OUT OF PRINT: TEN YEARS
One of the most critical compilations of contemporary short fiction emerging from the Indian subcontinent, this anthology, curated from ten years of the short story magazine, Out of Print, features thirty stories from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the subcontinental diaspora. Twelve of the pieces are translations from languages of the subcontinent into English. It includes writers ranging from U.R. Ananthamurthy and Shaheen Akhtar to debut writers like Zui Kumar-Reddy and Vidya Ravi. Established, award-winning authors Annie Zaidi, Tanuj Solanki and two-time O. Henry award winner, Shruti Swamy appear in the collection. Commentary from Urvashi Butalia, Rakhshanda Jalil, Janice Pariat, Sharanya Manivannan, Samhita Arni and Mira Brunner contextualises the work in this literary publication that contains some of the finest writing of the past decade.
The publishers noted that this commemorative volume, is not a ‘best of’ anthology, but one that speaks of the spirit of Out of Print: its diversity of literary voices, its openness to experimentation, its focus on Indian-language publishing and the high quality of its featured work.
Most crucially, of course, this is an ode to the short-story form, its ‘art of brevity and honesty’ (1).
(1) Christine Meynier, in an analysis of Virginia Woolf’s short stories from her essays: ‘The Short Story according to Woolf’, Christine Meynier, Journal of the Short Story in English, V. 41, Autumn 2003, pp. 55-67.
Endorsements:
Ranjit Hoskote, poet, writer, cultural theorist, independent curator:
Out of Print – which has always struck me as a delightfully deceptive name for a journal that chose very deliberately to bypass print and present itself online – turns ten! And what a sumptuous and substantial decade it has been for this platform devoted to the genre of short fiction. Over the years, as this anthology shows, it has evolved into a forum for contributors belonging to several generations, enriching it with a trans-generational diversity of experience. It has embraced writers working in several languages, giving it a multilingual richness of texture. The stories it has carried testify to varied choices of poetics. Out of Print has pursued its literary commitment, not with a flamboyant, manifesto-brandishing defiance, but with an elegant and resolute sense of purpose. The journal focuses precisely on the short story, in any avatar from the classical to the experimental, as a form bearing vitality and value in and of itself – not as a halfway house to the novel, a stand-in for non-fiction, or thinly disguised memoir, even if some of the stories that have appeared in it may hint at a novelistic scale, draw on forms of reportage, or use autobiographical material. Having sought out the internet’s wide horizons and the astonishingly unpredictable readership they can summon up, Out of Print is simultaneously focused on India and responsive to the world’s currents – a publication informed by a liberal and generously cosmopolitan outlook that we must celebrate at this time of dangerous cultural narrowing and cynical political polarization.
Sampurna Chattarji, poet, short-story writer, novelist, translator:
In a market primed for page-turners and conventional long form narratives, the well written short story has found its champions among those who love and appreciate the form for its own sake. Out of Print is one such. For ten years, it has single-mindedly focused on bringing readers around the world new short fiction from, or connected with, the Indian subcontinent. Being ‘out of print’ is an occupational hazard that no author ever really gets used to. Reclaiming that death-knell phrase with intelligent vivacity has been Founder-Editor Indira Chandrasekhar’s great gift to the community of readers and writers alike. Out of Print has cheekily turned the notion of obsolescence into its opposite by leveraging the benefits of the digital domain – access, reach, sustainability, cost-effectiveness. A print anthology to celebrate this decade-long online dedication seems befitting. It is as much an invitation to the source of the selection as an acknowledgement of the delights of the old analogue way. Structured across five broad themes, the thirty stories here offer an excellent refresher course for anyone interested in short fiction. You will find old favourites and make new discoveries – writers with spike and bite, writers rooted and restless, writers telling good old-fashioned stories, undercut with unease. You will glimpse the fractures and fissures of the India we must constantly reimagine, remake, retell and yes – record. As testament to a remarkable journey and as a reminder that this endangered form is alive and well, Out of Print – in print! – is a rare occasion for joy, an archive that commits to paper a valuable fragment of virtual time.
Vivek Shanbhag, story writer, novelist, playwright:
Out of Print magazine was born with the understanding that short fiction has a unique place in Indian literature. What the magazine has been able to achieve in the last decade is evident in this special volume. In this selection, one finds stories that are the finest examples of the short-fiction form. Out of Print: Ten Years, which is a coming together of language, geography, technique, skill, content, variety and talent, is a major contribution to the form. There is no doubt that this wonderful anthology will fascinate the reader.
