Today I provide you with two links...
Here is my interview at Novelkicks, talking about my book and the writing process.
And here is a great review of The Bollywood Breakup Agency at the Bookworm's Lair, which was also posted on amazon.co.uk as a four star rating (yay!). Check out their blog, The Bookworm is a newbie to the blogging world and got into contact with me just to tell me they liked the book, so I am putting up a link so that you all can pay them a visit.
I'm doing my best to catch up on all your blogs now. This may take a while.
Thursday, 26 January 2012
Thursday, 19 January 2012
Cut off from the World
ORIGINALLY WRITTEN ON 10/1/12
What do you get if you cross the flu, a broken phone, and bad Internet?
Cabin fever, that’s what!
I have had the flu since before Christmas so I can’t go out. I have had to use a phone which doesn’t connect to the Internet, and I have a bad network so I can’t even connect to the Internet, and I can’t even blog. I am currently writing this on the 10th of January, on my umpteenth day off work, and without proper Internet for about a week.
So how have I coped in this Internet and technological age you ask? I have read a lot; with the Christmas money that I received I got one of my brothers to go out and buy me a kindle and (God bless unlimited 3G) I downloaded a lot of free books, mostly the classics, so my quest to become a much more well read person is on its way. I am 51% through Dorian Gray at the moment. I found that I have read a lot more quickly than when I take out those tattered old books from the library. This is coming from the person who checks through every copy of the same book in the bookstore and tries to find the one with the least amount of creases and dog ears.
When my eyes stopped burning and my muscles stopped aching, I played a lot of Nintendo Wii. I am no better at it now than when I started. Although I have unlocked a lot more exercises on the wiifit.
I tried to do some writing as well, but unfortunately when you are doped up on flu medication (some of which made me drowsy for up to three days at a time) it makes it very, very difficult to think straight and be creative in any way.
And on a really trivial note – I couldn’t even enjoy the smelly bath stuff that everyone gave me for Christmas because of my bunged up, really red nose.
It’s funny how we writers are so reliant on the Internet. Well I am – it is my only way to communicate with other writers. You have no idea how much I wanted to talk to you, and just read all of your blog posts and see how you were doing and just empathise with you all but I just haven’t been able to. I have missed talking to all of you so much. I have just about sent an email here and there, but all I have wanted to do since being stuck at home for two weeks is blog and talk to you guys. *sigh*
UPDATE 19/1/12: I'M ALL BETTER NOW!!!
So tell me guys, how do you cope when technology goes wrong?
What do you get if you cross the flu, a broken phone, and bad Internet?
Cabin fever, that’s what!
I have had the flu since before Christmas so I can’t go out. I have had to use a phone which doesn’t connect to the Internet, and I have a bad network so I can’t even connect to the Internet, and I can’t even blog. I am currently writing this on the 10th of January, on my umpteenth day off work, and without proper Internet for about a week.
So how have I coped in this Internet and technological age you ask? I have read a lot; with the Christmas money that I received I got one of my brothers to go out and buy me a kindle and (God bless unlimited 3G) I downloaded a lot of free books, mostly the classics, so my quest to become a much more well read person is on its way. I am 51% through Dorian Gray at the moment. I found that I have read a lot more quickly than when I take out those tattered old books from the library. This is coming from the person who checks through every copy of the same book in the bookstore and tries to find the one with the least amount of creases and dog ears.
When my eyes stopped burning and my muscles stopped aching, I played a lot of Nintendo Wii. I am no better at it now than when I started. Although I have unlocked a lot more exercises on the wiifit.
I tried to do some writing as well, but unfortunately when you are doped up on flu medication (some of which made me drowsy for up to three days at a time) it makes it very, very difficult to think straight and be creative in any way.
And on a really trivial note – I couldn’t even enjoy the smelly bath stuff that everyone gave me for Christmas because of my bunged up, really red nose.
It’s funny how we writers are so reliant on the Internet. Well I am – it is my only way to communicate with other writers. You have no idea how much I wanted to talk to you, and just read all of your blog posts and see how you were doing and just empathise with you all but I just haven’t been able to. I have missed talking to all of you so much. I have just about sent an email here and there, but all I have wanted to do since being stuck at home for two weeks is blog and talk to you guys. *sigh*
UPDATE 19/1/12: I'M ALL BETTER NOW!!!
So tell me guys, how do you cope when technology goes wrong?
Saturday, 24 December 2011
Festive Photos
Well readers I promised you a picture post, so here I am. Photos of Christmas around London.
A decorated window of Selfridges in Oxford Street and one of the Christmas trees by the entrance
And some of their in-store decorations and window displays with the 'Showtime'Theme.
