My essays and poems have appeared in anthologies, newspapers and magazines including the New York Times Sunday Magazine, Callaloo, ASIA: Magazine of Asian Literature, South Asian Review and elsewhere. My NYT’s story, “A Delicate Matter in the Examination Room,” tells the story of a refugee, who shares the challenges and humor of translating medical terms.
Over the past three decades—
I have generated a novel, essays, poems, and short stories that have appeared in anthologies, newspapers, magazines, and online publications.
Sehba Sarwar teaching writing workshop Voices of the Displaced at Project Row Houses, Houston; photo by Shaista Parveen
My work moves between Pakistan, the US, and in spaces in between, collapsing borders while tackling women’s issues, displacement, and migration.
I generate text - poetry, fiction, nonfiction - text that has been published in the US, Pakistan, and India, and I and blur the lines between artistic disciplines; much of my text transfers to performance and site-specific art installations.
Though I continue to produce essays and hold on to my first love, fiction, I am currently completing a poetry manuscript, Imagine a Map with No Borders, some of which I performed at LA Grand Performances in June 2024. Much of my work can be found online, while other texts appear in anthologies. My short stories, set in Houston, Calcutta, and Karachi, have been published in anthologies released by Feminist Press, Akashic Books, and Harper Collins India.
As artistic director/founder for Voices Breaking Boundaries (VBB), an arts organization that I started in 2000 after writing a protest poem about events unfolding in Pakistan, I visualized and directed VBB’s Borderlines publications, and two of my essays appear in Borderlines Volumes One and Three.
In both essays, I share about challenges that arise as a result of family movement from India to Pakistan and the US.
Upcoming and Recent Publications
OCT 2025
Poems: “Partition,” “Burn the Path Home,” “Tangled Toes,” “Quest for Water,” and “How Many Monuments Must We Construct?”. Weavers Literary Review, Vol. 1, 2, 2025, eds. Moazzam Sheikh, Amna Ali, Weavers Press, pp. 103-109.
SEP 2025
Poems: “Octavia E. Butler: Electric Energy Crossing Time,” and “Rotation.” Academy of American Poets (poets.org), September 2025.
SEP 2025
Poems: “Octavia E. Butler: Electric Energy Crossing Time” and “Human Connection.”Altadena Poetry Review, Online Edition. Ed. Lester Graves Lennon, pp. 99 and 171, September 2025.
JAN 2025
Essay: “Skyping My Father Goodbye.”In the New Century: An Anthology of Pakistani Literature in English. Ed. Muneeza Shamsie, January 2025, pp. 240-241
JAN 2025
Essay: “Un/Natural Disasters.” Sapan News, January 21, 2025.
CONTACT
I am an author and speaker, an artist, and a community and cultural activist.
If I can use my passions to inspire you or your network to push boundaries and become involved in our communities, please connect with me. I offer a range of services including: readings, workshops, courses, multidisciplinary performances/installations and more. I look forward to hearing from you!
