What can one say about a literature fest without being repetitive? Lit fests are special. They fill you up with energy and enthusiasm. They remind you of the joy of reading, writing, and stories.And lit fests in beautiful spaces? They're inspiring. Srinagar is lovely, and equally, Delhi Public School, which hosted Bookaroo, was charming. Look where I conducted both my sessions! Over the last few years, I've been invited to several lit fests. Last year alone, I did events at lit fests in Vadodara, Gurugram, Jaipur and Pune, in addition to smaller ones at various schools in the country. I've shared pictures and anecdotes, and at the risk of repeating myself, I will say that lit fests always leave me on a high.Yet, for a writer, lit fests are a means to an end. They're a way for children to get to know about our stories. They help create some shelf space for … [Read more...]
Reflections: Day Three at AFCC 2022
Day three at AFCC 2022 was the whole reason I was there. Book launch day! Of course, that was the highlight of my day, so even though that did not technically come first, I'm going to begin with it.Book Launch by Scholastic AsiaMy book, Red Eyes, has been a long time in the making. I'll write about the story behind the story (like I did for Dragonflies, Jigsaws and Seashells, The Clockwala's Clues and Sisters at New Dawn) soon, but launching it at the Asian Festival of Children's Content was such a delight! Equally delightful was listening to the other three authors talk about their books. I would love to read them all!The book launch was a public event, so you can still watch it here.Now, I'll come back to everything I attended as a participant, and all that I took away from the festival.When Comics Come to the ClassroomA few weeks ago, I organised a … [Read more...]
Reflections: Day Two at AFCC 2022
Day two at the Asian Festival of Children's Content was on 27 May, but I caught up with all the sessions I wanted to just yesterday. I felt like I had a time-turner because I attended three simultaneous sessions, thanks to a virtual AFCC 2022! Here's an overview of how the day was for me.Environmental Advocacy in Children's BooksThis was one of the sessions I attended synchronously, and the experience of doing that is quite different from catching up with an event later.The environmental is a subject close to my heart, and I read a lot of literature about nature and being outdoors. However, I'm a little iffy when it comes to books that are clearly issue-based, no matter what the issue may be. Story, for me, comes first, and advocacy second, not the other way around. I like it when books are subtle, with characters nudging us in particular directions. And that was one of … [Read more...]
Reflections: Day One at AFCC 2022
It's been four years since I attended the Asian Festival of Children's Content. 2016 - my collection of short stories (now published as Dragonflies, Jigsaws and Seashells) was shortlisted for the Scholastic Asian Book Award, so I attended for the first time.2017 - I submitted a paper titled Writing About Us, which was selected as part of a panel, so off I went for the second time.2018 - my middle grade book (now published as Red Eyes) was the first runner-up for the Scholastic Asian Book Award, and yes, I attended the AFCC again.I didn't go in 2019 and then, with the pandemic, 2020 and 2021 were out of the question too. This year, Scholastic Asia sponsored a virtual ticket for me, so of course, I've been making the most of it. Attending virtually isn't nearly as exciting as being there in person, but it does have one big advantage - I go back and attend sessions I missed because … [Read more...]
Kukdukoo 2022
There's nothing quite like the energy of a lit fest. Children running around, reading, getting excited about books ... what more does a writer want?My first session of the day was all about my middle-grade book, Sisters at New Dawn. Do you see the sheets of paper in the children's hands? They're lists of subjects children at New Dawn choose from. I asked the children to imagine they received these lists. What would they choose? I loved listening to all their responses, and all their additions to my subject lists!But what made my session extra special is the girl in yellow right in the front. That's Sunandini, and we finally took a picture together too. She's been part of my online creative writing programme for the last two years now, and she lives in Kolkata, but she stayed back just for my session! Sunandini bought Sisters, read it one day in advance, and brought it … [Read more...]
Words and Worlds at the Vidya Valley Lit Fest 2019
I was unwell and could not stop coughing. Yet, armed with my enthusiasm (and a pill), I went for the Vidya Valley Lit Fest--and came back energised. The excitement pulsing through the school kept me going - and of course, the thoughtfulness of the team of parent volunteers in organising a mic helped!Every time I speak to groups of children at lit fests, I realise how different one group is from another. During my three sessions with Class VI at Vidya Valley, I was struck by this yet again. One group was noisy and enthusiastic; the second was almost unbelievably good; the third was full of questions. And each session was wonderful.'Words and Worlds' - that's what my sessions were called. Working with the beautiful land of Rasphora was delightful, but we did so much more. We spoke of language itself and how we use our words to create worlds in literature.Describing my journey … [Read more...]
Lit Fests in Schools
Last year, St. Mary's School had its first lit fest, and I was delighted to be part of it. Talking to starry-eyed children is an experience like no other, and that's why lit fests in school are special.After addressing the children who were gathered together in the hall, we visited a few classrooms, met the girls and looked at the work they had put together. It was good fun, and I wished I had more time with each child. In an hour, I could do no justice to 150 very different reading-related projects. Stories, 3-D projects, book reports, reviews ... These girls from classes I to III had them all! (Some very honestly told me, 'My father and I made this' or 'My mother did everything and I did the colouring'.)Many of the children I met are now in my Writers' Club, and I'm delighted to be working with them all year on their writing.They were excited to meet me again, … [Read more...]
The Lit Bug Fest 2019
So often, I come across posts that talk about how lit fests are a waste of time for authors, and how lit fests exclude rather than include. For me, though, lit fests remain unadulterated fun. Does this have something to do with being a children's writer, perhaps?The Lit Bug Fest, Pune's own lit fest, is in its fourth year, and I have been involved with it for the last three years. I love everything about it - the anticipation, the fest itself, and then, the high I'm left with for a few days after.Writing about the day helps me relive it and remember. Here are my posts about the fest last year and the year before that:The Lit Bug Fest 2017The Lit Bug Fest 2018What I did this year:A Marathi PlayMy day began with a Marathi play presented by students from classes V and VI. Honestly, when I sat down to watch, I did not expect to enjoy it much. It was a school … [Read more...]
Explore the Prophecy of Rasphora
Last month, The Story Station invited me to interact with a group of young writers. I spoke about my journey as a writer and conducted an activity based on my latest middle-grade novel, The Prophecy of Rasphora.A little about the book ...Three young girls stumble upon Rasphora, a land behind a waterfall. There, they begin to teach Rasphorans the languages they know, and slowly, they pick up the Rasphoran language and are soon speaking like natives.Where the story led ...When Vaishali, founder of the Story Station, told me that the theme of this year's Lit Bug Fest would be language, things clicked into place instantly. My focus, through Rasphora, is language, and the activities I conduct around it are all based on language. In many ways, language is central to the story - ideas are lost because of a dying language, and language becomes a pathway to a new … [Read more...]
Big Books at the Writers’ Club
Aren't lit fests delightful? Last week, I was invited to St. Mary's School's first lit fest, and it was lovely. We walked into books like this one ...And we had a panel discussion where we spoke about stories, poems, writing, dancing and music. We then visited classrooms and saw the work the children had put together through the course of the year - book reviews, poetry, charts, models ...And we saw eight big books that the tenth standard girls had made for the prep school children. I saw those books and knew I had to share them with my Writers' Club, so I invited Remanika and Riya to talk to the girls and share their books with us.Here's one of our favourites - Mr Banana Climbs a Tree.Mr Banana wants to meet a lady bird, who lives on top of a tree. He begins to climb, but there are all kinds of obstacles - bats, a noisy crow and monkeys.The monkeys are the … [Read more...]