Sunil Yapa

Last updated
Sunil Yapa
Alma mater Penn State University (BA)
Hunter College (MFA)
Website http://www.sunilyapa.com

Sunil Yapa is a Sri Lankan American fiction writer and novelist. Yapa won the 2010 Hyphen Asian American Short Story Contest for his short story, "Pilgrims (What is Lost and You Cannot Regain)," which is also published in the Fall 2010 issue of Hyphen , Issue No. 21, the "New Legacy Issue." [1] [2] His debut novel, Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist (2016) was released on January 12, 2016 by Lee Boudreaux Books, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company.

Contents

Background

The biracial son of a Sri Lankan father and a mother from Montana, Yapa grew up in central Pennsylvania and has traveled and lived in 48 US states and 35 countries, including Greece, Guatemala, Chile, Argentina, China, India, London, Montreal, and New York City. [3] [4]

Yapa graduated from Penn State University in 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economic Geography, for which he won the 2002 E.W. Miller Award for excellence in writing in the discipline. He briefly attended the University of Houston's Creative Writing MFA Program and the London Film School, where he wrote a feature film screenplay in a course taught by Ellis Freeman. [5] He received his Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Creative Writing/Fiction degree in 2010 from Hunter College in New York City, where he studied with Peter Carey, Nathan Englander, Claire Messud and Colum McCann. [6] [7] [8] At Hunter College, Yapa received the 2008-2010 Alumni Scholarship & Welfare Fund Fellowship, a grant given to only one MFA fiction student every three years, and was twice selected as a Hertog Fellow, working as a research fellow and research assistant to Ben Marcus and to Zadie Smith. [9] [7] Yapa has also received scholarships from the New York State Summer Writers Institute, the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, The Norman Mailer Writers Colony in Provincetown, Massachusetts, and the University of Houston Presidential Fellowship. [3] [10] In 2009 and 2010, he was a Fiction Intern for Esquire magazine. [10]

In an interview with The Rumpus , Yapa states:

The first experience I ever had in a workshop was at VONA/Voices, the workshop for writers of color. I did it in San Francisco and it was an incredible experience. I studied with Chitra Divakaruni, and she encouraged me to apply to the University of Houston. [...] It was kind of a tough year. Houston was very much a literature program, and not reading for writers exactly, but reading from a critical perspective. I realized right away I didn’t want to do that. [...] I realized what kind of writer I was, and I don’t know, I love Faulkner, but I don’t wanna get into the themes of As I Lay Dying . I wanted to learn how to do multiple narrators. So I did a year there, I dropped out, I ended up at the London Film School for the summer. Then I went to New York State Summer Writers Institute and I met someone from Hunter. I’d never heard of Hunter. It was not really known at the time. Everything I said that I wanted in a program, she would tell me that’s what they had in Hunter. [...] I got in, and those guys, Peter Carey, Colum McCann, Claire Messud, Nathan Englander, all so talented, but with no ego. We all know talented writers don’t always apply to being good teachers, but they were incredible teachers. [11]

Writing

Short stories

Yapa's short story, "Pilgrims (What Is Lost and You Cannot Regain)" won the 2010 Asian American Short Story Contest (or Hyphen Asian American Short Story Contest) sponsored by Hyphen magazine and the Asian American Writers' Workshop, the only national Pan-Asian American Writing Competition of its kind. [12] [13] The story is about a Sri Lankan couple named Asoka (wife) and Sanjay (husband) adjusting to life in an unnamed rural United States town, which they newly arrived in, where Asoka later meets an American farmer that rescues her from a fall on Thanksgiving Day, which changes her perspective on life. [14] [15] The story is also published in the Fall 2010 issue of Hyphen magazine, the "New Legacy Issue." [16] [17] Whiting Award-winning author Alexander Chee and Jaed Coffin, author of the memoir A Chant to Soothe Wild Elephants, were the judges, and the piece was called "a poignant story of anguish and reconciliation" in the announcement press release. [3] "[The story] forces not only the Asian minority to reconcile his or her orientation to Anglo-dominant America, but also shows how dominant America has to reconcile its relationship to the Asian minority," Coffin said, continuing: "[i]n its final gorgeous pages, 'Pilgrims' opened a space for the discussion of what it means to be ethnic and American." [15]

