SPOTLIGHT: ‘Rikta' by Manisha Sree

Spotlight is my small effort to support upcoming authors in their effort to reach their readers. And yes, it is FREE, however to be featured in this section, you need to go through a selection process, please click here for details.

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“Don’t know who tagged women as devious human beings, they are mostly simpletons" - Manisha Sri

My publisher ‘Story Mirror’ requested my views about ‘Rikta - Towards Completeness’ to be published along with the book, as it falls into the kind of genre I love reading. Fortunately, the book was also released along with my book ‘Kuhase Ke Geet’ at Mumbai University. last month, when I promised Deven Bhai - Founding Partner of Story Mirror, that I will write a proper review as well. After a long tour and many workshops later, finally I could find some time to write about it. So here it is and hope you all will like it.

My interaction with Rikta, over long distance calls from Malaysia, where the author Manisha currently lives, I did realise the passion she has for writing and sharing her stories. Her unique story telling style in simple Hindi/English mix language - coined as Hinglish, makes it a good read. As it comes straight from author inner reflection, I am sure many of the young women will relate to it at a deeper level. Well that does not mean I did not connect as well. I enjoyed reading it and more so my interaction with her, trying to probe her thought process that provides the foundation to her writing.

“For me, writing stories is speaking heart, speaking pain and the joy which is dancing around me all the time.” - Manisha Sri

Manish says that 'Rikta' is the story of the emptiness that lies in each of us, with hope that someone, somewhere will be able to complete it and fill the void. 'Rikta' is not merely a story it is like the very life, the air everyone breathes. The characters of 'Rikta' are people like you and me and that makes 'Rikta' a story, not of its characters but ours too. It's a story of a mother's struggle in Mumbai and her discovery of herself.

BRIEF NOTE ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Manisha Sri is a scientist, did her M-Tech from IIT - Roorkee and went on to work on various Oil Exploring firms like Essar. Before this book, she has also written Zindagi Ke Gullak, based upon her poetry. She also writes for various radio talk shows. She currently lives in Malaysia with her husband and a child.

HER INSPIRATIONS

Life…dancing around me is the only inspiration. I can see all these emotions but when it comes to express my pen is my only lifesaver.

CHALLENGES

Some characters are really confused. I wanted to sort them out but then the originality comes into challenge. Life is all about confusion and there sorting…. Rikta - the novel is the best example of this.

QUOTES FROM THE BOOK

a.      Tear drops have their own karma; some dry out as drops of salt while some turn out to be precious pearls.

b.     Time cannot stand by too much happiness; it has to intervene.

c.     You cannot question the existence of anything just on the basis of the fact that you haven't ever seen it.

d.     Humans have always been puppets in the hands of the Devas, subjugated and terrorized by the Asuras. But not anymore

THE STORY

Rikta is the story, which I experience around me when I was in Mumbai…. It’s not my story. It’s everyone's story …story of every couple who are struggling for their needs but not understanding there needs…once they understand ….yes, the journey of Rikta is complete.

The perfect setting for her to write is complete silence and peace of mind. In the relative calm of her character’s life dancing around in her mind, she can type away stories, poetry and fiction to her hearts content. Manisha says that she is writing because she cannot shout or raise her voice but her words do that. They are strong and loud too.

When I asked her if some one asked her to stop writing, she responded that she might stop for the world but no one can stop her thought process. She believes that we all have tiny writer living in our hearts, hiding from the outside world. The only difference is that some can express it so they are writing and some only think about it.

“I might stop writing and join the different club, in which I will think and store my thought till the time that person will understand that he is taking my breath away by stopping me to write. Trust me if the person is really loveable and respectful he will understand one day and will never let me die. I may stop writing because relations are above dreams. Dreams can be seen and fulfilled later, but not the love.” - Manisha

Given an opportunity and time she would like to write each and every unsaid story and present it to the world. She wants to write that part of love story which is said many times but still some portions are left unheard.

Listen to Manisha speak about her book Rikta... Click here

TWO BIG THINGS OF HER LIFE

First is to born as daughter and second is to born as mother.

HER FAVORITES

GENRE:

I love poetry and fiction both

BOOKS:

My faviorite books are “Chodah Fere” by Shivani, “Gunaho ka Devta” by Dharmveer Bharti  and “Raseedi Tiket” by Amrita Pritam.

