Arevik Ashkharoyan, Founding Director of ARI Literature Foundation interviewed Asli Perker. During the interview Asli talked about her first steps on the literary path, success stories, the selection of topics for her books, similarities between literature and journalism and about eternal conflict between male and female writers. The author shares her thoughts about her formation as a writer, when and why she started to write and finally, why she decided to become a writer.

“You know what? I want to tell this to everyone because, yes, it took planning. Yes. It took time being persistent. Since that day, I have planned all my life. So, I was like 14 then. I’m 47 right now, and I couldn’t be happier. I love it. And it wasn’t easy. Just because I decided to do that. It wasn’t easy, because instead of Italy, I went to United States, I moved to New York, but only with $1,000. This was in 2001 and $1,000 was nothing I had a suitcase and $1,000 and I moved there. And I worked at every kind of job. I was like Forrest Gump. You know, whatever they gave me I did: I cleaned, polished the silverware, I worked at a coffee shop, took care of children, you know, cleaned toilets of some people, seriously. And I did a lot of things, but at the same time I kept writing.”