And with that I would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
Wednesday, 21 December 2011
Book Review!
Curse my temperamental internet that never allows me to post when I really want to. I have had this problem for the past two weeks, and I only have a small window of opportunity that lets me blog, so here is a short one.
Here is a great review of the Bollywood Breakup Agency by the lovely people at Trashionista
After the first review, it was nice to read some positive thoughts on the book.
And in other news, my next post before Christmas will be a picture post :D
See you on the other side.
Here is a great review of the Bollywood Breakup Agency by the lovely people at Trashionista
After the first review, it was nice to read some positive thoughts on the book.
And in other news, my next post before Christmas will be a picture post :D
See you on the other side.
Friday, 9 December 2011
Good Week, Bad Week
Hello all,
It's been a mixed week in terms of the book.
Good Week:
Here's me being interviewed at Trashionista
Bad Week:
And here is a very bad review (with spoilers) at Chicklitplus
It's been a mixed week in terms of the book.
Good Week:
Here's me being interviewed at Trashionista
Bad Week:
And here is a very bad review (with spoilers) at Chicklitplus
Thursday, 1 December 2011
Happy December
I thought I would do a different post today, something that has nothing to do with the book for a change, as I have been doing a lot of that lately.
Things I am looking forward to ...
What I am not looking forward to ...
December just reminds me of when I used to work in retail, and as soon as the first of the month hit us, all we would hear was Christmas music. I am no Scrooge, I like this time of year, but there is only so many times I can hear the same songs over and over again, and I only used to work part time.
Not only that, every year we are bombarded with adverts for CDs that contain the same songs, and every year they tell us it is the 'only Christmas album you'll ever need'. So why oh why do they sell that same CD every year with the same songs on it? Surely the people who would have wanted to buy the music would have bought the music by now.
So tell me ... What are you and aren't you looking forward to this December?
Things I am looking forward to ...
- Ice Skating
- Winter Wonderland
- Christmas lights
- Christmas Carols
- Snow (providing I don't have to travel anywhere)
What I am not looking forward to ...
December just reminds me of when I used to work in retail, and as soon as the first of the month hit us, all we would hear was Christmas music. I am no Scrooge, I like this time of year, but there is only so many times I can hear the same songs over and over again, and I only used to work part time.
Not only that, every year we are bombarded with adverts for CDs that contain the same songs, and every year they tell us it is the 'only Christmas album you'll ever need'. So why oh why do they sell that same CD every year with the same songs on it? Surely the people who would have wanted to buy the music would have bought the music by now.
So tell me ... What are you and aren't you looking forward to this December?
Wednesday, 30 November 2011
Tweet for Me!
"The Bollywood Breakup Agency out today http://tinyurl.com/d8cz78e Retweet & win free ebook http://tinyurl.com/ctxrebj if Bollywood makes Kindle Top 100"
The book is out today yaaaay!!!
Tweet the phrase above, put it at the end of your blog posts, or even just repost it on your Facebooks and 'like' Prospera Publishing and you'll win a complimentary ebook of Naked in Knightsbridge.
And if you're blogging .... here's the blurb
When party-loving Neela Solanki rejects yet another loser in the long line of potential suitors who keep turning up in the ‘good’ room, her traditional Indian parents finally take decisive action. Fed up with her persistent refusal to provide them with a son-in-law and grandchild, the Solankis confiscate the phone, car and credit cards they pay for, and give her one last chance to comply before she is kicked out of the house.
Desperate for cash, Neela starts up a secret business breaking up the engagements of those trapped in the unstoppable force that is an Indian marriage arrangement. Add to that an addiction to Indian soap operas, being stalked by the latest loser’s father, a jilted ex and a love interest from an unlikely source, and Neela finds life is about to take a turn she never expected.
To all you wonderful people out there, PLEASE take the message and pass it on!!!
Let me know when you do it!
The book is out today yaaaay!!!
Tweet the phrase above, put it at the end of your blog posts, or even just repost it on your Facebooks and 'like' Prospera Publishing and you'll win a complimentary ebook of Naked in Knightsbridge.
And if you're blogging .... here's the blurb
When party-loving Neela Solanki rejects yet another loser in the long line of potential suitors who keep turning up in the ‘good’ room, her traditional Indian parents finally take decisive action. Fed up with her persistent refusal to provide them with a son-in-law and grandchild, the Solankis confiscate the phone, car and credit cards they pay for, and give her one last chance to comply before she is kicked out of the house.