TO BUY HER BOOK “RIKTA - Towards Completeness” … CLICK BELOW
@ Story Mirror
@ Amazon
@ Pustak Mandi

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– by Shashi 

CEO & Partner Interior Contracts Firm ICUBE Projects

Speaker | Author of “Songs of the Mist” & "Kuhase Ke Geet "
Haiku Poet | Writes India’s #1 Spiritual Blog “Shadow Dancing With Mind”
(Global Ranking #36)

List of SPOTLIGHT authors of Jan and Feb '17

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Shashi

ॐ नमः शिवाय

Om Namah Shivaya

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SPOTLIGHT: ‘The Other Side of HIm’ - Alice Rene (Action Thriller)

Spotlight is my small effort to support upcoming authors in their effort to reach their readers. And yes, it is FREE, however to be featured in this section, you need to go through a selection process, please click here for details.

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“Have a good look, ladies. This is the face of a woman who just plunged a dagger into her boyfriends back.” - Alice Rene in “The Other Side of Him”

Few years back, I had visited Vienna and fell in love with it. SO much so that one of the character of my own book is based in Vienna. So when I got a chance to interact with the author of the book “The Other Side of Him” - Alice Rene who is from Vienna herself, I had to have her in the Spotlight. I was quite sure that it would have the necessary creative ingredients to keep my interest growing from page to page. Coming from the land of Secessionist movement of the artists in early last century, my interaction with her was as creative and interesting as art lined up on almost every street corner of the city.

Though I was surprised by the choice of her subject in the book i.e. Stalking in the 1950's, but as you read on, you tend to agree with her. Published in January 2016, “The Other Side of Him” has won a IPPY AWARD, Bronze Medal in Regional Fiction and was a Finalist in the 2016 Beverly Hills Award Competition in the Category of Suspense.

She says that her purpose in writing the book was to highlight the issue of stalking and what it was like in the fifties for anyone being stalked when society had not established any institutions to help such victims.

She loves to write in her study, where she has a great view of her garden. She likes quiet places where she can think and her study is the perfect place for the same. She says that it usually take her 3 years to write and edit a book. Mostly her inspiration for the book comes from her personal experiences.

BRIEF NOTE ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Born in Vienna, Alice came to the U.S. as a young child and survivor of WWII. She grew up in Portland, Oregon and came to California for college and graduate school. Her first book, award-winning "Becoming Alice” is a memoir. She has worked as a medical social worker and travel consultant, escorting groups to exotic foreign destinations, before starting her writing career. She now lives in southern California where she plays tennis, works in her succulent garden, and writes her next book.

HER INSPIRATIONS

My inspiration comes from watching people’s characteristics, how each person deals with conflict, and why.

QUOTES FROM THE BOOK

1)...."he's the most eligible bachelor in San Francisco...Be an angel and do your brother a favor--go out with this guy, okay?"

2) "With his free hand he lifted my chin to meet his lips. The kiss! The passion! I all seemed to come from his heart. I wrapped his my arms around his neck and responded in kind."

3) "Dusk blanketed the neighborhood, the time of day ordinary hoodlums turned into thieves--or killers if their victims put up a fight.

THE STORY

Inspired by true events this story is about Claire, raised in the Chicago tenements in the 50's and eager to escape her humble and dangerous surroundings. Her ticket to get out of the projects is to win a scholarship to college in California. She achieves her dreams, and even meets a man on a blind date, handsome and rich, who introduces her to a life she'd only seen in the movies. In time she learns he is also deeply flawed and attempts to break up with him. However he is not ready to let go of her and becomes her stalker, a situation in which her very life is threatened. In a time before society had any institutions set up to help victims of abuse, Claire must find her own solution to escape he danger she faces.

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TO BUY ALICE RENE’S BOOK ‘The Other Side of Him” … CLICK HERE.

– Shashi 

CEO & Partner ICUBE Projects

Speaker | Author of “Songs of the Mist” | Haiku Poet

Writes India’s #1 Spiritual Blog “Shadow Dancing With Mind”

List of SPOTLIGHT authors of Dec '16

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ॐ नमः शिवाय

Om Namah Shivaya

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SPOTLIGHT: ‘Seven Eleven Forgotten and Other Stories’ by Barnaby Hazen - Literary Fiction

Spotlight is my small effort to support upcoming authors in their effort to reach their readers. And yes, it is FREE, however to be featured in this section, you need to go through a selection process, please click here for details.

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“Pithy modernity entrenched in romantic agony” - says Barnaby Hazen, about his book ‘SevenEleven Forgotten and Other Stories’

My author friend, Barnaby Hazen’s “Seven Eleven Forgotten and Other Stories” takes a theme, namely convenience stores, and pushes the limits of perspective on that same theme. It is also an experimental, modern reference back to classic existential literature in the way of style and mood. And he asks, “Is that enough purpose for a book to be published?’ in answer to my question about the purpose of his book.

