Author Archives: writebeyondborders

Stepping Outside the Story: Writing About ‘Difficult Things’ in Non-Fiction and Life Writing by Madri Kalugala There is a Buddha Doodles quote (if you haven’t heard of Buddha Doodles, do check out the lovely cartoon art series by Molly Hahn!) that I came across some years back and that has always stayed with me, whichContinue reading “Mentees Speak Series”

A masterclass with Aiysha Jahan by Sudha Subramanian Aiysha’s masterclass on plotting began a week ahead of the scheduled date with reading resources (that also made for a pleasant read).  Aiysha called it Shapes of Stories – a guide to plotting short stories. Our session began with Grant Snider’s comic strip called The Story Coaster, and thisContinue reading “Shapes of Stories”

What I Learned Subbing to Lit Magazines by Sudha Subramanian I don’t remember how it happened, but when one of my short stories found a spot in Kitaab, the platform that connects South Asian writers to the world, I wanted to do more. I googled a list of international lit mags and wasted no timeContinue reading “Mentees Speak Series”

It’s that time of year again. For the best of… For the worst of… For everything in between. At Write Beyond Borders headquarters, we have been thinking about our highlights of 2023. This project is certainly our highlight of the year. So then we decided to make a list. But this is a list withContinue reading “A List with a Difference!”

A masterclass with Awais Khan by Nayab Malik Awais Khan’s Masterclass on character and dialogue felt like a tea party with dear friends on a sunny afternoon in winter. His various references to beloved characters from familiar stories made the class feel like it were being led by old friends, all eager to teach byContinue reading “Character and Dialogue”

Forging Your Own Path – An Accessible Self-Education Guide for Writers by Amy Hardingson When I first started exploring how to become a writer, I was told about two potential paths. The first was via university education – a degree followed by a Creative Writing MA. The second was to just figure it out, writeContinue reading “Mentees Speak Series”

A masterclass with Sabyn Javeri Jillani by Zehra Khan The months have taken their annual turn and have begun to wear a soft, cosy chill. During this time of the year, when hibernation seems to be the only correct answer to every personal and social expectation, I sat down with eleven other writers and SabynContinue reading “Building a sustainable writing practice”

Getting to the Laptop before your Procrastination Does Zehra Khan Today is liquid sand; it runs freely and escapes through the soft betweens of fingers. Tomorrow is a solid house with a mirror for a main gate. This sentence is the linguistic representation of the nonsense my mind tells itself when my heart urges itContinue reading “Mentees Speak Series”

A masterclass with Saad Z Hossain by Amy Hardingson For our second masterclass, we were guided through the internal trials and tribulations that go into effective world-building by Saad Z. Hossain, author of science fiction and fantasy novels Djinn City, Cyber Mage, The Gurka and the Lord of Tuesdays, Escape from Baghdad, and Kundo WakesContinue reading “Worldbuilding”

In Search of My Voice by Nash Colundalur The quest for a writer’s distinctive and elusive voice can itself become a thrilling novel. For some of us, writing is an impulse that makes its presence known to us early on in our lives. It claims that it is the best in the available gamut ofContinue reading “Mentees Speak Series”