Skip to content
  • Common Currency
  • Campaigns
    • PENWrites
    • Writers at Risk
    • Writers in Residence
    • Free speech in the UK
  • News
  • Events
  • Translation
    • PEN Translates
    • PEN Presents
    • PEN Transmissions
    • International Translation Day
    • The World Bookshelf
      • Books
      • Authors
      • Translators
  • Prizes
    • PEN Pinter Prize
    • PEN Ackerley Prize
    • PEN Hessell-Tiltman Prize
  • Donate
  • Join
Home > Event > Upcoming event explores taboos, desire and disgust

Upcoming event explores taboos, desire and disgust

In a joint event, English PEN and Free Word will explore the private spaces that women carve out for themselves with three writers from Colombia, Singapore and Pakistan, all of whom have made adolescence the focus point of their recent work.

Sharlene Teo‘s celebrated debut novel Ponti is a portrayal of the loneliness of teenagehood, of friendship, obsession and film stars in Singapore. In Margarita García Robayo‘s collection Fish Soup (transl. by Charlotte Coombe), young female protagonists want nothing more than to escape their conservative, coastal town in Colombia. Sarvat Hasin‘s latest collection You Can’t Go Home Again focuses on a group of Karachi teenagers after one of them goes missing.

Sharlene, Margarita and Sarvat were all featured on PEN Transmissions, our new zine for international writing.

Join us to discuss adolescence and bodies, horror and faith, Pakistan, Singapore, Colombia and London, fun and fear, and how to turn the private lives of teenage girls public – in fictional form.

Taboos: Desire and Disgust, 30 October, 6.30-9pm, Free Word Centre. Find out more and book tickets here.

This event is organised by English PEN and Free Word as part of This Is Private.

_________________________________

Want to catch up with past issues of PEN Transmissions? Start here:

Sharlene Teo on Singapore: ‘I experience a double estrangement writing in English and residing in the UK, the site of imperialist, colonizing power, yet I can’t escape that I am estranged of my own volition.’

Margarita García Robayo on being a teenage girl: ‘We grew up fearful and confused. But we grew up and, among other things, growing up means gaining independence. As you do that, you begin to write your own story that eventually superimposes itself on the one of your upbringing.’

Sarvat Hasin on secrets: ‘In a sense all art is based on secrets, on things hidden behind the curtain. When I read a friend’s novel or poetry, I can sometimes glimpse behind the top layers — see the person in their life who inspired a certain turn of phrase.’

PEN Transmissions is supported by the Booker Foundation.

£8.00 students and Plus Cardholders, including a drink

Share

1Margarita García Robayo1PEN Transmissions1Sarvat Hasin1Sharlene Teo1Translation

Join our mailing list

Sign up to receive the latest English PEN news and events.

SIGN UP
  • About
  • Privacy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Partners
  • Outreach
  • Jobs
  • Contact us

With thanks to our Core Funders

©1921 - 2020

English PEN is a company limited by guarantee number 5747142 (England & Wales) and a registered charity, number 1125610.

We use cookies to help us improve your experience on our website. By closing this notification or interacting with the website you agree to our use of cookies. ACCEPT Find out more
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT