‘Confused Bastards’ by Manav Vigg – Book Review

Title : Confused Bastards
Author : Manav Vigg
Pages : 224
Publisher : Srishti
Genre : Fiction

Rating :

Cover : 3.5/5
Writing Style : 4/5
Presentation : 3.5/5
Story: 4/5
Overall : 3.5/5

Overview:

What happens when three entrepreneurs initiate a start-up which shocks the nation?
Aakash, Jai and Vivek are mostly usual in their ways, except for some. Struggling with their own inner conflicts as well as the cruel world outside, they decide to show the world their true potential. To make it big. But how? They become the voice of the nation by starting up an online platform where people can upload unabashed, unapologetic videos, venting out their angst against people, politics, bosses, lovers, taboos, or just about anything. Even the founders themselves.
The platform spreads like wild fire. But when has fire doused without burning a few!
Confused Bastards is not just a witty, gritty, fast-paced journey of three friends, it’s also an intolerant story for a tolerant country!

Review:

After a long time I have read something with completely new concept. The book is about three friends and their start up that went viral all over the nation. The book starts as a very intelligent read as the start-up was actually intriguing and meant to grab everyone’s attention and when I say, everyone, it means everyone. Soon things started to go off and that’s the time when entrepreneurs are exposed to reality check.

Book blurb is interesting, cover at first glance may feel strange but it goes good with the overall theme of the book. Title is fantastic and the plot is unique.

As the book is on start-up and at present times, start-up is every youth’s dream because of many reasons, I would say that the author’s thought was hitting bull’s eye. Confusion of the youth has been portrayed brilliantly and there are some valuable life lessons hidden within those pages.

The story is good and is having great potential to hold the reader but I think that the slow pace of the book is a downfall. Language is good, narration is good, and some of the dialogue sequences are excellent. Overall, this book is really a good read and deserves to be on everyone’s shelf who loves to read something different than the usual.

A New Season : TAB.com

What’s new?

Well, to start with, the domain is commercial(.com) now, and the blog shall be updated with new content regularly. So if you were about to give up on us, just wait for a few more weeks and we bet you won’t be disappointed.

Other than the usual(conventional) stuff, we’re planning to launch some new themes and projects. What can you expect? The following picture pretty much sums it up.

Don’t worry, there would be more. There are a few more concepts that are under the developmental stage. So don’t settle, there’s always scope for some more.

If you have any ideas that you would like to share with us, feel free to drop in a mail at theauthorsblogg@gmail.com (Oh! The redundant ‘g’). You can also collaborate with us in our future projects. Reveal your interest by dropping us a mail. We’ll get in touch with you ASAP.

Enjoy the day and stay connected. Have a great week ahead.

With regards,
Team TAB

EXTRA MILE – Edition 2

Hello Guys!

First of all sorry to keep you waiting for this long. The time of waiting is over as the second edition of EXTRA MILE is finally here! Get ready to be entertained with this crispier and tastier version of EXTRA MILE. Read it, and if you like it, Share it!

You can view the magazine online at issue :

EXTRA MILE 2

You can download the pdf version here :

EXTRA MILE 2

Come join the EXTRA MILE family. There are no rules and no limits. If you think you’ve have something to share with the world, EXTRA MILE is the right platform. You can mail us your entries at theauthorsblogg@gmail.com. Keep the subject as ‘Entry for EXTRA MILE’. You can send artwork in any of the pre-defined categories in the magazine. In case you’ve something new, please share it with us and it might find it’s place in the magazine. There’s always scope for new sections.

So write to us. Any query or question will be answered. We’re at your service 24/7.

Happy Reading!

With regards,
Team TAB

Interview with Bhaskaryya Deka

7 Days, 7 Interviews

Hello guys!

So it’s the final days of this campaign and we’re overwhelmed with the love and support we’ve received from you guys. Thank you so much! As for the final interview, we’ve another debutante who entered this field with a Suspense-Thriller. So welcome Bhaskaryya Deka, author of ‘The Unwanted Shadow’. The book has been doing pretty well in the market and has been appraised by the readers.

So let’s have this final showdown with Bhaskaryya. Have fun!

So Bhaskaryya, let’s start with a small introduction of yours. Tell us something about yourself.
Well, I am from a small town in Assam, where I did my schooling. Now, I live in Dhanbad. I am studying engineering at ISM, Dhanbad.

Congratulations on your book, “The Unwanted Shadow”. How was your experience with it? What were your expectations? How’s the response from the readers?

Thanks a lot. The experience writing it was great. I have always been interested in psychology, and writing a psychological thriller has been immensely satisfying.

Response of the readers has been encouraging till now. The book was published a couple of months back, so waiting for more reviews to flow in.

