15 February, 2020

#SpecialFeature :: #GuestPost - Writing Tips by @shilpaauthor


*** Special Feature - February 2020 ***


About the Author:
A published author with Harlequin India, Locksley Hall and Juggernaut, Shilpa Suraj’s books have hit both the Hot New Releases and Bestseller lists on Amazon. Her next novel, tentatively titled ‘Wrong,’ has been contracted by Rupa Publications and will release later this year.
She is currently working on ‘Frazzled and Fabulous,’ a humorous, true-to-life parenting story that is part memoir and part nonfiction.
Shilpa has also been a panelist at the Womens Writers Fest and New Age Lit Fest Hyderabad and an active participant at the Hyderabad Literary Festival.
An avid reader with a passion for creative writing and storytelling saw her participating in writing competitions at school and dabbling in copy writing for an ad agency as a teenager. Ten years in the corporate space, including a stint in Corporate Communications for Google, India, and a spell at entrepreneurship all hold her in good stead for her multiple current roles of author, wife, mother and Head of Human Resources at an architecture and interior design firm.


Look up the Author:
Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram * LinkedIn


Writing Tips


Over the years, I’ve been asked in various forums for writing tips. And I have always come up with this gem of wisdom.

“Write the story you want to tell.”


This, literally, is the most useless piece of advice ever. Of course, everyone is going to write the story they want to tell. It’s not like they’ll wake up one day and decide that they should write a story their neighbor dreamed up.

But, given that I’m not normally totally useless, I do have something useful to say in that statement. Let me break it down a bit.

Sit your butt down and write. 

Nora Roberts famously said, “You can fix a bad page. You can’t fix a blank page.” I couldn’t agree more. My first bit of advice is, always, just sit down and write. Don’t worry about genre, wordcount, social media marketing, and most importantly, don’t worry about how you’re going to find a publisher or agent to accept your book. Just write. Type the story in your head and heart out, one word at a time.

Tell your story.

This seems ridiculous and kind of self-explanatory but it’s not. Please don’t sit down and decide you’ll write another campus romance or a take on mythological fiction because that is what sells. Don’t write to market, as it’s called. While this may have worked for many people, I don’t believe you’ll ever be able to do justice to a story that doesn’t resonate with you. Which is why, I repeat, tell your story. Not your best friend’s, or the last bestselling author’s that you read.

Love your story like it’s the lover you can’t live without.

If you don’t, it’s hard for you to convince readers to love it. If you don’t love your labour of love, who will?

Chuck Advice down the Recycle Bin.

Last but not the least, don’t listen to me or any other author when we spout gyaan at you. We each have our own path, our own journey and even more importantly, our own dream. Yours is special and unique and quintessentially, you. Earn it, enjoy it and LIVE it!


About the Book:
They meet under impossible circumstances!

She is kidnapped by terrorists blackmailing her father, a Supreme Court Judge. He leads the team sent to rescue her.

Trekking to safety through Ladakh... They are in danger of falling in love. But, Lt. Col. Arjun Rathod knows that Naina Ahuja, engaged to politics' rising star, is not meant for him.

Forever changed by her trauma, Naina walks out of her controlling family and forges a new life.

And then, she meets Arjun again. But this time, he is engaged to someone else.

Can they save their love or is it too late? 


Book Links:
Goodreads * Amazon


Giveaway:

Signed Paperback copy of Saved by Love, Bookmarks & Coaster. Open to Indian Residents only.



a Rafflecopter giveaway


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