- Author of debut novel ‘A Trip To The City’ on writing and more
Choosing a good book to read is always a conundrum. With bookshop shelves full of new titles each time you visit, and e-books and Kindle recommendations aplenty (claiming to know your taste and preference), how do you know a book will be good once you spend your time and money on it? To avoid disappointment, I often take a slightly different approach of understanding the authors and their minds before buying a book. It seems to have worked so far. This series was inspired by such pursuits.
With Brunch Talks, we’re going to delve into the minds of authors – new and established – here in Sri Lanka. This week, we conversed with storyteller and history teacher Judith Perera who recently released her debut book titled A Trip To The City.
Here are the excerpts from our chat.
Tell me a little about yourself.
I was born in Colombo and grew up in Grandpass. When I was 11 years old, my family moved to the US. We lived in Southern California where I went to middle school and high school in the small city of South Pasadena, California. I completed my undergraduate degree in history at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and then went on to study law. I completed my Juris Doctorate at Pepperdine University specialising in international and comparative law. After passing the California Bar Exam, I moved to Arizona to complete my PhD in History. A few months after graduating from the PhD programme, I decided to move back to Sri Lanka. I now teach history in Colombo at the secondary school level and absolutely love it.
How did you get into writing?
I think I’ve always been a storyteller. I’m an introvert so I spend a lot of time in my own head. I’m also a keen reader. I think when you read a lot and spend a lot of time reflecting on the world around you and your own experiences, writing almost comes naturally. As a child I would make up all sorts of stories and over time this evolved into journal writing. All through high school I was constantly writing both for school and for fun. At UCLA, I wrote for the campus newspaper, the Daily Bruin, and took courses on screenwriting, which is another passion of mine. In law school, I was a part of Law Review. In graduate school, I wrote my dissertation and legal briefs for clients I took on a pro bono basis. I have also written, directed, and produced two documentary films. Now I write my own curriculum for the classes I teach. So, I think I’ve been telling stories through writing nearly my whole life in one way or another.
Tell me about ‘A Trip to the City’ – how did the book come about?
I teach early human history to preteens. What I started to notice was that there isn’t a whole lot of historical fiction for that age group that challenges dominant metanarratives. I was looking for stories to fill that void. The spark came last summer when there were news reports about mass graves of indigenous children found in various churches in Canada. Article after article, it broke my heart. It was something I couldn’t process. I am a historian, so I have learned about and studied colonial violence against indigenous populations. But something about those stories haunted me. I couldn’t stop thinking about those children and how they must have suffered. I wondered about how those children would have fought back. It’s like Charles Bowden once wrote: “There are some things that if learned change a person forever.” I learned and changed. This story kind of evolved from that.
Is it a children’s book?
Yes, it is primarily geared towards 10-13-year-olds. But I have received some reviews from adults recently saying they too learned a lot, so I am hoping the book speaks to a wider audience.
The description of the book makes it sound like a mystery/fantasy book. Is that the case?
I would categorise the book mainly as historical fiction. The book tells the story of a Stone Age group of children who come face to face with the world around them that is moving into the Bronze Age (with the discovery of copper towards the end of the book). It hopefully shows that these historical transitions weren’t preordained in some way but rather the result of actions and decisions taken by a variety of people through power structures and the exploitation of our environment.
Where do you get your ideas?
Honestly, I have no idea. I often joke with family and friends that there are voices in my head that get chatty occasionally and almost demand to be written down. I think Eduardo Galeano said it best when he wrote: “One writes to try and answer the questions that buzz in one’s head, obstinate flies that disturb one’s sleep; and what one writes can take on collective sense when it coincides in some way with the social necessity for a reply.” I also think reading is a key component here. The more I read the more I engage with different voices, perspectives, and stories. It seems inevitable that ideas flow this way as my own response to those voices, perspectives, and stories.
What is your writing process like?
It starts with an idea, which sometimes takes the form of a character but not always. This is where I think I spend most of my time in the writing process. I make sure to flesh out the idea or character and play with the storylines. This part takes weeks or months sometimes. I also use a bit of my academic training because ultimately, despite the creativity involved, stories, in whatever form, need structure. So, there is a bit of outlining involved before writing begins. When I was completing my dissertation, I got some great advice; never end a writing day with the end of a chapter because it is scary staring at a blank new page the next day. So, I write for a while but always make sure to leave off at a place where I know I can easily begin the next time. I would leave a conversation or a chapter unfinished just so I have a place to pick up from the next day. After completing a draft, I leave it alone for a while before beginning the editing process.
How did you select the names of your characters?
I was doing some research for my curriculum development last summer and came across John Bailey’s work on the Veddas (An Account of the Wild Tribes of the Veddahs of Ceylon in Transactions of the Ethnological Society of London, published in 1863). At the end of the article there is a list of Veddah names. I thought they sounded unique. The children’s names are drawn from there.
This is your first book. What are common traps for aspiring writers?
