Hola! I am back after a month-long hiatus to bring to you a crisp tete-a-tete with Authoress Shuchi Singh Kalra  who has just released her third book – A cage of desires!!! Lets hear from her about her writing journey, protagonists and most importantly her new book.

Author Bio: Shuchi Singh Kalra

Shuchi Singh Kalra is the Amazon best-selling author of two novels – Done with men and I’m Big. So what? Her short stories have appeared in Love across Borders, Stories for your Valentine and NAW anthology 2013. She focuses her writing on women centric issues and is listed among the top women authors to follow on Twitter.

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** Giveaway Alert: 5 lucky readers will be chosen by Shuchi to receive a free KINDLE copy of her new book. So leave an interesting remark or question to intrigue her enough to choose you. **

‘There’s a kind of love that makes you go down on one knee, and there’s the kind that brings you down on both. You don’t need the latter, because no matter what you do, you cannot make anyone love you back.’

– A cage of desires by Shuchi Singh Kalra

Q: Congratulations on the publication of your third book, how does it feel?

A: Thank you so much! I’m jittery as hell, but also relieved that it’s finally out in the market after years of hard work. The initial reviews have started trickling in and they are mostly positive, so that’s keeping me afloat for now.

Q: You have a full-time job and a household to manage; how and where do you find the time to write?

A: I have to write and tell stories. I’ll go insane if I don’t. Professional and domestic responsibilities do slow me down but I keep writing whenever I find a window of opportunity – at bedtime, while travelling or on weekends and holidays.

Q: What’s your writing drug?

A: Emotions. I find that I’m most prolific with words when I’m high on some emotion. It can be any emotion, positive or negative.

Q: What kind of research do you undertake before each book?

A: So far all my books have been about human emotions, especially from a women’s perspective, so there hasn’t been much need for research. I however do observe and analyse people very closely, and delve into their psyche sometimes without them even noticing it. That helps me add depth and dimensions to my characters. This is probably why I’m drawn to complex personalities because they take longer to unravel.

Q: Would you say the three books are interconnected or are individual stories? Do they take off one after the other?

A: All three are individual stories with no interconnected elements whatsoever. What they do have in common is strong female protagonists who have the spunk to fight all odds, even though all three are from completely different worlds and fighting completely different battles.

Q: Do you hide secrets in the books which only a few would be able to find? 

A: Yes, I do. All the time 🙂

Q: How do you select the names of your characters?

A: The names for my characters usually just occur to me. I already know them inside out in my head, so coming up with a name that suits their personality isn’t too difficult. I don’t spend too much time deliberating over names, but it’s not random either. I just follow my instinct.

Q: How many unpublished or half written books do you have? What’s your plan for them?

A: I have two half-baked manuscripts lying with me. One of them is a sequel to my first book ‘Done With Men’ and the other one is also a romantic comedy. I hope to finish at least one this year.

Q: Talk to us about Maya, the protagonist of your new book.

A: We as women unflinchingly give up so much of ourselves for the world around us, that somewhere down the road we forget who we really are and what we truly want.  We all make sacrifices, for varied reasons and to varied degrees; but sacrifices we make, nevertheless.

Maya is not just one such woman. She is every woman. Every woman who had to give up her individuality for the sake of family and society; who had her dreams and desires stifled because the world around her would have none of it; who got much less than she deserved.

But here is what Maya is not—she is not a victim of her circumstances or a figure of pity, at least not for long. She is a woman of phenomenal inner strength and quiet rebellion. Much like a tea bag dipped in hot water, all it takes is a little push, before she comes into her own and unleashes her feminine power. And finds the courage to free herself—from the cage of desires.

Q: What do you feel about book reviews? Do you read the ones done for your books? How do you deal with the negative reviews? 

A: Oh yes… I read each and every review. The ones that are exceptionally nice, I read them several times. We writers thrive on encouragement from readers and every review is important to us. I am open to criticism as long it is constructive and coming from someone credible. But largely, I don’t like people who don’t like my book. To me, it’s like someone calling my kid ugly.

Q: How did the publishing of your first book change the way you write? 

A: I have grown with every book, or so I’d like to believe. The more you practice your craft, the better you get at it. With time and experience, your writing also imbibes depth and a broader perspective.

Q: If you weren’t a writer, you would be?

A: I’d probably be a nobody. There’s nothing else I’m good at or would rather do.

Q: What’s the best writing money you have spent and how?

A: I celebrated the release of my first book by taking my husband and kid on a vacation to Maldives.

Q: Do you ever consider writing under a pseudonym?

A: Never. I am too narcissistic and I want to own everything I write, be it good, bad or ugly.

Q: What’s your family’s take on your writing career?

A: My family members have been my very first fans and cheerleaders, and they continue to be. I am fortunate to have their support and encouragement in everything I choose to write, and I’ve never been asked to censor my thoughts even if they have the potential to be scandalous or controversial.

Q: One last word on why you would ask folks to read your latest book?

A: As author Gabriel Garcia Marquez said, everyone has three lives: the public life we show the world, the private life that we show our family and friends; and then there’s the secret life, which is the world of our minds.

One of the components of our secret lives is our erotic self. And if written well, if it feels authentic, then you can live vicariously through the words of others.

For a lot of women, most women, marriages kids, jobs and just keeping up with people around you is hard enough. Stories that feel authentic and have characters who we can identify with or at least parts of us allow us an escape, and makes you feel hopeful that if Renu can, If Maya can..then perhaps I can too. To know more about that and much more, is just one of the many reasons as the why anyone should read my book. And I may have mentioned just women previously but it’s a story that needs to be read by everyone for different reasons.

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So there you have it folks, straight from the horse’s mouth. Shuchi is thrilled to gift 5 KINDLE copies of her newly released book and would like to hear from you. So leave a question/compliment/feedback in the comment section for her and she will get back to you on that. Winner will be chosen by the author on 8th June 2018

While choosing the Giveaway, we mulled over giving out hard copies or e-format and the latter won on the account that it covers folks from abroad too plus its environment friendly 😉

Yes the sell out is on the author signed copy; I do hope you will forgive us for that.

But there is more in the offing with the book review that I will be posting on my blog in a few days which will be a linky with an awesome prize at the end of it.

Here is the link to buy this hot off Amazon; I will earn a commission fee if you do happen to use this link to make the purchase.

Check out a previous post on a published author and her take on book reviews here