The Fiction of truth, the truth of fiction

ORANGE PEEL, BY SUSHMA JOSHI I did not think I would live to be 75. But here I am, in 2050, walking through the burning trash piles of Kathmandu, the fine mesh of Super-Medtex face mask failing to keep away the dioxin and the carbon monoxide from my lungs. I draw in that smell of burning plastic with a shudder: I must enter the Pharma Kiosk on the way back home, and take a double dose of asthma spray, and a fifteen minute hook-up to the Easy-Breath Tank. Otherwise I would have to call the ambulance to get me home. The sun sets over the horizon—through the black cloud that hangs overhead perpetually, I can see the sun, like a pale moon, slipping down the mountains. For a moment, the smell feels particularly acrid, as if its weighed down with lead. I feel faint, all of a sudden, and wonder if I panic if I will fall into one of those red, glowing piles of garbage. I can see a body or two, people whose lungs have collapsed as they walked, tossed carelessly amongst the plastic Wai-Wai wrapp...

Its always fun to find reviews of your work online. As I browsed the net on this beautiful morning with the Himalayas shining in the sunshine, I came upon these two. And thought I would share it with you. PageTurners : Wonderfully Short Wednesdays  found me "a bit" boring. It was slow. Nothing happened. He/she also found the illustration of the meditating man to be unrelated to the story. I always wondered why they selected that image to illustrate this story, myself. The Blockade by Sushma Joshi I chose this short story this week because I really liked the picture used to advertised it. I can't help but look at that man meditating with a view like that and wish that I was him. Unfortunately though, the story didn't really do it for me. It based around the blockade of the Nepalese capital by Maoist rebels. Hasta's family and village are starving, so he attempts to find a way of keeping them alive through the blockade. He attempts to find t...

Here is the link to The Kathmandu Post , where this interview was  published. 1. As a woman writing in English in South Asia, how do you see the future of female writers writing in English in the sub-continent, including Nepal? Or is gender a non-issue? I think the future holds lots of potential. India is the largest English market for writers, and it is next door. China's also upcoming. The problem in Nepal is piracy. Bookstores own their own printing presses, and they don't want to pay writers. This means even if your book sells very well, you are not going to get any royalties. This is a disincentive for writers. It takes a lot of time to write one book-if people don't get paid, they are not going to do it. This is the major obstacle to publishing's growth inside Nepal. 2.  To be a writer writing in English in a nation whose primary language is not English, do you struggle to answer at times who you are writing for? Does this bother you? I don't ...

You can read my author interview in Friday magazine  here. My answer to this question: "What is one book that everyone must read?" is tongue-in-cheek. Obviously there is only one book in the world whose proponents think should be read by everyone. Open my interview to find out which one! My second answer is also right in line with my beliefs about what kind of book everyone should actually be reading. Those of you who have read my articles over the years, advocating for food and planetary security through less meat eating, will understand why I answered as I did.

My short story "The Fourth Child" is now published in the October issue of Living Magazine. Buy the big fat copy!  Check out the cover here: http://www.living.com.np/

A version of this appeared in the World Literature Today in 2010. THIS IS A WORK OF FICTION. The story does not represent any moment that occurred during the real civil conflict in Nepal. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. The little girl is a metaphor for all the innocent people who died in the crossfire.  THE LITTLE GIRL WHO DIED SUSHMA JOSHI Major Krishna Basnet jerked his bitten hand back, as if stung. Tooth marks, where the seven-year old girl had bitten him, left dark indentations in the hollow between his thumb and forefinger. The Major stared at the tear-stained face of the little girl. Then he spat into her defiant eyes. “You should have learnt to respect your elders, you bitch.”   A cold moon glittered in the black sky. No wind stirred the leaves. The Major’s voice carried upwards, towards where Ambika lay, hiding. Ambika could hear and see everything from where she was—a r...

I took a look at Robin Williams birthchart through the jyotish system of astrology today (note this is NOT the same system as the horoscope people read in the newspapers, which is sun sign based astrology.) There is really nothing surprising about his suicide once you see the chart. Williams has a formation that’s common for celebrities: His Moon is with Rahu, in lagna, or ascendant. Rahu signifies great fame, glamor, and also electrical lights and methods of communications. Rahu also signifies alcohol and drugs. Together with Moon, it often signifies mental illness as well. Rahu matures, or shows its full strength, at age 42. Actress Catherina Zeta Jones, who came out saying she had bipolar manic-depression at 42, is one of many other celebrities who manifest this.  When Rahu is placed in the First House, Ketu falls in the Seventh House, the house of marriage and relationship (Rahu and Ketu are always 7 houses away from each other). Ketu is a signifier for detachment ...