Getting to Know Farzana Doctor

Photo by Peter Rehak

Farzana Doctor is a Toronto writer and psychotherapist. She is the author of two novels, Stealing Nasreen (Inanna, 2007) and Six Metres of Pavement (Dundurn, 2011). Recently (June, 2011) she received the prestigious Dayne Ogilvie Grant, awarded to an emerging gay or lesbian writer who demonstrates great literary promise with a body of work of exceptional quality.

What’s the best decision you’ve ever made, and why?

Farzana Doctor: I took the risk of quitting a great, well-paying mental health hospital job so that I could start a part-time private practice and write three days a week.

What are books for?

Farzana Doctor: Books do so much! They entertain us but they also help us to develop empathy and understanding for people and situations we would never otherwise encounter.

Readers: Would you like two copies of Farzana Doctor’s latest novel?

Answer the skill testing question below, based on Farzana Doctor’s new novel Six Metres of Pavement and contact us by midnight, Tuesday, June 21, 2011 with the correct answer. We will randomly select a winner from those responses and will post the name in the list of book recipients. The winner will be contacted by email.

Question:

The main character in Six Metres of Pavement is Ismail Boxwala. One summer morning, twenty years ago, he made the worst mistake of his life. What was that mistake?