Desperate for cash, Neela starts up a secret business breaking up the engagements of those trapped in the unstoppable force that is an Indian marriage arrangement. Add to that an addiction to Indian soap operas, being stalked by the latest loser’s father, a jilted ex and a love interest from an unlikely source, and Neela finds life is about to take a turn she never expected.
To all you wonderful people out there, PLEASE take the message and pass it on!!!
Let me know when you do it!
Thursday, 24 November 2011
The Waiting Game
It's a very strange feeling knowing your books are in the hands of the reviewers.
Now they are all reading my story and looking at its good and bad points, sizing it up and deciding their ratings, and I can't do anything but sit here and twiddle my thumbs. I hope my nightmare of a few posts down doesn't come true, and someone out there will enjoy the book.
The waiting game is awful, because now that it is out there, there is nothing I can do. I no longer have any control over my work that I have slaved over all this time. And it's those reviews that will ultimately help people decide whether or not to buy the book.
If you are interested in reviewing, contact Prospera Publishing for more details.
Now they are all reading my story and looking at its good and bad points, sizing it up and deciding their ratings, and I can't do anything but sit here and twiddle my thumbs. I hope my nightmare of a few posts down doesn't come true, and someone out there will enjoy the book.
The waiting game is awful, because now that it is out there, there is nothing I can do. I no longer have any control over my work that I have slaved over all this time. And it's those reviews that will ultimately help people decide whether or not to buy the book.
If you are interested in reviewing, contact Prospera Publishing for more details.
Tuesday, 15 November 2011
BIG NEWS!!!!
I write this with joint pain, headache and a sore throat.
I went to sleep after taking flu pills, woke up and....
THE BOLLYWOOD BREAKUP AGENCY IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW!!!!!!
If you are interested in reviewing the book, contact the wonderful people at Prospera Publishing for more details.
How exciting!!!
I went to sleep after taking flu pills, woke up and....
THE BOLLYWOOD BREAKUP AGENCY IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW!!!!!!
If you are interested in reviewing the book, contact the wonderful people at Prospera Publishing for more details.
How exciting!!!
Monday, 14 November 2011
A New Addition
I am truly sorry about my lack of blogging. It's been all change here in the Gupta household, and so I have had less and less time to spend in front of my laptop and blog, and catch up on all your blogposts.
The main reason is that there has been a new addition to the family, and no I have not had a baby. My brother who was married earlier this year, now has his wife living with us. I think that it's important that I spend more time with her, since this is a new place for her to live and just make her feel more welcome with us, as opposed to feeling lonely in her new environment. She has moved far away from her family, and I feel bad for her because I can never imagine being so far away from my own family.
Actually, I had a near miss when I was going through the edits of the book. She walked into my room and nearly read a part of it. I locked my screen so fast and thanked the Gods that she wasn't wearing her glasses. Speaking of the book, I think I am finally nearing the editing stage, so I am now prepared to be scared when those review copies go out.
Hope you are all doing great, and now I am going to catch up on all of your posts.
The main reason is that there has been a new addition to the family, and no I have not had a baby. My brother who was married earlier this year, now has his wife living with us. I think that it's important that I spend more time with her, since this is a new place for her to live and just make her feel more welcome with us, as opposed to feeling lonely in her new environment. She has moved far away from her family, and I feel bad for her because I can never imagine being so far away from my own family.
Actually, I had a near miss when I was going through the edits of the book. She walked into my room and nearly read a part of it. I locked my screen so fast and thanked the Gods that she wasn't wearing her glasses. Speaking of the book, I think I am finally nearing the editing stage, so I am now prepared to be scared when those review copies go out.
Hope you are all doing great, and now I am going to catch up on all of your posts.
Wednesday, 26 October 2011
Saturday, 15 October 2011
Edits Edits and more Edits
Sorry I've done a disappearing act on you guys. I have been up to my eyeballs in edits. I have gone through it once, and now I am just going through it again, just to make sure it is all consistent.
I haven't abandoned you, and once I send it off to my editor I'll be back with a proper update, and I'll catch up on all your blogs.
See you on the other side!
I haven't abandoned you, and once I send it off to my editor I'll be back with a proper update, and I'll catch up on all your blogs.
See you on the other side!
Monday, 3 October 2011
Thank you
I just wanted to say thank you for all of your wonderful words in the last post. It is just fantastic to have you guys around being supportive during this time, because I know that you guys are empathetic. You have all been there, or are there at the moment. And since I cannot talk to anyone in my real life about all these fears, the only way to get support is through your kindness. So once again I wanted to thank you so much. You are such a wonderful group of people.
I know that the worst part of that bad dream was the typos and the fact that the book became a mini-book with size 16 writing. You can slave over your edits for days on end, but that one typo in the finished piece is the one that will bug you for days. I'm currently going through a round of edits at the moment, so we can only wait and see.
