Author Highlight: Divya Kumar Discusses her New Book ‘The Shrine of Death’ and Stories from her Life
We are back
with another author interview. Today, with us, we have Divya Kumar – the author
of ‘The Shrine of Death’. In this
interview, Divya Kumar talks about her writing aspirations, the route to
getting her book published, and her inclination towards crime thrillers. Stay
on...while we chat with her.
What motivates you to write and how long have you been writing?
I’ve been
writing as long as I can remember – my mother has saved my first story, about a
turtle and fish who were best friends, written when I was five years old. That
was followed by comic-strips and Enid Blyton-inspired adventure novels begun
during summer holidays, angsty poetry in my teenage years, and articles for
literary journals and campus newspapers in college. But I became a professional
writer after I completed my journalism degree in the U.S., and joined The Hindu
Metroplus in Chennai as a feature writer, covering mostly the book and art
beat.
What motivates
me is an abiding love of stories, and the joy of self-expression. I write
stories that I want to read, about people/characters whom I want to know
better. That, I’ve realized, is the only thing that makes you want to keep
writing, that brings you back again and again, amidst periods of self-doubt or
low inspiration.
How did you feel when your book got published?
It was, quite
literally, a dream come true! I grew up in a home filled with books and love
reading, so to see my own words within the covers of a novel was an incredible
feeling, almost surreal.
What are some of your favorite authors and novels?
I love reading
fiction of all sorts – I enjoy Edgar Allan Poe and Anne Rice as much as I do
Georgette Heyer or P. G. Wodehouse. Crime writer Dick Francis is an old
favourite of mine – I love the way he deftly depicts his characters’ emotional
lives even as he sets up his fast-moving plots. I love the brooding atmosphere
that Daphne Du Maurier conjures up in her all novels and short stories. I
recently re-discovered the thrillers of Ira Levin -- what a genius for plot the
man had! And I love the gentle humour and kindness in the writing of James
Herriot.
What inspired you to write this book? Any tales to tell…
It actually
began with a dream! I woke up one morning with a vivid portrait of one of the
main characters of the story, Jai, fully formed in my head – his tragic
backstory, his struggles. At that time, I was closely following The Hindu’s
coverage of idol theft in Tamil Nadu, and the bust of the international
smuggling ring headed by Manhattan-based art dealer Subhash Kapoor. So, the two
parts – Jai’s story, and the idol theft plot –came together almost as a
complete whole.
How do you manage your professional and creative life? Don’t they clash?
It’s always
tricky to find time to create, unless you’re lucky enough to be a full-time
author! In my case, I began writing ‘The Shrine of Death’ after I quit my job
with The Hindu for the birth of my daughter. But I was still writing freelance
as a feature writer and a columnist, as well as being a full-time mom, so I
often wrote in the late night, after everyone was asleep, or on the weekends
when I could get away to a café for a few hours. I still struggle with finding the
time to work on my writing, juggling my household responsibilities, mom duties
and other freelance work – but my New Year’s resolution is to try and
prioritise it more!
What was your biggest learning experience throughout the writing process?
I think it was
just the act of completing the book – my first full-length novel – not just a
rough draft, but a fairly polished final product after rewriting, reworking and
editing. I’ve done that for feature articles, of course, but a 95,000-word
novel is something else altogether!
Looking back, what did you do right that helped you break in as a writer?
I think
working as a journalist gives you a great head start. It ensures you’re writing
and editing every day, and teaches you to cope with days when the words just
aren’t coming that easily. It exposes you to a world of creative people – I
loved my years covering the book beat, attending book launches and interviewing
authors, everyone from Amitav Ghosh to Jeffrey Archer. And it also exposes you
to an array of new experiences and takes you to new places every day – a lot of
what you read of Chennai in my book comes from my years as a reporter in the
city.
Any best piece of writing advice from your side that we haven’t discussed?
If you’ve
always dreamed of writing, just get started. If you’re working on a story, just
keep going. Don’t wait for some perfect moment or a perfect situation to begin.
Don’t wait to be perfectly inspired, or for everything you put down on paper to
be a gem. The only way to write is to keep putting words on the page.
Something personal about you people may be surprised to know?
I’ve been
writing songs for almost as long as I’ve been writing stories. I hope someday
soon to put some of them out there too!
Any future books that you would like to discuss now?
I’m currently
working on a sequel to ‘The Shrine of Death’, and the plan is to complete a
trilogy eventually. This book picks up about two years after TSoD, and you find
out what’s going on in the lives of the main characters of book. Jai’s abilities
are evolving, and he’s struggling with some strange visions he can’t explain;
Prabha is finding her feet in her new career in journalism; Gerard finds
himself and his team at the Idol Wing under attack; and they all have to team
up to face a powerful and dangerous new enemy…
Connect with
Divya Kumar:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DivsK
Website/Blog: https://divyakumar.com/
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