The Asian Review Sinhala offers Sri Lankan authors a prestigious weekly literary platform in Gampaha. Submit 6 weeks before your desired event date with video clips, author photos, and biography to theasianreviewsinhala@gmail.com. All events are free and open to authors regardless of location, publishing history, or reputation.
After two years in Sri Lanka, The Asian Review Sinhala transitions into an independent literary platform under The Asian House of Literature. Meet our dynamic new team—Rasika Solanga arachchi (Country Coordinator), Pathum Punchihewa (Lead Moderator), and Oshini Jayarathna (Creative Coordinator)—as we continue fostering Sri Lanka’s vibrant literary community.
The Asian Prizes announces the long list for the inaugural Asian Prize for Poetry 2025, featuring ten works from nine countries exploring the theme “The Earth.” The international jury, chaired by Ukrainian poet Iryna Vikyrchak, selected diverse voices spanning Ukraine, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Botswana, Vietnam, India, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
The Asian Prizes has unveiled the long list for The Asian Prize for Short Story, featuring ten works from writers across India, Indonesia, and Singapore. The competition attracted hundreds of global submissions, evaluated by an international panel spanning Malaysia, India, Ukraine, and Tanzania. The shortlist announcement follows in October with winners declared by year-end.
Brussels becomes the first European city to host the Asian Literary Festival this October, marking a cultural milestone. The three-day celebration (3rd-5th October 2025) features over 30 events showcasing authors from Asia, Africa, South America, and Europe under the theme ‘Between Worlds—Reviving the Silk Route of Creative Expression’.
“Deceptive Murders” is an engaging, fast-paced crime mystery with deceptive twists and a reader-friendly structure. It excels as a focused page-turner, ideal if you enjoy concise thrillers that keep you guessing.
The Asian Literary Agency has announced a notable addition to its editorial board with the appointment of author and cultural curator Nirmala Govindarajan. The writer will take charge of the fiction segment as Literary Editor for subcontinental authors, bringing her extensive expertise in contemporary South Asian literature to the agency’s expanded operations.
Verghese’s The Covenant of Water flows like Kerala’s monsoon rivers—patient, powerful, inevitable. Through three generations haunted by mysterious drownings, we discover how ancient wisdom meets modern medicine. This isn’t merely storytelling; it’s an immersion into lives connected by water’s eternal covenant, where individual sorrows merge into humanity’s greater current.
In early 20th-century New York, revolutionary artists abandoned fancy subjects to capture gritty, unvarnished American life. The Ashcan School painted tenements and taverns instead of Fifth Avenue socialites, earning the nickname “apostles of ugliness.” This democratic movement proved ordinary struggles deserved the highest artistic treatment, transforming how America saw itself.
Today marks the International Day of Remembrance of the Genocide in Srebrenica, commemorating the victims of this atrocity. The UN General Assembly adopted the resolution establishing 11 July as this day of remembrance in May 2024, despite opposition from Serbia, China, Russia, Belarus, and Nicaragua.
The Asian Group of Literature and Trogon Global, a UAE-based cultural curation enterprise, embark upon a new journey that promises to stir fresh currents in the global literary landscape. With this pioneering venture, UAE-based cultural curator, novelist and journalist Sabin Iqbal assumes the role of Director Global for both The Asian Prizes and The Asian Festivals.
She looked at him, frozen. Everything stopped. There was only this moment when his hand slid down her neck, shoulders, chest, gently and tenderly followed her contours, wrapped her waist and pulled her close. Her body flared under the movement of his hand. She felt his lips, their butterfly touch.
New York is a strategically important place on the Donbas front line, the site of a defensive fortification on Ukraine’s Mannerheim Line. There is constant fighting here, as a result of which its material form is inexorably disappearing from the face of the earth. Russian bombs have annihilated its economic potential.
Nigerian writers were not simply responding to Western literature or colonial narratives; they were creating distinctly Nigerian literary traditions that demanded recognition on their own terms. Their success demonstrated that African stories held universal appeal when presented without compromising their cultural specificity.
The Asian Review, in collaboration with The Asian Prizes, proudly presents The Asian Writing Lab—an ambitious series of interconnected articles designed to nurture and elevate emerging literary voices across the globe.
Rahul Maru’s book ‘Be the Sales Champion’ shifts away from pushy and spammy sales tactics and instead shows how you can bring meaning to your role as a salesperson. He infuses techniques and strategies how to remain in alignment with your calling, with yourself, with what you are selling, with your prospects, and with what you are saying to your prospects.
The Edinburgh Award for Flash Fiction offers writers worldwide a chance to win £2,000 for stories up to 250 words. Open from May to August 2025, the competition welcomes all genres and includes special awards for Scottish writers and quirky stories.
A haunting cry from the heart of oppression. María A. Perdomo’s powerful poem captures the anguish of a generation robbed of dreams, education, and hope. “You stole my youth” resonates with anyone who’s watched corruption destroy lives whilst those in power live in luxury.
Mslexia has opened its Women’s Fiction Competition 2025, seeking short stories up to 3,000 words. The winner receives £3,000 and publication in December’s issue. Author Eley Williams will judge entries. Three finalists get £100 each. Deadline: 22 September. Entry fee: £12. Submit via mslexia.co.uk.
The Rattle Poetry Prize offers £12,000 for a single winning poem, with ten finalists receiving £400 each and publication. Open worldwide to English-language poets, the competition features anonymous judging and a unique £4,000 Readers’ Choice Award selected by the poetry community. Entry requires only a magazine subscription. Deadline: 15 July 2025.
The Asian Review 