Writer Di Li and courage in "Vietnamese Bad Habits"

Di Li is the first female author to present an analytical perspective on the bad habits of Vietnamese people and has explanations based on her painstaking research and rich experiences in "Vietnamese Bad Habits".

No fear of being discussed

The book "Vietnamese Bad Habits" by author Di Li has sparked many controversial opinions after its publication, including many opposing the arguments the author put forward. However, Di Li said she was not surprised because "it is often harder to speak ill of people than to speak well of them."

Writer Di Li with "Vietnamese Bad Habits", Di Li is the first female author to present an analytical perspective on the bad habits of Vietnamese people.

"When I finished the manuscript, I knew people would talk about it. I was calm about all the comments. This is my 27th book, so the impact from readers is not as great as before. My emotions are strongest now when I'm sketching a new book in my head," Di Li said.

Regarding the inspiration when she started researching the bad habits of Vietnamese people decades ago, the female writer shared: "I think a community or an individual, often cannot recognize their own bad habits and good qualities. Simply because from the time we were born, we saw everyone in the family behave like that. When we go out into society, we also encounter the same thing, so we assume it is normal and does not affect anyone."

Writer Di Li also said that she had studied many ancient documents written by Western missionaries, merchants, and intellectuals who came to Vietnam in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries to come up with a general answer. Combined with diverse interviews with contemporary foreigners, plus observation, comparison, and practical contrast between cultures and ethnicities.

"I am used to doing scientific research, so this is quite an interesting topic. I put satirical laughter into my work to lighten the tension of the topic," Di Li revealed.

The most special thing in "Vietnamese Bad Habits" according to this female poet is that it has reversed the issue from the majority's point of view, that is, corruption is the result of flexibility, the love of bribery to solve work quickly; the disease of achievement ineducation is the result of parents' love of achievement, not originating from the school.

According to Di Li, she does not separate herself from her people to judge her compatriots because she herself has more or less those bad habits. "I let my pen be softer, like the way I give advice, criticize someone, always try to use the most tactful words possible instead of judging them. I also advocate research to find out why Vietnamese people have those identities," Di Li confided.

"Guerrilla Writer in Peacetime"

Regarding "Vietnamese Bad Habits", Palestinian Ambassador to Vietnam Saadi Salama explained: "Where have you been?" "Have you eaten yet?" "Are you married?" "How much is your monthly salary?"... are questions that every Vietnamese person has asked and been asked. Sometimes they think these are just normal greetings, but these are questions that foreigners never dare to ask each other.

According to him, as humans, everyone has bad habits, but very few people dare to bravely point out the bad habits of their own people. And Di Li is one of them, so he called her "a peacetime guerrilla writer".

Poet Nguyen Quang Thieu, Chairman of the Vietnam Writers Association, also said that Di Li is an example of courage, and the book shows the writer's love for the country.

"Di Li is a patriot. She said everything she wanted to say in the hope that one day, bad habits will gradually shrink and disappear, replaced by the inherent beauty of the Vietnamese people," said poet Nguyen Quang Thieu.

The author has a trick of making sure that if she criticizes someone, it is a pleasant criticism, plus she tries to put laughter into the book, making the stories softer and less harsh.

In "Vietnamese Bad Habits", Di Li looks at life and people without any harshness, because although it is criticism, it is more self-deprecating.

Journalist Yen Ba commented: "Knowing how to be self-deprecating in a graceful and artistic way always creates great works in the history of human literary life."

"I often fall into a state of sullenness"

In addition to writing books and doing research, Di Li also teaches at universities. When sharing about her personality, she confided: "I often fall into a state of sullenness at home. That's when I'm thinking or busy researching something. Thinking and researching are my top hobbies, so I need a lot of time and independence.

But that's why an apartment with fewer people is more suitable for me, or whoever lives with me must understand my habits and personality very well. Otherwise, it would be very uncomfortable."

It can be said that Di Li has a career that many people dream of, but life makes her have to make many trade-offs. Di Li confided: "Maybe I'm not the type of person who is suitable for marriage! I like this kind of life. At first, even my friends and colleagues felt sorry for me, but after witnessing my fulfilled life, no one felt sorry for me anymore. Many people even encouraged me to keep living like this, not to change.

I only end one form of happiness to move on to another. So the time I endure what I don't like and what I'm not happy with in my life is very little. But if I want to keep love, I will keep it at all costs. People cannot live without love. People who are in prison or have terminal illnesses and are dying, they can still love!"

Di Li's real name is Nguyen Dieu Linh, born in 1978 in Hanoi. She graduated with a BA in German and English from Hanoi University of Foreign Languages, and a Master's degree in Educational Management from Hanoi Pedagogical University. She is currently an English lecturer at Hanoi College of Commerce and Tourism.

Di Li is a member of the Hanoi Writers Association, the Vietnam Writers Association, and the Asia-Pacific Writers and Translators Association. "Red Flower Farm" is her first detective horror novel.

Writer Di Li is also an expert in the field of public relations (PR). She has nearly 20 years of experience in this field as a strategic consultant, organizing and implementing PR activities, teaching PR at universities and is the author of two books: "I PR for PR" (the first Vietnamese-language PR knowledge book written independently by a Vietnamese author) and "Writing skills in public relations".

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