GESTURING TO AN EMPTY THEATRE? Author, Text and Audience in the Fiction of Fatou Diome and A ssatou Diamanka‐Besland

Fatou Diome and A ssatou Diamanka‐Besland are Senegalese women migrant novelists who have addressed the theme of irregular migration between Senegal and France in their literature. The authors, who live in France, write within the context of increased irregular migration and its associated dangers. They also write during a time of increased, and often hyperbolic, public and official discourses surrounding the extent of irregular migration. The authors’ treatment of the theme of migration raises questions concerning the relationship between the Senegalese novelist, her text and her audience. It also raises questions regarding the unique and complex positioning of the migrant writer.