Sailesh Mishra an alumnus of SAI International School and an engineering student currently, dreams to become a litera-preneur someday. Psychological thriller being his forte`, he already has two solo books to his kitty and is working on the third which is a sequel of his first solo book. The fictional writer has grown up reading Sherlock Holmes and Percy Jackson. As a child he was a poet and he gives full credit to his school which honed his poetic skills and transformed him into an intense new age ‘story-teller’.
His new book ‘Butchers of Malevolence’ is a psychological thriller which talks about the darker aspects of life and the social stigmas. He feels with darkness comes hope, and hope is the basis of life and there is hope against hope. It’s written in a very daring and uncut manner. One can feel the incidences mentioned and would surely give goose bumps of excitement to the readers. A quick question answer round with him unveiled a lot of secrets about him and his views on readers delight while growing up and how he evolved as a writer from a poet.
- Children today are glued to their phones or gaming consoles and hardly read. What would you suggest to the children to develop reading habits?
The hardest part is beginning to gather some sort of interest in a book in their initial pages. But once it’s done, the books take the upper hold at their attention. I advise them to grow some patience and start developing a reading habit since the early days. A reading habit goes long ways. It not only helps us improve our vocabulary skills but also provides us different perspectives around us which would help us in the longer run.
- How has SAI International helped you in developing or polishing your writing skills?
SAI International School was the place where my central focus revolved around honing my skills as a writer. It was at SAI where the transition from poetry to intense storytelling takes place. It was where I got ample motivation and knowledge from its authorities to delve deeper into it i.e. solidifying a writing style, improving vocabulary etc.
- Please share some tips for the budding writers.
Writing is neither easy nor a difficult task. It is what we take it to be. Read a lot. And do NOT, I say do not EVER rush into publication if you are not sure. A bunch of stuff you need to make sure before you take the leap.
- Make sure that you have given your best. The regret of ‘I could have done it
better back then’ might be really haunting in the future.
- Make sure you have got enough criticisms to your work before you lay it out
for the public. Self criticism is the staple for any art. Yet never neglect the
exterior criticism no matter positive or negative.
- A signature writing style always helps. It brings credibility and ample
recognition to your work. It comes with practice.
- Grammar and proper orientation are the unsung heroes of your talent which
should never be neglected.
- Never lose hope. If you think you are good enough then there is a good
chance that you actually are.
- After you published your first book, did you change anything in writing or narrating while writing or as a writer you changed yourself?
My first book made me aware with dealing with the markets in the publishing industry. I developed a signature writing/storytelling narrative style of my own which has been immensely reflected in my second book. I understood how stuff works and most importantly, the warm response to my debut book provided me with confidence for days to come.
- You have a good list of favorite authors, but do you dislike any genre or author and why?
No genre is worthy of being disliked. But yes, in contemporary Indian literature, I personally feel that the genre of romantic dramas has been ridiculously diluted to the point where it is not taken seriously anymore.
- Which is your favorite under-appreciated or over-hyped book and why do you say
so?
Percy Jackson is a series which I feel deserves more appreciation and following than it actually gets. It deserves some good movies or serials to respect its source material like Harry Potter or A song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) do. It is one of the coolest pieces of contemporary fantasy for me.
7. Please share your book bucket list.
Currently on: – Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
Looking forward to- Amish’s Scion of Ishvaku, Warrior of Mithila, The Innocent by
David Baldacci and Ashwini Sangi’s Keepers of Kalachakra.
8. Did you get stuck-up anywhere while writing the second book ‘Butchers of
Malevolence’?
The editing part was the toughest because every time I re-read my draft some new error
would always pop-up.
- Any favorite quote that motivates you?
You got one life, so stop existing and start living.
- Can you tell the readers about your next book?
Well the next book of mine is titled “The Curse of Excalibur” which is basically a
black satirical comedy wrapped around in Fantasy.
- What is your mantra in life on success?
I am still trying to figure it out the mantra. Maybe that is it. Success doesn’t lie on the outcome but in the journey
- What is Sailesh’s USP as a writer?
His publisher says “Sailesh’s USP is his zeal of never following the bandwagon of trends. He always goes out of the way and writes something daring and uncompromising. Hence the adult and matured language he prefers over goofy stereotypes. He is willing to take the uncomfortable route every time.”
- Any phrase or paragraph of your book ‘Butchers of Malevolence’you like
the most? (A Spoiler Alert!)
“Lives you say eh.” Ali’s smile faded. “Life.” he began, “Let me tell you something soldier. Each day you wake up in the same room, follow the same road just as yesterday to go to your jobs. Our days are nothing but scheduled chunks of our lives slowly being fed to us to produce something profitable in the name of a job. You talk about freedom. We fought for so many years to get ours. Answer me soldier. Is this what it means to be free? Food, water and land, the very elements that we need to survive are owned by these prestigious corporations all around the world. Tell me something. When was the last time you had fruits from a tree or water from a clear stream? Am I going too ancient? Maybe, but here is the point. If you take what the earth provides you, you end up being locked away behind bars. So how do you survive? The answer is; You obey rules. You discover life through textbooks and internet, not through experiences or consequences. For years we sit in closed rooms and are taught to do as we are told, being analyzed and graded and tested like subjects in a lab. We call that education. We are molded to be smart enough to do our job but stupid enough to not ask why. And we continue it, until we die, leaving the same path for our future generations. A life without purpose and meaning is all we leave for them. Answer me one thing soldier. Do you really feel that there isn’t enough food for the world to feed every single human being? Let me clue you in. Seventy percent of the world’s grains are being fed to animals who work at farms, slaughter houses and what not. Because why help the starving when you can earn some bucks? Do you still think that you belong to the side of the good guys? Just open your eyes damn it! For our survival, you build their cities, run their machines, fight their battles and run institutions teaching the next generations to do the exact same thing.”
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