Two enterprising young authors who’ve already made an unforgettable mark on India’s literary scene sat down with an intimate audience for an inspiring Q&A session.
When the session began, the authors were asked for their advice on how to break into the world of publishing and get ones book through.
Bestselling author of the book ‘I Too Had a Love Story’, Ravinder Singh, said: “A lot of authors across the board share the same story. When everyone’s writing a brilliant story, how would you write your OWN story?” He then explained his approach to writing, saying that he tends to write whatever comes to his mind, although he stresses on the fact that a writer must “Write and rewrite and rewrite.” He suggested that an author who wishes to be heard must get the work edited before submitting it to a publisher. “How well can you impress the editor in a minute?” he asked.
Durjoy Datta emphasized the importance of actually loving to write, saying that it was the main thing. He mentioned that he doesn’t give a lot of people his book to read, saying that ten different people will give you ten different opinions. Datta added: “Also, when you’re submitting the manuscript make sure you at least edit the body of the email you send to the publisher”. The bestselling author of 11 novels then went on to say that if one was fortunate enough to get published they should look after the marketing, because that has a huge impact on how well the book does.
Upon being asked about his experience with co-authoring, Datta stated that he wanted someone who had a stake in the book to provide him with the kind of critical perspective he needed to improve on the work. However, he did admit that it was not easy working with a co-author.
Singh then addressed the importance of knowing what one’s purpose of writing is, before moving on to talk about how well-researched work will take an author a long way. “I need to know exactly what I’m writing about. If I had to summarize what my story is about in a few lines, I should know what my plot is going to be. Datta agreed, saying that you need to have an outline of the plot before you get into writing it. He shared a bit more of his writing style, saying, “I’m more comfortable going with characters whereas others are comfortable going with the plot.”
Both authors echoed the fact that new-age authors aren’t just storytellers, they go way beyond that. “Look at your book as an adventure”, Singh advised. He spoke about how the world of social media helped immensely in building his audience.
Datta’s advice to the audience was: “My advice is though, if your first book doesn’t get published, write a second one,” urging them not to give up writing. Singh added, “The world of creativity comes from observations/thoughts and anyone has a right to disagree”, closing the session on an incredibly encouraging note for all the aspiring writers present.
By Nupur Sachdev