Masha Hamilton
Artist Statement
After five published novels, a journalism career, and the founding of two international literacy projects, I took a break from writing to serve as Director of Communications and Public Diplomacy at the US Embassy in Kabul and then as VP of Communications for an international NGO serving the poorest of the poor. I quit my day job and returned to the keyboard and my writing passions after my parents died in quick succession. My current work reflects two strains: an exploration of how we survive (or don’t survive) loss, and an interest in how to bridge the gap between “us” and “the other” within our country at this political and cultural moment.
While At Headlands
I plan to focus on a fiction and a nonfiction project: my novel-in-progress with the working title The Mundane Terror of Everyday Life, and a nonfiction project intended to introduce Syrian immigrants to their neighbors in those states whose governors announced in 2015 that they would not welcome Syrians within their borders.