The Department of Linguistics and English organized a literary event titled “Writers in Conversation” on the 7th of July 2023 at the Library Auditorium of the University of Jaffna.
The following writers (some of whom are academics as well) read from their creative work and engaged in a conversation with one another:

• Ayathurai Santhan: novelist, poet, short story writer. Author of “The Whirlwind”, “Rails Run Parallel”, & “Every Journey Ends”.
• Shashikala Assella: Head/English, University of Kelaniya. Poet, and author of “(In)Consequential Musings” & co-author of “Shakespearewallis”, a transnational collection of poems.
• Tinaz Amit: poet, and author of “Anarva”, a poetry collection. Co-founder of the New Ink Forum for new Sri Lankan writing.
• Vihanga Perera: poet and novelist. Author of “Epistles Elegies Imitations” and “Bodies in Art”. Visiting lecturer in English at the Univerity of Sri Jayewardenepura.

The readings were followed by an open discussion during which the audience posed questions to the writers and engaged in a conversation with them. Undergraduates, GCE AL students who are taking English as a subject, academics and aficionados of literature were present at the event. On the 7th and 8th of July 2023, Dr. Shashikala Assella and Dr. Vihanga Perera also taught segments of the Level III undergraduate course ‘South Asian Writings in English’ offered by the Department of Linguistics & English. Dr. Vihanga Perera conducted a session on the Sri Lankan literary texts included in the GCE A/L curriculum for the benefit of the students who are taking English as a subject.