Salma, poet and writer in contemporary Tamil literature
(Adapted from the translation of Salma’s endorsement by Uma Madan):
Out of Print is a literary magazine that is very dear and close to my heart. I am happy to know that it is bringing out a compilation of short stories and translations to mark ten years of its presence on the scene. I remember, with joy, that some years ago, one of my short stories was published in Out of Print, which gave me some of my most discerning readers! This is one of the very best spaces for short stories in translation, one that every author wishes to be published in. This effort to share the literary works of the best contemporary authors from the region is a hugely necessary and much-needed service. Human beings may be separated by lands, environments, politics, but people everywhere have a common thread. These stories bring to the reader, a new viewpoint and opening to issues encountered in their own lives. Creation is a drive from within … an attack on the social ego … Many of the stories in this magazine reiterate this. This compilation reflects the last ten years of the creativity of writers from the region. This is evident from the table of contents, which includes names like Shashi Deshpande and U.R. Ananthamurthy, as well as the works of very many young writers from within my circle, and importantly, high quality and faithful translations. Even in India, where so many varied languages are still alive and in use, it hasn’t been sufficiently possible to share writings through translations. The role of literary organisations such as Out of Print is, therefore, ever more important. I hope that this compilation will reach a vast number of readers and will get a rousing reception and welcome. To this, I send my heartfelt greetings.
Arshia Sattar, writer, translator, scholar, founder of Sangam House:
This Out of Print anthology shows us that Indian writing is alive and well, across languages and in translation. It is also a timely reminder that the so-called ‘little magazine’ occupies a big space for writers and should do so, equally, for readers. If you need any further encouragement to read fine writing, carefully selected and beautifully put together, this volume from Out of Print is surely it. Follow them online, another ten years is too long to wait for a showcase like this one.
Saniya, short-story writer and novelist in contemporary Marathi literature:
Out of Print gives a platform for short-story writers who express in many languages. This anthology of short stories, selected with purpose, opens numerous windows through which we have a glimpse of several unknown lives. All of us love stories. We hear them and tell them to others. We imagine them and make them up. Stories let us find answers we are seeking to the questions we are struggling with. Stories give us a glimpse at lives which we may not live ourselves. Stories give us a different way of looking at the complexities of this world. Stories give us opportunities to examine our own life. A short story does this in a special way; it is precise and sharp, and leaves an impression deep within. There is no place in a good short story for something unnecessary or redundant. For that matter, there is a lot which is unsaid, not explained, not elaborated in a short story which a reader is challenged to find out. Short stories need platforms so that they can be read.
Musharraf Ali Farooqi, writer and translator:
Over a decade of publishing Out of Print, Indira Chandrasekhar and her team has provided a platform to authors, translators and artists across genres that has grown in its importance and influence. The present anthology, commemorating some of the finest writings published in Out of Print over the first decade of its publishing history, is not to be missed.
Reviews and Interviews:
...brings together select pieces from the publication’s first decade. They reinforce ideas that speak to the spirit of the magazine...
...the book widens the scope of thought, imagination and realism...
...a flash of extraordinary brilliance [that shines] on a ... moment, episode, character, or transition, says Chandrasekhar about the short story...
This is a volume that commemorates ten years ... and does a great job of bringing together all that is remarkable and joyous about an exclusive space for short fiction.
In Out of Print, Ten Years: An Anthology of Stories ... the staggering power of the form reveals itself to the reader — a line, a segment and a structural pulse at a time.
The collection reflects the changing society scape and publishing landscape in the decade gone by, culminating, not just in the pandemic that has engulfed us all since last year, but also the other social realities that continually threaten to erode and eradicate the idea of India that has primarily sustained us in the seven decades post-Independence.
...each gem in the collection has been carefully hand-picked...
The first ever presentation in English for the Telugu language Book Reader's Club
'...a very famous literary magazine in India...' 'I found a lot of writers who I wouldn't have otherwise ... who are fantastic'
...the editor Indira Chandrasekhar has brought together some of the finest examples of short fiction, a coming together of a diverse variety of geography, style, range, content, skill and translation that makes this a fascinating collection...
Out of Print ... is easily the best platform for publishing short stories in India today. It is dedicated to short stories alone; is online and easy to access.
...the short story format enables the writer to explore themes with a sharp focus.
Appearances:
with Samhita Arni, Zui Kumar-Reddy, Vasudhendra, Rheea Rodrigues on stage, Raza Naeem and Tanuj Solanki online, and editors Mira Brunner, Leela Levitt, Ram Sadasiv and Vandana Devi
with Anjum Hasan and Fehmida Zakeer
The Catholic Club Literature Festival, Mar 21, 2021
with Ali Madeeh Hashmi, Urvashi Butalia and Raza Naeem
Indira Chandrasekhar, Anupama Raju and Meena Kandasamy in conversation with Mohini Gupta
Indira Chandrasekhar with Anushka Jasraj, Nisha Susan, Paul McVeigh, Sonal Kohli,
The Editor:
Dr. Indira Chandrasekhar is a scientist, writer, literary curator and the founder and principal editor of Out of Print, one of the primary platforms for short fiction bearing a connection to the Indian subcontinent. As a fiction writer, she focuses on the short form, drawing deeply on her scientific experience working with the complex subtleties of biological macromolecules.
Her fiction has appeared in anthologies and literary journals across the world.
She co-edited the anthology Pangea, Thames River Press, and a collection of her short stories Polymorphism was published by HarperCollins.
