Saba Sulaiman was drawn into the world of literature by default when her sister’s growing collection of books in their tiny room began to overflow onto her bed. Born to Pakistani immigrants in Sri Lanka, and knowing how to express herself only in English for the first fifteen years of her life, she found comfort in reading about other culturally displaced people, unable to communicate in their native tongues, and hesitant to assert themselves in environments where there were few examples of people like them. Moving to Pakistan and absorbing what it meant to be an educated and empowered girl coming of age in a traditional Islamic society contributed greatly to her desire to seek similar narratives, especially from other women. Saba took the next step in my immigrant journey by moving to the United States to study Economics and Middle Eastern Studies at Wellesley College. She then studied modern Persian Literature at the University of Chicago, where she helped edit the department’s academic journal. After a stint at Sourcebooks as an Editorial Intern, Saba joined the team at Talcott Notch Literary, and the rest is history.

 

Saba is also on the steering committee for People of Color in Publishing, a grassroots organization working to serve the interests of publishing professionals of color.

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When not reading, you’ll probably find Saba running after her two small children, secretly learning another foreign language, playing Scrabble, watching a Bollywood movie, or singing in the bathroom (the acoustics, right?)

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Learn more about Saba on her website and follow her on Twitter!