Why a thriller?
That question I have been asking myself too. I am a big fan of literary fiction, classics. But when I write, it just comes out as thriller.

Tell us something about your book. What’s the source of inspiration behind it, i.e., what inspired you to take on this journey?
An idea. I had been flirting with the idea of writing on this medical issue. It’s not so much talked about, nor proved, so it looked like an interesting journey to embark on.

Tell us something about your daily routine. How do you manage your day? Where does writing fit in?
I am a student, so most of the day passes by attending lectures, writing assignments. I write in the night. Mostly after nine or ten, as long as I feel like writing.

Besides writing, what are you passionate about? What are your hobbies?
Besides writing, I like music and football. And travelling too.

Are you an avid reader. What’s your favorite genre in reading? Favorite author?
Yes, I love reading. I like all the genres, but I am more inclined towards literary fiction and classics. Love stories- I pick carefully though.

Lots of favorites- I like Sidney Sheldon, Khuswant Singh, Jhumpa Lahiri, Charles Bukowski, Salinger.

In Indian literary market, what’s the scope of a thriller novel because here love/romance is the only genre which becomes an instant bestseller?
As long as a book is well-written and has a good plot, it would become popular anywhere.

What are your plans for life? Do you ‘plan and follow’ or just welcome life with open arms?
Well, I haven’t planned much. After completing college, will see how it goes.

How was your experience with your publisher?
It has been a good experience. They don’t delay things, give you time to do things best, guide you in matters when you need. It has been a good learning experience for me.

You have had interactions with TAB members. How was your experience? What are your views about ‘The Author’s Blog’?
There are very few book marketers in India. TAB is a good attempt at filling the void.

So this is it. And with this final interview, the journey comes to an end. But don’t worry, we’ll come back with some new project as we always do. A big Thanks to all the authors for their time and support. And all you people out there; keep reading, keep writing and keep TABing.

You can buy Bhaskaryya’s book, The Unwanted Shadow from the following link :

Homeshop18

Interview with Swetank Telang

7 Days, 7 Interviews

Hello Guys!

It’s showtime! So it’s the sixth day of our interview campaign and so far everything is going beyond expectations. Thank you for so much love and support. So to continue the journey, we have with us today a rockstar turned author, Swetank Telang. He recently launched his musical love story called ‘The Best serendipity of my Life’.

So let’s see what Swetank discussed in the small chit-chat session with TAB.

So Swetank, let’s start with a small introduction of yours. Tell us something about yourself.
I am simple going person who loves to be in my own state of happiness and my own world. I don’t really get distracted by what’s others say or feel about me. Just being true to me, kind to others and loving all keeps me happy going.I love my Mom a lot and she returns me back with more love, always.

Congratulations on your first fiction book, “The Best Serendipity Of My Life”. How was your experience with it? What were your expectations? How’s the response from the readers?

Thank You very much. I was a failure in English subject during my schools. I had to ask grace marks to get a rank in class. Didn’t ever thought to write a book but circumstances led me to write a book on my own life’s story. It was an excruciating journey which started with a thought in mind, pain & hope in heart, and faith in work. I expected a great impact after its release but as always life surprises me with difficulties saying that, “Swetank, you are not yet ready to be this, learn from this and then I might give a second thought on your fate… HahahaBut life doesn’t always work as per expectations, if it did, there would be no value about things that everybody would expect and get. Aspiring is what I do, I aspire to be like something, if it’s not that, it has to be something better than that (what life gives) Those who read my book, they appreciated it from their heart with tears in their eyes. Have received some mails, which say a lot… One of them quoted, “When one loses love in life, either one gets lost or one finds himself. This book strongly teaches you to find yourself – love story with a strong message”

I bet there would be really no soul who reads my book and doesn’t shed tears of pain/joy at the end!

The cover says that it’s a musical love story. It seems interesting. What’s so musical about this love story?
There’s lot of musical feeling inside the book including Bollywood songs and the book itself starts from a person on stage strumming his guitar. It is also filled with music technicals.Most interesting part about it is, it comes with a music album, I have my own sung and composed songs especially for this book which the reader would receive in the form of a music CD with the book.

The book is based on your own life. What inspired you to write a story on your own life?
Sometimes you keep changing yourself in search of truth, behind something. After a few years, you are totally a transformed person, totally a new personality and when you think harder on this fact and try to link up everything & all the changes. All point to one common origin that led you on the path of change. You sum up everything and write a story on that.

