1-Day to the 'Small Town Bigger Dreams' - In conversation with Shefali

Hello everyone, welcome to another live challenge. Those of you who do not know, I am doing a 21-day live challenge, even though I missed a few days, but that's all right. Uh, so today is 1st of November, as most of you know, and tomorrow is the launch of Small Town Bigger Dreams paperback edition. And I'm really, really excited with the responses I've been getting, the feedback, and and so many congratulatory and thank you messages. And I thought maybe I should invite some of other authors today. Throughout the week we had Akash Garg, we had a few more guests who helped us. And today I'm pretty sure you're going to enjoy this conversation with us because I've got another very interesting guest today. My today's guest is, if you would have seen the poster, is Shefali Arora, who is an engineer by profession. But has a passion for writing. She has been writing poems and stories since childhood, and now she has decided to give a direction to her passion. Her recent release, Dare, Dream, and Travel, was endorsed by The CEO Magazine, and her previous work, The Infinite Road, won her several accolades such as the Best Debut in Fiction Award, Most Promising Author Award, etc., etc. It was also featured among the top 10 books to read in September 2021 by Outlook India. Besides several media portals and literature fests highlighted her work, like Pune Literature Festival, The Dispatch, and Noida Times, her work also includes a book on haiku and short poem, A Paradise of Thoughts. Let's welcome together Shefali Aurora. Shefali, thank you so much for joining us today.

Thank you so much for having me here, and many, many congratulations for Small Town Bigger Dreams.

Thank you so much. I am, I'm really excited you're here and we can talk about your book. Uh, so before we go on to Dare Dream Travel, uh, tell us a little bit more about your background, even though I read the introduction, but tell us what, what has been your background and what, what kind of work you have been doing recently.

Okay, so basically I have always been in the technical background. I, uh, I was in— I have been in computer science and currently like I'm pursuing my PhD in computer science and also I'm a lecturer currently. But writing is something that has been my passion since childhood, as you mentioned. And so I wrote a lot of articles, poetry, and I wanted to, uh, be a published writer someday. So, uh, so that went, uh, side by side. And, uh, when I was, um, like back in the year 2017, I self-published A Paradise of Thoughts. I compiled all my short poems and published it. That was where I started, where I ventured into, uh, the publishing domain. And then, uh, my next book was The Infinite Road, which is my first, my debut work in fiction. And so there was some plot in my mind. I decided to venture into traditional publishing with this. I— so, uh, so it took some time, but it came out in 2020. And now recently in 2021, I am out with the non-fiction. So that is Dear Dream Traveller. So in the past 3-4 years, I've experimented with different genres, and I'm happy with the way that, you know, the work is being received, both the titles have been received. So I think that's the journey till now, and I hope it continues that way in the future as well.

Amazing, amazing. So we are talking to a person who is both into fiction and non-fiction, and that's probably gonna— some point I'm gonna touch later. But let's talk about your recent book, uh, Daydream Travel. What's it— what exactly is this book all about?

So, uh, this book, actually I used to do some travel blogging. Uh, I used to write on the places I visited. I've never traveled solo, I've traveled with my family and friends, but, uh, I really, uh, like to jot down the points that, uh, I see while traveling or observe about the places. So like, I, I enjoy traveling and planning travel. So it struck my mind that, you know, what about covering the stories of women who travel on their own? Because what happens is if I would like to travel solo, I would— personally, I think there would be a lot of constraints, you know, safety, societal pressure that, you know, why you are traveling solo. And then I came across this community of travelers on Facebook and Instagram who are actually doing so well, who are going out exploring places on their own. They are leading travel groups and they are helping other women to travel solo. So that's how the plot, the idea struck my mind that I should write something that covers these stories, that can highlight the concept that solo traveling is actually not as scary, as petrifying as the society thinks. And so there are 15, 16 stories of these women travelers who I came in touch with them, heard their stories. We had lots of brainstorming sessions and then shaping up their words, shaping up their journeys. And then I compiled it into this anthology which can very straightforwardly bring forth the idea that, you know, how they travel solo. The particular incident from each chapter would take you, uh, on that, uh, down their memory lane that, you know, what particular challenge, like what was that particular incident that really rattled them or, uh, they made it difficult for them to complete their journey, but then how they overcame it. So I think it will surely be an inspiration for many women who are planning, or even men who are planning to go out on their own or travel solo. But yeah, highlighting women was the main concern because I I think because solo travel is not something which is too acceptable as of now, um, going out alone, women going out alone, and it's not safe also, definitely. But there are ways out how you can plan and travel on your own.

Awesome, awesome. So I'm gonna ask you, because I'm now intrigued with the description that you provided, can you share one of the most interesting story out of the book that really, uh, opened your eyes or, you know, amazed you or something like that?

