When a young Nadeem Aslam – sixteen years of age – fled from his native Pakistan and settled in England, he barely knew the English language. Back home, Urdu-medium schools had dotted the country and English education had been rare and for the affluent few.
In England, as a teenager, learning and writing in English became Nadeem Aslam’s burning desire – a language in which he would go on to produce highly influential works. As part of his self-imposed “crash-course” to learn English, he started by copying out entire novels by hand and studying the content! “That’s how I learned English, looking at the sentences,” Nadeem Aslam says.
Today, as one of the leading writers from the subcontinent who has made an indelible mark on the international stage, Nadeem Aslam has left behind striking footsteps to follow. Here are few of the fascinating things about him that are going to leave you captivated!
Educating himself and developing as a writer.
In the company of solitude.
Words flowing from his mind into his hand, then down the pen, and onto the page – blood becoming ink!
Breaking out!
Suffering with pleasure.
A writer builds his own world!
Excellence is a consequence of hard work and preparation, isn’t it?
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Nadeem Aslam was born in Pakistan and now lives in England. He is the author of four previous novels. The Golden Legend – a riveting novel set in contemporary Pakistan – is his latest work: http://bit.ly/GoldenLegend
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