Kanza Javed


Kanza Javed is a Pakistani author and poet, best known for her novel, Ashes, Wine and Dust.

Early life and education

Kanza Javed was born in Lahore, Pakistan.
Javed received her MPhil in English Language and Literature from Kinnaird College for Women University. She later attended West Virginia University to attain her M.F.A. in Fiction. She was a short-term fellow at University of Massachusetts and a research scholar at Arizona State University; both grants were funded by the.

Career

Javed published her debut book, Ashes, Wine and Dust, in 2015. The novel was shortlisted for the Tibor Jones South Asia Prize. Javed started writing the book when she was 17, and was 21 when the manuscript was shortlisted for the award. She is the first Pakistani and, as of 2020, the youngest person to be nominated. She had intended to release her book at the Indian Kumaon Literary festival, but was temporarily denied a visa, and released it via Skype in cooperation with the festival instead.
Her short story, It Will Follow You Home, was published in American Literary Review. Her short story, Carry It All was published in The Punch Magazine . Her short story, Rani, was a finalist for the 2020 International Literary Awards and Salamander Fiction Contest 2020.