Uh, actually, you know, all the stories are close to my heart because we have spent so much time working on them and coordinating with the actual, uh, women travel, uh, the faces behind those stories. So I think my favorites— I have 2-3 favorites. Uh, the one which talks about road tripping, that is by, uh, Sandhya Suri. She is retired— she was— she's a retired Navy officer. And she has given so many insights on how, you know, she has been going on road trips from— to as far as Vishakhapatnam from Delhi. So it was— when I wrote that, it was spine-chilling for me as well. And then there is another story of— so I won't reveal the details, but yes, I can give the background that how— and then there's another story of Viraldeep Modi. She's a very popular motivational speaker, and she talks about the rights of disabled people. She is disabled and she shares how once she was— when she was traveling on her own, she was harassed by the airport authorities and she had to get out of that in a very tactical way so as to, you know, reach her destination. So that was also something that really touched me when I was writing, that what all different situations are possible when women are traveling.

Wow, I'm indeed intrigued. I have the Kindle copy of the book when it was available, and I do plan to read it in coming weeks after this launch is done. I'm really looking forward to, uh, but yeah, and same for your book.

It's, it's in my TBR. I have seen and heard so much about it. I'm just waiting to start it.

Thank you so much. Now, now let's come back to one thing that I said I will come back to, is you have done both genre fiction as well as non-fiction, uh, and What has been— I won't say when you write something it becomes part of you, and I'm not going to ask you which one is your more favorite and all, but what do you think is the fundamental difference between fiction writing versus non-fiction creative writing?

So when I was— from my experience, when I was writing fiction, I was transported to my own world where I had my own plot and the characters and okay, and everyone, and I had to weave the characters and the story as per you know, what was going on in my mind. So I was completely to myself. I was in my own world of thoughts and penning down and then re-editing, writing, re-editing and everything. But when I was writing non-fiction, because we are talking about the actual people, or even if you are not, you are writing about some facts. So, so in my case, when I was talking to the travelers or shaping their journeys and then getting, getting it approved that, okay, you want this, you don't want this, because In non-fiction, your background details, all the, you know, research work, all the actual facts, they must be precise and correct. Because if they are wrong, then obviously somebody will make an objection, or people will— someone will not, would not be able to relate to it. Or because in fiction, it's more of your imagination plus if you have some daily observations and your imagination. Fiction is a figment of that. But in non-fiction, more than getting out— you have to get out the emotions through those stories also, through those, through that writing also, you have to. But it is important that everything is in place. So that is what I felt, that while writing non-fiction, it was more of an effort coordinating with the travelers, getting, checking and rechecking the facts, whether it is right or not, whether I've expressed it in the right way or not, because they might not be interpreting it in the same way as I interpreted it. So that was a little difficult as compared to writing fiction, I would say. But then yes, because people are relating to the stories of travelers. So at the end, when your hard work pays off, then you feel good that okay, the people are able to relate to, you know, some of the stories at least.

No, totally agree. I think it is a fundamental difference. I believe Personally, I find that fiction— writing fiction is a lot more difficult because you don't— unless you're writing a— you were writing inspired by some live events, which I think happens a lot. You have to build a whole new world, which is probably not there. And then you have to do the plotting, character, emotions. While with nonfiction, I think you don't have to do all of these. You have to do research. And make sure that you're putting the point in the right way, in the right manner, to the right people. But I think I personally feel fiction is still a little tough, but that's again me personally.

Yeah, because I had the opposite experience. I was— by the end of it, I was like, now I just want to finish this off. It's so— it's getting a lot, you know, since it was like— I think I started writing it around 2 years back and took me 2 years to just get everything in place so that there is nothing that is out of place. There's nothing that's hurting somebody or that's not in line with somebody's thought. Maybe because that involved real people, so that's why maybe it was a little more, uh, onus on me.

Um, yeah, I think every one of us is different and unique. So now, would you like to talk about Anoki?

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Noki is very special. Noki is somebody who is the, the character from The Infinite Road. And so basically, The Infinite Road, when I talk about the story behind it, it's about a little girl, Noki, whom Alunkrita, the protagonist, finds on the roads of her town. And she's a disabled girl. Noki is disabled. And when Alunkrita brings her home, she decides to give her a future, give her education, work, give her a bright future. But again, uh, the society does not accept her with open arms. And in the midst of all this, Anumkrita faces a lot of chaos in her life. Uh, like there's a new neighbor she grows fond of, there's her ex who comes back to help her with her startup. So her daily life, as in her routine life, is getting affected by a lot of predicaments. And this little girl is getting affected because Anumkrita is not able to do anything for her. So in that book, that was completely fiction. It was a part Yeah, it was something, you know, from the observations. When I see such underprivileged kids around, I feel for them, and I think that, you know, we ignore them. Even when I talk about myself or anybody, we do not give them, you know, we just don't do a bit for them, I feel. So through the book, I wanted to convey a social message through girls like Anuki, that how she was a welcome change in the life of Alunkrita, and how, you know, we can do a little, a bit for them And their journey is— their journey on this infinite road is something full of hope and positivity. So there, this is the story I think that you, uh, that readers will be able to connect with the characters because it will transport them into the world of Alunkrita and Anuki.