Other short fiction pieces from Yapa have appeared in Pindeldyboz: Stories that Defy Classification such as "A Short Incident Involving a Boy, a Girl, Pigeons, and an Old Man with Advice" (Winter 2004). [18] [10]

Other writing

His book reviews have also appeared in the Winter 2007 and Spring 2008 issues of The Multicultural Review. [19] [10] His interviews have been published in The Tottenville Review, [20] and he has also been interviewed for topical articles in American Short Fiction. [21] He has also contributed pieces to The Margins from the Asian American Writers' Workshop. [22]

Novels

Yapa's debut novel, Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist (2016) was published on January 12, 2016 by Lee Boudreaux Books, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company. [23] Yapa also appeared on the Late Night with Seth Meyers show along with other guests Eva Longoria and Jason Mantzoukas on January 13, 2016 to promote the book. [24] The novel is about a young man named Victor who gets involved in the turbulent backdrop of the 1999 Seattle WTO protests. The novel has also been named as "An Amazon Best Book of 2016," has been chosen as a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers selection for the Winter of 2016, [25] is one of Independent Bookseller's Debut Picks of the Season for Spring 2016, [26] and an Indie Next Pick for January 2016. [27] [28] [29] The novel has currently also received positive reviews from Publishers Weekly, Booklist, Library Journal (starred review), the Washington Post, [30] the Chicago Tribune, [31] Entertainment Weekly, Flavorwire, [32] Bustle, The Rumpus, [33] and Bookpage. [34] [28]

An excerpt from the novel also won second prize (and first prize in fiction) in The Miriam Weinberg Richter Memorial Award, a Hunter College writing competition judged by 2009 Impac Dublin winner Michael Thomas. [10]

Bibliography

Short stories

Novels

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jhumpa Lahiri</span> American author

Nilanjana Sudeshna "Jhumpa" Lahiri is a Bengali American author known for her short stories, novels, and essays in English and, more recently, in Italian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evan Hunter</span> American author and screenwriter

Evan Hunter, born Salvatore Albert Lombino, was an American author and screenwriter best known for his 87th Precinct novels, written under his Ed McBain pen name, and the novel upon which the film Blackboard Jungle was based.

<i>Hyphen</i> (magazine) Asian-American magazine

Hyphen is an American print and online magazine, founded in 2002 by a group of San Francisco Bay Area journalists, activists, and artists including Melissa Hung, a former reporter for the Houston Press and East Bay Express; Claire Light, former executive director at Kearny Street Workshop; Yuki Tessitore, of Mother Jones; Mia Nakano, photojournalist; filmmaker Jennifer Huang; Stefanie Liang, a graphic designer from Red Herring magazine; journalist Bernice Yeung; and Christopher Fan, now a professor of English and Asian American Studies. Its advisory board included notable Asian American journalists such as Helen Zia and Nguyen Qui Duc, the host of Pacific Time. The first issue was released in June 2003. Hyphen was one of several Asian American media ventures created in the wake of A Magazine's demise.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asian American Writers' Workshop</span> Nonprofit literary arts organization

The Asian American Writers' Workshop is a nonprofit literary arts organization founded in 1991 to support Asian American writers, literature and community. Cofounders Curtis Chin, Christina Chiu, Marie Myung-Ok Lee, and Bino A. Realuyo created AAWW because they were searching for New York City community of writers of color who could provide support for new writers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Elliott (author)</span> American writer, editor, and filmmaker

Stephen Elliott is an American writer, editor, and filmmaker who has written and published seven books and directed two films. He is the founder and former Editor-in-Chief of the online literary magazine The Rumpus. In December 2014, he became senior editor at Epic Magazine.

Timothy Martin Gautreaux is a novelist and short story writer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Yu</span> American writer

Charles Chowkai Yu is an American writer. He is the author of the novels How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe and Interior Chinatown, as well as the short-story collections Third Class Superhero and Sorry Please Thank You. In 2007 he was named a "5 under 35" honoree by the National Book Foundation. In 2020, Interior Chinatown won the National Book Award for fiction.

