On day two, I attended a session called 'Rhyming Round Reading', which touched upon ideas that I use all the time at workshops on reading: rhyme. Focussing on a book titled Rhyming Round Singapore, the session had a lot to offer even to non-Singaporeans like me, primarily because of the concepts behind the book.How many of us have found nursery rhymes morbid? Think about Three Blind Mice and Humpty-Dumpty.Yet, like so many morbid fairy-tales, they have stood the test of time. Easy to sing, supported by elaborate gestures, these nursery rhymes have been taught for so many years that they're part of the bedrock of the education of so many children. Rhyming Round Singapore puts together familiar tunes and familiar ideas, rather than obscure images of Miss Muffet sitting on a tuffet, when most people don't even know what a tuffet is. It uses ideas that are familiar to Singaporean … [Read more...]
Reflections: Day One of AFCC 2018
AFCC 2018 was a bit of a whirlwind experience for me. For one, with work commitments that I could not break, I got to Singapore only on the day that the festival was to begin. So, sleep-deprived but fuelled by adrenalin, I arrived at the National Library Board after the keynote had begun. Exhaustion took its toll on me, though, so on days two and three, I was barely able to attend any sessions. Despite that, AFCC 2018 was wonderful, full of new ideas, energy and the urge to create more.I began AFCC 2018 with a session conducted by Australian author Pamela Rushby on making the perfect pitch. I hear so many stories about authors meeting editors and publishers at lit fests and then signing contracts for books. Learning how to pitch would definitely be useful.For me, there were two big takeaways. One, I discovered again how essential the word count of your novel is. It helps … [Read more...]
Back from AFCC 2018
Four years ago, I had not heard of the Asian Festival of Children's Content. I did not know that Singapore's National Library had 16 floors of books. And then, I was shortlisted for the Scholastic Asian Book Award 2016, which was momentous enough for me to buy a festival pass and attend my first AFCC. I didn't win the award, but that was the beginning of a new journey - one that has led to my first Scholastic publication, Dragonflies, Jigsaws, and Seashells (originally Dragonflies, Jigsaws and a Rainbow).Then, in 2017, I answered a call for papers and was invited to speak at the AFCC. I spoke at a panel on writing about us, as Asians, something that I have started coming across much more frequently. At the AFCC 2017, I experienced the energy of the festival once more, as I went from session to session, making the most of an event that brought writers, illustrators, editors and … [Read more...]
Dear Future Reader …
Imagine that you are writing to a reader who has not yet been born. Perhaps you're writing to your own grandchild or great-grandchild. Or maybe you're writing to someone whom you don't know at all. What would you say?Here are a few of my favourites from this year's Writers' Club. There are many, many more!I do believe that a good book can change a life. Perhaps even yours Read if you like, but I'm sure both my GOGGLERS know the whole story by reading it many times. If you really want to find out what GOGGLER means, find other mysteries. How exciting it is to have a dog, but how hard it is to name it (him)! You would probably have shifted to Mars by now. I truly love to read Harry Potter and would totally recommend them to you (if at all they are found in Mars) Think before you read this book. You can roll down the chair with laughter!Also, many made lists of … [Read more...]
Writers’ Club 2018-19
The Writers' Club at St. Mary's School is now in its fourth year!We started so that we could commemorate the sesquicentennial year with a collection of work put together by the children, but then just carried on from there.Today, we discovered how we have stories within us, just waiting to be told. This is an activity I love to conduct with children and parents. I divide the children into pairs and each one narrates an anecdote to her partner. Never do I have more than ten seconds of silence - everyone has a story to tell. What comes after that is even more fun, where you pretend the story you just heard happened to someone else in the room ... We began our year with laughter; I hope to keep it going!In the first year, we had a collection of stories and poems published - Flickering Flames. In the second year, we were somehow too busy with a writing competition to … [Read more...]
A Wonderful Month
Every so often, I think about doing a monthly round-up of workshops I've conducted and books I've read. And then I think, maybe next month. But the month that went by was just so full of wonderful things that I want very much to share everything that happened and everything that's coming up!Last month, I was invited to a teachers' conference in Bengaluru. It was one of the most heart-warming events I conducted. I shared a few pictures already, but what made it special was how involved the teachers were. I conducted two sessions - one on reading and one on writing, and both were lovely!Then came the sessions I look forward to each month - my workshops at Just Books Baner. During the last session, we worked on magical stories, and played with lovely new ideas. Then came workshops with teachers at Universal High Malad, Sanjay Ghodawat International School (Kolhapur), … [Read more...]
Meet the Monsters!
The huge, purple monster is on the loose! It has 12 arms, 12 legs, one eye, one horn, two mouths and 43 teeth, and it's going to take over the town. It eats 12 people every day: it ate my neighbour and my children; it even destroyed a nearby building! It stinks to high heavens, and people are trying to kill it with fire. So far, they have been unsuccessful because after all, what can kill a monster who is so enormous that even an elephant is like a rat to it?Meet the Crushing Monster - this one can be destroyed by just one person in the world, a young boy named Krishant.Meet the Destroying Monster. Vikas and his younger brother Vishnu are going to kill this one!Meet Mono. Vishnu and his friends will triumph over this one.And finally, meet Tide. We don't know yet whether this monster can be destroyed at all!What fun the workshop at BookMark Coimbatore … [Read more...]
And then, there was Goa
I have never been a huge fan of Goa, especially as I'm not particularly fond of beaches. In addition, we went on a banana boat ride at Baga once, and I was disgusted by the amount of dirty seawater I ended up swallowing. Plus, New Year's eve at Calangute eight years ago was a nightmare.So, when a workshop in Goa came up, I was happy, but not overly excited.But this time for me, everything was different. Panaji is so beautifully green! I love the wide pavements and the relaxed lifestyle that seems to permeates into your skin as you walk the streets of Goa. It belongs to a slower world, a world where you can take time out to look around and breathe.For dinner, we went to a charming place called Villa Panjim and feasted on Goan rice and curry while listening to Konkani music.Our stomachs full, we walked back to our hotel slowly, looking at old pink and purple buildings, … [Read more...]
Young Writers’ Club – Mystery Stories
A priceless necklace has been stolen from a museum and you are one of the suspects. How can you convince the jury that you're innocent?"I was on a plane to Kashmir," said one girl. "I can show you the ticket!" A little later, she added, "And I even have a photo that the air hostess took to prove that I was there!" And immediately, the cross-questioning began. "Why did she want to prove you were there? What air hostess takes a photo of the passengers? It looks like you're trying too hard to prove you were somewhere else! You're involved in the theft in some way!"And so, we examined how we can create characters that convince readers that they're innocent. At what point does an alibi begin to sound like the character is needlessly justifying herself? Also, how can you leave clues but still surprise the reader at the end?The children at the Young Writers' Club at Just Books … [Read more...]
The Lit Bug Fest 2018
The Lit Bug Fest, Pune's own literary fest for children, was held yesterday, and I'm sure everyone who was there is still on a high. For me, just like last year, it was a delightful experience interacting with readers, talking about my books, sharing ideas, and even being interviewed by two child-journalists!The energy of a lit fest is unmatched. I kept sneaking away from the stall and attending bits and pieces of events, hovering on the outside sometimes, and sitting in at other times. Each session I attended was lovely!I began my day with a story with which I was familiar, retold by Yamini Vijendran. Using puppets and all the drama of her expressive voice and face, she drew us into the story, so much so that I didn't realise that she'd kept us engaged for half an hour!I wanted very much to attend Bhavna Menon's session because I loved her book, Welcome to the Forest. It was as … [Read more...]