Apart from writing you love music. You have even launched a promotional album based on your book which is being loved by masses on youtube. So if you have to choose one from Writing and Music, what would you choose?
I would certainly love doing both, but if I were given a chance to choose just one of them, I would doubtlessly chosen Music as it flows inside my blood. I love singing songs and playing music instruments. There isn’t any time that my mind doesn’t play anything at the back, right now it’s singing… Dhoom Pichuk Dhoom… Hahaha

Tell us something about your book. What’s the source of inspiration behind it, i.e., what inspired you to take on this journey?
It is a fact full book with all real characters (just the names changed). I read a few love tales and felt, my love tale to be so different from everybody’s. That’s what gave me an inspiration to write it and show to the readers that a love story like this could also possibly take shape.

What’s your daily routine. How do you manage your day? Where does writing fit in?
I love to spend Sunday with my Mom.But six days in week, I get up at 05:32 AM in the morning, Thanking God for one more day of life; I start my day with a bathe and meditate in the morning. Have my breakfast and then office hours stay tuned from 08:30 AM to 05:00 PM. I rarely do have lunch; reach my room at 06:00 PM after evening snacks then meditate again if I feel like doing. I wrote this book having sleepless nights for >2 years. First draft was like an essay written by a school kid in a diary that just took 10 months. Later was the toughest phase of rephrasing it, sending it to publishers, facing rejections, again rereading and rephrasing, punctuating, etc. Whole process took about >2-2.5 years to get in the market. It was like, I never wasted even a single minute, always had dinner in minimum time. Did not watch even a single movie in those years, missed every party organised by friends, missed every treats, broken many relationships and friendships just because my friends thought I did not give them time and attention. They just thought I was doing something stupid locking myself inside my room as I never revealed to anyone about writing book. How would it feel, if you say, I was in love, and I broke, now I am writing my own heartbroken love tale. You know, friends generally don’t believe and they laugh, make comments and break you before you even take a start. I kept it secret until I started searching for publishers.I looked like a nincompoop; a pea-brain sitting outside others locked room at 02:00 AM using their Wi-Fi’s for the sake of my work. Hurdles never left my way but it was like, after reaching here I cannot quit.

Composing music, finding a studio to get everything recorded, writing lyrics, singing, video shooting and everything seemed so tough to balance with book and my job. But when something’s dying inside to get out, you don’t feel the pain.

I slept from 09:00 PM to 12:00 AM and worked from 12:00 AM to 04:00 or 05:00 AM and then again slept an hour before I started my usual routine.

Do you read? What’s your favorite genre in reading? Favorite author? Favorite book?
I am fond of Calvin and Hobbes – Bill Watterson, Paulo Coelho, Sidney Sheldon, Michael Crichton and The Speaking Tree – Published by TOI.My favourite pick is The Alchemist by favourite author Paulo Coelho.

What are your plans for life? Do you ‘plan and follow’ or just welcome life with open arms?
I used to plan a lot in my life but after I lost everything, I stopped planning life and started welcoming it and enjoying every surprise, surmise, and shocks of life. I just welcome life and give my best.

What’s your advice for budding and emerging writers? How should they move on in this field?
No advice, just a statement. Listen to your heart.

What are the problems faced in publishing a book? How was your experience with your publisher?
Faced a lot of problems in publishing book but finally settled for self paid publishing which was easier and generally aids new authors and build their hope.

What are your views about ‘The Author’s Blog’?
‘The Author’s Blog’ stands a great line of platform especially for new authors who dream big with their wide open eyes. It provides energy and life in the form of hope, inspiration and success stories. One should not ever leave Hope, because Hope is a good thing and good things never die.

So guys this was Swetank in a small chit-chat session with TAB. Such a great guy. No doubt girls will go mad over him. We hope you guys enjoyed the session as much as we did. Stay tuned for the last interview.

You can buy Swetank’s book, The Best Serendipity of my Life, from the following links :

Flipkart Amazon

The Devil’s Gate… by Deepak Kripal

Title : The Devil’s Gate: An impossible journey
Author : Deepak Kripal
Pages : 248
Genre : Fantasy Fiction
Publisher : Frog Publishers

Ratings :

Title : 3.5/5
Cover : 3/5
Story-line : 4/5
Writing Style : 4/5
Dialogues & Philosophy : 4/5
Characters : 4/5
Overall : 4/5

Overview :

Neglected by humans the animals decides to find a new habit. The probable site is an invisible island inhibited by demons. The animals union sends two animals, a cat and a dog to strike a deal with the demons. Will the demons accept their offer? Would they even be alive to strike a deal?
Get on this fantasy drive to find the answers with Katy and Dug.

Highlights :

The basic concept of the novel is intriguing and fresh.
Witty and humorous dialogues adds to the overall taste.
Characterization is very effective. Each character blends in the character-set just perfectly.
Polished language.
Effective narration.

Setbacks :

The cover of the book could have been better.

Review :

“A fresh story unraveling new dimensions of fantasy. A tale of courage, friendship and faith. Racy, unpredictable and fantastically fantastic! A definite read.”

