Author interview of Supraajha Murali
How did you come up with this book? Anything particular that prompted you to write this book? The whole novel was based off one very vivid image of a man and a woman dueling, with half a moonstone embedded on the hilts of both their swords.I got the idea from watching a ring my friend wore every day. I had to do a lot of world building from that image as muse. Where do you get your information or ideas for your books? I come up with most of the ideas by visualizing the chapters all day. Since it’s in a historical time period, I check to make sure even the smallest of details are consistent with the setting. What makes this particular genre you are involved in so special? I come up with most of the ideas by visualizing the chapters all day. Since it’s in a historical time period, I check to make sure even the smallest of details are consistent with the setting. I have always been attracted to history and fantasy, most importantly Indian stories about palaces, kings and queens. Half A Moonstone is set in a completely fictional Kingdom with completely fictional characters, something pretty uncommon even among Indian fantasy/his-fic writers. I come up with most of the ideas by visualizing the chapters all day. Since it’s in a historical time period, I check to make sure even the smallest of details are consistent with the setting. If you could have been the original author of any book, what would it have been and why? Divergent. It is the most fascinating as well as technically sound book I’ve ever read. It continues to hold me spellbound. Do you aim to complete a set number of pages or words each day? Though I don’t write every single day, I try my best to write a chapter every 2-3 days to maintain consistency, as well as give myself enough time to think things through. What do you think was the greatest turning point of your life? I’m very passionate over dance, I’ve always wanted to dance and perform professionally. I had a major injury while dancing a few years ago. Though I managed to recover completely, it taught me a lot about priorities, my love for dance and life itself. When did you first consider yourself a writer? I’ve always been writing, I guess, even before I could spell the words right. I remember falling in love with words when I was all of nine years old. Being a “writer” is a very personal, intimate and happy feeling to me, which comes every single time I create. Often in life, it’s our greatest challenges that make or break us. What do you think is the determining factor between whether we grow by our adversity or are destroyed by it? Attitude. “Growth”, to me, doesn’t always equal “winning”. We grow when we fail, we grow when we succeed. I believe that with lots and lots of patience and persistence, even the worst of situations can be converted into learning experiences. Looking beyond emotions and into the valuable lessons each adversity or conquest teaches us, is what I believe is the key to growth. Writing can be an emotionally draining and stressful pursuit. Any tips for aspiring writers? Don’t apply undue pressure on yourself. We shouldn’t push ourselves if we’re not naturally inclined towards writing at that moment. Maintaining consistency is important, yes, but forced creativity is simply counterproductive. We aren’t content churning machines. It’s okay to take it slow! Can you share with us something about the book that isn’t in the book? Most of the characters are parallels of each other. For example, Damayanthi and Pradhyuman are both under the same sort of pressure. Where Pradhyuman submits to the situation, Damayanthi rebels. There is so much more to the characters’ psychology than what readers see in the book. You can find her on my Social Media handles: Facebook : Supraajha Murali Instagram : @purpleearrings123
In a Conversation with Arun Batish, the author of EKA – Rendezvous with your life forces
From his childhood to the journey of writing ‘EKA – Rendezvous with your life forces’, here we are, in a conversation with the author Arun Batish. Here we go: Q. How did you come up with this book? Anything particular that prompted you to write this book? A. I live and experience emotions like – Admiration, Adoration, Aesthetic Appreciation, Amusement, Anxiety, Awe, Awkwardness, Boredom, Calmness, Confusion, Craving, Disgust, Empathetic pain, Entrancement, Envy, Excitement, Fear, Horror, Interest, Joy, Nostalgia, Romance, Sadness, Satisfaction, Sympathy, Triumph every day and this is what prompted me to write this book EKA – Rendezvous With Your Life Forces. Q. Where do you get your information or ideas for your books? A. I am strong believer that, if you do not have these in your life you are useless and deserve to die today itself ” experience, happiness, inspiration, life, love, mistakes, pain, philosophy, reality, sadness, smile, truth, life-lessons, beauty, family, nature, heart, humanity, friendship, Betrayal, freedom, ditched, wronged, change, fantasy, motivation, dreams, spirituality, motivational, people, peace, power, courage, joy, future, world, learning, motivational-quotes, soul, money, self-help, passion, mind, creativity, purpose, prayer, love-quotes, psychology, insults, belief, depression, spiritual, relationship, desire, friends, trust, loss, humorous, forgiveness, loneliness “. This is where I get all the information and ideas to write my book EKA – Rendezvous With Your Life Forces. Q. What makes this particular genre you are involved in so special? A. I think the reason this particular genre that I am involved and write-on is so, special, is for the fact that it can help people learn self-help skills and live an independent, meaningful and fulfilling life. I am a strong believer that the Self-help genre is extremely empowering, it means having a customized plan of your life events, making other people feel good about you and by reading books of Self-help genre one becomes a better and wiser person. Q. If you could have been the original author of any book, what would it have been and why? A. Rhonda Byrne’s, The Secret. It is wonderful to read that sold bazillion copies and bulldozed through a few million people’s wallets but that does not change the fact that I just don’t like it. It is nothing but a book that describes the (in) famous ‘Law of Attraction’. Had I been the author of the same, I would have added realistic emotions and credits to human thinking patterns that more or less say the same thing: mind your thoughts, stay positive and focused on your goals, ignore self-doubt and criticism, visualize and concentrate on what you want and you will eventually have it. Q. Do you aim to complete a set number of pages or words each day? A. I do not aim to complete a set number of pages or words each day, though I do write every day for 30 minutes. I allow no interruptions, no beeps, no notifications, and nothing to check for 30 minutes straight before my house gets lured by the smell of freshly brewed Himalayan coffee wake me up and I start my day of being a Corporate Executive and act as a Human Resources professional. Q. What do you think was the greatest turning point of your life? A. After, leaving school in the beautiful city of Shimla. I strongly considered joining the Indian Army and so one day on a practice hike in the Himalayas, my life took a bad turn. Whilst negotiating a treacherous crossing between two narrow cliffs, I slipped and took a free-fall into the deep gorge underneath. As I tugged open my parachute, the canopy ripped on the jagged edge of the jutting rock face and he plummeted to the ground from a height of 4,000 feet. The damage to the canopy allowed for only a partial opening of the parachute, causing me to land hard on the ground below, with the parachute pack crashing onto my back. I lay unconscious for several minutes before I was finally rescued by my team. I was rushed to the nearest hospital where the doctor reported that four of my vertebrae were crushed, nerves were all compressed and when the reports came out, it was stated that I had come “within a whisker” of being paralyzed for life. During the recovery phase, doctors told me that it was questionable whether I would ever walk again. This was not just a shock for me, but also a turning point in my life. As a young man who had envisioned the life of an army officer ahead of him, I felt pained. And I fell into a period of deep heartbreaking pain as I spent the next eight months in and out of rehabilitation. As I healed I spent time meditating in a trance of deep introspection. What saved me ultimately was my faith which grew stronger day by day as I started reading many of the ancient Indian texts like the Bhagavad Gita and other books on philosophy which made me realize that when the Divine gives us such life and death moments – it is because our soul seeks a greater understanding of life. Within a year of tenacious dedication and determination in the rehabilitation center, hard work in the physiotherapy room, I bounced back to new adventures that have hence taken me forward in life. This was when I realized my potential life forces and turned my life forever. Q. When did you first consider yourself a writer? A. It was in 7th grade when I wrote a love letter to my class teacher. In fact, it was her response to let me know that I’ve written a beautiful letter. This ignited a fire of writer, which I only realized later post overcoming my hormones change dates. This answer might sound funny to many, but like an innocent prisoner, I stand by it. Q. Often in life, it’s our greatest challenges that make or break us. What do you think is the determining factor between whether we