“If a book can be published for making people laugh, stimulating them sexually and/or emotionally, keeping them guessing about the nature of a crime, or any of these other more popular themes, then why shouldn’t the contemporary reader also be exposed to nihilism in romantic agony?” - Barnaby Hazen

Yes, it is a fact in this world, that alienation still drives people to insanity, and so why not tell such a story in his own way? And I am glad that he tried doing that as it makes it all interesting read. He also believes the quantum, or parallel universe element found in the title story, Seven Eleven Forgotten, is worth exploring in modern times. Which I did in my own way in my way, through Vedic Philosophy of Karma Yoga, contrasting Science with Vedic spirituality in my own book “Songs of the Mist” so I could relate to this book at a deeper level.

“Biographically speaking, I have found many times that moments of my life did not add up logically, and this makes me feel it’s worth taking a character through such an experience in order to bring just that feeling to the reader—that it doesn’t add up—while the character, Alex in this case, seeks desperately to make sense of it, hopefully right along with the reader. I believe it’s worth giving the reader experiences, or feelings I have had—even if the story behind those feelings is not my own—whatever it takes to bring these feelings to life.” - Barnaby Hazen

He says that his aesthetic enthusiasm is an extra-ordinarily powerful force in his writing, and his life. He believes this is because his tastes are so far from the mainstream, for the most part. Barnaby is also very passionate about writing and music. He takes it as a mission to put forth art reflecting his own tastes. He believes that it has more to do with his faith in the idea that his aesthetic values are strong and unique, and that there is a reason for them to pour out of himself as they do.

Historical impulse behind his purpose to write:

“It seems worthwhile to me to expose people to a genre of literature that goes against the popular tide today, and referring to the frontiers of existentialism, such as Dostoyevsky and Sartre, is very much a part of how this book came to be.” - Barnaby Hazen

He believes that he would not stop writing, if someone he respects or loves told him to do so. Maybe he would write secretly, but most people who have managed to stay close to him recognize that it’s not really on the table for him to stop—that it is a necessity to his happiness. This makes me feel that he has tenacity to continue writing and perseverance to come on top of the millions of writers publishing daily.

Barnaby Hazen is also a professional editor, which shows in the book with his fluent language and faultless editing. I enjoyed reading the book, very much and hope you will too.

BRIEF NOTE ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Barnaby Hazen is an author, editor and musician, with two music degrees and many recordings under his belt. Along with his friend Coby, he founded the Seven Eleven Stories periodical in 2014. He also writes and edits an education based journal, The Bud Hawthorne Revue, along with Mr. Hawthorne himself. His first full-length book is out on Amazon: Seven Eleven Forgotten and Other Stories. This book was the founding concept of convenience store fiction.

Barnaby lives with his wife, as well as a turtle, and a cat--and sometimes these grown up and surrogate kids who have decided to continue blessing his life with visits and shenanigans.

HIS INSPIRATIONS

Absolutely anything I come across from day to day might suddenly inspire me to write. Or I might just feel a mood pass over me that wants exploration. I once wrote a piece called “Surfer Siren” because I was watching as a bunch of surfers tried to make the most of what seemed a miserable day of surfing—low waves, just nothing happening out there at all—yet there were all these surfers riding whatever they could, like usually no more than ten yards of nothing. It made me feel bad for them, so I turned it into a story about how this wrecked some poor guy’s marriage--all this because I happened to be staring out at the ocean at a certain time of the day.

Anything can inspire me, it’s just a matter of whether I can construct the feeling to my own satisfaction as an author. If not, the idea never makes it beyond the notepad where I first start scribbling.

HIS CHALLENGES

With Forgotten, I would have to say the rewrite process. I went through this so many times; it was almost as if I was editing a very long prose poem. I was looking to make it lyrical, rather than just a story. I’m not sure why that was, maybe because it was a debut. The book I’m working on now, I am taking a more relaxed attitude toward the narrative. I want it to be accessible to a broad audience, my next book—this first one was more about pleasing myself and like minded readers—those with a similar literary background as mine. But yes, the rewrite process—it was almost like there was a drill sergeant living inside my head, and every time something popped up that wasn’t to my complete satisfaction, it was time to start back at the beginning and with a suspicious eye. It was an extremely inefficient and painful experience, but I was ultimately very happy to have gone through with it.