‘The Devil’s Gate: An impossible journey’, the title itself is intriguing to peak the interest of reader. This is a fantasy tale with a promise to deliver something good & something different. The blurb sets the mood of the reader and the intro gives an amazing start to the book.

The story circles around the critical problem of animals, to find a new habitat. As the humans are progressing and evolving, their ever-increasing demand for lands is resulting in deforestation and loss of animal habitat. So the animals decide to find a new place. Now this new place is a demonic island far away from the reach of humans. And there sets off an interesting journey where few animals musters up the courage to travel to this dread island and strike a deal with their lord to allow animals to inhibit that island.

Deepak Kripal has done an amazing job with this book. It’s sort of ‘wolf in disguise’. The book starts off at a good pace with so much to digest. The story-line is entirely new. The style of narration is effective and the overall presentation is good. And the characters of Katy, Dug and Billy serves as ‘cherry on top’. For me, the overall concept and characterization were the main points in the book. Oh, and how can I forget the witty dialogues. This is his first novel, but Deepak seems good at what he does.

The characters of Katy, Dug and Billy have unique characteristics and Deepak masterfully carries these forward developing an amazing and acceptable effect. There is no point where the story goes off-track. The ‘over the top’ philosophies of billy, humorous punches of dug and courage of Katy amplifies the overall effect of story.

For me it was an entertaining read. I enjoyed the book from starting till end. It was more of like listening eagerly to favorite story-teller. There was no point when I felt bored or even halted the story. It was a one time, non-stop read.

Congratulations to Deepak for delivering such an entertaining book in a market flooded with books of various genres. i would surely like to recommend this book to every fiction and fantasy fan. And yes, eagerly waiting for the next one from Deepak.
You can buy Deepak’s book, The Devil’s Gate: An impossible journey using the following links :

Flipkart Amazon

Interview with Priyank

7 Days, 7 interviews

Hello everyone!

We hope you guys enjoyed the previous interview. And that was just the starting. So here we’re again to fulfill the promise. A today we’ve with us again a young author who’s creating a lot of buzz in the literary market right now. We present to you Priyank, author of I Am Dead but My Heart Beats.

So let’s see what Priyank discussed with TAB team. Enjoy the show!

So Priyank, let’s start with a brief introduction of yours.
Let’s start from the date and place when I took birth. This will look like an interview of some historian, mathematician or scientist but am none. I was born on 29^th October, 1992 in the famous political and historical constituency – Amethi in Uttar Pradesh but brought up with my schooling done in a small but very beautiful and peaceful town GHATSILA, near the world famous steel city JAMSHEDPUR in Jharkhand. Currently, I am in my seventh semester of Electrical Engineering at B.I.T Sindri, in the Dhanbad district of Jharkhand. Unfortunately, I hate engineering a lot and still exploring what I like the most. I wish to mention that writing happened just because of an important incident in life, otherwise till date neither am fond of reading nor ever dreamt of writing till September 2011. Moreover, I love travelling, exploring new places, sleeping and eating are most important priorities and yeah I am inclined towards entrepreneurship a lot.

You recently published your book ‘I Am Dead but My Heart Beats’. What inspired you to write it down in the first place?
As I mentioned in the introduction, I never thought of becoming a writer, never had any interest in writing or reading. But yes I fell in love on a cold winter evening and my love story fortunately began and continued perfectly for some time. However, destiny had something else in store. INTER-COMMUNITY LOVE – believed to be one of the biggest sins in our society and this issue ended my love. I lost my girlfriend in an accidental fall from the top floor of her house after some serious disputes against our love created a drama full of anger and hatred at her home. Her parents came to know of our love and they brought in very strict and rude actions against my girlfriend to separate us. However, she decided to convince them of our love and continued fighting to make her parents understand that our love was true, pure, it did not distract us from studies and so requested them to allow us to be together in future but Indian parents never understand this easily. They got physical in anger against her, she spent days locked in a room, without food and that affected her hypoglycemic problem and then one day she had an accidental fall, rolling down the stairs after her father hit her in anger of the convincing attempt she was strongly doing for our love to get accepted. Rest of the part is there in the book. Later, after her death one day I recalled that on our Valentine’s day she had asked me for a gift. She had told me to write a book in future on this inter community love which is not accepted in Indian society and seen as a sin but that time I ignored her wish saying that writing is not my cup of tea. So, this incident of life made me realize one day that my love story couldn’t end on a sad note and I decided to write on this theme of ‘inter community love’ on a serious note and share my story. Thereby fulfilling my girlfriend’s wish because completing her dream, which I once thought to be just a funny statement from her, was the best way to end my love story on a happy note by giving a tribute to my girlfriend. This was how writing happened.

