"Women have already broken the mold"

Jasmine Seven ERANGIN

In her new novel, The Hand of the Shadow, published by Doğan Kitap , journalist and author Elçin Poyrazlar takes the reader to the deep state, the rottenness in the system, the dirty dealings of bureaucrats, the mysteries and dead ends within families.

We spoke to Poyrazlar, who said that the novel is the most personal adventure of the hero of the novel, Suat Zamir, for BirGün.

Suat Zamir is an extraordinary character. How would you interpret him?

The writer should keep a distance from all his characters, neither loving them too much nor hating them. But Suat Zamir turned out to be stronger and more formidable than I had anticipated. Maybe it's because I put the troubles of women trying to survive in Türkiye on him. Maybe it's a reflection of my subconscious about the women I want to be or see in real life. For now, let's say Suat and I get along well.

Did you say 'stop' to Zamir or did you consider censoring him?

Suat Zamir is a fickle, ill-tempered, headstrong and yet fragile, lonely and confused woman. I would never even consider censorship in the character's characteristics. Suat is a female police officer who challenges today's Turkey, on the contrary, she could have been tougher, darker. But Suat has a knight's spirit. She plays a strange savior, a warrior of justice. Someone who will want to throw that final punch even if she is destroyed. I am not sure if the end of the road she is on is bright. But there is always hope, both in real life and in literature.

Does the concept of crime in your books emerge from the characters or from within the system?

Crime is a matter related to the system and society. It usually arises from structural problems and affects the behavior of the individual. The rottenness of the system creates an environment for crime, impunity fuels it, justice becomes an empty concept in the hands of certain groups. As a journalist who writes crime literature, I see this structural issue first and foremost and approach the novel accordingly. Reality seeps into my novels and I twist it, questioning reality again with an aesthetic language. Crime literature, in a sense, takes on the function of the social realist novel.

Do detective readers in Türkiye seek justice in novels?

The reader is definitely looking for justice. Because they experience this through the judicial deficiencies, unlawfulness, and unconscionability in their own lives. The novel ceases to be just an aesthetic endeavor and can become a means of satisfaction in the balance between conscience and justice. Moreover, detective novels are where questions about reality are asked again. Where did we go wrong? What can we do on our own? Why are we so lonely and helpless as individuals? These and similar questions are the questions of people who are not happy with today's Turkey and feel lonely.

Will you write a male commissioner?

Suat Zamir was loved a lot. This makes me both happy and nervous. Not because of the possibility of leaving him, but because of the difficulty of maintaining the liveliness of the character's continuity. Of course I can write a male commissioner. I have written in the past, and I still continue to write with characters like Selim and Timur. But women attract me more, I find them sophisticated, multi-layered and politically more interesting.