Owen Philip King is an American author of novels and graphic novels, and a television film producer. He published his first book, We're All in This Together, in 2005 to generally positive reviews, but his first full-length novel, Double Feature, had a less enthusiastic reception. King collaborated with his father, writer Stephen King, in the writing of the women's prison novel, Sleeping Beauties and the graphic novel of the same name.

Kevin Sampsell is an American writer living in Portland, Oregon. He has worked at Powell's Book Store since 1998 as an events coordinator and the head of the small press section. His memoir, A Common Pornography, was published by Harper Perennial in January 2010. Tin House published his novel, This Is Between Us (2013), about a man and woman, both divorced, trying to start a life together. His collection of collage art and poems, I Made an Accident, will be published by Clash Books in summer of 2022. Sampsell also started and co-produced Lit Hop, a one-night, multiple-venue reading event in Portland, Oregon. It happened from 2013 to 2016. He curates and hosts another event promoting small publishers and small press writers, Smallpressapalooza, every March at Powell's Bookstore in Portland, Oregon.

Gayle Brandeis is the author of Fruitflesh: Seeds of Inspiration for Women Who Write (HarperOne), Dictionary Poems, the novels The Book of Dead Birds (HarperCollins), which won Barbara Kingsolver's Bellwether Prize for Fiction in Support of a Literature of Social Change, Self Storage (Ballantine) and Delta Girls (Ballantine), and her first novel for young readers, My Life with the Lincolns (Holt). She has two books forthcoming in 2017, a collection of poetry, The Selfless Bliss of the Body, and a memoir, The Art of Misdiagnosis

The Rumpus is an online literary magazine founded by Stephen Elliott, and launched on January 20, 2009. The site features interviews, book reviews, essays, comics, and critiques of creative culture as well as original fiction and poetry. The site runs two subscription-based book clubs and two subscription-based letters programs, Letters in the Mail and Letters for Kids.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tara Ison</span> American writer

Tara Ison is an American novelist, short story writer, and essayist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anne Valente</span> American writer

Anne Valente is an American writer. Her debut short story collection, By Light We Knew Our Names, won the Dzanc Books Short Story Prize and was released in September 2014. She is also the author of the fiction chapbook, An Elegy for Mathematics. Her fiction has appeared in One Story, Hayden's Ferry Review, Ninth Letter, The Kenyon Review and others. In 2014, Anne was the Georges and Anne Borchardt Scholar at the Sewanee Writers' Conference. Her essays have been published in The Believer, Electric Literature and The Washington Post.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wendy J. Fox</span> American writer (born 1979)

Wendy J. Fox is an American author born in Washington. She is most known as a writer of fiction and has twice been a finalist for the Colorado Book Awards. In 2015, she was nominated for her collection "The Seven Stages of Anger and Other Stories" and in 2020, she was a finalist in literary fiction for "If the Ice Had Held." Fox has published short stories in ZYZZYVA, Tampa Review, The Pinch, and Washington Square Review, among others. She has also written for popular magazine outlets like Self, Business Insider, and The Rumpus. She was included in 2006's Tales from the Expat Harem, an anthology of female writers based on the experiences of living in Turkey. She currently resides in Denver, Colorado.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steph Cha</span> Korean American novelist

Steph Cha is a Korean American novelist and fiction writer, who has released three novels in the crime fiction genre about her detective protagonist Juniper Song, Follow Her Home (2013), Beware Beware (2014) and Dead Soon Enough (2015). Her most recent book is the stand-alone crime fiction novel, Your House Will Pay (2019), which won the LA Times Book Award.

Jennifer Chow or Jennifer J. Chow, is an American writer and novelist. A Lefty Award-nominated author, Jennifer’s most recent books are the Sassy Cat Mysteries and the L.A. Night Market Mysteries. The first in the Sassy Cat series, Mimi Lee Gets A Clue, was selected as an OverDrive Recommended Read, a PopSugar Best Summer Beach Read, and one of BuzzFeed’s Top 5 Books by AAPI authors. The latest Sassy novel, Mimi Lee Cracks the Code, was listed as one of 10 New Must-Read Books by Bustle, one of the Best Books Released in November by BuzzFeed, and one of the Best New Mystery Books by PopSugar. The entire Sassy Cat series was called one of the Best Cozy Mystery Series to Read Right Now by Book Riot. Death By Bubble Tea, the first book in the L.A. Night Market Mystery series, hit the SoCal Indie Bestseller List. It was reviewed in the New York Times and featured in CrimeReads’ Most Anticipated Crime Books of 2022, Bustle’s Most Anticipated Books of July 2022, and Book Riot’s Best Mystery, Thriller, and True Crime Books Out in July. Chow has also published other Asian-American novels involving secrets and mysteries. She's active in Sisters in Crime, Crime Writers of Color, and Mystery Writers of America.

