On writing a book

A lot of people write to me asking me where I get the ideas from to write a book. Also,  Satish did a post yesterday which spoke about what it means to be married to an author which generated a lot of interest. So I thought I would do a post on  what it involves to write a book.(giving you a view from my side)

Writing a book is really like giving birth to a baby. At first there is the inception of an idea. Then you carry it around. Then there is labour and finally you give birth (with all the accompanying labour pains) and lo behold--a book is born! After that it is not yours anymore. It is out there. For all to see.

For me, for an idea to take inception,it has to be something which I feel  really enthusiastic about. For all those who have read my books and my blog, you would know that I always do something different.


"34 bubblegums and candies" was  a non-fiction book. It was, to be precise, creative non-fiction. It was a first book straight from the heart. It was a compilation of my very popular blog-posts adapted to suit a book, written with a lot of humour. Many people who read it write to me saying they really laughed out loud and they don't remember when was the last time a book entertained them or moved them so much.

"Life is what  you make it" was  based on a true story which deeply moved me. I did a lot of research to write this book. I spoke to people in the Mental health field. At the time I was living in the U.K where there is a lot of awareness about Bipolar disorder. There are associations for people who are suffering from it as well as support groups. I attended a painting exhibition organised by the Bipolar artists association. The depth of the images they painted, blew me away.  When I traveled to India, I visited NIMHANS and spoke to people there. The real life Ankita of course gave me a lot of inputs too. It took me two years to write this book.
I put myself in the shoes of Ankita and truly lived her life. It showed.  I have got hundreds of mails where people have told me they cried reading the story.
The phenomenal success it has received has taken me by surprise and I am elated about it. The book was in  "Top books of 2011" as per the Nielsen list which is published in Hindustan Times. It was also on Times of India.

Both my books are also among the 'Top selling books of 2011' on flipkart.

Of course, I worked even harder for my third book. I have put in much more effort than I did with the first two.The third book has nothing to do with Mental disorder.  The second book was set in the eighties. But the third book is a story of our times. The closest people to me, who have read it told me that the story was so gripping that they could not put it down. They simply had to know what happens next. The third book is again based loosely on some true incidents. Of course, any identifying details have been changed.

There are many many revisions and changes that happen before a book goes into print. The manuscript flies back and forth. Each and every sentence is dissected, mulled over. Each comma, each full-stop has to be analyzed. Not easy when there are 75000 words! Some days I  truly felt like I had been reading and re-reading till my eyes bled!

In a regular job, you can switch off on weekends and take a break. But when your work lives inside your head, it is hard to switch off. The characters in my books really feel like my long lost friends. One of the places that the book is set in is Pondicherry (a place that I have lived in and loved). After I wrote one particular scene in the book, I was so engrossed in it and I was so carried away myself, I very badly wanted to visit the place! (And we all did. We drove down and took a  holiday there where I also caught up with one of my closest friends who lies there :-))  Pondicherry is indeed a gorgeous place.

As you can see, I really live my stories. I go through everything that the protagonist goes through. For a while, I become a different person. At times,I feel like I am living a double life as of course I have to switch back. I have to do my mummy bit and housewife bit. I am always home when the kids come back from school. I spend a lot of time with them. I read them stories, we talk about stuff. I also tell them about my book and how many words I wrote that day and whether or not it was a good writing day.

But I enjoy it so much. As much as I enjoy my art.

And though it is an awful lot of hard work, I wouldn't have it any other way!

The Author picture for my third book (yes, yes, I will announce details for pre-order soon! Pre-ordered copies will be signed by me too!) was finalised yesterday. This is the photo (clicked yesterday) that will be in the book.

I am really excited about this baby of mine which is going to arrive soon! (Watch this space!)

And yes,  as always, I do need your wishes and support too. You will help, won't you?

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