It's easy, funny and value for time and money. Some of our favorite books- 1) Bridget Jones Diary2) The Shopaholic Series...Add your favorites in the comments.
Anybody even passingly familiar with the Indian blogging scene knows Jai Arjun Singh. A freelance columnist, reviewer and prolific blogger, he has recently written a monograph on the classic Indian cult film Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, and has also edited an anthology of film writing called The Popcorn Essayists: What Movies Do to Writers. In this Q&A, I talked to him about blogging, freelancing, and cross-country interviewing. Tell us a bit about...
Nikhil Rajagopalan’s interests are very different from the degree (Bachelor’s degree in Biotechnology from VIT University and a Master’s degree in Bioscience - Infection and Immunity - from the University of Leeds, UK) he holds. A complete anthisesis to his academic interests, Nikhil in his spare time simply loves writing flash fiction on his blog and has been regularly posting blogs since 2008. In his posts he explores the kind of love, relationships a...
An avid blogger, a stickler when it comes to editing copies, a dreamer who writes on love, life and everything in between and an experimental photographer. That’s Naman Saraiya for you. He loves each of these roles and hopes to reach a stage where he can say it's a perfect balance between all these. Ambitious and a multi-tasker is what we shall like to add to this long list of epithets that best describe him. The stories he contributed for Urban Shots ...
So, who all have faced the proverbial random blankness of the mind that blocks all thoughts and imagination even though the hand itches and the pen (or the keyboard in today’s context) twitches to let words flow on the white background? Ok hands down. I see you all have faced that dead-end at some point. That my friend is the dreaded “Writer’s Block”. Imagine reaching a dead-end, after especially a ...
This week we chat up with Preeti Shenoy, an avid blogger, author of two bestsellers, an artist, a poet, a writer and a mother of two – or should I say just a mother of two (that’s what she calls her blog). Her two books, 34 Bubblegums and Candies and Life Is What You Make It, though poles apart, met with the same end: they were instant hits and went on to be declared national bestsellers. Know about why this Bangalore-based author moved on...
From Muscat to Pune, via South India...Aseem Rastogi, a consultant with Infosys, is a writer, a proficient blogger, a content creator, and a talented young man with an undying love for music. BookChums caught up with him to know more about his versatility. Read on... How different was life in Muscat compared to life in India, esp. Pune? If you see at the outset, life in Muscat and India is much the same. With Indians all around, going to...
The Landmark store in Andheri was in limelight once again, this time for the launch of Faraaz Kazi’s debut novel- Truly Madly Deeply, which was published last year. Present for the event were: renowned Indian Ad-film maker Prahlad Kakkar, Supermodel Aditya Singh Rajput, along with fashion designer and socialite Pria Kataria Puri. Writer, blogger, and now an author, Faraaz spoke about his debut novel, the ideation, the process, and the rave reviews it ...
There are a lot many distractions nowadays for everyone. Work, Internet, Playstation, Xbox, or simply the idiot box. Who has the time or patience to read? Right?? But if you put your mind to it, you’d see it’s not that difficult. Here are some pointers to help you: Gather good reading material: There is no dearth if you just look around. With so many books stores, book stalls (those small road-side vendors have to make a living too and more often than ...
Many bloggers today have moved on to writing short stories and novels. Writers like Preeti Shenoy, Aseem Rastogi, Sneh Thakur, Naman Saraiya, Nikhil Rajagopalan, Rohini Kejriwal, Kunal Dhabalia, Rikin Khamar and many more have all been avid bloggers first and then moved on to writing novels and short stories. This week we should try to examine what is it that prompts bloggers to try their hand at publishing and do such authors have an upper hand over other first time wri...
Writing is an enjoyable exercise, for most. It is a great way to express your thoughts and feeling with words. And to garner appreciation for it just adds to the charm, doesn’t it? Further, the thought of “earning” a bit through your work sounds intriguing enough…true? The number of bloggers turning into writers speaks for itself. But not many writers/bloggers find it easy to promote their work. The key word here is “driving traf...
