At home, Cyprus’ ambassador from Serbia and Montenegro is better known as an author
WRITERS can not only be found tucked away in lofts, living off coffees and ignoring the existence of telephones. Neither are they all eccentric, long-haired rebels. Svetislav Basara is an accomplished writer but fits neither of these stereotypes; he is based in a humdrum office in Nicosia, from where he performs the duties of Ambassador of Serbia and Montenegro.
But for Basara there is more to life than politics. Writing and books are his passion.
“I published my first book when I was 29 and didn’t really have an interest in writing books before that. However, I studied Serbian literature and therefore I went into the media. I worked for weekly magazines, for TV and even film production but I was a freelance. That was how I became interested in publishing some of my works.” Basara’s first contact with the media came at university where he and some friends decided to work for the student paper called Horizons.
“Our intention was to change the Marxist approach as the communist regime was overtaking,” the ambassador said, “and for several years we edited the magazine and managed to publish works of writers and philosophers.”
Since then, Basara has written 22 books including novels, collections of stories and essays. He has won numerous awards and Serbian literary critics have placed one of his novels The Fuss About Cyclists among the best top ten novels of the decade, although Chinese Letter is another favourite, packed with humour.
“Critics say my writing is post modern, although I have no idea what they mean by that,” Basara said laughing, “I began writing out of boredom so it was not intentional to become a post modern writer.”
As one of the best-known and most published writers of the middle generation in Serbia and Montenegro, Basara has been praised by critics as being one of the best authors of this generation. But does he consider himself talented? “It’s not all about talent. I think you need 25 per cent talent, 70 per cent hard work and five per cent luck. I consider myself very lucky.”
But doesn’t the work of an ambassador fill up his time and deprive him of inspiration? “On the contrary, it’s because I am an ambassador that I find free time to actually write books,” he explained “and Cyprus is a huge inspiration. I’ve even written a book about Famagusta in the 19th century and there is a lot of descriptions of Nicosia, the division and the barbed wire.”
Following in the footsteps of Kafka, Beckett and Borges, who he admires, Basara could not live without books. “Even before I began to write I loved reading books,” he said, “I am a passionate reader.” And now, people are reading his books passionately.
SEVEN QUESTIONS
What car do you drive?
A Peugeot 206
Describe your perfect weekend
Locked in a room full of books and loads of DVDs
What is your greatest fear?
It would definitely be losing my integrity
What is your earliest memory?
When I was five, playing in kindergarten with the other children
Assuming you believed in reincarnation, who or what would you come back as?
I wouldn’t want to come back again. I think once is more than enough
What did you have for breakfast?
I never have breakfast
What was the last item of clothing you bought?
The shirt I am wearing now
