The Monsoon Bride

The Monsoon Bride, considers the position of mixedrace subject within the field of postcolonial literary theory, in particular 'the hybrid' and 'hybridity'. British colonialism is often represented in English language literature, but representations of a subjectivity that breaches the binary of colonizer and colonized are rare; this literary exploration takes place from a 'hybridised' view connecting the two positions. Further, the novel represents AngloBurmese or mixed race 'skin' as racially and culturally ambiguous, problematizing the idea of the authentic and difference when measured against a normative position. The work extends the discourse around hybridity, the authentic and how difference is situated. Drawing from theorists including Homi Bhabha and Trinh T Minh Ha, the novel poses questions such as: do writers representing inbetween subjects write from 'no place'? How can writing define this place at the point of the border and make it intelligible not only for reader, but for commercial publishers? National distribution in Australia is through the major publishers, Text. The unpublished manuscript was shortlisted for the Victoria Premier¿s Literary Awards 2010. The writer received a $5000 Readings Fellowship and residency at The Wheeler Centre. The novel was reviewed across major outlets including: The Age, Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian, Women¿s Weekly, Cosmopolitan magazine. The writer attended literary events including Wheeler Centre First Mondays, UBUD literary festival, Byron Bay Literary Festival, ASEAN literary festival, Irrawaddy Literary Festival, Clunes Booktown. The book was subject of author interviews on ABC Book Show as well as ABC RN Life Matters. Postpublication, the writer was awarded a Canada Council grant and an Asialink residency.