How I edit

Editing, a process I love to hate, is perhaps the most important tool in a writer’s arsenal. What I absolutely love about editing is the process of finding the hidden diamond in a chunk of ore and how my piece evolves after every readthrough.

What I consequently hate about the process is how it can seem never ending, tiresome and just creating more problems than it solves!

Here’s my method to the madness of editing:

4 things to keep in mind while writing a fiction blog post

The hunter stalked its prey, as it pirouetted in a merry dance, each twirl bringing it closer to the salivating hunter. But before the hunter could pounce, it was caught in a snare.

From its vantage point, it became aware of another, sinister figure encroaching upon its territory.

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Did that catch you in its snare? Let’s begin then!

5 things to keep in mind while writing a nonfiction blog post

The 5 things to keep in mind while writing a nonfiction blog post are:

That’s the kind of sentence I would start my answers with in school when I couldn’t think of an appropriate introduction. Don’t worry, the rest of the post isn’t going to be inspired by my high school self. Let’s get to it, shall we?

I spy with my little eye

A sound jarred me awake. Heart thundering in my chest, I tried to put myself back to sleep but the sound, like a saw mutely but determinedly cutting through wood, wouldn’t let me. So I got off the bed, needing to see what the fuss was about.

The Marionette

She knew it was a special occasion because the brilliant blue dress was coming out of the vintage trunk for airing. Laid out next to it were the blue jewels that went with the dress. And oh, the necklace fashioned in the image of the Hope diamond was also coming out! It must indeed be an important guest. Mr. Brickwell was going all out it seemed.

Remembrance

In the deep of night
When the stars shine bright
In the early morn
As dew drops glitter
On a busy afternoon
I hear your heart’s song
Long forgotten…half remembered
A melody that dances
A memory that bursts forth.
On a balmy evening
As the sun bids its adieu
And the birds sing a farewell
I remember you.

#BookReview Nupur Maskara’s Insta Women

Blurb: Looking for inspiration but not in the mood to read long winded stuff? Insta Women: Dramatic Monologues by Drama Queens has real life poems straight from the mare’s mouth. Read 29 famous women’s stories, about the lives they’ve lived. From criminals to doctors, artists to feminists, you’ll find someone you identify with.

#BookReview Sayan Bhattacharya’s My Land Across the Border

Blurb: Siraj discovers a dark secret lurking in his family’s past, which he must unravel to reconstruct the truth about his own identity and roots. Destiny leads Siraj to the land where he was born, to uncover the secret of his family’s past that lay buried within the annals of its history. Mrinal, on the other hand undertakes a trip to Bangladesh as the journey of his lifetime: a land which he had had to leave behind amidst the fire of communal violence in 1950, post the Partition of India.

The Criminal

There was only one way to solve the mystery. I had thought and eliminated every other way. But this was the fastest way to get to the bottom of who had perpetrated the crime.

And that way was to hold your standard corporate boardroom meeting.

#BookReview Isha Doshi’s Hawkers of Kolkata

Blurb: Hawkers of Kolkata is an effort to treasure fond memories of experiences with people who we interact with on a daily basis. Before they are forgotten, before they become a rarer sight, I wanted to re-live those days. Covering many markets across Kolkata, the book will take you back to the pleasant days of childhood. A must read for all the 90s kids.