Opal Palmer-Adisa - Sharing Jamaica with the world

Despite her strong international recognition and appeal, author and poet Opal Palmer-Adisa has never lost sight of her Jamaican heritage.

Her love and affection towards her country of birth and the many elements of inspiration that still linger in her consciousness are reflected in her collection of short stories and poems.

Since publishing her first book in 1985 (a children's book entitled Pina: The Many-eyed Fruit), Palmer-Adisa has matured professionally into one of the most celebrated writers in her field with an impressive collection of 12 publications. This includes her latest work, I Name Me Name. Hard as it may be to believe, she once harboured aspirations of pursuing studies in mathematics. However, she had little resistance to the seduction of writing, which in the end proved to be her true calling.

From her quaint upbringing in the Caymanas Estate community in St Catherine to her days at the Wolmer's High School for girls, the innately perceptive Palmer-Adisa was always exposed to inspiration and good literature. Her love for the art of writing grew after a poem she had written in an English class got published in her high school magazine.

This was, indeed, the inception of a career that has spanned over 25 years and includes writing and lecturing in eight different colleges in the United States and England. It has also led her to exotic locations such as Egypt, Brazil, Czechoslovakia, Spain, South Africa and France. Despite her travels, she always finds time to grace the theatres of her homeland. She spoke highly of several local productions and actors.

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Erotic storyteller K. Sean Harris bares it all

Risqué Jamaican publisher and author K. Sean Harris bears no resemblance to the conventional writer; in fact, at first glance, he appears more suited for the catwalk or stage. Such is his manner and deportment.

He walks with confidence and a hint of playboy charm, which is likely fuelled by the many plaudits he has received for his lascivious and provocative writings.

"I am a very experienced young man," he declares when asked about the inspiration behind his critically acclaimed collection of sexual short stories, Erotic Jamaican Tales and its sequel More Erotic Jamaican Tales.

"A few things come naturally and experience certainly plays a big role in terms of inspiration [for my stories]," he continued with a wry and suggestive smile.

The Glenmuir High School past student has carved out a reputation for being at the forefront of the local erotica market, but it all came about purely by fate.

Harris, a publisher at heart, identified the niche and made arrangements to commission an author to write material to serve the untapped market. However, when things failed to materialise, Harris (who is the son of noted publisher and politician Mike Henry) took matters into his own hands. As the saying goes, "the rest is history".

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