{{short description|Sri Lankan American writer}} {{Infobox person | image = | image_size = | caption = | birth_date = | birth_place = | alma_mater = [[Penn State University]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])<br/>[[Hunter College]] ([[Master of Fine Arts|MFA]]) | death_date = | death_place = | other_names = | years_active = | spouse = | website = http://www.sunilyapa.com }}
'''Sunil Yapa''' is a [[Sri Lankan Americans|Sri Lankan American]] fiction writer and novelist. Yapa won the 2010 ''[[Hyphen (magazine)|Hyphen]]'' Asian American Short Story Contest for his short story, "Pilgrims (What is Lost and You Cannot Regain)," which is also published in the Fall 2010 issue of ''[[Hyphen (magazine)|Hyphen]]'', Issue No. 21, the "New Legacy Issue."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://fictionwritersreview.com/shoptalk/sunil-yapa-wins-hyphenaaww-short-story-contest/|title=Sunil Yapa wins Hyphen/AAWW Short Story Contest|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://hyphenmagazine.com/magazine/issue-21-new-legacy-fall-2010/pilgrims-what-lost-and-you-cannot-regain|title=Pilgrims (What Is Lost and You Cannot Regain)|date=15 August 2010|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> His debut novel, ''Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist'' (2016) was released on January 12, 2016 by Lee Boudreaux Books, an imprint of [[Little, Brown and Company]].
==Background== The biracial son of a Sri Lankan father and a mother from Montana, Yapa grew up in central Pennsylvania and has traveled and lived in 48 US states and 35 countries, including Greece, Guatemala, Chile, Argentina, China, India, London, Montreal, and New York City.<ref name="auto">Ng, supra n.1</ref><ref>Sunil Yapa's Official Site, Bio, http://sunilyapa.com/bio/</ref>
Yapa graduated from [[Penn State University]] in 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in [[Economic geography|Economic Geography]], for which he won the 2002 E.W. Miller Award for excellence in writing in the discipline. He briefly attended the [[University of Houston]]'s Creative Writing MFA Program and the [[London Film School]], where he wrote a feature film screenplay in a course taught by Ellis Freeman.<ref>Sunil Yapa's Official Site, Education, supra n.6</ref> He received his [[Master of Fine Arts]] (MFA) in Creative Writing/Fiction degree in 2010 from [[Hunter College]] in [[New York City]], where he studied with [[Peter Carey (novelist)|Peter Carey]], [[Nathan Englander]], [[Claire Messud]] and [[Colum McCann]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://themusethemarketplace2016.sched.org/speaker/sunil.s.yapa|title=Sunil Yapa's schedule for The Muse & the Marketplace 2016|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref><ref name="auto1">Sunil Yapa's Official Site, Bio, supra n.4</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://sunilyapa.com/education/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150223191947/http://sunilyapa.com/education/|archivedate=2015-02-23|title=Education - Sunil Yapa|date=23 February 2015|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> At Hunter College, Yapa received the 2008-2010 Alumni Scholarship & Welfare Fund Fellowship, a grant given to only one MFA fiction student every three years, and was twice selected as a Hertog Fellow, working as a research fellow and research assistant to [[Ben Marcus]] and to [[Zadie Smith]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sunilyapa.com/publications-awards/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150223232941/http://sunilyapa.com/publications-awards/|archivedate=2015-02-23|title=Publications & Awards - Sunil Yapa|date=23 February 2015|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref><ref name="auto1"/> Yapa has also received scholarships from the New York State Summer Writers Institute, the [[Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference]], The Norman Mailer Writers Colony in [[Provincetown, Massachusetts]], and the University of Houston Presidential Fellowship.<ref name="auto"/><ref name="auto2">Sunil Yupa's Official Site, Awards & Publications, supra n.6</ref> In 2009 and 2010, he was a Fiction Intern for ''[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]]'' magazine.<ref name="auto2"/>
In an interview with ''[[The Rumpus]]'', Yapa states:
<blockquote>The first experience I ever had in a workshop was at VONA/Voices, the workshop for writers of color. I did it in San Francisco and it was an incredible experience. I studied with [[Chitra Divakaruni]], and she encouraged me to apply to the [[University of Houston]]. [...] It was kind of a tough year. Houston was very much a literature program, and not reading for writers exactly, but reading from a critical perspective. I realized right away I didn’t want to do that. [...] I realized what kind of writer I was, and I don’t know, I love [[William Faulkner|Faulkner]], but I don’t wanna get into the themes of ''[[As I Lay Dying]]''. I wanted to learn how to do [[multiperspectivity|multiple narrators]]. So I did a year there, I dropped out, I ended up at the [[London Film School]] for the summer. Then I went to New York State Summer Writers Institute and I met someone from [[Hunter College|Hunter]]. I’d never heard of Hunter. It was not really known at the time. Everything I said that I wanted in a program, she would tell me that’s what they had in Hunter. [...] I got in, and those guys, [[Peter Carey (novelist)|Peter Carey]], [[Colum McCann]], [[Claire Messud]], [[Nathan Englander]], all so talented, but with no ego. We all know talented writers don’t always apply to being good teachers, but they were incredible teachers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://therumpus.net/2016/01/the-rumpus-interview-with-sunil-yapa/|title=The Rumpus Interview with Sunil Yapa|date=11 January 2016|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref></blockquote>
