If we were to survey Zainab Erfanian’s writing career, we might simply point to her three published works. But when observing an author whose craft has matured book by book\u2014with “Red Squares” representing such quantum growth\u2014even discussing her bibliography feels redundant. This oral history of 100 martyrs, narrated by Haj Hossein Yekta, doesn’t just distinguish itself within the genre; it marks Erfanian’s own artistic evolution.<\/p>\n
Unlike conventional linear martyrdom narratives, “Red Squares” compels readers to set aside expectations from page one. Its deliberate narrative fractures create a novelistic thirst to continue\u2014a mosaic of emotion, memory, and meticulously arranged details that coalesce into a profoundly moving work.<\/p>\n
On Narrative Innovation<\/strong> Q: How did new discoveries impact the process? On Verification<\/strong> On the Title’s Origin<\/strong> On the Cover Design<\/strong> On Divine Serendipity<\/strong> Meeting the Supreme Leader<\/strong> Of\u00a0Red Squares, he quipped:\u00a0“You\u2019ve perfectly captured Haj Yekta\u2019s talkative nature!”\u00a0before urging:\u00a0“Such efforts must increase hundredfold\u2014countless unwritten stories remain.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Masoumeh Asghari, Reporter for the Epic and Resistance Desk at Fars News Agency, Interviews Zainab Erfanian, Author of “Red Squares<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21866,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[789,799],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34257","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-en","category-red-squares-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hosseinyekta.ir\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34257","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hosseinyekta.ir\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hosseinyekta.ir\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hosseinyekta.ir\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hosseinyekta.ir\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34257"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hosseinyekta.ir\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34257\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hosseinyekta.ir\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21866"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hosseinyekta.ir\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34257"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hosseinyekta.ir\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34257"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hosseinyekta.ir\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34257"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nQ: “Red Squares” found immediate resonance for its unconventional structure. Why this approach?
\n“The final version emerged after 14 rewrites over three years. Each memory could stand as an independent story\u2014the challenge was structural cohesion. Haj Yekta dedicated remarkable time to interviews, often cross-checking details with surviving comrades.”<\/p>\n
\n“Documenting 100 martyrs demanded absolute precision. I surrendered the work to the martyrs themselves\u2014once I made that spiritual concession (tawassul), obstacles dissolved.”<\/p>\n
\nWhile Haj Yekta’s razor-sharp memory (honed through decades of\u00a0Rahian-e Noor\u00a0pilgrimages) provided the foundation, every account was verified:
\n“We tracked down a comrade now working as a doctor to reconstruct details about Martyr Moghaddam when Haj Yekta’s memory faltered. At one point, 10 couriers fanned across Iran simultaneously to collect confirmations.”<\/p>\n
\nThe book’s name derives from Haj Yekta’s red notebook\u2014where he’d draw squares beside martyrs’ names. Severely wounded in Operation Badr, he continued marking squares from his hospital bed, whispering:\u00a0“May someone someday draw a red square by my name.”<\/p>\n
\n(Laughs)\u00a0“The scattered red squares? Yes, one landed near my name\u2014I teased Haj Yekta about it being premature. That square represents my distant aspiration.”<\/p>\n
\nErfanian sees providence in her projects: from accidentally rediscovering a classmate’s martyr-father at a mourning assembly (leading to her first book), to meeting three martyrs’ mothers at “Red Squares”‘ launch\u2014now the subject of her next work.<\/p>\n
\nWhen introduced as the author of\u00a0Rasoul-e Multan, the Leader remarked:\u00a0“I\u2019ve read it, but I must criticize Martyr Rahim\u2014he scarcely saw his family despite three young children.”\u00a0His observation highlighted the spouses’ equal sacrifice.<\/p>\n