Any difficulties you faced while writing this book?Yeah, of course, too many difficulties were there and even now much more difficulties are with me when I am working on the distribution and promotion of my book. As I had no idea of how novels are written, no idea about sentence framing, language, getting published, so every step was unknown, completely unfamiliar for me. I began writing on paper initially. 6 months later, switched on to laptop with some polished writing and it took me 15 months to complete the manuscript. Later when I finished my story, 12 different publishers rejected me. Some publishers said they want happy ending stories, some wanted me not to write on inter community love on serious note, as people won’t take it seriously. Some said they feel it risky to publish me because I am not a celebrity to make my book sell like other authors who are established now, few publishers demanded money, which I couldn’t afford because I am a student right now. Finally, a small publisher “Teenage Publishers”, based in Daryaganj, New Delhi accepted my work and published it. But being a small publisher, right now, problems come in distribution and marketing. Being a student I cant invest into marketing and these days shopkeepers, bookstores in malls, distributors all of them are interested only in established writers and international books, so it’s a tough nut to make my book available everywhere but yeah, I am working with my publisher, both of us are giving our effort and working honestly. Lets see how it goes. Good news is that my book is now a national best seller at HOMESHOP18.com in just 4 months.

Your favorite character from the book?
Ofcourse, its Anshika. Her character is inspired from my girlfriend’s life, so she is always the best one for me. But I must say, when you read the book, all the 4 characters will look equally good to you because even Swati and Zahid have portrayed a very touching role in the book, that too inspired from real life characters.

What’s the reaction from the readers? What were you expecting?
I was expecting a positive response from DAY 1 , because I knew that this issue of inter community love in India is common in every Indian family and readers will easily get connected to my story. People never raise this issue of inter community love not being wrong in any book on a serious note, however bollywood movies have highlighted this issue strongly but impact wasn’t extreme on Indian society. So, I had that little belief that my book will be liked my readers and that’s happening. It’s already a national bestseller book on HOMESHOP18.com, surpassing the highest selling books like shiva trilogy and accidental prime minister since last 4 months. Even people can check the reviews on flipkart, homeshop18 and other online stores. Readers and some celebrities everyone has said a common thing which is very true about my book that “My book is a must read for everyone, of any age, youngsters, parents everyone. Writing may not be like international authors but yes the issue is connected with every single individual by one way or the other”. Reviews also clearly says that my book is clearly “A very different book from other fiction books in Indian market and is not at all like the normal chocolaty stuff books these days many are writing”. So, reviews are coming very good and I hope more and more people will love my story.

Where does writing fit in your daily schedule?
Since, I have written only a single book and I did most of its writing part after 10 pm at night and wrote in the silent hours of midnight till 3 in the morning.

So which is your favorite book? And your favorite author?
As I said, I don’t like reading at all. Still I guess, the first book I read was in 2011 only after I started working on my own book. It was Erich Segal’s ‘Love Story’. And I liked it. But after that slowly till now I have read some more books but all by Indian authors. Reading heavy stuff of international best sellers wasn’t ever possible for me and I wont be able to do that ever. Erich Segal’s Love story I read in 2 weeks only because it was a love story. Still, I will say it to be one of my favourite book which I wish to have on my shelf always but as an Indian writer, I like Chetan Bhagat, only because his writing connects well, nothing much.

What lies in your writing carrier’s future? Any sequel or something?
Yes, now I enjoy writing and will write in future. Currently for a year or so, no writing plan, as I need to promote ‘I am dead but my heart beats’ across India and it will take time. Hopefully, yes, a sequel to my first book will be there but it will have again many more issues in it just like my first book and will be very in different plot again.

How do you balance your writing with engineering pressure?
It happened somehow but was tough. Even during exams I couldn’t keep myself away from writing my story but yeah that desire to fulfill my girlfriend’s dream made me learn the way of managing two different tasks. And I guess I have done both of them decently well enough and now also I am working on both, I mean engineering and marketing, promotion, travelling for my book.

If you’re left on a deserted island, what 3 things would you like to keep?
Laptop and my cellphone (both of these need power connection, so please provide power supply) and I would love to have my great, sweet and very cute friend Nidhi with me. Reason behind why I want Nidhi with me can’t be revealed right now, you will get the answer in the sequel of my first book which will come sometime in future.

Which famous person, living or dead, would you like to meet and why?
I wish to meet my late girlfriend Payal for whom I have written this book. She passed away 3 and a half years back. Wish to meet her one last time just because I want to ask her why did she taught me the real meaning of love when she knew that love is just another name of sacrifice, it gives pain but yet its very pure? I want to say to her that now when I understand love, I feel very lonely, I miss the person I want in life. I want to ask her why didn’t she tell me that writing a book only won’t complete her dream but it involves so many different steps which I am learning now. I will request her to take me to my best friend Nidhi, forever and then will request her to join Nidhi and me for a party.

