Writers from Indonesia

Medy LOEKITO (born 1962, Surabaya) is the Executive Secretary of the Shimizu Corporation, and the President of the Multimedia Literature Institute. Her poems have appeared in more than 15 anthologies, such as In Solitude (1993); Resonansi Indonesia (2000); Graffiti Gratitude (2001), and in many journals in Indonesia, as well as in Brunei Darussalam and Australia. Representative of the Republic of Indonesia in the Conference of Asian Foundations and Organizations since 1999. Her most recent project involves participating in research on the traditional Machiya wooden houses of Kyoto, together with scholars from 4 other Asian countries. She is taking part in the IWP through the US Department of State.

Arif Bagus PRASETYO is an art curator and the editor of the Jakarta literary journal “Prosa” (Prose). Winner of the national “Sanggar Minum Kopi Bali Award” for poetry, Mr. Prasetyo has recently published two volumes of art criticism, translations of Bharati Mukherjee and Octavio Paz, and his own selected poems, entitled Mahasukka (2000). He is participating courtesy of the Open Society Institute.

Nukila AMAL, a widely read young Indonesian prose writer, has had her 2005 short story collection, Laluba, named Best Literary Work of the Year by Tempo magazine, and her novel Cala Ibi (2003) shortlisted for the Khatulistiwa Literary Award. She is the co-translator for, and editor of several anthologies of poetry in translation. At present, she serves on the Committee of Literature at the Jakarta Arts Council. She participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State.

Nirwan DEWANTO is widely published in Indonesian journals, magazines, anthologies and newspapers. A founder of the cultural journal Kalam, he has a collection of essays Sanjakala Kebudayaan ('Twilight of Culture') and a volume of poems, Buku Cacing ('Book of Worms'); the poetry collection Perenang Buta ('Blind Swimmer') is forthcoming. He has founded the arts space Komunitas Utan Kayu in Jakarta, and curates literary arts festivals, most recently the 4th Utan Kayu International Literary Biennale. He participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.

Asma NADIA (fiction/nonfiction writer; Indonesia) is the author of 49 books, of which three [Emak Longs To Take the Hajj] (2009), [House with No Windows] (2011), and Ummi (2012) have been adapted for the screen.  Nadia contributes regularly to the daily Republika , which named her one of the seven most influential people in Indonesia for 2010. A co-founder of Forum Lingkar Pena, and Komunitas Bisa Menulis, which helps youth become writers, she is also a frequent campaigner in the “Indonesian Women Write” movement, and an organizer of 63 Rumah Baca, which provides free reading rooms for underserved youth.  She participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.

Okky MADASARI (novelist; Indonesia) is the founder and director of the ASEAN Literary Festival. In 2012, her novel The Outcast, about an Islamic sect facing persecution by mainstream religion, received the Khatulistiwa Literary Award. The Years of the Voiceless (2010) is about struggle for justice and freedom while questioning the authority of religion; 86 (2011) addresses corruption in Indonesia; Bound (2015) tells about a life of a transgender in a religiously conservative society. She participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.

Ben SOHIB (fiction, nonfiction; Indonesia) is known for his popular novels The Da Peci Code (2006) and Rosid dan Delia [Rosid and Delia] (2008); adapted to film as Tiga hati, dua dunia, dan satu cinta  [Three Hearts, Two Worlds, and One Love], which garnered Best Film at the 2010 Indonesian Film Festival. Author of five books, including two story collections, he has represented Indonesia at international arts festivals. He participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the U.S. Department of State.