QUOTES FROM THE BOOK

“All the while the smells, the industry, the pastries, the meats; the sewage, the cars, the perfumes and the sweat; the taste in one’s mouth mingles with every molecule the nostrils endure and produces something at the back of the throat—a mixture of manic wonder and desperation as such has been tasted maybe twice in one’s life, yet it is so familiar, so familiar to the tongue it has to indicate something regarding one’s destiny—a great change or even death—it has to be just around the corner. But maybe not this corner; maybe the next.”

“‘Alex’s usual air of self-righteousness was somehow stripped bare by the gaze of a man who spoke with a thick Russian accent: “I am officer Strastakovich. You will never find the need to call me by anything different.”’

“…together we are caught in a lost land between the fairytale Eden of some mushroom trip you never quite came down from in 1972, and a paranoid survivalist nightmare you’re waking up to whenever you have another flashback; a nightmare days away from a world where paper money is no longer valued by those apocalyptic zombies tearing down your door to take your pot and my green-tea kombucha”

THE STORY

Seven Eleven Forgotten…  is a dark collection of stories, for the most part, taking place in or around convenience stores, such as 7-Eleven. This convenience store theme, or muse for a series of short stories eventually led the author to creating a longer, through story, following a recurring character, Alex Aronovich, from Los Angeles to Moscow. His alcoholic hallucinations are weaved ambiguously in with the real story--or perhaps he has stepped into a place where the laws of logic no longer apply. In any case, he stumbles, again and again, trying to make sense of things any way he can, eventually falling into sometimes funny, sometimes tragic episodes of romantic folly. 

Other stories (such as "A TIA for Gia," and "Princess 7") dance eclectically and playfully around the convenience store theme--as a painter's subject used repeatedly, from never the same point of view.

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When I asked him about the time taken to write the book, he says…

About two years—this because I wasn’t sure what it was at first. I wrote the first few stories during the first year, and started really wondering where it was going. I opened the concept up to other authors, and that’s how the periodical of Seven Eleven Stories began (though this book consists only of stories of mine). When I got about half way through the title story, “Forgotten,” which is really the majority of this book, then I realized the work had grown beyond the theme. It was like a painter had been walking around a 7-Eleven store, drawing sketches, and then suddenly the convenience store was just a tiny spot on the final canvas—but nevertheless, it could not have happened without that theme being central in the first place.

SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT BARNABY HAZEN

I am a professional musician in Taos, New Mexico. This strange little ski resort town is an odd place to try to make a go of it as a musician. I used to teach music in public schools, at the grade school level. I loved the age group and working with those kids but had a hard time with education policy as it stands in the United States right now. My wife Sarah does artwork for my books. We’ve been together I think fourteen years—married eight of those same years. We have a turtle. And a cat.

My next project (Misfortunes of T-Funk) is set for spring of 2017. It is a series about a couple of musicians, set in the near future. It will come with musical recordings built into the eBooks (at least in one format), and I’m very excited about being able to put together my two passions into one project: music and writing. Book 1 is done, but I am putting together a launch plan for April to tie it in with something called “Record store day.” Again, very excited about this next project.

TWO BIG THINGS OF HIS LIFE

I don’t usually talk about it but I am a Sifu in Wing Chun Kung Fu. My martial arts and Qi Gong studies are really about my own personal health and happiness, and teaching is an extension of that to others. But the discipline involved is an undeniable achievement—lifelong.

Also, my musical recordings and compositions. I have mixed feelings about living as a performer now, but if I put together a list of all the songs and compositions I’ve written or co-written, I am indeed very proud of it all.

HIS FAVORITES

GENRE: Existentialist Literature

BOOKS:

The Castle by Franz Kafka: I feel very much at home throughout the journey of this book every step of the way. This is a brilliant depiction of K’s marvelous, tedious battle for a sense of place in the world. It reminds me of my time trying to be a teacher in the current climate—just marveling all the time at the ridiculousness of what is being demanded of me, and all teachers in the system for that matter.

Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller: It calls to mind other times in my life, when I was living as a “bottom feeder,” as I referred to it, and writing while otherwise just trying to stay alive. It’s a great book for any artist I think. Goes right to the bone.

TO BUY HIS BOOK, Seven Eleven Forgotten and Other Stories, by Barnaby Hazen … CLICK HERE

– Written by Shashi 

CEO & Partner ICUBE Projects

Speaker | Author of “Songs of the Mist” | Haiku Poet

Writes India’s #1 Spiritual Blog “Shadow Dancing With Mind”

List of SPOTLIGHT authors of Dec '16

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ॐ नमः शिवाय

Om Namah Shivaya

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"Through the Mind's Eye" - J P Willson                Pigment - Renée Topper