How was your experience with your publisher?
That’s very very great. There are many publishers in the industry and many new ones are coming up but “Teenage Publishers”, who has published my work, comprises a very honest team, completely genuine in working, hard working people and they have a distribution, which you can rank in the top 15 after the big publishers. Mr. Dilip Jha, the chief manager of my publishing house is a real good person, very honest, trustworthy and very supportive. I look forward to see my publishers doing well in the industry and rising to a good level. Their distribution under the name of “Vedi books private limited” has begun well. They now have a brand new office in Daryaganj, New Delhi, wish them great luck.

Would you like to deliver a ‘word of advice’ for budding & emerging writers?
Write whatever is there in your heart. Don’t think on what others say. “Dil ki karo, bahut satisfaction milegi”. And yes, only writing won’t serve the purpose in today’s competitive market of writing. Most important is to try to get accepted by honest publisher, doesn’t matter if it’s small but must be hard working and with a good distribution. Rest depends on your hard work.

Any words for us, i.e, The Author’s Blog?
Your blog looks good. Keep working hard and promote your blog to your best. Hope to see “The author’s blog” being recognized at the national level one day. Finally, thanks a lot for this interview and helping me in increasing the reach of my book.

So that was priyank in a chit-chat session with TAB. Hope you guys enjoyed the session. Priyank is a wonderful person. Connect with him on facebook and other social networking sites to know him better. The links to his profile and his book’s facebbok page are provided in the first paragraph. Have a nice day! 🙂

You can buy Priyank’s book online through the following links –

HomeShop18 Snapdeal Infibeam Flipkart

Interview with Shomprakash Sinha Roy

7 Days, 7 Interviews

Hello guys!

So as promised, we’re back with this amazing ‘one week interview program’. Sounds amazing… doesn’t it? Yeah, we know. And to start this amazing series, we have none other than the bestselling author, Mr Shomprakash Sinha Roy.

So let’s see what Mr Somprakash has in store for us. Enjoy the chit-chat session.

So Mr. Shomprakash, let’s start with a brief introduction of yours. Tell us something about yourself, your daily life etc.
Well… I would best describe myself as a fanatic for everything that’s logical. It’s not one of the finer traits of an author; people expect us to be surreal and cryptic all the time, but I believe in an open conversation system. I sometimes fancy myself as someone who can change at least a few of our society’s archaic ideologies. It’s not tough- but I look at that as the prize in exchange for a few less hours of sleep every day. Other than that, I’m as normal as you can imagine. I work in the Dell Social Media & Content Development team, I write for Grapevine India, I eat, sleep and I go to bed. Sometimes I try to find time for my reading habit. That’s very important to me.

Tell us something about ‘The Pink Smoke’ and it’s sequel ‘Life served hot’. How’s the response from the readers?
You tell me about the response! People who have read the books have generally had a mixed response about the story. The biggest hurdle that I see now, is to be able to distinguish my reality from the story of my protagonist Siddhant Roy. The story runs dangerously parallel to the trajectory of my life, yet there are phases in the story which I cannot relate to, in my present persona. To be fair, it was written in a haze of anger and delirium, and when I read the book now, I can see where the world of Shomprakash ends and where an unchallenged, untamed Siddhant is let loose. I guess that’s why people call it initial work. I think I have a lot to learn from the books. I’m happy for the positive response, for the chart reports which made my day, for everyone who got back to me with pictures of the book and reviews and kind words. That justifies the effort that went into the books. I’m also happy about the criticism, it helps me in funneling out that which is bad and to sustain what’s good in my line of work.

How does it feel to be ‘The Shomprakash Sinha Roy’. What’s your dream now? What is there which you feel is yet to be achieved?
There’s no “The” Shomprakash Sinha Roy, at least from where I see it. I’m still a guy who works five days a week, takes a cab home, hangs out with friends on weekends, misses his loved ones, watches his favorite sitcoms, cries when he watches emotional movies – the works.My dream – that’s another question. I told myself when I was very young, that I wanted to go places. Not metaphorically – I literally wanted to see the world. I guess that’s something I want to do – except as a kid I wanted to run alone, and now I want to bask in the company of that one special person with whom my life seems complete and meaningful.Yet to be achieved – I’m yet to do a lot of things. I have all the regular to-do lists like other people, you know. But what I think is extra on my plate, is that I want to stop forced marriages in India. I want to start an organization that will help and aid people in love who want to get married. I want to stop the dowry system. I want to make sure that girls in families are not suppressed, that they enjoy the same freedom as boys do. There are a lot of things that I want to do in that domain. I want to make sure that people understand the difference between loving their parents and being afraid of them. Because trust me, man – there is a difference. Maybe I’ll have to start when I have children, to ensure that they grow up the right way. Or maybe my books will let me do it early – who knows?

