Author Answers’ Shuchi Singh Kalra


I am very happy to announce the beginning of another section on my blog – Author Interviews. The logical next step for me and my blog as an extension and continuation of book reviews is Author Interviews. I thought of what would be a truly special way to start the interviews and decided to request the author of my first book review to grace my blog and answer my questions.
 The icing on my cake of Author Interviews is the fact that the author agreed! The first book I reviewed on my blog was Done With Men by Suchi Singh Kalra and she is also the first author that I have interviewed. She is a gracious, beautiful, and very talented lady and also among the top women freelance writers in India.
“Shuchi, a freelance writer based in India and has been into the writing and editing business since 2005 with a “comprehensive writing experience”. From tag-lines, site content and feature articles to review columns, E-books, Blogs or billboards and editing – you name it and she has done it. 
Today I have asked her a few questions about her hugely popular romance from Indireads DONE WITH MEN. She has some very interesting things to say.
Shuchi defines her writing and work as, “Writing for me is not just a job but a passion that keeps me going.”
1.What has been your motivation for writing this book DWM and the story for your first book ‘Love Across Borders’? 
I guess it was just my obsessive dream of becoming a published author and having my name on (or in) a book. I have wanted to write a book since I was ten – by that standard, I’ve waited for way, way too long! I’ve had bylines in several magazines across the world, but authoring a book is a different kick altogether.
2.The cover is worth a thousand words, how much of the cover did you choose or was it designed by someone else?
I really wasn’t part of the designing process but my publisher and I were clear about what kind of cover we wanted. The artwork was done by Mariam Iftekar and I must say she’s done a fabulous job. When I saw it for the first time, I couldn’t help but think how the drawing captures Kay’s body language (as I imagine it) so well. Even though the girl on the cover has her back to the reader, she has a certain nonchalance and a devil-may-care attitude that is so typical of Kay.
3.What is your most important advice for aspiring authors?
In my experience, the toughest bit is to FINISH a manuscript. People may have a thousand story ideas and plotlines in their heads but the real challenge is to put them down into a book. So, don’t get distracted – just keep on writing. Everything else will follow.
4.Give us three “Good to Know” facts about you. Be creative.
    1.I hate tube lights. JUST.CANNOT.STAND.THEM.  Only warm yellow lamps for me!
    2.I’m too sensitive for my own good
    3.I care more about animals than I care about people. I wouldn’t be sad if people are extinct.
5.What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
Nowadays, I’m quite in love with my new red garden swing. I could spend hours lazing on it with a book. I’m also fond of baking, which explains the numbers on the weighing scale!
6. If you could cast your characters in the Bollywood adaptation of your book, who would play your characters?
I think Parineeti Chopra would be perfect as Kay. I wouldn’t mind Alia Bhatt too. For Vivian, I’d like Hritik Roshan or Akshay Kumar. The rest of the cast would be as follows:
Baani –  Mallika Sherawat
Kapil – Aditya  Roy Kapur
Ricky – John Abraham
Aisha – Nargis Fakri
Karan Johar could do the voice-over for The Thought Bubble.
Now that the casting is done, let’s go hunting for a producer ;).
7.How important are names to you in your books? Do you choose the names (Kairavi Krishna (Kay) and Dr.Vivian D’Mello) based on liking the way it sounds or the meaning? Do you have any name choosing resources you recommend?
Good you asked! Kairavi’s name definitely has a story behind it. It was the name chosen by my sister-in-law for my daughter but since I decided to go with another name, I decided to keep this one for my book. After all, DWM is my baby too! 
Vivian’s name was chosen at random, while watching TV. There is apparently a TV actor by that name and I found him hot so…
For the other characters, I just browsed through some websites for baby names and picked whatever seemed suitable for the character.
8.Characters often find themselves in situations they aren’t sure they can get themselves out of. When was the last time you found yourself in a situation that was hard to get out of and what did you do?
I find myself in sticky situations all the time, and my best strategy is to detach myself from it altogether. If there is something I can do, I definitely do it but most situations in life just require some waiting out because they are usually self-resolving. That way, I’m very judicious with my energy spending.
9.What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
That’s for the readers to decide! 😉
10. What were the challenges (research, literary, psychological, and logistical) in bringing DWM to life?
Writing the book was a breeze and I had too much fun in the process. Also, I was guided well by my publisher and editors. The real battle was the marketing bit – I really wish writers didn’t have to get into all that. It took up too much of my time, which could have been used towards writing.
Thank you Shuchi for these candid answers; I enjoyed the interview immenselyI would love to see Hritik and Parineeti on the Silver screen for Done With Men.  My readers can check out my review of  Done With Men here.
Shuchi has worked for some big names such as Skyscanner, The Princeton Review, India Today Group, HT Media and Femina.in, along with several small-medium businesses.”
 
She is also the brains behind the extremely popular and very resourceful Indian Freelance Writers Blog, a fast-growing resource center for all Indian Writers. Seasoned pros, newbies and occasional scribblers – there’s something in there for everyone!
Writers can also seek her opinion on the WB course at:
She wears many hats and she can be contacted at the Pixie Dust Writing Studio 
or  at   http://shuchikalra.com/  
 

Book Details

BOOK BLURB :
Travel journo, Kairavi Krishna (Kay) has had it with men. After a series of disasters (losers, philanderers, leeches, mama’s boys and possessive psychos), she is all too tempted to walk out on the prospect of ever finding love. Accompanied by her best friend and flat-mate Baani, she sets off for Goa, hoping to get away from her miserable love life and vowing to stay clear of the male species.
Goa however, has a host of surprises in store for her. Ricky, her pesky ex-boyfriend, is busy painting the town red with his hot new girlfriend. Now what is poor Kay to do, other than overdose on vodka, smoke pot, get an outrageous tattoo and fall off the hotel balcony? She wakes up in the hospital to the tender ministrations of Dr.Vivian D’Mello–young, suave and handsome as hell. Will Kay stick to her guns or will she fall for his ridiculously sexy charms? And what’s up with the mixed signals he’s giving out?
BOOK BLURB:
Love Across Borders is an anthology of short stories about human relationships across the border, conceived and published by Indireads as a literary and civic initiative.
Her collaborative short story, ‘One Stupid Comment’, is part of this anthology. Set in 2130, the story is about Aryan and Jahaan, two young representatives of warring tribes that are struggling to eke out a survival in a wasteland that was once India and Pakistan. Young, passionate and free, the two are drawn together. But will they succeed in breaking the centuries-old cycle of war or will they too, fall prey to prejudices?
Hope you enjoyed a peek into such a brilliant mind as Shuchi, I know I did. Stay tuned for many more such interesting nuggets.
(c) Indywrites

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