First time author -1

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Part 1 – The Spark


When I was a kid, walking through the school’s library rack made me avoid those big books. I was more intrigued as to how people can write them, let alone read. Thoughts crossed my mind about writing many times, but then I let it be, as a passing thought.

 

Coming from a corporate background, I am adept in writing concise bullet points, with graphs and images to complement any shortfall in words. Finally, my passion for photography convinced me that a picture is worth a thousand words.

 

Then came an alumni meet. Having passed out of college in an era where social media and cellphones were non-existent, I took up the role of drum-up-people for the event. My dormant writing ability came to the fore. I bombarded my classmates with blogs and triggered their nostalgic emotions. Surprisingly the blogs and emails were well received, and many people signed up for the event. That was a spark that triggered in my mind.

 

For that spark to ignite, it took three years. In 2013, my work took me to Mumbai. I lived out of my suitcase for a year. It was my first experience with Mumbai monsoons. It never stopped raining for three months. I had forgotten how my shadow looks like and how blue the sky can feel. In the hotel room, rains meant no television binging, as it interrupts the TV signals. Viewing on mobile devices was restricted too. Those days the data limit was 1 GB/month.

 

It was during this period, where the calamity of cloudburst and floods at Kedarnath took place. Seeing water everywhere in front of me, I could empathize with the pilgrims stranded there. The culmination of these events was the start of my journey as an author.

 

….to be continued

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