Sari Wilson is an American novelist and writer. She has written prose and comics, and is the author of the novel Girl Through Glass. Wilson's short fiction has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize and has appeared in literary journals such as AGNI, the Oxford American, and Slice. Her essays have appeared in The New York Times, New York magazine, and Catapult.

Alyssa Wong is an American writer of speculative fiction, comics, poetry, and games. Wong is a recipient of the Nebula Award, World Fantasy Award, and Locus Award.

K-Ming Chang is a novelist and poet. She is the author of the novel Bestiary (2020). Gods of Want won the 2023 Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction. In 2021, Bestiary was long-listed for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize and the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction.

References

  1. ↑ "Sunil Yapa wins Hyphen/AAWW Short Story Contest" . Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  2. ↑ "Pilgrims (What Is Lost and You Cannot Regain)". 15 August 2010. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 Ng, supra n.1
  4. ↑ Sunil Yapa's Official Site, Bio, http://sunilyapa.com/bio/
  5. ↑ Sunil Yapa's Official Site, Education, supra n.6
  6. ↑ "Sunil Yapa's schedule for The Muse & the Marketplace 2016" . Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  7. 1 2 Sunil Yapa's Official Site, Bio, supra n.4
  8. ↑ "Education - Sunil Yapa". 23 February 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-02-23. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  9. ↑ "Publications & Awards - Sunil Yapa". 23 February 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-02-23. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 Sunil Yupa's Official Site, Awards & Publications, supra n.6
  11. ↑ "The Rumpus Interview with Sunil Yapa". 11 January 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  12. ↑ Id.
  13. ↑ "2010 hyphen/aaww short story contest winner". blog.angryasianman.com. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  14. ↑ Yapa, supra n.2
  15. 1 2 Angry Asian Man, supra n.12
  16. ↑ "Issue 21: New Legacy - Fall 2010" . Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  17. ↑ "Magazine Issues" . Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  18. ↑ Pindeldyboz, A Short Incident Involving a Boy, a Girl, Pigeons, and an Old Man with Advice, Sunil Yapa, "Pindeldyboz: A Short Incident Involving a Boy, a Girl, Pigeons, and an Old Man with Advice by Sunil Yapa". Archived from the original on 2011-08-31. Retrieved 2016-01-12.
  19. ↑ Sunil Yapa Official Site, Bio, supra n.4
  20. ↑ "Peter Mountford". 22 April 2011. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  21. ↑ "Bourbon and Milk: Truth Flags, Secret Knowledge, and the Need to Sometimes Stomp Around, Raise Your Voice and Carry the Television Out to the Garage". Americanshortfiction.org. 2014-12-25. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
  22. ↑ "Bangladesh: 1,000 Words". 18 March 2014. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  23. ↑ "Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist - Sunil Yapa" . Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  24. ↑ "Late Night With Seth Meyers". TVGuide.com. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  25. ↑ "Announcing the Discover Great New Writers Spring 2016 Selections". 2 December 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  26. ↑ "Indies Introduce Summer / Fall 2018" . Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  27. ↑ results, search (12 January 2016). Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist. Lee Boudreaux Books. ISBN   978-0316386531.
  28. 1 2 Sunil Yapa's Official Site, Book, supra n.14
  29. ↑ "Sunil Yapa - Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist". Sunil Yapa. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  30. ↑ "A novelist's soul-searching rewind to the 1999 eruption on Seattle's streets". Washington Post. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  31. ↑ Nance, Kevin. "Sunil Yapa on 'Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist,' 1999 WTO protests". Chicago Tribune . Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  32. ↑ ""Your Heart Is a Muscle The Size of a Fist": The Rare Novel That Gets Protest Movements Right". 11 January 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  33. ↑ "Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist by Sunil Yapa". 4 January 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  34. ↑ Amazon, supra n.22
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.