By Alok Joshi
Writing has always been and continues to be my passion. Giving life to my thoughts and seeing them in print gives a different creative kick. I still remember the day, many years ago, when I almost jumped with joy on board a flight on finding my first ever article published in “Swagat”, the inflight magazine of Indian Airlines. My pen never stopped after that. The last count was more than a hundred published articles, both domestically and internationally, to my credit. Many of those writings won me awards as well.
But authors like me will know that writing a full-length book is a different ball game altogether. It was always on my bucket list, but I never found time to attempt it seriously. The writer in me got activated after I hung up my boots and the pandemic forced me to do something meaningful to distract my mind. By sheer coincidence, I was stuck in the USA as all flights to India got cancelled.
After a lot of thought, I decided that the easiest way to write a book was to tell my story with all honesty. I started processing what all happened to me in the last decade of overseas tenure and decided to pen down my memoir to share a slice of my life with the world. It was not as easy as I thought. Despite my flair for writing, sitting on the writing table for hours, pouring out my thoughts, organising them and finally giving it structure was extremely difficult. It took me more than six months to give it shape. Finally, my first book about my experiential journey of working and living in China titled “12 Sweet & Sour years in China: True stories of an Indian” was ready, ready for publication.
I returned to India but had no clue how to publish my book. I was told that the best way to move forward was to contact some marketing agents, who can help find a publisher, if the book is print worthy. Such agents charge money from the writer to find a publisher and normally do some basic marketing. The novice in me was shocked. I had slogged for months to write, edit and format my book of 55,000 plus words. Being a first-time author, I had to pay a hefty amount to get it published. But then I was too eager to see my first book.
The very first publisher recommended by the agent accepted my manuscript. He was very cooperative and did a good job. He did not change even a single word. The intermediary agent was a waste of money. I also had to pay for getting the copyright in my name. I was immensely blessed that my late father released my first book. The book turned out to be a great hit. The flattering reader book reviews on Amazon were my biggest prize.
The same publisher happily agreed to publish my second book, a novella, which I had attempted just to challenge myself as a writer by venturing into a different genre. This time around, I decided not to use any marketing agent.
Just when I thought that I was done with ticking a box in my bucket list, my close friend and colleague, a great author himself, Pradeep Singh, asked me to write an extension of my first memoir (and gave me some pointers) so that it could reach more readers in the post-Covid environment. Sadly, he passed away very unexpectedly after a month. But his words kept ringing in my ears as if urging me to fulfil his wish. I sat down to write my third book again, as a tribute to my dear friend.
Some well-wishers advised me to find a big publisher. I contacted them but they politely declined giving vague excuses. It is much easier to find publishers when you are still in active service and holding a high position. Otherwise, you are just an “aspiring writer”. My first publisher came to my rescue once again. Unfortunately, he went through unexpected challenges in his printing press, which delayed my book for months.
Finally, my third book (“From Dumplings to Donkey Burger”) saw the light of day. I hesitatingly tried to get a foreword written by a VVIP to lend respect and credibility to my story, but it was turned down by his office. I reached out to a friend to help me find some literary luminary to launch it but failed again. So, it was quietly launched on Amazon and Kindle, courtesy my publisher.
Once the book was out, I was invited for a book discussion and the date was fixed much in advance. But it was cancelled at the last minute because those directly involved in the event had better things to do. They did not even bother to talk to me about their non-availability or cancellation.
Writing and publishing a book is very akin to a mother giving birth to a baby. When a child is born, people are only interested in knowing if it is a boy or a girl. Nobody asks the mother about her painful journey from conception to bringing a new life into the big world. This book was also like my baby. Its challenging publishing journey had tested my patience. The much-needed support from expected quarters did not come forth.
It took me a while to accept that it is a new world where there are no free lunches. People will oblige you only if you are “useful” to them. We can breathe in only after we breathe out. Isn’t it? It is a world where networking matters. Some writers do manage to get grand launches in the presence of media if they know some VIP or they are VIPs themselves. With social media and Kindle, hard copies don’t sell. Free copies are welcomed anytime. Book reviews are also known to be paid. Invitations to literary events are discretionary and often non-literary people chair sessions. In short, everything may not be bad in the world of books but for sure, it is not as rosy as it looks.
Writing is a lonely journey and writers, like all creative people, are sensitive individuals. But writing is just a part of the journey. Writing may be easy, but the writing journey isn’t always as easy as it appears. It remains incomplete without smart publishing and marketing. I am not a big fan of Facebook but was pleasantly surprised to find an interesting group “Writers helping Writers”. I am inclined to believe that surely writers can help writers.
The story of my writing journey could be just my story. The birth of my book had “labour pains” and “ delivery hiccups”. Luckily, for me this book was more of a personal journey about fulfilling my friend Pradeep’s last wish. But it opened my eyes and helped me know the world better, in some limited way. I did not try any aggressive marketing or personal branding through my book. Many in my inner circle do not even know about this book. But I am happy to keep it between me and my late friend.
Well, people will keep writing. Books will keep getting published and launched. Readers will keep reading. I will also keep writing articles and stories like this. But whether I will ever be inspired to write my next book, I am not too sure.
(Alok Joshi is former Director, HR & Marketing, PetroChina (CNPC); Head, HRD, GNPOC, Sudan; Head, HR, Mumbai High Asset, ONGC; Civil Services probationer; author of three books and has over a hundred published articles to his credit)