==Writing==
===Short stories=== Yapa's short story, "[http://hyphenmagazine.com/magazine/issue-21-new-legacy-fall-2010/pilgrims-what-lost-and-you-cannot-regain Pilgrims (What Is Lost and You Cannot Regain)]" won the 2010 Asian American Short Story Contest (or ''Hyphen'' Asian American Short Story Contest) sponsored by ''[[Hyphen (magazine)|Hyphen]]'' magazine and the [[Asian American Writers' Workshop]], the only national Pan-Asian American Writing Competition of its kind.<ref>''Id.''</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.angryasianman.com/2010/07/2010-hyphen-aaww-short-story-contest.html|title=2010 ''hyphen''/aaww short story contest winner|website=blog.angryasianman.com|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> The story is about a Sri Lankan couple named Asoka (wife) and Sanjay (husband) adjusting to life in an unnamed rural United States town, which they newly arrived in, where Asoka later meets an American farmer that rescues her from a fall on Thanksgiving Day, which changes her perspective on life.<ref>Yapa, supra n.2</ref><ref name="auto3">Angry Asian Man, supra n.12</ref> The story is also published in the Fall 2010 issue of ''[[Hyphen (magazine)|Hyphen]]'' magazine, the "New Legacy Issue."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hyphenmagazine.com/magazine/issue-21-new-legacy-fall-2010|title=Issue 21: New Legacy - Fall 2010|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://hyphenmagazine.com/magazine/issues|title=Magazine Issues|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> [[Whiting Awards|Whiting Award]]-winning author [[Alexander Chee]] and Jaed Coffin, author of the memoir ''A Chant to Soothe Wild Elephants,'' were the judges, and the piece was called "a poignant story of anguish and reconciliation" in the announcement press release.<ref name="auto"/> "[The story] forces not only the Asian minority to reconcile his or her orientation to Anglo-dominant America, but also shows how dominant America has to reconcile its relationship to the Asian minority," Coffin said, continuing: "[i]n its final gorgeous pages, 'Pilgrims' opened a space for the discussion of what it means to be ethnic and American."<ref name="auto3"/>
Other short fiction pieces from Yapa have appeared in ''Pindeldyboz: Stories that Defy Classification'' such as "[https://web.archive.org/web/20110831135653/http://www.pindeldyboz.com/syincident.htm A Short Incident Involving a Boy, a Girl, Pigeons, and an Old Man with Advice]" (Winter 2004).<ref>Pindeldyboz, A Short Incident Involving a Boy, a Girl, Pigeons, and an Old Man with Advice, Sunil Yapa, {{cite web |url=http://www.pindeldyboz.com/syincident.htm |title=Pindeldyboz: A Short Incident Involving a Boy, a Girl, Pigeons, and an Old Man with Advice by Sunil Yapa |access-date=2016-01-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110831135653/http://www.pindeldyboz.com/syincident.htm |archive-date=2011-08-31 }}</ref><ref name="auto2"/>
===Other writing=== His book reviews have also appeared in the Winter 2007 and Spring 2008 issues of ''The Multicultural Review.''<ref>Sunil Yapa Official Site, Bio, supra n.4</ref><ref name="auto2"/> His interviews have been published in ''The Tottenville Review'',<ref>{{cite web|url=https://tottenville.wordpress.com/2011/04/21/peter-mountford/|title=Peter Mountford|date=22 April 2011|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> and he has also been interviewed for topical articles in ''American Short Fiction.''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://americanshortfiction.org/2014/12/25/bourbon-milk-truth-flags-secret-knowledge-need-sometimes-stomp-around-raise-voice-carry-television-garage/ |title=Bourbon and Milk: Truth Flags, Secret Knowledge, and the Need to Sometimes Stomp Around, Raise Your Voice and Carry the Television Out to the Garage |publisher=Americanshortfiction.org |date=2014-12-25 |accessdate=2018-07-25}}</ref> He has also contributed pieces to ''The Margins'' from the [[Asian American Writers' Workshop]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://aaww.org/curation/bangladesh-1000-words/|title=Bangladesh: 1,000 Words|date=18 March 2014|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref>