Sure, sure. So much relatable, and all of us do that. I totally agree to that. I think one of— one more reason for that is we have had so many negative, uh, experiences or hearing about that, how when you give some money to them, somebody else will take out. Correct. Yeah, I know one of my friend who used to help them with milk, but what he used to do is, you know, when, whenever he buys the milk and give it to them, he'll open the packet a little bit so that they cannot go back and sell the milk back to the shop owner. And they will actually consume that. So I totally understand. So thank you for doing that.

Yeah, yeah, I agree. There are instances that scare us and so we are not able to take a step forward, but then there are other ways, like maybe we can collaborate with NGOs or, you know, then these are a few things that probably— or sponsor a child who we know. So that ways, I think, yes, because this is something, if you help them, sometimes it happens there are scary situations if we are helping them directly also. I agree, because there are relatable situations there also.

So what's next for Shefali? You have done fiction, you've done non-fiction. What is next coming up from Shefali?

Um, okay, so that is a good question, but I think now I'll go back into writing fiction. I mean, I— there are a few plots in my mind, but I am yet to, uh, just write and give them a proper shape. But I think that would be— and yeah, I'm sure that would be fiction only. Now I am not going Right now, like, immediately, in a year or so, I would not be going into non-fiction.

So when you are writing fiction, do you follow that consistent approach, like everyday writing for a few— I mean, like 30 minutes, 1 hour? Or are you more of a spontaneous, that whenever you get time, you'll write it, scribble it, and then maybe compile it later? What is your preferred style?

Okay, I'll answer that, and then I'd like to know from you also, because, you know, every author has a different approach, so it's good to hear. For me, what works is when I get time, when I'm free, then I take out some time and I write for 15-20 minutes because it gets a little difficult with your job and, you know, daily routine to take out a lot of time. So earlier I used to get more time, so I would spend hours, but now I try to take out 20-25 minutes a day whenever I'm free, and then I start scribbling the thoughts. And what about you?

Great question. I think for me also, I think it's a combination of both. When I'm doing, when I was doing this Small Town, Bigger Dreams, I was trying to collect as many ideas or as many stories of myself or others that I wanted to bring up. At that point of time, it was very spontaneous. So I'll, whenever I remember, I put it on my phone or I had lot of, you know, those Post-it notes and things like that. So I had a wall where I started posting all the Post-it notes more from structure perspective. But when I had a kind of skeleton of these, these are probably roughly the chapter that's going to be 25, 26 chapters or so, and these are the kind of stories. Then when I get into the actual writing, then I became quite consistent in terms of setting up my desk and going for 7 to 7:30 AM. Because that was a time I used to feel like this is my creative time. And then once you are done with that, you get into the office things, you'll be full busy and by the end of the day you'll be exhausted. So I am anyways a morning person, so I like doing all this creative work in the morning. So became very consistent for a few weeks. I was every day for 30 minutes, I was writing and putting those stories, putting words onto the skeletons that I had built. So it was first spontaneous and then it became more structured approach.

Structure. Great, great.

So, uh, yeah, now, uh, if you have to give one, uh, one thing or one inspiration, one message to the readers of Small Town Bigger Dreams, uh, what would say, Fali Aurora?

Say, uh, okay, so I would like to tell the readers that, you know, the title itself is so catchy that anybody would like to grab a copy of it. So when Haritosh Srivastav came out with this book, that is something— and the COVID really fascinated me. It's something that, you know, you like to open the pages and see, okay, what's there inside. So I would ask, I would request all the readers to go ahead, read the book, and definitely share your feedback. And I am also waiting to read this interesting book. And, and I will share my feedback with you very soon.

Absolutely, absolutely. I'm really, really looking forward to it, Shefali. And all the best to you too. And you've done some great work both in the fiction and non-fiction. And also, it was great talking to you today.

Yeah, thank you so much. And all the best for the launch tomorrow.

Thank you so much. And yeah, I'm still figuring out what to do tomorrow, but yeah, I'll keep doing something or other. Uh, so that was Sephari Arora, an author, an acclaimed author I should say, who's written, uh, 2 times already, on the 3rd book now. So until next time, I hope to do some more things probably later today and tomorrow. Until next time, as I say all the time, keep learning, keep growing, and keep going out of your comfort zone. This is Haritosh Srivastav, I'll be back. Maybe later today or tomorrow for sure. If you have not done, please go ahead and preorder. Yeah, for today you can say preorder Small Town Bigger Dreams. From tomorrow it will be order Small Town Bigger Dreams. I put the link in the chat, uh, and I'm really, really looking forward to— thank you all for your support. Thank you to all the guests that have been there, and I'm really looking forward to some more guests. So until next time, take care, stay safe, stay blessed. Thank you so much.