“There will always be gaps, contradictions, things we don’t understand and never will. Creating a piece of writing or any work of art is a way to come to terms with that.” - Rajinderpal S. Pal
Rajinderpal is a poet.
Today, he can also boast of being a novelist, which I find very fun to say. I met Raj six years ago in a writing class. At that time, he was like me, pounding away at a story he wasn’t sure he could get a handle on.
On August 6 his debut novel However Far Away will be published by House of Anansi Press and enter bookstores across the world. I’m really excited for him. It’s a beautiful moment that’s taken him 19 years to get to. He dipped in and out of writing the book through nearly two decades of personal and cultural change.
And during those years, Raj of course gained insight into the creative process. But it's something he said to me recently about crafting his characters that has been instructing me the most.
A snippet of our conversation below…
Raj: Don’t play it safe.
Venture into what’s not talked about. Traverse the boundaries of voice and perspective. It felt dangerous to write in the point-of-view of some of my characters and bring forward what isn’t readily talked about in certain cultures. But what felt dangerous, also felt like a tool for self-analysis, an opportunity to scan better questions.
Me: It does feel dangerous these days to write from different points-of-view. And yet, having read your novel, I know that you let every character, including the females, instruct you on how they would respond in a particular situation given their background and past experiences. Every character felt tender, dimensional, flawed, relatable. And you hit on difficult themes within cultures and traditions that aren’t easy to broach. You didn’t shy away from anything.
Raj: Yeah, I think what we don’t talk about guides us more than we may expect.
As I developed my characters, it became clear that their traumas and their secrets informed the decisions they made. Every secret had energy. In traditional cultures, I’m interested in how a secret has the ability to break the familial structure, because where tradition is paramount, the family is usually at the centre of everything.
Me: Yes, I come from a family that has had many arranged marriages, and carries a structure and temperament you write about. It all felt very real to me. And it did pull me toward some magical thinking about how tradition is in relationship to modernity, progress, liberation.
Raj: That’s the gift of art, I think. You’re faced with questions. And it can feel unsettling to come across these questions. There will always be gaps, contradictions, things we don’t understand and never will. Creating a piece of writing or any work of art is a way to come to terms with that.
Me: Amen brother. Thanks Raj.
You can pre-order Raj’s book However Far Away from your local independent book store (they need us!), Indigo or major retailer.
Also, I’ll be interviewing Raj at his book launch. Here are the details, and you’re all invited! There will be samosas!
Family secrets! Looking forward to reading However Far Away! Loved hearing him read his poems.