KMWR: You shared that you wrote “Outside There Is a Fire” during the five-day internet blackout last year in Bangladesh, and I’m wondering if you can share more about what that experience was like?

SS: It was a strange time, a surreal pause amidst the upheaval. You felt everything was at peace, yet nothing was. I would go out to buy newspapers and I’d see hundreds of people in my area walking about. The curfew was technically on, as was a shoot-on-sight order, but rage and boredom had everyone out. A good time as any to write a story that straddled both the turmoil of home and the world. 

KMWR: My favorite part of this story is the image of the glass mug and its delicate, heartbreaking, and powerful return at the end of the piece. Did you know what the last line/image of this story would be before you sat down to write?

SS: I did not, actually. The first draft of the story did not have that line, but I wanted to end the story more definitely. I’m happy to hear that you enjoyed that part! 

KMWR: I read somewhere that you are working on a novel. How is that going? What are the challenges and the joys of novel writing versus short fiction?

SS: The novel is much more personal to me because I spend all my life in it. I’ve had plans for novels that later on I realized were much better off as short stories. It has been the other way around too, so I suppose it’s somewhat the same to me when I’m writing them. 

KMWR: What are you reading right now and what would you recommend?

SS: I started this year with Hanif Kureishi’s memoir Shattered, which recounts his life in hospitals after a sudden accident leaves him paralyzed . It’s such a funny book, I haven’t laughed this much in a long time. Only possible for someone with Kureishi’s humor to be this hilarious over something so horrific. One almost wishes he has more accidents like this, if it results in such great books. I’m currently reading Opacities by Sofia Samatar, a short book about the writing experience, which I’d definitely recommend. 

KMWR: This might be a stretch but in your bio you mention being in the boxing scene in your area. I’m curious if you feel any similarities between the work of storytelling and boxing? I also enjoyed your review of Headshot by Rita Bullwinkel.

SS: I’m fascinated with great boxing writing, which is rare to find. Bullwinkel’s novel is clearly among the better ones, yet now that I look back I think it fails for a very silly reason. Why have 15-year-olds fight for 8 rounds? That’s like writing a baseball novel and having a little league pitcher throw for 9 innings – theoretically possible, perhaps? But absurd in a way.

KMWR: Finally, can you describe your ideal writing session—what do you like to have close by and how do you stay motivated?

SS: I’m a very lazy writer. I’d like to write every day but I’m often unable to. An ideal day would be to get some significant writing done by the first half of the day, so I could spend the other half not worrying to death over being a failure.

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Shahriar Shaams is a writer based in Dhaka, Bangladesh. His fiction, essays, and translations have appeared in Third Lane Mag, Singapore Unbound, Six Seasons Review, Small World City, and in the literary pages of Dhaka Tribune and The Daily Star, where he regularly contributes literary criticism. He also occasionally boxes in the amateur scene in Dhaka. Instagram: @shahriar.shaams