success should be the cause for celebration and not jealousy. Be inspired by the success stories of your peers, try to learn from them. When you live from an abundant mindset, everything you do (and this includes writing) brings so much joy and fulfillment!

Do you have a website? How active are you on social media?
Yes, my website is called kasturipatra.com.

I share writing and reading-related resources; inform readers about publication/submission opportunities; talk about my own work and learnings, as well as, those of my fellow writers.

I’m very active on Facebook. I also have a page over there called Kasturi Patra – Writer 

My novel is yet to be released.