MADHURI MAITRA

Hello Madhuri, first can you tell us something about your childhood, growing up years and family. ·

It was an enchanted childhood. Sleepy cantonments, a new one every two years. It was a pretty normal childhood too – fights with siblings, games and parties, scrapes and bruises, cycling over to a random clump of trees and picnicking with a snack and orange squash…and a lot of travel, by train and by road. And then the rebellious teen years!

How and when did you start writing? ·

In high school, I discovered that I could write something halfway decent . Importantly, I realized I was happy doing it. But then I trained as a teacher and taught for many years. However, I walked the tortuous path of plotting several stories which I later tore up. At school, I often adapted plays for my students. I yearned to write, but I didn’t.

In 2011, I began writing micropoetry and some inexpert haiku. NaNoWriMo 2013 saw the birth of my novel Equinox. And…here I am…poised for NaNoWriMo 2015.

What is that one thing you love about being an author? ·

The playing with words, the crafting of a piece. And if you are writing fiction, you feel a little like God, making things happen to your characters. J J

Can you tell us something about your book? ·

Haiku and other Micropoetry is a collection of my poems about nature , love and God. It’s a slim book with incredible artwork by Mrinalini Singh and Rajoshree Maitra’ and a few explanations to help the reader along when the poems get quirky.

How does it feel like being a part of Tornado Giveaway? ·

INCREDIBLE! A great feeling of community! Hats off to Rubina and Co.

What do you think is the future of reading and writing in India? ·

More and more people are writing (in fact, Equinox talks about this) and reading. This is good. The downside is that you may not get quality writing every time. Moreover, every author can at best expect a handful of readers. And yet more and more people are taking sabbaticals to write! So let’s wait for the tsunami in both traditional publishing and self publishing, as also in traditional and digital formats.

What are your other passions apart from writing? ·

Well, I love travel; when I can’t travel, then a long walk is good. Passionate about films.

What is your advice for aspiring writers?

I am only two books old myself! But I would say – WRITE WITH CONVICTION, PRACTICE YOUR CRAFT.