*welcome!

வணக்கம் vanakkam*!

வித்தியாசம் viththiyaasam, n.:

  1. A non-pejorative Tamil word for difference or anomaly,
  2. The name of this site,
  3. The word my Batticaloa Tamil parents reached for when describing my writing practices, neuroqueer habits of thought, intergenerational trauma, chronic pain and fatigue, and
  4. The word that shaped my belief—even in the U.S.—that deviation is the norm, encompassing both academic excellence and disability, whether congenital or acquired through illness, accident, or war.

I’m Dr. Vyshali Manivannan (she/her), and I’m an Eelam Tamil American chronically ill writer, scholar, artist, and designer. My work is interdisciplinary, multimodal, transgenre, and open access, emphasizing the culturally specific nature of chronic pain and fatigue while using anomalously embodied composition to enact it.

I currently serve as Assistant Professor in the Department of English, Writing, and Cultural Studies at Pace University – Pleasantville (PLV) and director of the Writing-Enhanced Course (WEC) program for PLV campus. I received my Ph.D. in Communication, Information, and Media from Rutgers University and my M.F.A. in Creative Writing – Fiction from Columbia University.

You can explore my 2025 WIP and selected writing, teaching, and advocacy work by visiting the links in the header, where you can also find my CV and blog. To learn more about me or contact me if you’re interested in collaborating, click the button below.

 

Proceed?
Vyshali, a brown woman with black hair and gold glasses, poses in front of houseplants, flowers, and art.
Vyshali, a Tamil woman with a faux hawk and gold glasses, stands smiling in front of houseplants, get-well flowers, and artwork. She wears red lipstick, a blue strawberry-patterned puff-sleeve blouse, and red-and-gold earrings.