when you are waiting...

Hey! Are you all having fun? I am sure you are. With December around the corner and the weather just right for a quick lunch outside the office with friends while soaking in the winter sun, or an after - dinner coffee at your favourite coffee shop (or Starbucks - the new kid? in town); I am sure you all must be in good spirits.

Well, if you want to know how have I been faring, let me confide: not too well. No, no nothing wrong with me. All is well! And yet all is not well. I am playing the 'waiting' game. It is the toughest thing in the world to do. Isn't it? You see, I am waiting for the release of my third fiction and it is  not cool especially for a writer. A writer (or any artist), must first see his or her creation and ensure its well being before moving on to other things.
So how can I work on something new when I haven't delivered my third baby yet. On top of that I have such high plans for it. For the first time,  I have not left the promotions and marketing of the book to my publishers alone. I am neck deep involved in trying to give it as much visibility as possible. Several online and offline events have been planned in advance and we've already started working on it. We are also having a mini - grand (if I may use the term) book launch with an attractive theme somewhere in January. But believe me I am going bonkers: from trying to arrange for the sponsors for the launch to deciding about what should be the questions for the online contest I am juggling roles so fast that it is impossible to predict whether the balls will all land gracefully in my hands or fall off unceremoniously to the ground.

Now you may ask why am I doing it in the first place if it's giving me so much of trouble? why not leave it to the experts? The answer my friend is blowing in the wind...

The answer is that if I don't do it...no one else will. It is my baby and I need to take care of it. Publishers take interest till a certain point but they cannot give it the kind of focused attention it requires. They have a business to run and many other authors to take care of. But the fact of the matter is that if a book isn't promoted well it does not get noticed. If it does not get noticed and sell   there's no point in writing books. So I must let the readers know about my work as best as possible. Of course, after the initial push I must leave it to them to decide whether what I create is good enough "to write or not." :-)

If you are curious let me share a few details about the book:

Genre: Fiction - Relationships
Title: "In pursuit of a lesser offence"
Publishers: Alchemy
Subject: Marriage and its changing face.
Explores the questions: Why do people marry? Are the reasons for marriage the right ones?  What is the relevance of the institution of marriage in modern times?
Earlier Published novels: In pursuit of infidelity, In pursuit of Ecstasy (both published by Rupa and co.)
Published Poetry collection: Poetry Out and Loud and a sequel to it - POAL - II
More details about my books: www.sujataparashar.com

Stay tuned for more such posts from me on my forthcoming novel...I may even share a few excerpts from the book soon...! But in the meanwhile, enjoy your sunny lunch or that coffee, post dinner!

Keep smiling. :-)