Interview with Author N.J. Kulkarni

Good day People !

Welcome to the very First Interview on my blog today.

I have the pleasure of having Nita J. Kulkarni for our Interview. I recently completed reading and reviewing her debut novel: The Hawa Mahal Murders. This interview is based on the questions which kept popping in my head while reading and at the end of the book.

Know about the book at: Spotlight: The Hawa Mahal Murders by N.J.Kulkarni

Read my Book Review of the book at: Book Review: The Hawa Mahal Murders by N.J.Kulkarni

Let us check the Interview questions:

Grab The Book :     What was the trigger to write this book? Any incident or place? Please share details about how the plot for the story evolved?

N.J. Kulkarni : I once lived in a building in Mumbai, a middle-class building surrounded by the super-rich. This was when the idea came to me but the story is not about the actual building or the people because I didn’t get to know any of them. It was a trigger, that’s all. The story is entirely from my own imagination and so are the characters. Regarding the plot, I let my characters take over. I knew who Smita was, someone who had not fulfilled her potential, someone who had gone through a traumatic experience and wanted to make her life right. I also knew who Jai was. An honest, upright officer. When put into difficult situations they reacted in a certain way and my plot evolved. I do not plot in advance. I have always been fond of crime fiction and wanted to write a crime novel.

Grab The Book : How much time did you take to write the full story?

N.J. Kulkarni : The first draft took about 6 months and another two years to re-write, although there was a gap of some years between the first draft and the subsequent drafts. If I had plotted in advance, I would have finished this book in six months to one year, but it took almost three years. During the re-writes there were parts I deleted.

Grab The Book : There are so many characters in the story. How do you keep track of each and develop them as the story progresses?

N.J. Kulkarni : They were very clear in my head so it was not difficult for me. I come from a large family and I am one of those people who always know who is who! But of course, I had a file on each character. Basically to develop distinct speech patterns and mannerisms. I wanted to make each character as vivid as possible. The characters may be clear in my head but this had to be communicated to the reader. Now, while writing my second novel, I am using Scrivener. It helps a lot in organizing during
the writing process.

Grab The Book : Tell us more about how you won the Manuscript Contest at Pune International Literary Festival (PILF). Lucky you, to have the honour of your debut book being launched by Javed Akhtar 😊

N.J. Kulkarni : I had sent my book proposal to some publishers but no one wanted to read my novel. A publisher asks for the full manuscript if they like the proposal but I was an unknown, ordinary person. It was disheartening because I knew my work was better than most of the thrillers that were being launched by the big publishers. There is one mammoth publisher who actually criticized my first few chapters and told me this was not how to write a crime novel! But readers have loved my first few chapters and have told me that it got them hooked. There should be no formula on how to start a crime novel. Can’t it be about the people?
Coming back to the publishing process…when I was at my most depressed, my brother told me that I should apply for the Pune lit fest manuscript competition. I was reluctant because I was sure I wouldn’t win. I didn’t want another slap in my face! He persuaded me on the last day of entry but I was so sure I wouldn’t win that I did not attend the inauguration of the Pune lit fest last year (2018) when the winner was announced. Shobha De was the Chief guest. Then a few hours later, I met the editor of Vishwakarma Publications (a co-sponsor of the Pune lit fest) and asked him who won. He told me The Hawa Mahal Murders and I was frozen to the spot! It was a suspense story by itself! And Javed Akhtar launched my book at the inauguration of the Pune lit fest in September 2019 as he was the Chief guest. All this would not have happened without Vishwakarma Publications and the Pune lit fest and I will forever be grateful to them.

Grab The Book : What are your other hobbies? What do you enjoy in life apart from writing?

N.J. Kulkarni : I am an obsessive reader and also a hand reader. Hand reading or palmistry has been my hobby ever since I was a kid. My creative writing started around the age of ten and palmistry in my teens. I am currently working on a non-fiction book on hand reading, along with the sequel to The Hawa Mahal Murders.

Connect with her at:Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Multi talented is our Author N.J.Kulkarni. Thank you mam for gracing my blog.

Book Lovers, you must buy a copy of the book, read and leave a Review on Amazon and Goodreads.

Grab The Book at:

Bye. Take care.