tales of Suchita

If there is one thing I don’t appreciate enough about writing, it is how much fun I have when I do said writing, especially when I am in the flow and words are easy.

My book, All Roads Lead Here, was one such writing experience that was more fun than most. And I thought, it would be really cool to pick some things I loved writing and put them down here.

Here goes…

#1: The title and the book cover

Titles for stories I am writing are as important to me as my character names. I usually know, instinctively, when a title is right. It has this habit of sinking into me and making me feel…calm. I wasn’t sure what I would name this story which is why for the longest time, the draft was titled Parth-Saurabh.

I don’t remember how I decided the title will be All Roads Lead Here but once I had it, it felt complete and all encompassing. It managed to capture so many threads at once: the reunion between Parth and Saurabh, Parth’s confrontation with his mother since he was adopted by his uncle-aunt and all the mysteries around Division Bright and what that leads to (no spoilers, of course).

Coming to the cover design, yes, I designed it using Canva. My sister and I made a lot of designs but I kept coming back to the element of two boys playing in a garden. There may be a lot of intrigue and growing up that our characters go through but essentially the story is about Parth and Saurabh and how they find their way back to each other.

It’s one of the reasons I love my current cover so much, even though I have been told by a few readers it’s misleading. I know it shows kids when the story is about teenagers but I feel it captures the essence so well, I am loathe to change it.

#2: The four teens

It was so much fun to write sixteen-year-olds, especially in a modern setting. It took me back to my school days and much of what happens in the Chemistry Lab in the book are taken from my experience of breaking test tubes while doing experiments when I was sixteen. The whole scene where a Maths sir gives Manvi and Saurabh extra homework made me cackle like I had done some really evil deed.

I knew how I wanted Parth, Saurabh and Manvi to read but Faizal went through a couple of iterations. The interesting thing was, every time I would read the story, his arc would bother me. I knew something wasn’t right until I figured out where I wanted his relationship-slash-friendship with Parth to end up.

The adult characters were fun to write too and it is quite revealing how the home environment informs who our teens are.

#3: The magic

I love nature and writing about it. I remember reading this article that said writers always reveal what matters to them through their stories. And it was super interesting to see nature and death seem to matter to me a whole lot because these two are almost always present in my stories.

While I love intricate world-building as much as any fantasy reader or writer, I kept my rules and answers short in this one. Parth has a flair for the earth element – which I am jealous of because I wish I had it too. And though there are some explanations for what, where, why and how this magic develops – I have kept them precise.

As always, it was revealing on hindsight, how each element that the teens are proficient in also adds depth to their own emotional state and who they are as people.

#4: Who or what is Division Bright

This will be vague because I don’t want to reveal too many things but this section of the book went through the greatest number of iterations. Every time I would add a detail, I would have to check if it matched the previous details and were carried forward to the rest of the book.

The back and forth was not helpful and I gave up multiple times. I started dreaming about Division Bright and yes, many of the solutions my brain came up with were when I was asleep and not exhausted from a day of staring at my screen.

It was worth it though because the final product made me so happy.

#5: Mom’s reaction to everything that happens in the third act

Mother, who doesn’t lie when it comes to giving me feedback, had the best reaction to the book. In the beginning, she was not happy. She kept questioning my writing choices, asking me to explain and getting frustrated when I said, “It will all make sense.”

When she was about 70% in, she came to my room and asked me if I had killed anyone. I could sense she would be unhappy had I told her one of the teens would die. But thankfully, I could tell her no one dies.

The third act was her favourite and it felt great to have that validation because I am quite proud of how everything comes together.

The way she said, “You did good,” after finishing the book will forever be my favourite compliment.

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The book is available as an ebook, paperback and on KU here.

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This is written as part of #BlogchatterHalfMarathon