Emily Gibbons writes:
Amit Dhand with interviewer James Nash |
Headingley LitFest had another brilliant and
insightful event with local pharmacist Amit Dhand, who was promoting his novel,
Streets of Darkness. The book has
been hailed as ‘Luther meets The Wire’, with its dark subject matter and
dramatic style. Dhand was in conversation with James Nash, another local
talent, and the dynamic between the two was engaging and humorous, hugely
contributing to the friendly atmosphere at the event. It was lovely to see such
a local turn out, as the majority of the attendees knew Dhand from his pharmacy
and so had a personal investment in the work.
Dhand spoke a lot about the publishing industry
itself, and the importance of editing. As he said, ‘writing is rewriting’, and
for each novel he writes he ‘burns’ around 60,000-70,000 words in order to make
it the best it can be. Whether you’re a student, poet, or novelist yourself,
the importance of editing cannot be underestimated, and as Dhand said, you
can’t control what happens to your work once it is submitted into the world of
publishing.
The most interesting discussion at the event was about
how the book is situated within current debates of diversity. Dhand observed
the lack of well-written Asian characters in media, and his book aims to fill
this gap by writing about real situations and complex characters, and not
resorting to tropes or racist stereotypes. He also said he actively tries to
include characters from all walks of life in his books, which is reflected in Streets of Darkness, and particularly in
the upcoming television adaption and subsequent novels in the series. The
evening concluded with a reading of the prologue of Girl Zero, the next DI Harry Virdee book, and a room full of people
about to embark on a new crime adventure.
Lucy Radnedge writes:
In stark contrast to the dark nature of his novel Streets of Darkness,
Amit Dhand is Headingley’s very own charming Pharmacist, a husband and
father. He began writing comedy, not surprising as his witty temperament
shone through,
and then moved into crime fiction. Greatly amusing the fellow audience
and myself, Amit shared that his love for crime narratives sparked when
he used to sneak downstairs as a young teen to watch scary movies his
parents had banned him from watching.
Despite
being advised by several editors that three separate narratives was too
much too handle, his passion to succeed never ceased because for Amit
one narrative was just not enough! His ten years of hard work, writing
and rewriting has certainly paid off as Headingley’s
residents and I relished seeing our local pharmacist reach the
bookstore charts.
Audience Comments
-->
Sally Bavage adds:
LitFest was pleased once again to have support from three lovely Leeds University students: Emily Gibbons, Lucy Radnedge and Tricia Ramsey. They were a great help at a packed event.
LitFest was pleased once again to have support from three lovely Leeds University students: Emily Gibbons, Lucy Radnedge and Tricia Ramsey. They were a great help at a packed event.
Audience Comments
Excellent
interview with AAD. James Nash
sympathetic and allowed Amit to be himself.
Some interviewers don't. Amit v
honest, funny and interesting.
Great
event. Very lovely chap. Entertaining evening and look forward to
reading the book.
Excellent
presentation from a creative writer at the heart of our community. More of the
same!
A very engaging
speaker (although I arrived late and had to sit at the back, so didn't hear
everything despite my new hearing aids).
He seems to have really enjoyed becoming a writer, although it has been
hard work. One certainly felt one would
like to read more of his words.
A wonderful
evening – fascinating and absorbing.
Will definitely follow this writer.
Deep and honest
impression of the writing of this book and interesting comments from the
audience.
How very
refreshing to listen to a writer with feet so firmly on the ground. I also very
much liked the lack of 'political correctness' and as a resident of Bradford
look forward to a lift in the national view of the city.
Can't wait to
read this book. Very interesting evening
and very funny.
Very interesting
talk, great to hear a local author at the start of what is going to be an
exciting career as a writer.
A wonderful
event, a compelling talk.
Dev Patel as
Harry Virdee? A A Dhand absolutely
charming and thoughtful. Great insight
into his way of writing – formulaic perhaps – but effective!
Good show. Enjoyed listening to someone who is treading
a different path.
Excellent event,
very well hosted. Refreshing to come to
an event and not just hear about the book 'Streets of Darkness' but be
entertained.
Really
inspiring, refreshing and enjoyable.
Thank you!
Very enjoyable
event – added to an already very enjoyable book.
Great set
up, interesting night and good host.
Great event –
well managed via chairs, questions and a writer who could also talk well about
writing.
Very interesting
talk
A terrific
evening with a wonderful author/speaker (who I knew nothing about before, and
don't even use his pharmacy). Good
interviewer and excellent audience.
Very interesting
and enjoyable. Nice man! Thank you. And James (Ed: Nash, interviewer)
did well too!
Really
interesting and informative evening – thought the interviewer also did an
excellent job.
Very good. Interesting questions from the poet James
Nash and witty humorous responses from Amit Dhand. The local pharmacist angle was an extra
bonus!
Excellent and
insightful talk
Excellent talk. Giving a good insight into the art of
writing. Presented in a humorous way.
Good to see a
very local writer. Conversation concept
good.
Very
interesting/articulate/informative. Look
forward to next book.
Excellent! Very enjoyable.
Well done! Refreshing open and helpfully informative
about writing and publishing. Clear and
confident about himself as citizen and crime writer. The local detail (Bradford and Leeds) was fascinating,
lent the issues addressed (the discipline of writing, the question of identity)
were immediate and very involving.
Really
interesting and well presented. Very
enjoyable, well done. The seating
arrangement could have been better perhaps – have them (Ed: speakers) central
rather than to the side.
Bought the book
at the chemist! Loved it and looking
forward to reading the rest. Thanks for
the opportunity to meet the author (or I could pop to the chemist's!)
Very
enlightening and good to hear opinions from the author on political
correctness!
Most interesting
interview – Amit comes across as a very pleasant and down-to-earth character –
hope he continues to do well
Good comfortable
venue. Seemed very organised with lots
of staff and started on time. Nice
balance of time for interview and time for audience questions. Refreshments would have been nice, also
microphones.
Amit is an
excellent speaker – he had our attention all the way through. Very entertaining evening. Brilliant book! Fascinating read. Looking forward to the next book and another
evening here!
The author
talked interestingly and need no prompting.
In my opinion the second man on stage was unnecessary and almost
interrupted the author's thought direction.
The speaker
needs to stand up whilst speaking and to have a microphone. Very large people should be dissuaded from a
seat in the front row.