Whispers in the Twilight — A global short stories collection

Neil Gaiman once said that in his opinion the short story is a very underrated art form. And I agree with him. For me personally as a reader, short stories have proven to be a joy during the phase of the pandemic where concentrating on anything became a problem.

One of my discoveries was an e-book collection of eleven short stories, Whispers in the Twilight compiled and edited by Fabrizio Frosini and Poets Unite Worldwide. Frosini, is an Italian medical doctor with a specialization in neurosurgery but he retired from the profession due to his personal health issues. He has a passion for poetry and is the author of more than twenty books. He founded Poets Unite Worldwide in 2015, a platform for poets from around the world to collaborate and share poetry about global issues like climate change, terrorism, inequality and poverty.

“Writing and publishing books is a challenging pastime (to which I have been dedicating for 5 years), certainly not a profession. As I’ve just written to a friend, being committed to something helps not to think too much about the worst things in our own life.”

One of the authors featured is Umaima R Ahmed, a Pakistani journalist. Her short story deals with the issue of abuse and what the victims go through. The protagonist of her story is shown still going through abuse but has been able to develop this strain where she believes that she will be able to avenge this injustice. Another issue that is tackled in the story is the lack of inheritance rights for women still practiced by many in the country and this mindset doesn’t necessarily changes even if the family moves out of the country. With all that is showing up in our news feeds these days this short story is quite relevant.

In addition to Umaima and Fabrizio, Mashable Pakistan also got to ask Aron Lelei, a poet and writer from Kenya, about his contribution, The best for last. He shared how the protagonist of his story wanted to live in the moment as she went through life as a bright student but given the domestic environment she grew up, she wanted to make sure that she saves her best version for the last. Aron also shared the importance of platforms like Poets Unite Worldwide that helps find new writers and also connect people from all corners of the globe.

Joji Varghese Kuncheria, is another one of the authors who shared a bit about his story.
“I’m a retired lecturer pursuing writing as a hobby. I come from a literary family; my grandfather was a poet and the Chief Editor of a leading Malayalam newspaper and my uncle was a famous Cartoonist of another leading newspaper in Kerala, India. This is my first attempt of writing a short story. The symbolic meaning of the title of my story “Thirteen Gold Coins” is that it represents Christ and his 12 apostles. It is a simple ceremony where the Bridegroom gives the Bride these coins to represent his responsibility as a provider, and his trust in his Bride with his material possessions. In my story, I have dealt with the topic of ‘student infatuation’ — a topic normally ignored or not discussed, but very much prevalent in schools and institutions of higher education. This is more evident in Africa than in the Middle East (because of the cultural background) — places where I’ve taught for 23 years. I have personally experienced this type of infatuation in my long teaching career though my story is not a fully autobiographical account. Imagination staggers!”

What made this collection stand out was the fact that it was not focused on a specific theme. The stories were quite different touching upon very different subjects. Also the global mix of authors is also something that brought a fresh feel. At no point one feels that a similar story is being told. Given the weird times we are living through these story from around the world while bringing their unique perspectives and cultural touch also highlighted the universal emotions we all go through.

Other authors who have contributed to the collection include; Abhilasha Bhatt, Vera Dike, Lidia Hristeva, Mj Lemon, Marianne Larsen Reninger, Venecia N Sangma and Hans Van Rostenberghe. The e-book can be bought from Amazon.

Originally published at https://pk.mashable.com on September 25, 2020.