SUCCESS STORY OF RUBINA RAMESH IN THE FIELD OF WRITING
RUBINA RAMESH
BRIEF PROFILE OF THE AUTHOR
email me @ rubinaramesh1973@gmail.com
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/RubinaRameshWrites/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rubinaramesh199
Website: https://www.rubina-ramesh.com/
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Q Are
you a professional writer?
I wish I could say that but I can’t even say
it’s a hobby. Call it a burning passion that I am fighting tooth and nail every
day, just to write a few lines.
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Q What
is your specific field of writing?
Romance and Fantasy. I love both the genres so I
combined them with “Asherah: A Warrior Princess”. I am planning a sequel on
those lines. And next year, I plan to write only paranormal romance.
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Q Are
there any specific reasons for choosing this particular field?
That of a writer or romance writer? Let me go
with being a writer. I used to travel a lot. Every three years my dad would get
a transfer. So writing diaries was my best friend. I suppose I should thank
that habit of mine.
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Q . Which particular book of yours do you
consider as the best so far, and why?
“Destined”. I am playing favourites here. But
Esha of Destined has touched many women’s lives, including mine. I have readers
writing to me regarding how they could fight for their rights or their parent’s
rights after reading my book. And a few men did write to me saying that I have
shown men as heartless and money minded. Well, all I can say is that they must
not have read the whole book.
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Q Did
you receive appreciation/recognition/adequate sales for your books? What is
your own assessment?
I am an indie author. A proud one at that. KDP
dashboard is my appreciation and the emails and reviews from my readers are the
recognitions. So I think I have collected a fair share of them. I am grateful
to the readers & reviewers for every word posted for me. Regarding my own
assessment, I would say “How can I not love my babies!!”
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Q Who is
your role model?
My mirror. My struggles and my small victories
teach me every day, what I have achieved and what I can.
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Q Which
other author’s books, do you feel, come close to your style of writing?
I have read most of the authors & many of them
are my friends. Each one has a distinct writing style and none of us ape each
other. I might be inspired to write from other stories, especially, the
imageries that are created while reading a book or watching a movie. But same
style is very difficult to copy.
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Q Do you
promote and recommend writing of books jointly? In your opinion what are the
areas of benefits and problems, in such joint ventures?
I know of authors who have done it beautifully.
But knowing my temperament I don’t think I can. I am too stuck up with my story
line. I have a tough time listening even to my editors, so working with another
author is not possible. I have tried it. But it’s dying a slow death even in
our minds. But who knows? Never say, never.
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Q When
& how do you get the ideas & do you immediately note them down in a
diary or elsewhere?
The truth is that I start with a blank canvas.
I never know where I am going with the characters or to which point they will
go. I walk with them as they show me the path. The reasoning I can give you is
once I write, I am bored. So once it’s out of my head, it loses its novelty. As
for, where do ideas come from - even the questions you have asked are triggering
a story in me.
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Q Could
you share with us, an interesting event/incident/experience faced with the
other writers, publishers or readers in your writing career?
My first book was not a book, but a story in an
anthology. It was with a small publisher and I was very excited. It was a story
of an incident that had happened in my life. Since it was a competition, we had
to get our friends to vote and comment. So there was another writer whose friends
came and thrashed by story and said that since it’s a real story, I didn’t have
to work too hard on it. That was my first face off with criticism in public.
After that I made it a point, never to write for an anthology, never to react
to criticism and never ever accept any publisher who had no respect for
anyone’s story.
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Q Besides the quality of writing, in your
opinion, what are the other factors for the success of a book? On an average, how many months do you take to
complete one book, in all respects?
Book cover, never neglect it. Editing bites you in your pocket but is a
necessary evil. Then marketing - if you have the guts to write, you should have
the lungs to scream about it. About the time taken it can be 4 months to one
year, depending on where my life is at that point of time.
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Q Has
Facebook helped you in any way, in your writing career or even otherwise? If
yes, please elucidate.
You and I met on Facebook, right? Like that so
many readers and fellow authors have come together due to our dear Facebook.
Don’t underestimate the power of Facebook.
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Q In
your opinion, is there adequate scope for name/fame/wealth in the field of
writing? Which aspects
motivate you to write books? Earning money/publicity/helping
readers/self-satisfaction/others?.
Name and fame, may be and wealth - depends. If
you write one book and expect it be become the next Harry Potter, don’t forget,
it’s a series. Regarding aspects motivating for writing, my answer is “Each one
of them and more, but may not be in that order.”
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Q What
are the reasons for the general success of the concept of “Agents of writers”
in some countries?
They are the keys to the lock that the authors
can’t open otherwise. It depends also on the fact what an author wants. If you
want to be a trad published author - you need them. If you want to be an indie
author - well, you have to be that key.
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Q If you
were not a writer, in what other way, you would have expressed your creativity?
Web-designing. I am going to start something
new soon and will update as soon as I am done. I feel that it would be good for
the authors.
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Q Have
your family members and friends helped and/or contributed in any way, in your
writing career?
Friends have contributed a LOT. I am damn lucky
that way. Family leaves me alone when I write. My kids know that mommy is busy
now and they won’t disturb me when I do sit down to write. That’s help enough.
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Q What
is your opinion about e-books? Due to this concept of e-books, is the survival
of printed books in future in jeopardy?
This is a tricky question. There was a time when
I loved paperbacks. But today when I can carry hundreds, if not thousands of
books in my kindle, why should I be happy with anything less?
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Q What is
your future plan for writing books?
This year I have a series of three, based on
the life of Maya coming out. One fantasy and my next is a short rom-com called
The Imperfect Bride.
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Q What
is your advice to the budding authors?
Just write – publish--write and there is no
other mantra. Don’t go for buy backs. It will sadden you when you get your KDP
report. No money earned and all money gone. So giving false projections with
buy backs is stupidity, since you are not gaining any readers. But then I am a
firm believer of, “to each his own”. That’s
my mantra.
----------------vijaiksharma
