First published on 2nd february, 2014 in The Star

TROPICAL MADNESS

Author: Marc de Faoite

Publisher: Fixi Novo

I OFTEN tell the Malaysians who come to my creative writing classes to write about Malaysians and to give their stories a Malaysian setting. To me, not writing about ourselves is a wasted opportunity. There is not much Malaysian literature in English and I feel that fiction about Malaysians and Malaysia should, by and large, be written by us. We can’t expect others not to tell our stories but we must do so as well.

When a foreigner writes a Malaysian story, the focus shifts.  And I feel the same about Malaysian stories published by international publishing houses. In the latter case, the books are being written with a foreign audience in mind. The authors (and publishers) might feel compelled to over-explain some things, play up others. In the former case, foreigners naturally don’t think and feel the same as Malaysians. They don’t have the same insight or concerns or baggage so it’s not possible for them to create convincing Malaysian characters. When I read a Malaysian story written by a non-Malaysian (be it Frank Swettenham or W. Somerset Maugham, Anthony Burgess or Paul Callan) I feel that they are telling their version of things and it makes me wish that there were more Malaysian versions to redress the balance. As Chinua Achebe said, ‘Although the work of redressing which needs to be done may appear too daunting, I believe it is not one day too soon to begin.’Read More »