writer Profile: Sayar Lay Ko Tin

Sayar Lay Ko Tin (b.1947) is a writer, editor and translator. Born in Yangon in 1947 he has spent 14 years in prison in the 1960s, 70s and 90s for his political activities. His first poem was published in 1985 in Sabei Phyu magazine and he has since gone on to publish 15 books, fiction, non-fiction and poetry, including …

his most recent best-seller Last Days of Politicians featuring the men he encountered during his imprisonment. He is most well-known for his English to Burmese translations and especially regarded as an editor, having edited the most prestigious curated anthology of short stories published in Myanmar since its inception 10 years ago by Seikku Cho Cho publishers and appearing on the selection committee of most major literary awards including the Salai Tin Maung Oo awards and Shwe Amyutae Awards.

*This is the thirteenth in a series of adapted profiles on writers taken from the 2017 anthology Hidden Words Hidden Worlds: Contemporary Short Stories from Myanmar