The author Iryna Chernova, aka Luko Dashvar, has firmly established herself in the modern Ukrainian literature sales’ rankings. Her dislike for publicity has become proverbial in literary and quasi-literary circles. However, Ms. Chernova kindly agreed to a brief interview with The Day.
Could you please explain your pen name, Luko Dashvar?
“I was going to send my first book, Selo Ne Liudy (Village Is Not People) to take part in the literary contest Word Coronation. Participation was anonymous, and the manuscripts had to be signed with pseudonyms. Then I thought of Luko Dashvar, and it stuck.”
Your books are often bestsellers. Do you think your texts belong to the so called mass or popular literature, whose active promotion is championed by some and censured by others?
“The reader does not argue about ‘mass literature.’ For me, as a reader, there exists literature which is interesting, necessary, and inspiring, and the kind which I will put aside and never come back to. I use the same criteria for my own texts: they either will become necessary for the reader, or they will not. I think it’s pointless to theorize about this.”
Luko Dashvar alternatively receives awards from book rankings and nominations for anti-prizes. How important is the others’ opinion about your books? Whose opinion matters, if any?
“I am not deaf. I analyze serious experts’ opinions, and compare their impressions and my own intentions. There is a lot to think about! As far as the Golden Bubble goes (my last year’s ‘award’ from LitAccent for the book Rai.Tsentr [a play on words: Ukrainian rai (paradise) and tsentr (center) as one word mean ‘raion administrative center’]), I didn’t give it a second thought. It was nothing more than a bubble!”
You know, out of all the books by Luko Dashvar, it was exactly Rai.Tsentr which captivated me the most. I have an impression that Kyiv is depicted as a somewhat demonic, negative, and evil city, while small towns and villages appear perfectly pure. What is your perception of Kyiv in reality?
“Every author creates his or her own world, so one can argue about its reality, but it is hardly worthwhile. I moved to Kyiv 11 years ago, and to a certain point in time I believed that I would only have very businesslike relationship with the capital. Nothing beyond that. But as time passed, I found my ‘own’ spots, my favorite nooks, my ‘own’ peeling angels on the facades of ancient buildings... I love Podil. That is where you go from church to church rather than from street to street.”
What place does Kherson have in your life?
“My relatives and friends live in Kherson. This is the place where my parents are buried. I can’t but come back there.”
Don’t you ever feel sorry when you have to “kill” your characters? Aren’t you afraid?
“I’m both afraid and sorry. But they themselves make me do it.”
What are you writing now? When is your next book due?
“I hope the new book will come out in autumn. I’m currently finishing it.”
What is your favorite read?
“It depends on my mood and on whether I have any free time. It can be Brodsky’s poems, Solomia Pavlychko’s Theory of Literature, and The Encyclopedia of Symbols. My recent acquisitions are a collection of poems by Bohdan Ihor Antonych, Ukrainian Literary Schools and Groups of the 1960s-95s, and Decameron. Ten Ukrainian Prose Writers of the Recent Decade.”
Your texts can sometimes create film-like impression. Whence does it come? Also, what kind of movies do you prefer?
“Film-like? Let’s put it down to peculiar style. You read it – and just see an image. Is it bad?
“In cinema, just as in literature, music, and painting, I prefer works and authors which inspire the desire to come back to them. Milos Forman, Leonid Haidai, Emir Kusturica, Serhii Paradzhanov, Ivan Vyrypaiev... There are a host of talents, and it’s pointless to enumerate them all. Let us assume that I mapped out the trends.”
How could you account for the dominance of books with historical ties on the Ukrainian book market? (Even Rai.Tsentr extrapolates into historical themes, quite eloquently). Why does the Ukrainian reader needs books on history, above all?
“I really don’t know. This is perhaps a question for researchers and sociologists. I only can speculate as an average reader. Yes, personally for me, most historical events in my native country are still a terra incognita. I would like to make up for that. History is fascinating, it fills information gaps, and empowers us with a better understanding of what is going on in this country today. I only wish it will help inspire a little optimism.”
What kind of themes do you think are missing from the modern Ukrainian literature?
“Why do you think that modern Ukrainian literature lacks something? I don’t think so. Just look around – there is such a wealth of choice.”
Don’t you feel an urge, in the current social and political situation, to somehow manifest your views? Say, in everyday life, in your creative work, or in the public space?
“In everyday life in particular: I’d have a sign on a T-shirt printed ‘I’M SILENT BECAUSE I’M THINKING!’ Seriously speaking, any senseless prate is annoying and wearies me out. What is there to manifest? It’s necessary to do something. What exactly? Just what you were going to manifest! Is it difficult? Unrealistic? Then, better shut up.”
Can a top-selling author afford to make a living by writing today?
“I write, and that’s how I earn a living. Besides fiction books, I also write screen scripts for TV and movies. Is it enough? Yes, quite. I shouldn’t complain, really – though I wouldn’t mind getting more.”