While bad reviews are inevitable and I know it will feel bad to read someone slamming my story, I know it is just part and parcel of what I was doing. If it wasn't worth it then I would have given up by now. I know I am not going to be on the next big author or anything like that, but I am happy with what I have done, and I hope that some people out there will be too.
I know that the worst part of that bad dream was the typos and the fact that the book became a mini-book with size 16 writing. You can slave over your edits for days on end, but that one typo in the finished piece is the one that will bug you for days. I'm currently going through a round of edits at the moment, so we can only wait and see.
While bad reviews are inevitable and I know it will feel bad to read someone slamming my story, I know it is just part and parcel of what I was doing. If it wasn't worth it then I would have given up by now. I know I am not going to be on the next big author or anything like that, but I am happy with what I have done, and I hope that some people out there will be too.
Monday, 26 September 2011
The Nightmares have started
How many of you have had the 'Book will be Awful' nightmare?
This morning I had to wake myself up from a bad dream that I was having about my book. The following things happened ...
~All that work that I put into writing the story, and it turned out to be an 82 page mini-book with giant writing to fill up the space.
~Every five seconds someone would come up to me and tell me that I got another bad review online - I looked at the websites and saw that they were all so evil.
~ I looked through the book and it was littered with typos.
~Everything about it had been edited so heavily that it wasn't my story anymore.
~Everyone I know found out it was me who wrote the book getting awful reviews online.
This morning I had to wake myself up from a bad dream that I was having about my book. The following things happened ...
~All that work that I put into writing the story, and it turned out to be an 82 page mini-book with giant writing to fill up the space.
~Every five seconds someone would come up to me and tell me that I got another bad review online - I looked at the websites and saw that they were all so evil.
~ I looked through the book and it was littered with typos.
~Everything about it had been edited so heavily that it wasn't my story anymore.
~Everyone I know found out it was me who wrote the book getting awful reviews online.
Wednesday, 14 September 2011
If I could be anyone I'd be ....
To celebrate the launch of Talli Roland's new book 'Watching Willow Watts', I'm taking part in her websplash.
So without further ado...
If I could be anyone I'd be...
Why you ask? Because he's cool. We all love the idea that if we are stuck in some mundane job, something will sweep into our lives and make it just that much more exciting. In the case of Chuck, he is inadvertently sent an email which imprints government secrets into his brain, and the CIA have to take care of him in order to gain access to the information, and protect him from the enemies who also want the secrets. He becomes a spy for the CIA, despite still having to work as a tech guy in the 'Nerd Herd' section of 'Buymore.'
I think Chuck is one of those underrated shows. It is so funny and edge-of-your-seat exciting, with fantastic characters as well.
So without further ado...
If I could be anyone I'd be...
Image from Fanpop
Why you ask? Because he's cool. We all love the idea that if we are stuck in some mundane job, something will sweep into our lives and make it just that much more exciting. In the case of Chuck, he is inadvertently sent an email which imprints government secrets into his brain, and the CIA have to take care of him in order to gain access to the information, and protect him from the enemies who also want the secrets. He becomes a spy for the CIA, despite still having to work as a tech guy in the 'Nerd Herd' section of 'Buymore.'
I think Chuck is one of those underrated shows. It is so funny and edge-of-your-seat exciting, with fantastic characters as well.
About Watching Willow Watts
For Willow Watts, life has settled into a predictably dull routine: days behind the counter at her father's antique shop and nights watching TV, as the pension-aged residents of Britain's Ugliest Village bed down for yet another early night. But everything changes when a YouTube video of Willow's epically embarrassing Marilyn Monroe impersonation gets millions of hits after a viewer spots Marilyn's ghostly image in a frame.
Instantly, Willow's town is overrun with fans flocking to see the 'new Marilyn'. Egged on by the villagers -- whose shops and businesses are cashing in -- Willow embraces her new identity, dying her hair platinum and ramming herself full of cakes to achieve Marilyn's legendary curves.
But when a former flame returns seeking the old Willow, Willow must decide: can she risk her stardom and her village's newfound fortune on love, or is being Marilyn her ticket to happiness?
Instantly, Willow's town is overrun with fans flocking to see the 'new Marilyn'. Egged on by the villagers -- whose shops and businesses are cashing in -- Willow embraces her new identity, dying her hair platinum and ramming herself full of cakes to achieve Marilyn's legendary curves.
But when a former flame returns seeking the old Willow, Willow must decide: can she risk her stardom and her village's newfound fortune on love, or is being Marilyn her ticket to happiness?
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