Important Update: Website Overhaul

Hello Dear Readers, A very quick note to let you know that I shall be migrating to another service provider very soon. In fact, I am working on a complete overhaul of the website. Lots of interesting content is being planned at the back end and I can't wait to share it all with you. …

Book Review: Like A Girl by Aparna Jain

Did you know who was the first musician to be awarded the Bharat Ratna - the highest civilian award for our country? It was M S Subbulakshmi. That's right! She wasn't just the first female musician but rather the first musician ever. I hadn’t known or realized this fact earlier so it left me in …

A Journal Entry

In an attempt to connect with the newbie writer in me again, I do these writing courses on and off. Not because I feel I don't write well enough but because I feel it is important to go back to basics every now and then. Why do I write? How do I become better? What …

Not Much Has Changed: A Look at the Past Decade

Decade. The word itself evokes a million memories and a zillion other emotions. Setbacks. Sacrifices. Failures. Compromises. Achievements. Victories. Learnings. Experiences. The past ten years have brought opportunities for me to savour it all. Or so it seems. In 2009, I was working at an entry-level position, miserable with the fact that despite my MBA …

The Journey of Writing Dashavatar: The Story of How I Became a Published Author

First things first. I wrote a book! And miracle of miracles, it actually got published. And it is doing quite well, if I may say so myself. But let me go back a bit and share with you how I actually got here. The initial idea for this book wasn’t mine. Instead, it was my publisher …

Author Interview: Tanushree Ghosh

Fellow writer, inspiring social activist, and dear friend, Tanushree Ghosh, recently published her first single-author book and I couldn't be happier. Unfortunately, due to innumerable reasons, I couldn't get my hands on the book earlier. And now, I don't want it to end. The book in question, titled From Another Land: Making Home in the Land …

The Art of Writing a Complex Thriller: Guest Post by Tanushree Podder

The Crime Writing Festival that Readomania hosted on Twitter was a writer's retreat in the virtual space. It provided a wealth of information on the craft of writing in the genre of crime and thrillers. The past month has been fun and extremely informative. It was an honour for Wandering Soul to be one of the …

Exploring the Secrets of ‘Creating Memorable Characters in Thrillers’ with Maitrayee Sanyal De

The month-long Readomania Crime Writing Festival that’s on in full swing on Twitter is as informative and exciting as a virtual writing festival can be. Every Tuesday and Thursday, an author takes the viewers and readers through the various aspects of crime and thriller writing. Along with the discussions, there is also an ongoing contest on the …

Reflections on ‘Surprising the Reader’ with Deepti Menon

The month-long Readomania Crime Writing Festival that's on in full swing on Twitter is as informative and exciting as a virtual writing festival can be. Every Tuesday and Thursday, an author takes the viewers and readers through the various aspects of crime and thriller writing. Along with the discussions, there is also an ongoing contest …

Delving into the Mystery of Penning Psychological Thrillers

My relationship with Readomania is one I cherish immensely. So when I initially heard about a Crime Writing Festival I was most excited for it is a genre I had debuted as an author with. This is what every newbie as well as established writer needs, I thought. So imagine my happiness when I found …

Kirthi Jayakumar – An Epitome of True Beauty

Beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. Colours, too, for a country that’s obsessed with being fair and slim, the definition of beauty is a tad stereotypical. And yet, there are people who smash the stereotypes on their heads and redefine all concepts and ideas of beauty. In the recent couple of years, as a …

[Updated] Author Interview: Aditya Gautam

There is no denying that there is an increase in sexual awareness all across the world. Urgent calls to indulge in healthy and open discussions around sex are being made across the world — online and offline. Incidents of sexual abuse are more vocally being condemned, while at the same time, there is more focus on good sexual health.

Amidst all of this, there is also the downside. Everything seems to be focused around sex — to the extent that, now there is an overdose of sexual content, direct or implied. Sex is used to sell everything from deodorants to inverters! This raises various questions, including the most critical one, how is porn affecting us as a society?

It becomes imperative that for us to understand its impact, and analyze our own role in it.

Some Insightful Some Hilarious Conversations – A Chat with Jayant Kripalani

I first met Jayant Kripalani at the launch of his novel Cantilevered Tales. He had us all floored with his witty one-liners and quips. I had worked on the marketing for the book before its launch but hadn’t interacted with him directly. When I finally met and, like the rest of the audience, got him to …

The Day After Women’s Day – Featured Article on WomensWeb

I recently received a WhatsApp forward similar to the image below. The person in question being an ex-boss who I highly respect and consider to be a feminist for the way he has treated me during the time we were working together. 'Write about this,' he urged. At first, I was taken aback at reading …

Not Anymore (A Women’s Day Poem)

Not Anymore. I'm not cowering in fear, not anymore. I'm not shedding a tear, not anymore. You can try But I shan't cry. You can scream, It's nothing but a bad dream. I shall wake up, Emerge stronger, For I'm not meek. This is me. My story. And it will always be about me. I hold …

Why I Feel My Heart Would Burst!

I feel like I'll burst with happiness and excitement. Today was a big day for the writer in me. I just got promoted to being an author. My debut book - Just Another Day, a collection of 3 short stories, published by Readomania - was launched as an eBook on Kindle today. The book is …

Product Review: Sheroes App

The first time I came in contact with what I now call my ‘Sheroes gang’ was at a bootcamp in Delhi.  The SHEROES bootcamp was instrumental in giving me confidence that the transition from a high-paying hotel career to writing would work out fine. I met women who were working from home, and some who …

Pride Comes After A Fall

So it happened. It finally happened. It had to happen no, considering how it has been twenty-plus years since I rode a bicycle. If you haven't yet guessed it, let me spell it out for you - I fell.  Yes, I fell off my bike. It was inevitable. The one thing you fear the most …

Failure Repeats Itself

Failure – they say if you’ve not failed at least a zillion things, you’ve not truly lived. I have – failed at many things, that is. But it doesn’t feel like I’ve lived a rich life. Instead, it feels more like how miserable and pathetic my existence is. It feels as if no matter what …

Riding Away Into the Sunset!

During my growing up years, we used to live in the staff accommodation of the college where my mother was a lecturer. There were quite a few families there, and all of us were a closely-knit unit. We celebrated many birthdays, festivals, and family celebrations together. Right behind our block of buildings, within the college campus was …