And Rukman Writes
Of short story debuts and long starts
Hi folks,
Welcome to my very first newsletter! I’ve been meaning to write to you for so long but as a perennial procrastinator, I only do what I want to do when I’m avoiding something else. Thank you for subscribing, even with the barren landscape. So, shall we begin again?
Rukman Writes will hopefully be a monthly newsletter with updates on what I’m up to, late night thoughts and of course, what I’ve loved recently. However, I make no promises on regular posts.
Of Writing and Publishing
If you didn’t know already, 2024 is my debut year as a short story writer. However, I actually sold most of these stories last year and with the speed publishing works, they all were published within a few weeks of each other, lending me an illusion of prolificity.
Here’s what I’ve published so far.
“Trees Can Have My Soul; in Return, Let Me Have My Grief”, published in khoreo magazine. January 2024
Debuting with one of my most personal stories was certainly an experience. Simultaneously, I was (am) terrified of people reading it but also badly wanted everyone to read it. I always say I had to die a little to write this story because I was writing a grief story while dealing with grief in my real life and wrangling with very complicated feelings about identity and language.
If you haven’t already, please do give it a read/listen. Ahrebby Anandakumar and Lian Xia Rose have knocked it out of park with the audio and this story, with all its complicated grief and questions of who owns language, is probably the truest one I’ve written so far.
“What Tales Demand”, published in Tasavvur, March 2024
I’ve always been fascinated by narratives and storytelling, their politics and who gets to tell whose stories. What Tales Demand was born out of such a fascination and it had many different titles and iterations before arriving at what it is today.
What Tales Demand was one of the first stories I’ve ever written and it was racking up rejection after rejection. My green submitter’s soul wasn’t ready for the grueling grind of what it means to be a working writer and I would have thrown in the towel if Amal and Kehkashan at Tasavvur didn’t give it a chance.
The incredible Bogi Takács had some very kind words to say about this story and I’m forever grateful to be read with such grace and care.
“To Grieve My Brother”, published in Consequence Forum’s substack, March 2024
This was a micro I wrote because I was getting extremely tired of the “poor traumatized war veteran” trope. I wanted to explore who is allowed right to be traumatized, and by default, who is dehumanized and erased.
“A Warm Cup Of Tea”, published in The Baltimore Review, April 2024.
Probably one of my personal favorite pieces. I am an avid tea drinker (most Sri Lankans are) and I wanted to explore how entwined this beverage is in the cultural fabric of our lives.
“Cheap Dreams”, published in The Hooghly Review, April 2024
Cheap Dreams was a piece that took 33 rejections to place over 2 years. It is about who gets to dream and who can afford it. This is one of the pieces I never stopped believing in!
And there you go. My entire career of four months, fueled by 2 years of submissions. It took me a lot to learn that rejection is the norm in this industry. I haven’t sold a single story that someone didn’t hate and it helped me a lot to internalise that most magazines, in their simplest form, is a curation of Some Guy’s TM (imagine the superscript pls, I tried to google but no avail) taste.
Does it mean that big credits are nothing? Of course not. All the fancy places are great to be in. But not getting into them doesn’t mean I’m a bad writer as well. So, my goal forward is to write the most weirdest, sharpest fiction that is me. If absolutely no one wants a story, I will deep freeze it for a while, come back to it with clear eyes and if I still like it, I will publish it for my hostages (read: you folks) to read.
Recommendations
One of the very first lessons I taught myself is to love without shame. I can still hear my furious whisper as I repeated it again and again. This also extends to media and these are all stuff I enjoyed very much.
Novels and Novellas: I have not finished much long form lately but some novels that haunt me throughout are
Chlorine by Jade Song. Such an incisive novel. Just read it. If you like literary fiction, if you like horror, you need this.
Jonathan Abernathy You Are Kind by Molly McGhee. There is a sense of sharp time and timelessness to this novel that I loved very much. Abernathy himself is one of the best characters I’ve read in a long while.
Short and Flash: I have read so many good ones lately but the ones that refuse to leave me alone are these two.
Our Very Best Selves by Fatima Taqvi (Nightmare Magazine). Fatima Taqvi writes horror like no one else—ntimate, powerful and life changing.
Between The Nail And The Skin by Hema Nataraju (Janus Literary). I actually read this story first more than an year ago but always go back to it. Hema Nataraju is a master of precision, ensuring each word draws blood.
Poetry: I’m no poet but I do love reading poetry and here’s my favorite one this week.
Three Symptoms of a Disaster by Angela Liu (Nightmare Magazine)
Visual recs
I devoured Dev Patel’s Monkey Man. Possibly my favorite film of the year and so very needed. A powerful reclamation, Monkey Man directly challenges bigotry, islamaphobia and casteism in a action packed, thoughtfully constructed movie. Every frame is handled with care. Bravo, Dev Patel.
And that’s it. I have something very exciting happening right now and hopefully, I’ll be able to tell you all about it in my next letter. It is farewell for now and please feel free to talk about anything in the comments.
With soft paws with claws,
Rukman and their (future) cat