In anticipation of the Review of Small Literatures: Romani Literature, we present a brief interview with poet Oksana Marafioti who lives in USA.
Could you describe yourself in 3 words?
Curious, Creative, Brave
Without summarizing it, what would you say your work in the Anthology is about?
How living stories (the “Radiant Body”) transmute memory, grief, and historical erasure into belonging and purpose, insisting on the sanctity of life and community over monuments to death.
How would you describe Roma literature?
Romani literature is that of survival, tenderness, and refusal: survival of language and lineage, tenderness for family and everyday joys, and refusal of erasure, pity, and stereotype. It crosses borders, carries our oral histories forward, and insists on being seen on its own terms.
Who is your favourite Romani author?
Jo Clement and Lynn Hutchinson Lee.
Why do you write?
To turn confusion into meaning and silence into story. To discover myself and help others do the same. Also to leave a usable map for my kids and for students of Romani literature!
What’s the best and the worst writing advice you’ve ever been given?
Best: Write the scene that scares you. Worst: “Platform first, art later.”
What are you currently working on?
A memoir-in-essays about identity, migration, and creativity, a collection of short stories based on animal behaviour, and a craft book for writers with printable exercises.
What you have been reading lately?
As a book editor, I read a lot of craft books. Right now, I’m reading Jane Alison’s Meander, Spiral, Explode: Design and Pattern in Narrative, and in fiction, I’m reading Lynn Hutchinson Lee’s forthcoming novel, Nightshade and Stephen Graham Jones’ Buffalo Hunter Hunter.
