Congratulations to Horizons student Asad Raja, whose short story 'Home / Screen' is available in a new Guts Publishing anthology.

Asad, now in his final year in Mechanical Engineering, wrote two compelling stories about our relationship with technology and its impact on our lives. “Home / Screen” is an imaginative take on social media. 

His work has been published by Guts Publishing's Cyber Smut, a collection of 25 poems and short stories about how the internet and technology impact our lives, our sexuality and how we love. Asad recently spoke about his work in an interview with the anthology's editor. Watch the interview.

Asad was a student of Advanced Creative Writing in 2019-20, taught by Dr Aifric Campbell. Speaking about his work, Asad says "My idea with 'Home / Screen' was to delve into themes of mental health, technology and religion all at once, exploring how the three can often collide in a numbing yet visceral way. Creative writing as a medium allows me to explore my interest, both topically and stylistically, in balancing the analytical, individual, and constructed with the naturalistic, innate, and universal. This interest come from reference points both as a British Muslim and through studying Mechanical Engineering."

Read an excerpt from 'Home / Screen' - Asad Raja's website

Speaking about the anthology and Asad's contribution, the publisher says Asad is "a thoughtful and sensitive writer with some interesting insights on social media and why South Asian writers are underrepresented in the publishing world. He also talks about the real-life (Twitter) inspiration for 'Home/Screen'".

Order Cyber Smut - Guts Publishing