Several aspiring writers I know think they need to see or envision the entire story before they begin writing. I’m sure every writer has a different process, but I don’t think it’s necessary to envision the entire story. Once created the characters tend to take a life of their own. That’s actually the really fun part. I think a lot of experienced writers have commented on and written about just that. So, instead of waiting to outline every facet and every detail of the entire story, get going and start writing! I think writing should be a daily activity, like mindfulness or physical activity. Setting aside a bit of time every day to write is the key.
What advice do you have for other writers now that you’ve written your first book?
Read and read everything. I don’t think you can be a writer without reading as much as possible. I think writers should read as much as possible not just in their own genre but also across many different genres. When I am browsing at a bookstore, I will occasionally pick up a book that is completely different to what I normally read just to make sure I keep expanding my knowledge. The more you read the more you can draw from for your writing.
What does this book mean to you? What do you want it to mean to its readers?
This book is the culmination of a childhood dream to one day publish a book. So, it means a great deal to me. I have fallen in love with the characters and hope to keep continuing their journey as the years go by. I hope readers will find ways to connect with the characters and with the story. I believe the story asks some fundamental questions that we, as a society currently living in a pandemic, should think more about. There are questions the children pose to the adults in the story that I hope will make readers of all ages take pause and think. I hope those questions stay with them long after they finish reading.
What’s your favorite under-appreciated novel?
I recently stumbled upon the work of Chinua Achebe. Growing up in the US, I hadn’t really encountered his work and we didn’t read his work in my school. I wish I had read Things Fall Apart alongside Heart of Darkness in high school. While Achebe’s first novel Things Fall Apart is absolutely brilliant, I do think his later work A Man of the People is quite under-appreciated for its nuances, expansive coverage of postcolonial themes, and its incredible relatability to modern Third World countries. Other than the story centring around a schoolteacher (with thought-provoking lines like “but the teachers in that school were all dead from the neck up”) which is very interesting, it is also an exploration of a postcolonial world that I think many of us can relate to. Achebe’s work always serves as pointed social commentary and this work is no different (he cites a saying at one point: “When a mad man walks naked it is his kinsmen who feel shame not himself”). I think Sri Lankans would find the book highly relatable
How many unpublished and half-finished books do you have?
Haha, a lot. I am currently working on several different projects, which are anywhere from just started to half-finished to nearly done. I have several screenplays that I wrote many years ago that collect dust in a box somewhere. There are many other essays and miscellaneous writings in the cloud taking up digital storage space. I don’t necessarily feel the need to go back and try to submit older works because I, as a person, have changed a lot since I wrote them. However, they are great to re-read to see where my thinking and mindset were at one point in my life. Earlier versions of yourself can be quite entertaining.
What does literary success look like to you?
I write to ask questions about the incredibly unjust, unequal world we live in and help inspire thoughts about what a different, more equitable world might look like. Literary success means being able to engage audiences with those questions and to go on a journey with them imagining a better world. Ultimately, if my work inspires others to ask questions, to reflect, to laugh or cry, to read further, to discuss with others, to engage with those qualities that make us human, and to take actions toward building this better world, then that is success.
What’s the best way to market your books?
I’m not sure there is a “best” way, but I think word of mouth and various social media outlets help spread the word.
What did you edit out of this book?
Not much. The final version of the book is close to the original draft.
Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with bad or good ones?
This is where being a teacher helps. I love feedback! Most of my work as a teacher involves giving constructive feedback to my students, so receiving it, in whatever form, is great. Of course, good reviews are always nice to hear; however, I actually enjoy reading and thinking about negative reviews too because I can engage with those discussions and arguments. What about my book did the reader not like? Why did they not like it? How can I make the next book better? At the end of the day, all reviews can be ways to improve as a writer and thinker.
What was your hardest scene to write?
There is a scene in the book where two of the children are physically beaten for the first time. That one was hard to write and took a long time to even get the words on paper. I couldn’t bear to picture that scene in my mind. I had to stop thinking and feeling and become somewhat robotic in writing the scene. If I had thought or felt too much about it, I don’t think I would have been able to write it. Even after writing it, I felt like it took a lot out of me.
Three words you’d use to describe yourself and why?
“Storyteller” because that is and always has been who I am at my core. “Egalitarian” because I believe all people should be treated equally without anyone being forced to live under perpetually coercive, hierarchical, obedience-demanding, command-based power structures. “Dreamer” because despite naysayers I believe we can build a better, more equitable world for all, where everyone gets a seat at the table, so to speak.
Do you believe in writer’s block?
Oh yes! There have been writing days when nothing comes out. All the characters are silent, and no one says or does anything. Those days are a bit disappointing because it feels like I waste a day just staring at a blank screen. I think the occasional notes I keep on non-writing days really help here because I can refer to those and work on a different project to break the block. If that doesn’t work, I will switch over and make it a reading day. But blocks do happen. I think it’s just part of the creative process.
Did this chat with Judith spark your interest in her debut book? Would you like to buy a copy? Call/WhatsApp 0727268078 to reserve your copy or visit the Jam Fruit Tree Bookshop at 366, First Floor, Galle Road, Colombo 3 for this, and many more titles.