Beach Reads

More and more people have become aware of the program. A couple of things have helped: Edwidge Danticat [Krik-Krak and Breath, Eyes, Memory] became well known, and Miami Dade College itself introducing people like Maryse Condé [Guadeloupean author of I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem], [Nobel laureates] Derek Walcott, Sir Vidia Naipaul, Earl Lovelace [Trinidadian author of The Dragon Can't Dance] ... so when these kinds of big names come, it helps to bring credibility to what we do.

Are there plans to perhaps include some younger, more up-and-coming Caribbean writers?

I have always been conscious of the need to straddle the generations. This year you will see well-established authors like Kamau Braithwaite and Lorna Goodison, and you will also see [Jamaican poets] Donna Weir-Soley and Shara McCallum — two ends of the chronological spectrum. To keep it fresh, we try to highlight female writers especially. For example, Deborah Jack is from the Dutch-speaking Caribbean; she's an artist and poet. We're also reaching out to varied ethnicities, for example Ramabai Espinet [who is Indo-Trinidadian], and Lawrence Scott is a white Trinidadian who has a very interesting past. He set out to be a monk, and now he's a writer. He's got a fascinating story.

Are there any authors you would particularly encourage newcomers to the Caribbean literary scene to see?

Oh my ... well, all of them! [laughs] But certainly Lorna and Kamau. Kamau just has such an electric yet quiet presence. He really transports the listener. I always look forward to seeing him. — Patrice Elizabeth Grell Yursik

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Unabashed Calabash
Colin Channer, Iron Balloons: Hit Fiction from Jamaica's Calabash Writer's Workshop
With Marlon James and Geoffrey Philp on Saturday, November 18, 10:00 a.m., Room 3313-14 (Bldg. 3, 3rd Fl.)

Colin Channer is a literary rebel with a cause. He finds writerly inspiration from the conscious agitators of reggae; the influence of Bob Marley is instantly apparent in the titles of two of his best-selling novels, Satisfy My Soul and Waiting in Vain. He is just as likely to discover a muse in dancehall artist's Cham's recent hit song "Ghetto Story" as he is in the fiction of Sir Vidia Naipaul. Instead of suffering through yet another slew of badly run, poorly attended literary festivals, he collaborated with poet Kwame Dawes to create the Calabash International Literary Festival, which attracts a variety of literary luminaries to Jamaica each year. Fitting with the fest's credo "Mix but don't blend in," this year's lineup ranges from Rebelution-leading dancehall queen Tanya Stephens to Trinidadian novelist Elizabeth Nunez. Channer's most recently published project is Iron Balloons: Hit Fiction from Jamaica's Calabash Writer's Workshop. Besides short stories by up-and-coming Calabash alumnus Marlon James ("The Last Jamaican Lion"), Nunez (the scathing and lush "All Ah We Is One") and Miami Dade College professor Geoffrey Philp ("I Want to Disturb My Neighbor"), the anthology includes a lengthy contribution by Channer, the hilariously titled "How to Beat a Child in the Right and Proper Way."

The Calabash Writer's Workshop is thriving and every year gets better and better. To what do you attribute that success?

Strong leadership and efficient management. Our ambition from the get-go was to create something with international standards. Kwame and I are writers, so we have a literary sensibility, a taste factor. Everything has to be earthy, daring, and diverse. The people of the Caribbean deserve a great event.

How do you feel about the Miami Book Fair International?

The Miami Book Fair is one of the best. The city is so vibrant, and such a diverse range of book lovers and authors come out to see you. Life in New York is so hectic; often you don't get to see the things you want to see. But in Miami I can actually take the time to see other authors. It's a good place to catch up with old friends.

Throughout our conversation, your voice has switched from island patois to American slang, from falsetto to bass. When audiences come to see Colin Channer read, what can they expect?

I guess I've become known as someone who reads his work well. I think it's my personality. Just in normal conversation, I do voices. I'm just a silly guy, and this is no manufactured stage presence. — Patrice Elizabeth Grell Yursik

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Fair Scare
Sharon Draper, Copper Sun
Students’ Literary Encounters, Friday, November 17, 9:30 a.m. (Auditorium) and 10:30 a.m. (Room 3210)