NEW: The Woman in the Well

ZVONA i NARI Literary Retreat & Library Proudly Presents: The Woman in the Well by Dmetri Kakmi, Our Esteemed Former Writer-in-Residence

The Woman in the Well @ ZVONA i NARI

ZVONA i NARI Library is thrilled to announce the arrival on our shelves of The Woman in the Well, the latest novel from acclaimed Australian writer and our former writer-in-residence, Dmetri Kakmi. Published by IFWG Publishing, The Woman in the Well unfolds a mystical story about two women and seven boys journeying in a van through the heart of the Central Australian desert. A tale of mystery and terror, it's a fascinating work of speculative fiction that masterfully blends myth and folklore. We take particular pride in the fact that Dmetri developed this book during his residency at ZVONA i NARI. He was our writer-in-residence in Ližnjan in June 2018, during which time he penned the second draft of the novel, then titled Woman Without a Face. Dmetri quickly became everyone’s favorite neighbour during his stay with us. He was a particularly kind colleague, possessing a remarkable ability to bring serenity and brightness, even when writer's block cast its shadow over other residents; he generously shared his rich writing experiences and offered invaluable support. You can catch a glimpse of the atmosphere from those days in Dmetri's journal, https://thedrunkenodyssey.com/2018/06/25/pensive-prowler-20-notes-from-a-writers-residency/, and in our interview with him, https://www.zvonainari.hr/single-post/2018/06/26/zins-june-writer-in-residence-dmetri-kakmi.

The first of Dmetri's books to grace our library shelves is his impressive and critically acclaimed memoir, Mother Land (2008), a globally resonant work of fictionalized memory. The memoir recounts the stories of Greeks and Turks on the island of Tenedos, which has been known as "Bozcaada" since its annexation by Turkey in 1923. Although Dmetri was born on this beautiful island, due to the unbearable political and economical pressure his Greek family had to emigrate to Australia in 1971 when he was 10 years old.  He returned to Tenedos 28 years later, though only as a tourist. Mother Land was shortlisted for the New South Wales Premier’s Literary Awards in Australia and has been published in England and Turkey.

Dmetri's impressive biography also includes fifteen years as a senior editor at Penguin Books Australia. He also edited the acclaimed children’s anthology When We Were Young. The Boy by the Gate, his ghost story, was reprinted in The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy and Horror 2013. "Haunting Matilda" appears in Cthulhu: Deep Down Under and was shortlisted for the Aurealis Awards Best Fantasy Novella category in 2015.

Dmetri Kakmi holds the distinction of being the first, and so far only, writer-in-residence at ZiN to hail from as far away as Australia. It is a particular privilege for the ZVONA i NARI project to witness our writers continue their creative journeys, publishing works that bridge languages, cultures, and aesthetics, ultimately underscoring our interconnectedness.