Waiting for the Bus, a teen’s tale

It has been nominated for the CODE Burt Award for Caribbean Literature, a young adult writing prize.

Last week Sunday Newsday spoke with Allen-Agostini, also a poet and journalist, to discuss her nomination and her work. At times while thinking, Allen-Agostini, 43, closed her eyes tightly, likely in concentration.

She explained the novella is geared towards readers between the ages of 14 to 19 though, like her, many adults also read young adult novels. She said the themes make it suitable for black, African-American and Afro-Caribbean children in and outside of the Caribbean, but stresses it is primarily for girls.

The protagonist is a girl in her mid-teens and growing up “somewhere that looks like San Fernando”. She is bright, though not a particularly good student, and begins to be depressed. Overwhelmed by depression she attempts suicide and in response her mother decides to send her to Canada by an aunt, who is a lesbian in a relationship.

In Canada, the protagonist is treated for her illness but still suffers from panic attacks. Allen-Agostini explains the character comes to terms with her illness and how to live within her skin and also makes sense of the family she finds herself in, after having no previous knowledge about LGBT people and their community.

The “spark” of the novella came from a story she heard a long time ago about a girl whose family sent her away to Canada to recover from depression. Allen-Agostini also visited Edmonton as part of a feminist exchange programme and lived with a lesbian couple and also worked at a LGBT community centre.

On the story’s main theme, she said in cases of attempted suicide by adolescents, families are ashamed and the issue is not dealt with well, and is even ignored. She lamented that adolescent depression and mental health disorders are often overlooked and left untreated.

“Not because parents ‘bad’ but because a lot of parents don’t understand how it manifests in young people. You have this child who sour, don’t want to go nowhere, don’t talk to nobody. And that can be depression.” She continued: “And you have this situation going on with a young person and you don’t understand it and you just tell them ‘snap out of it’ but they can’t because they might be actually depressed. So it’s under-diagnosed, it’s under-treated and it’s taboo.”

Allen-Agostini hoped that through her story, young people would be aware that they are not alone but there are resources to help them. She feels strongly about the issue as a mother of a 23-year-old and a 17-year-old, and as a person who has suffered with depression and anxiety.

Her previous works are the young adult science fiction novel The Chalice Project (2008), a co-editor and contributor to the crime anthology Trinidad Noir (2008) as well as a collection of poetry, Swallowing the Sky (2015).

Allen-Agostini said she likes young people and enjoys spending time with them, and this was shy she was drawn to stories about them.

“I think they are cool, interesting, and they have a nice fresh way of looking at the world.” She also enjoys science fiction and fantasy as well as watching children’s films.

“I’m just childish,” she said laughing.

She also said it was easy for her to get into the young voice for her work.

In 2009, she founded The Allen Prize for Young Writers, a local NGO. Its aim is to improve writing in TT by giving prizes, seminars and workshops to teen writers, and publishing their works. It ran from September 2010 to 2015, but is now on hiatus pending changes to its administrative and funding structure.

Returning to Waiting on the Bus, Allen-Agostini expressed hope that people will primarily enjoy it.

“It is a really beautiful book. I like the writing in it (which) can be at times quite lyrical.” She also hoped it will help people to think more closely about how they judge others, and how looking within family relationships for affirmation can be destructive.

“Think more closely about who people are and what they really need.” Allen-Agostini first wrote the story in 2007. She had taken the manuscript to a publisher but they felt it was too short while she felt the novella length was acceptable in the young adult genre. She took back her manuscript and parted amicably with the publisher. Last year, when the word length of the Burt Award prize was reduced, she decided to update and submit the novella which had been “laying about”.

Allen-Agostini said she was “quite pleased” to be short-listed for the Burt Award which is not only lucrative but ensures that copies of the book are sold.

“That’s the real prize.” She recalled The Chalice Project received good reviews but distribution was a problem, adding that in Caribbean it is difficult and expensive to have books distributed from island and island.

The assistance of the Burt Award, she said, “goes a long way to ensure the books are available” and noted that through the award the writer will be put in touch with a publisher.

Asked about authors she liked, she cited Trinidad-born Samuel Selvon, “one of the most formative Caribbean voices I have read” as well as American novelists Harper Lee and Alice Walker. She also cited two of her mentors, Trinidad-born, British writer Monique Roffey and Trinidadian writer Wayne Brown.

Her advice to writers? “Write.

But also read. But write.” Correction: On April 2, Sunday Newsday reported Trinidadian author Kevin Jared Hosein was nominated for the Burt Award for Caribbean Literature for his novel, The Repenters. He is nominated for the manuscript, The Beast of Kukuyo. The error is regretted.