The Writer Par Excellence Talks about his New Release, “And… Perhaps Love”
· The concept and basis of writing this book, “And….Perhaps Love”!
Anything and everything begins with Love. Love is literally the first emotion, energy and catalyst to our decisions. It’s also a subject that has no end, therefore making it the easiest subject to dive into but the hardest to figure out. “And…Perhaps Love”, therefore touches upon every shade of love through the varied styles in which each page is written! The name is derived from how each of us end up doing everything in our lives, prioritising much more than we can manage and after it all realise that maybe just maybe there is love we need to think about, hence, the name is just a reminder to all that do everything, and…perhaps love!
· What inspired you to write this book?
I’ve typically written books with darker material and around subjects where research is 99% of what makes up the book. In this case, while I researched a ton from personal experiences of others, a few pages from my own life and then adding fiction in the mix, the inspiration was evident; this book needed to be communicative and make readers a character in the book. I was inspired by the idea of creating this as an experiential book as much as I am excited about writing a ‘feel-good’ book which helps readers draw inspiration from themselves while they read it. We’re all in a world where the amount of love we used to get has fundamentally reduced due to the distance between several people, therefore, to speak about love, make it experimental where the reader can find themselves in the book and then add the twist of giving over 50 ways to read the same book, was as much an inspiration as it was a challenge.
· What is your Writing Process?
Organised chaos! That’s how I describe my style of writing…It was a lot of material I created over the years and then once I felt the compilation phase needed to begin, that’s where the experimentation started to take shape of removing any possibility of characters and simply writing a story that was characterless, so the reader could chose who they wanted to be.
· What did you learn when writing the book?
It’s harder to write about love in its purest form than I thought it would be. Simply because once you read it, it cuts through you like a knife over warm butter.
· If you can share some “behind-the-scenes” details that didn’t make it into your book!
If I share the behind the scenes that didn’t make it, what will I use as a sequel…? Haha! What didn’t make it and I am glad they didn’t were the characters from the book. To read this book with the character being exactly who the reader is, is a fundamental game-changer to the experience created within the book. I am glad they didn’t make it and the decision to let them out has reaped to a book with a billion faces.
· Was the character inspired by a real person?
Fiction is rarely fiction and often reality given another name, however, this book is inspired but several people, some of those I know and can’t name and many I don’ t know the name of! This book is a work of research in which strangers I have met from different parts of the world have shared thoughts and experiences that were translated into words. So, yes, a lot of this is inspired by real people
· Any tips you’d like to share with other writers starting out?
Lose the filter while writing. Disconnect yourself from who you are as a person and don’t judge what comes out naturally. What you find hard t write is often what needs to be written, so, push yourself to press the pen harder to the paper when you find yourself choking to write. Once you write, please do put it out in the public domain. If you are shy to for any reason, use an alias but put it out because words until they are read by people who don’t know the sentiment or the premise of the words will never help you grow. It is only readers that can teach you where you are growing and where you need to. Utilise their feedback and keep writing, one word at a time. Lastly, be patient and realise that you are not writing for the artist in you but the art in you.
· A final word of advice!
So much to share, that one final advice seems difficult to pick!
If I had to, it would be that while we all end up doing everything we do in life; we should remember never to lose the love for it, love in it and love to share it.
About the Book “And . . . Perhaps Love”
Each section in this book has a theme. Every page has a voice for every mood that shapes life. Turn to this book whenever you need someone to speak to. Turn to it whenever you want to be heard. Mostly, turn to it with no expectation because only then will it leave you with something you didn’t know you have.
As you’ll discover, none of the words are labelled with a subject. Simply because labels are fixed, leaving no room to breathe, amidst these dialogues, every word has its own freedom. It is for you to determine when to label them, what to label them and if you wish to label them.
Each turn of the page is a new chapter and an instance of life as you’ve encountered. “And . . . Perhaps Love” is everything you’ve experienced and everything you will experience.
About Sanil Sachar
With over 200 works of published poetry and short-stories, Sachar is one of the few Indian authors to be published in all forms of literature. Sachar’s work in the world of literature traverses through prose, poetry, short stories, scripts and couplets that have been critically acclaimed and received by readers around the world.
Known for his work on realism, Sanil has co-produced the New York Film Festival award-winning Bollywood film, “Mantra”, as part of his love and contribution to the world of art. As part of his work, Sanil is a highly acclaimed columnist, triple Ted speaker, addressing international audiences, apart from his material on innovation through creativity, with the likes of Google, JCB, TCS, and Wipro.