Every day is a battle. Managing a home, a busy work schedule, unannounced meetings, attending book launches and a trillion other things, is challenging, if not a struggle. And despite all the challenges that spring up, I managed to get at the venue (Landmark Store, SGS Mall, Pune) on time to enjoy the book launch last evening. It seemed nothing short of an achievement and in that sense I had won! Winning is a habit and gives you a high that only people who have won ...
Technology has always given us proud moments that have turned our lives around many pivot points. And the advent of ebooks has been one such turning point in the lives of avid readers/writers.
Storage
Duplication and storing data is a lot easier than ever. The ability to hoard gigabytes of information (books) has brought around the ability to store and reflect upon every book you’d have ever read – as a child, as a teenager, as a c...
The first time I met author Manasi Vaidya was at a book launch event in Pune. She happened to tell me that Penguin was releasing her romantic comedy No Deadline For Love under the Metro Reads section. As soon as I got back to office, I read her blog, I fell in love with her writing style. Her topical subjects, situations and reactions were incredibly funny. From how she ran to the loo to key in her novel or how she came across a group of daughter-in-laws who faked linger...
Even if you are an avid reader, you are sure to come across some books that are extremely difficult to complete. The reasons can be many. You may find the books too descriptive or the subject may not interest you much. Also, at times the language or the word usage by the author can be very difficult to comprehend, or in some cases the plot could be too convoluted with too many elements introduced every now and then. But since you have begun, you should do all that you ca...
Friday, 20th January, 2012
Landmark, Pune:
I was recently invited to the book launch of two of the most awaited anthologies -
Urban Shots Crossroads and Urban Shots Brightlights.
I walked in to the store, towards the book launch area, recognizing a few familiar faces, and smiling at the new ones.
I could sense the excitement. It reminded me of the launch of the first Urban Shots anthology by Grey Oaks and the launch of Down the Road th...
Dr. Vivek Banerjee, the author of ‘The Long Road’ is a self-confessed “full time pediatrician (by choice) and part time author (by chance)”. Also known by his pen name Ben, for his blogs earlier, Vivek shares snippets of his writing career with us. Read on.
Could you share with us your earliest memories of writing? What got you blogging and finally writing a fictional tale?
The earliest memories in writing are contributing to my sch...
From discussion on varied writing styles, hike in divorce rates and writing about sex, the Pune book launch of Preeti Shenoy’s third book Tea For Two and A Piece of Cake had it all. The blogger and writer, a Bangalore-based writer was in town to promote her third release, Tea For Two and A Piece of Cake. Preeti Shenoy was in conversation with Sonja Chandrachud.
The event began with Chandrachud complimenting Shenoy on her writing style. Chandrachud commented th...
What makes a man turn to crime? I’ve often asked myself this question. Why is it that I commit murders and revel in dead bodies?
Well you could blame it on my upbringing – I was brought up in circumstances where crime was a way of life. My mother devoured Agatha Christhie, my father adored Alfred Hitchcock. As a school boy I was introduced to Sherlock Holmes and the Hardy boys and in college I fell into the violent company of James Hadley C...
This week we speak with author Astha Suneja who has authored two fictions: Owe You My Fate and Yes... I Flaunt My Diamond. This young author talks about blogging and what inspires and compels her to put pen to paper.
You work with TCS and writing is not what is demanded of you professionally. So how did you go about releasing two novels in quick succession?
I have always had my interests in the field of communication. In spite of having a technical academic degr...
In today's world of an increasing obsession with technology, the literary world has not been spared. Be it Kindle or audiobooks or ebooks, the format of reading and writing has definitely undergone a change. Even for someone who enjoys writing, I consciously decided to stick to Blogger rather than writing down all my thoughts in a diary. Why, you ask? Permanence.
It's sad that there is a loss of wanting to feel what you read - the old book smell, the ch...
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