'Fierce and Unconventional' Intan Paramaditha Signs UK, Commonwealth Book Deals
Jakarta. Sydney-based Indonesian author Intan Paramaditha has signed a deal with publisher Harvill Secker for her short story collection "Apple and Knife" and experimental novel "The Wandering," a statement received by the Jakarta Globe on Thursday (22/03) said.
Harvill Secker, an imprint of Vintage, is known to print international literature from around the world. Previous titles include Yuval Noah Harari’s "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" and Haruki Murakami’s "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle."
The publishing company’s senior editor Ellie Steel signed the UK and Commonwealth rights for Intan’s two books from Kelly Falconer at Asia Literary Agency.
Steel described Intan’s books as "fierce and unconventional."
"Intan Paramaditha’s writing is exhilaratingly wild, fun and feminist, and she digs deep into ideas surrounding desire, identity, the highs and lows of global nomadism, and the freedoms and limitations of the choices we make. One of the most exciting things for me is how Intan invites readers to step out of their comfort zones and empathize with other people," she said.
Positive remarks also came from Asia Literary Agency founder Kelly Falconer, who said that she "fell head over heels" for Intan’s works and the author herself.
"She is everything an agent and a publisher could hope for, not least because of the quality of her writing and its confident playfulness," Falconer said.
Intan, who is currently a Media and Film Studies lecturer at Macquarie University, said she was delighted and honored to sign the deal because "Harvill Secker persistently champions international literature."
Apple and Knife is a selection of short stories about women who negotiate with social structures, compiled from Intan's short story collection "Sihir Perempuan" (Black Magic Woman) and an anthology shared with Eka Kurniawan and Ugoran Prasad called "Kumpulan Budak Setan" (The Devil’s Slaves Club).
Translated by Stephen J. Epstein, Apple and Knife is published in Australia and New Zealand by Brow Books, with a launch last weekend at New Zealand’s Writers and Readers Festival. It is set to be published by Harvill Secker in spring 2019.
"We at Brow Books have known Intan since we first had the opportunity to read the expertly translated stories of Apple and Knife. She's a unique force of contemporary letters, and we can’t wait for the rest of the world to stumble down the myriad trapdoors in her work," Brow Books publisher Sam Cooney said.
The Wandering is a translation of Intan's Indonesian novel "Gentayangan." Planned to be published in 2020, it is a choose-your-own-adventure-style novel about a character who obtains a pair of ruby slippers from the Devil and trots the globe in them.
"While these books are shaped by the cacophony of contemporary Indonesia – fast-moving neoliberal urban spaces, religious conservatism and the legacies of authoritarianism – there are universal questions to share: How do we resist? What does it mean to cross boundaries?" Intan said.
Intan has won many literary awards in Indonesia, including the 2013 Kompas Best Short Story award for "Klub Solidaritas Suami Hilang" (The Solidarity Club of the Missing Husbands). Sihir Perempuan was shortlisted for the 2005 Khatulistiwa Literary Awards and last year Gentayangan was named Tempo magazine's Best Literary Work in Prose Fiction.
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