Anu Kandikuppa is the author of the new story collection The Confines. Her work has appeared in a variety of publications, including Colorado Review. She lives in the Boston area.
Q: Over how long a period did you write the stories in The Confines?
A: I wrote The Confines over about 10 years. I started writing fiction in 2012 while working as a consultant, then pursued an MFA, where many of these stories began. Over the years, I kept refining them. The first was published in 2017.
I hadn’t planned on a collection, but as more stories found homes in magazines, I saw a common theme—people navigating constraints in a conservative society and how those limitations shape their lives.
Q: The writer David Haynes said of the book, “The worlds around her characters shimmer with a longing for connection, affection, and a place that genuinely feels like home.” What do you think of that description?
A: I agree—the stories center on people trying to connect, to find love and affection, and often failing. Sustaining long-term relationships is hard, even more so within families, where expectations run high.
Many of the stories explore marriage. Whenever I see an older couple walking hand in hand in apparent harmony, I wonder: how do they do it? People are complicated, and true harmony seems impossible without compromise, especially with external friction.
Q: How was the book’s title chosen, and what does it signify for you?
A: The title reflects the rules and constraints imposed by culture. Marriage is a major one in the book. In the conservative South Indian world I grew up in, women are expected to marry—and stay married.
Sons are expected to care for their parents. There are restrictions on dress and how much—or whether—young men and women may mingle. These constraints, many of which I experienced firsthand, were on my mind as I wrote the stories.
Q: How did you decide on the order in which the stories would appear in the collection?
A: I don’t read story collections in order—I often start in the middle—so structuring this one was challenging. I went with instinct, arranging the stories to flow naturally.
I started with “Lunch at Monsoon” because it’s simply told, then moved towards more complex themes and narratives. I ended with the longest story, hoping it would leave the reader immersed in the book’s world.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: A novel with a completely different theme—a workplace satire that ends with a speculative glimpse into a near future where automation has taken jobs. It explores a pressing question: what happens to us when work disappears?
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: Though my themes explore constraints and compromises, I always try to write with a sense of fun, bringing whimsy and playfulness to approach these issues from unexpected angles. It’s what keeps me writing. And I hope readers will feel free to reach out with any thoughts or questions.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
No comments:
Post a Comment