I had decided to retire the literary Would You Rather series, but didn't want to stop interviews on the site all together. Instead, I've pulled together 40ish questions - some bookish, some silly - and have asked authors to limit themselves to answering only 10 of them. That way, it keeps the interviews fresh and connectable for all of us!
Today we are joined by Tanya Sangpun Thamkruphat. Tanya is a Thai-Vietnamese American
writer. She’s the author of the poetry chapbooks, Em(body)ment of Wonder (Raine
Publishing) and It Wasn’t a Dream (Fahmidan Publishing & Co.). Her writing
appears in The Orange County Register, Button Poetry, Brazos River Review,
Honey Literary, and elsewhere.
Why do you write?
Writing has always been my source
of therapy for as long as I can remember, but it has also been a way to bring
joy into my life. Building something grand from nothing has always fascinated
me.
What made you start writing?
I love reading books since I was
young, and I was fascinated with how authors could build amazing worlds all
with their imagination. I wanted that kind of power.
What do you do when you’re not
writing?
I’m usually reading (I have at
least 5-6 books at any time in my reading queue), spending time with my feline
overlords and loved ones, snacking, or binge-watching TV shows or movies.
Describe your book in three words.
It Wasn’t a Dream could be
described as magical, entertaining, and empowering.
If you could spend the day with
another author, who would you choose and why?
Neil Gaiman! He’s my favorite
author. I’ve read everything of his and I love his style of storytelling. He
has such an array of fascinating stories. I would love to sit and talk to him
about what’s reading, what inspires his stories, and just talk about what he
does for fun in his spare time.
What is your favorite way to waste
time?
I love to binge watch TV shows and
movies while feasting on comfort foods and snacks.
What are some of your favorite
books and/or authors?
Some include Neverwhere by
Neil Gaiman, Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century by Kim
Fu, Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr, and The Fire Eater by
Jose Hernandez Diaz.
What are you currently reading?
Scattered All Over the Earth
by Yoko Tawada (translated by Margaret MItsutani), Cursed Bunny by Bora
Chung (translated by Anton Hur), The Marriage Portrait by Maggie
O’Farrell, The Old Woman with the Knife by Gu Byeong-mo (translated by
Chi-Young Kim), The People Who Report More Stress by Alejandro Varela, Deep
as the Sky, Red as the Sea by Rita Chang-Eppig, Happily by Sabrina
Orah Mark, and Lone Women by Victor LaValle.
What’s on your literary bucket
list?
When I finally move into a house,
I want one room dedicated as a reading room and library.
What scares you the most?
Small talk.
"In Tanya Sangpun Thamkruphat’s collection, It Wasn’t a Dream, the surreal and the magical take center stage: in the everyday. We find a charming wolf with an entourage of children, a balloon artist touring the world, a good Samaritan farmer who is rewarded by a grateful alien—nothing is impossible in these prose poems. In order to make otherwise bizarre phenomena relatable and palpable, Thamkruphat unleashes a charming, accessible style and narrative approach which brings the fantastical and the ethereal down to earth. This is innovative, memorable work!
– Jose Hernandez Diaz, author of The Fire Eater and Bad Mexican, Bad American
buy a copy
https://www.fahmidan.net/it-wasnt-a-dream-digital-chapbook
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