===Novels=== Yapa's debut novel, ''Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist'' (2016) was published on January 12, 2016 by Lee Boudreaux Books, an imprint of [[Little, Brown and Company]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sunilyapa.com/your-heart-is-a-muscle-the-size-of-a-fist/|title=Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist - Sunil Yapa|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> Yapa also appeared on the [[Late Night with Seth Meyers]] show along with other guests [[Eva Longoria]] and [[Jason Mantzoukas]] on January 13, 2016 to promote the book.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/late-night-with-seth-meyers/tv-listings/620019/|title=Late Night With Seth Meyers|website=TVGuide.com|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> The novel is about a young man named Victor who gets involved in the turbulent backdrop of the 1999 Seattle [[WTO]] protests. The novel has also been named as "An Amazon Best Book of 2016," has been chosen as a [[Barnes & Noble]] Discover Great New Writers selection for the Winter of 2016,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/announcing-the-discover-great-new-writers-spring-2016-selections/|title=Announcing the Discover Great New Writers Spring 2016 Selections|date=2 December 2015|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> is one of Independent Bookseller's Debut Picks of the Season for Spring 2016,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bookweb.org/indies-introduce-winter-spring-2016|title=Indies Introduce Summer / Fall 2018|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> and an Indie Next Pick for January 2016.<ref>{{cite book|title=Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist|first=search|last=results|date=12 January 2016|publisher=Lee Boudreaux Books|isbn=978-0316386531 }}</ref><ref name="auto4">Sunil Yapa's Official Site, Book, supra n.14</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://sunilyapa.com|title=Sunil Yapa - Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist|website=Sunil Yapa|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> The novel has currently also received positive reviews from [[Publishers Weekly]], [[Booklist]], [[Library Journal]] (starred review), the [[Washington Post]],<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/a-novelists-soul-searching-rewind-to-the-1999-eruption-on-seattles-streets/2015/12/29/e841a6e0-a7f6-11e5-8058-480b572b4aae_story.html|title=A novelist's soul-searching rewind to the 1999 eruption on Seattle's streets|first=|newspaper=Washington Post|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> the [[Chicago Tribune]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/books/ct-prj-sunil-yapa-your-heart-is-a-muscle-20160106-story.html|title=Sunil Yapa on 'Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist,' 1999 WTO protests|first=Kevin|last=Nance|website=[[Chicago Tribune]] |publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> [[Entertainment Weekly]], Flavorwire,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://flavorwire.com/555423/your-heart-is-a-muscle-the-size-of-a-fist-the-rare-novel-that-gets-protest-movements-right|title="Your Heart Is a Muscle The Size of a Fist": The Rare Novel That Gets Protest Movements Right|date=11 January 2016|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> [[Bustle (magazine)|''Bustle'']], [[The Rumpus]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://therumpus.net/2016/01/your-heart-is-a-muscle-the-size-of-a-fist-by-sunil-yapa/|title=Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist by Sunil Yapa|date=4 January 2016|publisher=|accessdate=25 July 2018}}</ref> and Bookpage.<ref>Amazon, supra n.22</ref><ref name="auto4"/>
An excerpt from the novel also won second prize (and first prize in fiction) in The Miriam Weinberg Richter Memorial Award, a [[Hunter College]] writing competition judged by 2009 Impac Dublin winner [[Michael Thomas (Man Gone Down author)|Michael Thomas]].<ref name="auto2"/>
==Bibliography==
===Short stories=== *[http://hyphenmagazine.com/magazine/issue-21-new-legacy-fall-2010/pilgrims-what-lost-and-you-cannot-regain "Pilgrims (What Is Lost and You Cannot Regain)"] (Hyphen Magazine, Fall 2010) *[https://web.archive.org/web/20110831135653/http://www.pindeldyboz.com/syincident.htm "A Short Incident Involving a Boy, a Girl, Pigeons, and an Old Man with Advice"] (Pindeldyboz, Winter 2004)
===Novels=== *''[https://www.amazon.com/Your-Heart-Muscle-Size-Fist/dp/0316386537 Your Heart Is A Muscle The Size of a Fist]'' (2016) (Lee Boudreaux Books)
==External links== *[http://sunilyapa.com/ Sunil Yapa's Official Site] *[http://therumpus.net/2016/01/the-rumpus-interview-with-sunil-yapa/ The Rumpus Interview with Sunil Yapa] *[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316386537 "Your Heart Is A Muscle The Size of A Fist" on Amazon] *[http://hyphenmagazine.com/magazine/issue-21-new-legacy-fall-2010/pilgrims-what-lost-and-you-cannot-regain Pilgrims (What Is Lost and You Cannot Regain) at Hyphen Magazine] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20110831135653/http://www.pindeldyboz.com/syincident.htm A Short Incident Involving a Boy, a Girl, Pigeons, and an Old Man with Advice at Pindeldyboz] *[http://fictionwritersreview.com/shoptalk/sunil-yapa-wins-hyphenaaww-short-story-contest/ Sunil Yapa Wins Hyphen/AAWW Short Story Contest]
==References== {{Reflist|2}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yapa, Sunil}} [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:21st-century American novelists]] [[Category:American people of Sri Lankan descent]] [[Category:American male novelists]] [[Category:Hunter College alumni]] [[Category:American male short story writers]] [[Category:Sinhalese writers]] [[Category:21st-century American short story writers]] [[Category:PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction winners]] [[Category:21st-century American male writers]] [[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]