Portrayal of Today's Indonesia in Literature

From Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 14,000 islands boasting a diversity of regional cultures and livelihoods, the project has invited five up-and-coming authors to contribute newly-written works that reflect the era of the "new normal." These authors include Jakarta-based travel writer Agustinus Wibowo; Azhari Aiyub, a writer based in the autonomous province of Aceh in Sumatra, known for its Islamic government; Faisal Oddang, an author and poet from the island of Sulawesi; Intan Paramaditha, a native of Bandung, the capital of West Java province, who is now based in Australia; and Ziggy Zezsyazeoviennazabrizkie, one of the rising young authors from Lampung, Sumatra. We hope you will enjoy their unique short stories and essays.

Essays

• A New World, A New Self by Agustinus Wibowo / translated by Ninus Andarnuswari
• Durian and the Plague by Azhari Aiyub / translated by Ninus Andarnuswari
• "The Wandering" Entrapped: Pandemic, Movement, and Privilege by Intan Paramaditha / translated by Stephen J. Epstein

Short Stories

• Open Tribunal by Ziggy Zezsyazeoviennazabrizkie / translated by Stephen J. Epstein
• On Sounds by Faisal Oddang / translated by Rara Rizal

All works were written in Indonesian.

Literary Arts Scene in Indonesia

• "We Are a Nation of Wounds" (Interview) / translated by Raka Ibrahim
• "Cemeteries Are Everyday Life"―Five Indonesian Writers Talk Pandemic Normality (Roundtable talk) / translated by Raka Ibrahim
• "Literary Festivals in Indonesia" (Interview) / translated by Sarah Monica