In Which We Direct You To A Most Excellent Writer, For Purposes of Laughing

I’m new here! I am: 1) The interim fiction editor of This Fine Publication, the Michigan Quarterly Review. 2) A blogger. For whom do I blog? I blog for thee. And also Sepia Mutiny, a South Asian-American blog. It’s been around for awhile—since 2004—and is a group blog that covers arts, culture, politics, sports, media, and any other topic that can be seen through the lens of South Asia and/or its diaspora. 3) A GIGANTIC fan of Kuzhali Manickavel. Kuzhali is a terrific and funny writer of short fiction (not to mention a great blogger). She lives in Tamil Nadu, India, and has a wonderfully weird and wild collection out. It’s called Insects Are Just Like You and Me Except Some of Them Have Wings.

The first time I realized that I was wearing all of these hats simultaneously, I was very happy: I knew my worlds could collide and it would be awesome. And now they finally have! MQR’s current issue has Kuzhali’s brilliant and dark short story, “The Underground Bird Sanctuary.” And also (bonus!), I interviewed her for Sepia Mutiny, and you can find that here. The story features some fantastic imagery and a tug of war between two compellingly odd characters; the interview features Kuzhali sharing pointers from her upcoming booklet, “How to Write Your Awesome Indian Slum Novel.” Yes, you read that correctly, and I just know this question has been worrying you, so click on over to both… (and plz note, if you buy her book through that Amazon link, a teeny-tiny bit of your purchase will go to support Sepia Mutiny).

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