An
avid traveller, a voracious reader, a passionate designer, and a doting mother
of two - Priya Narayanan believes that there are stories lurking around every
corner, waiting to be captured and revealed to the world. Although she has long
been a writer of short stories and poetry, it was just recently that she took
up the challenge of writing for children. Her book 'The Moon Wants to be
Spotless White' (reviewed here) has been well received by the young readers.
How did you pick the topic for your book - 'The
Moon Wants to be Spotless White' and what all preparation did you do for
penning down this story?
I’ve been in love with the moon from ever since I can remember. I
love staring at it and thinking of all the different things it could possibly
be, apart from the droning fact that it is a satellite. And I guess at some
point in time or the other, every child is fascinated with that white dot on
the night sky. So when I thought about writing for children, it didn’t surprise
me that the Moon played an important part in my story.
It all started when I had to explain the dark spot on the moon to my
tot. I was quite amused by her questions and decided to
give her some amusing answers in return, doing away with stereotypes such as the old man or rabbit on the
moon. Why couldn’t the spot
be something as commonplace as a dirt patch splattered across the moon? That thought sowed the seeds from which the story eventually
sprouted. My challenge was to take that very ordinary explanation and turn it
around into something extraordinary.
Frankly, I did not prepare much before putting my thoughts on paper.
The moment the story took shape in my mind, I ran for pen and paper and wrote
it all down at one go, lest I’d forget some part! Of course, by ‘wrote it all down’ I mean the basic idea,
which served as both the outline and the spine of the story. Then came the
crucial part of developing each scene and character to appeal to the target
audience - after all, there is a great difference between conjuring a story for
your child at bed-time and writing a story that could be read and enjoyed by
children all over the world.
In 'The Moon Wants to be Spotless White',
there are three main characters – the Moon, Mitu and Dhobi kaka. I found it
immensely enjoyable to personify the Moon and add little nuances to his
character that children could find amusing. I particularly enjoyed writing the
part where he is folded and waiting in Dhobi kaka’s jhola – all eager to spring
out and get a good scrub.
Similarly, I have tried to work out every little detail about the
other two characters, be it Dhobi kaka’s looks and background or the nuances of
Mitu’s dreamy character. I was also very clear at the outset that I wanted to
set the story in a village or small town. I guess it has to do with my own
fascination with the flavor of life in small towns – the landscape as well as
the community where everyone knows everyone else and even small incidences are
blown out of proportion, sometimes to comic effect.
How has been the response to your book? Are you
satisfied with it?
The response to the book has been very encouraging. Complete
strangers have picked up the book and have sent me mails saying how much they
loved it. That is the wonder that the internet is!
What caught me by surprise was that adults too enjoyed the book as
much as their kids did. They have also loved the beautiful sync between the
story and illustrations. So yes, I’m quite satisfied. It is altogether another
matter of course, that this being my debut book, I still have to learn the
ropes of promoting the book better to ensure a wider reach.
Are there any sections that you'd want to change
in 'The Moon Wants to be Spotless White'? Why?
While life is all hunky dory when you write just for yourself – like
I do with my poetry - one has to keep an open mind and accept criticism when
you write to be read by others. The answer to whether I want to change any portion of the book would be both Yes and No.
Yes, because when a reader
points out a problem area, it would be too pompous on my part to ignore it. I
place a great deal of value on constructive criticism. No, because this was the story I set out to tell and changing it
would mean not staying true to the seed idea. It is a double-edged sword and a
tough call to take at the moment. But there’s one thing I know for certain -
I’ll incorporate all the feedback I have received from this book into my
upcoming one and ensure that I’ll be in less of a dilemma the next time over.
What ambition do you nurture in terms of writing
books for children?
Quite frankly, I did not set out to be a children’s author. It just
so happened that my first published work is a book for children. I have been
writing poetry ever since I remember and somewhere along the way, I also
branched into writing short stories. I have a good collection of poems that I
hope to compile into a book of verse some day.
That said, my interactions with children who have read ‘The Moon
wants to be Spotless White’ have given me the urge to write more for them. My
own children have also been a great source of inspiration – whenever I spin a
new tale for them, they ask me in all innocence if I’d be getting that story
published too. I wish it were as simple as that!
But yes, I guess I can safely say that I will not stop writing for
children. In fact, I already have another book in the pipeline for 5-8 year
olds and the first drafts for a couple of short stories for tweens. I wouldn’t
call it an ambition; just plain old love. I find children to be non-judgmental
and writing for them is very gratifying.
How do you find the kidlit scene in India as
compared to its foreign counterpart? Which all changes would you want to see in
this sphere?
