Introducing... Monique Roffey

Introducing…

Monique Roffey

‘Introducing…’ is our online interview series to introduce you to some of the amazing authors we’re working with and their brilliant books!

Monique Roffey is an award-winning Trinidadian-born British writer of novels, essays, a memoir and literary journalism. Her novels have been translated into five languages and shortlisted for several major awards and, in 2013, Archipelago won the OCM BOCAS Award for Caribbean Literature. With the Kisses of His Mouth and The Tryst are works which examine female sexuality and desire. Her essays have appeared in The New York Review of Books, Boundless magazine, The Independent, Wasafiri, and Caribbean Quarterly. She is a Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Manchester Metropolitan University.

Welcome! To start with, could you tell us a little bit about yourself…

I’m a bi-national writer based in East London. My identity is mixed and fluid in that I was born in Port of Spain, (a city I frequently return to), but I’m also half English. Via my mother, I have Italian, Maltese and Middle Eastern blood. My consciousness, though, has been shaped by my knowledge and understanding of the Caribbean region. Four of my seven books have been set in the Caribbean region. Two of my books have dealt directly with female sexuality and desire. I’d call myself a magical realist as a writer and a practicing Buddhist in my everyday life; everything else is for others to decide. I teach creative writing on the MA/MFA at Manchester Metropolitan University and for the National Writers Centre. I’ve always enjoyed teaching and know, for sure, that the craft of writing can be taught to anyone with a feel for language and an active imagination.

The Mermaid of Black Conch (Peepal Tree Press) is your seventh novel and published in April this year. In your own words, could you give us an overview of the book?

This book is a 21st Century rewrite of an ancient Taino legend about a woman who was cursed to be a mermaid by other women who found her beauty and talent too irksome. I wanted to rewrite her story, and give her back a rite of passage – of erotic love – that was denied by being cursed into becoming a mermaid, and having her sex sealed up inside a heavy tail. The book also asks how Caribbean people might cope if history washed up on our shore in modern times; could we take care of an ancient person like this woman? My mermaid, Aycayia, is a shamanic individual with her own understanding of how things are. She leaves a lasting impact on those she meets and who do try to care for her. But the curse is eternal. Two love stories co-exist at the heart of this book. I wanted to write a Caribbean love story, to be honest; that’s what’s written on the cover – a love story - and that is what this book delves into, romantic love, against the odds.

What was your inspiration for the book?

First the Taino legend, of Aycayia, but also, once I was in Charlotteville, in Tobago, some years ago, for a fishing competition, and saw some very big fish caught and lynched by the tail and felt immense grief for them. I then began to dream the mermaid and she dreamt me. I started writing this book in 2016 and it came out very quickly and easily. It was easy to give birth to this book. Initially, I wanted to write this book only in the mermaid’s unique language and POV, but that would prove very difficult to read. David’s letters came to me and also a very worldly and Caribbean omniscient narrator, who knew everything about this story. What came through, in the end is a kind of ‘montage of voices’ telling this story and I think this feels very right for this book.

What is so fascinating about mermaids and mermaid lore?

Mermaids are utterly ubiquitous; they exist in every ocean and in many rivers, worldwide. Water is frequently associated with ‘the Feminine principal’, with emotion and with creativity. The first ever mermaid myth is about 3000 years old and comes from Assyria. In humanity’s collective unconscious we have dreamt up this water goddess or nymph, all over the world. Her sexuality is alluring and ambiguous. The myths are so similar that it’s very curious; many mermaids sing and have a ‘sweet voice’ (Aycayia means sweet voice). Many mermaids are malevolent, some are sweet; all seem to be cursed or have magical powers. It’s a big shame Disney cutesified the mermaid of the bleak tale The Little Mermaid because most mermaids, like this one too, are cursed and their fate isn’t a happy one. In the course of writing this book I have become a mermaidologist. Mermaids, to me, are half water Goddess, half male sexual fantasy, mostly invented by male storytellers and a masculine, normative imagination; the Spanish say you can’t eat them or fuck them. Something here feels about right. They are the ultimate tease for the male gaze. Given most old myths and stories were invented by men, are they a figment of the male imagination, globally? My other feeling is that mermaids are a universal symbol of the ‘other’ and the outsider. Merfolk, in legends, are male and female and their sexuality is mysterious; they embody gender fluidity and a non binary identity.

Your book has just been shortlisted for the Goldsmith’s Prize this week. Congratulations! The award recognises creative daring and books that break the mould. How does it feel to be on this year’s shortlist?

I’m deeply humbled and delighted to be short listed for this award. Some very great writers who I admire have won it in the past. It’s exciting to be noticed and to have the book validated by my peers. I’m happy.

What else have you been working on this year?

I’ve been working on an occult crime novel set in the East end of London. I’ve enjoyed flexing a different muscle, writing into a very established genre. Lots of magic in this too, as with most things I write.

The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey

Out now with Peepal Tree Press

The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey (Peepal Tree Press) is out now, and has been shortlisted for the 2020 Goldsmiths Prize.

For more information, visit:
https://www.peepaltreepress.com/books/mermaid-black-conch