Tell us something about your new venture #21TAR. As it’s now out in the market, you have become a new ‘Love Guru’. What’s your say?
Nobody plans labels for themselves J It’s really very weird when someone calls you that. But I find it amusing to respond to queries. It’s endearing. Like the other day, a 25 year old girl wrote to me about her 27 year old beau and how they were having trouble in getting married due to an apparent kundli mismatch. There are so many people out there, just afraid of the social shackles that bind them. I have no problems if you label me as the guy who stands as a wall to protect the interests of those in love. Someone has to do it. I see no point whatsoever in following the old system which tells us what to do, in the interest of imaginary rules. If my love matters the most to me, it’s the same for other people. I just find a lot of dignity in being able to defend that.

You seems to be a ‘Potterhead’. Can we, in future, expect fantasy novel from your side?
Maybe. Although, like I had explained in a seminar where a gentleman from the UK got me into an extremely lengthy conversation about Potter – it’s not just the fantasy/magic element that attracted me. Rowling had a way with words that wouldn’t let me lose hope. Every time I picked up a Harry Potter book, I always managed to read the same message. Love wins over fear. There is something called good and bad, and the easiest way to find out which side you’re on, is to believe in love. If I write fantasy, I would like to retain that sentiment in my work.

In one interview you said that your father quoted to you once that, “Writing good literature is very similar to puncturing a rather bad wound, to let the pus flow. That’s what Kafka did. That’s what you need, before you can write well.” What would you like to say about it?
My father & I have shared an extremely ‘laurel-hardy’ type of view about my writing. It’s nobody’s fault – because I used to dream of being a writer at the age of seven, when I finished reading Love In The Time of Cholera by accident. And there was this whole new world- you know? The world of Florentino Ariza, of ships and lovers. An onslaught of particularly adult-themed novels had followed my reading palate, and my obsession with books had become a source of concern for my parents. My mom actually went ahead and told me no Harry Potter Book 7 till my CBSE 12^th Boards were done. Every time I would quote an author or present a statement of my own, my father maintained his position of setting higher standards. Franz Kafka, by far – has had the highest honors as far as my father’s compliments are concerned. Plus, there’s the added mystery of him dying so young – he told his roommate to burn all his manuscripts before he died. He was an author who never wanted the world to see his novels. His roommate published them, and the rest is history. Half the world’s horror/grim movies have been based on Kafka-themes. The Oxford Dictionary has a word (Kafkaesque) dedicated to his memory. Isn’t that the ultimate fantasy? I mean yeah, it kinda sucks to be dead at twenty seven, but so did Kurt Cobain, and he is immortal. So maybe the best way to describe Kafka is that he is my Literary Cobain.

What’s the source of inspiration behind your writing, i.e., what inspired you to take on this ‘writing’ journey?
You caught me on a bad note there! I was angry, depressed, suicidal when I started writing my early pieces. My personal life was in shambles and I don’t think I was in a position to trust anybody. I’ll let out a closely guarded secret – When I wrote my first novel, I had used the title The Exfiltration of All Things Pink. That later became The Pink Smoke based on a very good audience analysis by Durjoy Datta, whom I will always thank because he saw that I was writing out of anger and he did well to calm me down.

How do you manage your day? Where does writing fit in?
Writing fits in during interstices. We have 24 hours in a day, and we procrastinate a lot (Who am I kidding- I do it too!). But once in a while, mostly sooner than later, I find myself pulling all-nighters for writing sessions, sometimes when I am travelling, sometimes when I’m partially depressed (Although dad says I really shouldn’t write when I’m depressed, it only brings out the morbid stuff) but hey – writing was my first vent, and I would like to keep it that way.

Besides writing, what are you passionate about? What are your hobbies?
I like listening to my dad sing – he’s one of the best singers that I’ve ever seen. I try to imitate him at times, but that hardly works. And I read. As much as possible. Whenever I find time.

So we’ve heard that you are an avid reader. What’s your favorite genre in reading? Favorite author? Favorite book?
I don’t have a favorite genre. I don’t think I can ever choose a genre, that way. I like most of the books that I read, except books that have poor grammar. I get annoyed when that happens. But otherwise, I like romance, mystery, inspirational books, and then there are three separate special categories – John Green’s books, JK Rowling’s books and The God Of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. They belong in a separate class altogether. If god was a literature enthusiast, he’d probably build them a museum in heaven.