Growing up, there really was no kidlit scene in India. Or rather,
the kidlit market was all about imported titles. However, now, publishing houses are waking up to the vastly
untapped readership for books by Indian authors and the result is a slew of
children’s books written in English as well as various Indian languages that
bring in a veritable mix of stories, allowing children to explore our country
and its diverse cultures. But a lot remains to be done.
Even today, when I walk into a Crosswords store, I can see a pile of
foreign titles on highlighted display stands, whereas books by Indian authors –
even Ruskin Bond for that matter, are relegated to the quieter racks at the
rear. This rather saddens me. While I’m not averse to foreign titles, I feel
that there is a need to promote vernacular stories that afford children a
context that they can immediately relate to. I would also like to see a more
proactive role of publishers and bookstores in promoting
Indian kidlit because just publishing a good book is not enough– the book
ultimately has to have visibility and reach the hands of as many readers as
possible to make it a meaningful venture for all involved.
Another question that one needs to look into is how much is the penetration of kidlit in small-town
and rural India today? I would love to see more and more foreign as well
as Indian titles in English being translated into regional languages and being
made available in every small town in our country.
In which way and in what sense would you want to
make a difference in the children's literature?
That’s a googly, really! I don’t know if the stories I write will
make a difference in children’s literature – and I’m quite sure no author sets
out to write a book with the purpose of changing the literary landscape. What I
really aspire is to write stories that nobody has heard of before, write
stories that will elicit a chuckle from a child or bring a smile to his/her
face.
How has been the journey of being an authoress so
far? What is the biggest joy of being one?
I have enjoyed the entire process that saw me grow from being
someone who wrote solely for self-consumption to being a widely read author.
What started with a whole load of anticipation has culminated into a feeling of
exuberance and contentment. Also, the appreciation that has come my way has
encouraged me to take more risks with my writing.
The biggest joy of being a writer, of course, is being able to
communicate with readers from across the world through the medium of stories.
After all, stories are the simplest way to get your message across to another
person, aren’t they? Another plus is that I get to do what I love to do most,
i.e. writing, minus the guilt trips.
What is your dream story? Do you have any in the
pipeline?
I guess my dream story is yet to be dreamt! But really, I have not
given this a thought. I am a very impulsive writer. Be it my poems or stories,
I do not decide that I have to write about such and such a topic and go about
it in a disciplined fashion. I am a keen observer of things, events and people
around me and as I said before, I run around looking for pen and paper whenever
an idea strikes me. These days, the Evernote app on my phone comes in handy.
I do have another book in the pipeline. This one is also an
illustrated story for 5-8 year olds. It deals with the topic of death in the
family and I have tried to approach the subject with a lot of sensitivity. I
hope readers will receive it with as much enthusiasm and love as they have
given my debut book – The Moon wants to be Spotless White.
Which kind of books do you enjoy reading
yourself? Who are your favourite authors?
I hope you don’t regret asking me this question, ‘coz it has given
me a license to rattle off big names.
While I read almost every kind of book, both fiction and
non-fiction, I enjoy reading the classics the most. During my school and
college days, I’ve also enjoyed courtroom dramas and crime thrillers to a point
of saturation – today, I’d rather see an investigative serial on TV rather than
read a book about it. One genre that I don’t find myself drawn to is that of
Romance. It’s not that I don’t like romance per say. I’d rather enjoy it as
subtle part of a bigger picture than romance taking over every page of a book
and choking me with all the mush!
My favourite author has constantly changed to keep up with my
growing years. However, during and after graduation, I came across and read a
slew of authors – many of whom have made a deep impact in my world-view as well
as belief systems. Bertrand Russell, Kafka, Hemmingway, Joseph Conrad, Joyce,
Herman Hesse, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Irving Stone, Nobokov, Graham Greene,
Orhan Pamuk . . . I can’t even begin to list them here!
It is indeed a task to choose one favourite, but given my love for
the classics, I’ll pick Fyodor Dostoevsky. I have loved all of his work without
exception – I even like the way he tackles romance. Amongst Indian authors, I
love the short stories by Kushwant Singh and Ismat Chughtai as well as Ruskin
Bond’s books for both children and adults. Finally, Walt Whitman wins
hands-down amongst poets, with Ogden Nash coming a close second.
Any tips that you'd want to
pass on to the new authors?
I guess I am too new an entrant in this space to be advising others,
but yes there are a few things that I’ve picked up along the way, which I’d
like to share.
- Don’t get entangled in the web of everyday routine and push your literary pursuits to another day – if you love writing, just find the time to write by hook or crook.
- Don’t write to get published, write because you love to do so – the publishing aspect will surely follow.
- Keep honing your skills as a writer – never make the mistake of thinking you know it all
