|
______________________________________________________________ |
|
|
N.
SAOMAI was born in 1940 in Quang
Ngai, grew up in Saigon, Dalat, and Nhatrang, started his writing in the
early sixties, contributed miscellaneous essays and general journalism to
Saigon-based daily newspapers as a freelance writer. He began to write novel
in 1962, and completed four novels (written in the period from 1962 to 1975),
which remained unpublished during the Viet-Nam war. 'Can Nha', a novel having
got past the military government's censors of the press, been ready to be
published in 1974, was published 23 years later in the US. He left Viet Nam
on April 29th 1975, one day before the fall of Saigon on April 30 via
a Chinook piloted by his brother, escaped Saigon for the sea and landed on
the U.S.S. Duluth (LPD6) of the 7th Fleet which was then outside
Vung Tau’s territorial waters, with his three motherless children. One of
them later became Tap-chi Song-Van’s managing editor Thanh-Tam. He came to
the US in May 1975, settled in Miami in June 1975. Can Nha, published periodically in Tap-chi Song-Van (ISSN 1089-8123), and in book form in December 1997, is his third novel. Several
excerpts from the novel was later republished in the literary Van, and in the
anthology Tho Van Hai Ngai Nam 2000. His second 'Bon no le trong den tho',
written on the starting date of 1964, was also published periodically in
Tap-chi SongVan, issue 15. This was the last issue before the discontinuity
of the magazine in December 1999. One excerpt from his fourth novel ‘O cho
cuoi con duong’ (1973) was published in Gio Van magazine. N. Saomai is the
founder, publisher, and editor-in-chief of the magazines Tap-chi Song-Van
[ISSN: 1089-8123], The Writers Post at http://www.thewriterspost.net [ISSN:
1527-5469]), and Wordbridge [ISSN: 1540-1723). As a founder and editor of the
magazines aiming to introduce Vietnamese literature into Western literary
community, he translated into English a number of short stories and poems by
new and established Vietnamese poets and writers. The translation versions
were published simultaneously in The Writers Post and Wordbridge. Publications: · Fiction: CAN
NHA - The House (a novel 456p. 22cm.
Language: Vietnamese, US:
1997). Xin
cam on, cai chet hanh phuc (an excerpt from Bon no le trong den tho, Tap-chi
Song-Van). O
cho cuoi con duong (an exceprt from his fourth novel, Gio-Van magazine, 2005) · Translation:
(published in TWP & Wordbridge) Stories: Thanks, happy
death - Xin cam on cai chat hanh phuc by Nguyen Sao Mai Weigh anchor
to run – Keo neo ma chay, story by Nguyen Thi Hoang Bac Eva – Eva,
story by Song Thao Woman behind
the billboard – Nguoi dan ba sau tam quang cao, story by Hoang Thi Bich Ti The stirring
red – Do Xao Xuyen, story by Le Thi Hue Time of market – Phien cho, story by Kinh Duong Vuong When the snow
melts – Khi tuyet tan, story by
Nguyen Thi Thanh Binh The hamlet by
the wood – Xom ven rung, story by Lam Chuong Poetry This is not
the first time –Hoang Ngoc Huong Words –Nguyen
Sao Mai On my
birthday – N.P Taking a walk
– Hoa Thi The pray on
the execution grounds – Luan Hoan Eyes of the girl from Son Tay – Quang Dung The conclusion – Nguyen Sao Mai On the 30th
day after my chlid’s birth –
Thanh Ton The path –
Huy Tuong. ·
Critique: On ‘Spring Essence: The Poetry of Ho Xuan Huong’ by John
Balaban, Copper Canyon Press, 2000. ‘The translator should be able to penetrate the language
barrier, that he could render in translation the original’. (Wordbridge,
Double issue 3 & 4 -
Winter 2003 - Spring 2004; Wordbridge, issue 5 – Autumn 2004). ·
Featured in anthologies or other author’s books: Tho van hai ngoai nam 2000 (Anthology. Canada: Viet
Thuong, 2000) Van Hoc Viet Nam The Ky 20- Mot so hien tuong va the
loai by Nguyen Vy Khanh (California:
Dai Nam, 2004) Luan Hoan, mot doi tho. Tac
Gia Viet Nam / Vietnamese authors (US: Songvan, 2005) ·
Unpublished works: Bon no le (novel) Bon no le trong den tho (novel) O cho cuoi con duong (novel) A place for the son of Man (a
novel, from which the first chapter was taken to published in Wordbridge
Premier Issue, Spring 2002). Tel:
USA –
(305) 273-8789 The Writers Post & literature-in-translation, founded 1999, based in the US.
Copyright © The Writers Post. Nothing in this
magazine may be downloaded, distributed, or reproduced without the permission
of the author/ translator/ artist/
The Writers Post/ and Wordbridge magazine. Creating links to place The
Writers Post or any of its pages within other framesets or in other documents
is copyright violation, and is not permitted. |
|
|
|
|
