Kanika Saini currently lives in Mumbai, India. She is the author of The Day I Met Him: Not A Love Story.
Where available:
Amazon https://www.amazon.in/dp/B08BG52CTW
What sets your book apart from others?
I have blended instances from real life and gave a twist of fiction. I guess most writers do that with their debut book. In my book, each and every scene would feel real, especially for the Indian readers. The characters are well thought of. So far, my readers have loved the supporting characters more than the protagonist. I suppose, it says a lot about how much effort I have put into designing each one of them.
‘The Day I Met Him’ is a short contemporary fiction based in India. It explores the life of a girl from her childhood to becoming an independent woman. Even while covering different aspects of her life, I have kept the story crisp, so that the readers are not bored with unnecessary details.
I have made an attempt to portray her family drama, childhood crush, moving to a big city for education, falling in love and how life turned around in unexpected ways.
Who is your target market, who should be reading your book?
Indian readers would connect the most with this story. It is best suited for readers from 14 to 25 years of age.
What authors inspired you most and how so? What do you admire about each one?
I love reading John Green and Khalid Hosseini.
‘The Kite Runner‘ by Khalid showcases the life of a boy in Afghanistan and how his life turned out as he grew up. And the way, John Green penned the emotions in ‘The Fault In Our Stars‘, it made me cry. I want to write stories like Khalid Hosseini and portray emotions like John Green.
What advice do you have to offer in support of other authors?
Keep writing. It doesn’t matter if your first book didn’t sell. It doesn’t matter if ‘n’ number of publishers rejected you. Believe in your art. Publish your work on Amazon Kindle.
What is your genre of choice and why? How did you come to write in that particular genre or niche?
I love to read and write contemporary fiction. I feel that there are so many stories around that one can tell. There are so many emotions one can explore.
How’d you come about discovery of your writing talent, gift or ability?
I still have no clue. It just happened by chance. I never thought of becoming a writer and now I can’t imagine myself doing anything else.
What are your future writing endeavors? What’s next on your authorship agenda?
I am writing my second book which would be bigger and better than the first one.
I wrote the first book for myself. When I began writing, I hadn’t even thought of publishing. But I have clear goals in mind now. That’s it for now. I plan one goal at a time.
Is writing for you synonymous with living and breathing, or just something you do as a hobby, and how so and why?
I write day and night. I write for an entertainment website during the day and write for my book during nights.
What do you feel we need to hear or read more of, that is rare today in a book?
I am not sure. There are millions of books around. I guess that all kinds of opinions are being written.
What changes in the literary world would you most like to see?
I would want people to support self published authors.
Indie/Self-Published Author and/or Traditionally Published? What do you favor more and why?
I like self publishing. While publishing my first book, I didn’t even send it to any traditional publisher. I didn’t want to wait for months. Also, as I said that I had written it for myself, so, I wanted full creative liberty. I didn’t want to change a thing. But with my second book, I may try the traditional route. Let’s see.
How is your writing controversial, profound or mind boggling, or how would you describe it?
I don’t write profound stuff because everyone is doing it today. Readers find my book relatable, full of emotions and easy to read.
What do you hope to accomplish with your literary creation? What change or enlightenment do you want to bring about in your reader if any?
I want to explore the different emotions and struggles of women. And I am on my way to do that. I want to write about women, their life, their emotions and day to day struggles.
What’s the greatest compliment that you ever received regarding your literary accomplishments and what did this remark do for you, how did it transform your life or your writing?
Someone texted me on Instagram at 3:00 AM saying that the book was relatable. She said that she attempted suicide once and was still in depression. But after reading my book, she felt that she could deal with her struggles as they were much lesser than that of the protagonist. She said that she could sleep peacefully after a long time.
I had tears in my eyes that night. The interesting thing is that it isn’t a self help book. I haven’t written any profound quotes, nor have I given any teachings. It’s the story and the emotions that speak.
What’s the most memorable criticism you received regarding your literary works and how did this remark transform you as a writer or influence your writing if at all?
I am a self published author. I don’t have a huge readership yet. Nobody has criticized me to my face or left a poor review. And I am worried about that. Criticism is also necessary.
If you could ask a question of your favorite author of all time, what would the question be?
I would ask authors how do they write a 400 page novel.
What have you sacrificed, if anything, to be a writer, or to write as you do? What have you gained from writing, how has it rewarded you personally?
I enjoy the process of writing. As I am a fiction writer, I love to be in the world of fiction, imagining my characters, thinking like them. And every time someone leaves a review of my book or messages me on social media, I feel emotional and super happy.