What are your plans for future? Are you planning to continue Siddhant Roy’s journey or you have something else in the store?
Honestly, I don’t think I’m equipped to handle Siddhant for now. Mainly because the trajectory on which he was headed and the way on which I’m headed are very different. He has traces of my past, which can be very destructive for me if not controlled. I’ll focus on some non-autobiographical fiction & non-fiction for now. There are a lot of engaging stories out there, and I want all of them heard out. Plus I want to write a few books that make people laugh, sit up and scream, you know- books that make you buy a cup of coffee. Good books. Siddhant will have to wait till I’m like fifty or something. And then, If I’m alive, I’ll call Sid for coffee.

What’s your advice for budding and emerging writers? How should they move on in this field?
Three steps –

Embrace the language. Make English the air you breathe in and breathe out.
Read as much as you can – No amount of good international literature is “Enough”. Don’t stick to one genre. Pick up all kinds of work. Watch Sitcoms, Good Hollywood movies. Appreciate the finer arts that surround us from all over the globe. Understand the world of both Julia Roberts and Marilyn Monroe; of both Jim Carey and Al Pacino.
Never write with a sad frame of mind. Write to make yourself happy. Write with a glass of juice, a glass of milk, a cup of coffee. You can always think of Mr. Jack from Tennessee, but that would be cheating, right? (Wink)

What are the problems faced in publishing a book? How was your experience with your publishers?
Frankly, I didn’t face a lot of issues in getting published. Grapevine has a group of brilliant editorial staff, who’re postdoctoral students of English from Ivy League universities like Yale & Oxford – my first editor was like a dream editor – She just understood why I had used the word Exfiltration in the title and she loved it. You don’t always get to work with such wonderful people in your career and I’m glad that I did. Our illustrators have always done better than the last one, Durjoy is the kindest man I know in the industry, Sachin is the best thinker.From a general perspective, I think most manuscripts get rejected because many writers do not focus on the most important part of the book – language. Grammar is important, people. And everyone who has ever come to me for advice has received the same list – movies, books, sitcoms, sitcoms, books, movies. I’m not against Hindi – ShahRukh Khan is my favorite Bollywood hero. But if you want to get published in English and if you want it to work, you haveto be as good at English as Guy Ritchie himself.Earlier, writers used to say that there weren’t many quality publishers, and these days the situation has gotten better – There are tons of excellent publishers out there, there’s an eBook publishing revolution just waiting in Jack’s box, and it’s a very exciting time. People need to have faith in the world of Indian Writing.

People have started comparing you with other writers. What are your views on it? Will you take it as a competition?
It depends. I’d have to be barking mad to let myself be compared against people who mentored and launched me. Durjoy-da & Sachin-bhai will always be like gods. Rohit Gore is a friend, philosopher and a true guide, and always a better writer than me. Aakash Saxena (Author of Dude We’re Screwed) is so talented that he probably doesn’t know it himself. He has written a book which is beyond fantastic. But yes, there are some other people in the industry with whom there always will be a on-and-off competition. We can’t help it, it’s the law of the jungle.

What are your views about ‘The Author’s Blog’?
Well, for starters this is probably the most interesting interview that I’ve ever had to face – It’s not generic, you guys did your research and you’ve asked me questions that made sense to me – That’s new! And looking at your portfolio, you guys will go places too! Just don’t ever ever ever stop writing good things about me and my books, okay? (Wink again)

So that was all with Sompraksh. We hope you guys must have enjoyed the session. And yeah, the thing doesn’t end here. 6 more interviews to go. So stay tuned and enjoy the amazing chit-chat sessions with current market sensations.

You can connect with the author on facebook here. Like his facebook page for various updates.

You can buy his book, Life Served Hot, from various online retail stores here –

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TAB presents “EXTRA MILE”

Hello guys!

So after hours of hard work and your incessant support, TAB is proud to present it’s first digital magazine edition as “Extra Mile”. This task wouldn’t have been possible without your support. Thank you all for your support!

And guys, the story doesn’t end here. It’s just the beginning. So keep supporting us; keep reading, keep writing. And please have a look at our first edition. To view/download the pdf file, kindly click on the below link –

Extra Mile

Every feedback is welcomed. So feel free to share your thoughts on EXTRA MILE and help us improve the future editions. You can submit your content for the further editions at theauthorsblogg@gmail.com. So write to us and we’ll share it with the world.

Also, we would like to thank Mallika, Mehek and Satyarth for allowing us to feature their work in our first edition. Thank you so much guys.

Sit back and enjoy EXTRA MILE. Happy Reading 🙂

Operation Mom… by Reenita Malhotra Hora

Title : Operation Mom – How I got my mother a life… and a man
Author : Reenita Malhotra Hora
Pages : 234
Genre : Fiction
Publisher : Harper