AUTHOR’S INTERVIEW OF Sonali Dutta FOR “Thank you Miss. Poetry”

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Q1. Would you like to introduce yourself to your readers? 

Ans: Well introductions can be layered, like that of a sandwich. The top layer would be short and crisp (comprising of my professional details) the middle layer would be saucy (telling some of my personal details) and the bottom layer would be deep (giving you a touch of my foundation). So, which layer are you looking for? If it’s the top one, then I am an IT professional with work experience of 8.5 years now. If it’s the middle layer, then read the blurb of my book, and if it’s the bottom layer that you are looking for, read my book “Thank you Miss. Poetry.” . 

Q2. Congratulations for your new book ma’am. What’s the significance of the title? 

Ans: Thank you for the question. It’s an important question to me. You can see two characters in the title – Miss. Poetry and Lady Pen. Miss. Poetry is the personification of the grace of God which appears to me in the form of poems and Lady Pen is myself who is none but a fortunate observant medium. So, I am thanking that grace of God, by the grace of God. This is the significance in a nutshell of the title, “Thank you Miss. Poetry – Yours Lady Pen”. 

Q3. What do you hope your readers take away from this book? 

Ans: When I read these poems as a reader, I have an untitled happiness reading them, not because I wrote them, but because they carry the fragrance of the origin (by God’s grace). When I say “origin”, I don’t mean my writing, I mean the source of writing, the sheer source of existence. I think, any reader would feel the same kind of happiness reading them because we all belong to that same “origin” of existence. 

Q4. Who is your favourite author and why? 

Ans: I haven’t read a lot of literature in my life, but I have been sharing a close bond with the writings of Tagore since my childhood. I was blessed with the opportunity to be trained with Tagore songs which had brought me close to him. So, when you ask my favorite author, his name appears first. 

Q5. What was the first thought which came to your mind that actually persuaded you to write your own book? 

Ans: When poems kept on coming through, by God’s grace, for 16 long years, and they touched many of my friends and family and also kept on surprising me with their beauty, I felt it an obligation to share it with the world. This is how the idea of this book originated. 

Q6. What kind of books did you grow up reading? What genre do you prefer to read? 

Ans: I have read less of literature and more of mind science. I have read Swami Vivekananda, I have read the lives of Gautam Budhha, Sai Baba, Sri Ramakrishna etc., books like Wings of Fire and similar ones. You can say, the genre is “inward”. 

Q7. What did you learn while writing this book? 

Ans: I have learnt that I need to learn to differentiate between what I want and what I wish for, in a practical level, (by God’s grace). 

Q8. What were the difficulties you faced while writing this book? 

Ans: It’s a bit lonely journey but the difficulties only appear to say that there’s still a lot of learning pending. So, all those difficulties actually make it even more worthy. 

Q9. Which is the one thing that writing changed in you? 

Ans: I think, writing somewhere helps in self evaluation. This really helps one, to observe what one is conversing with oneself. 

Q10..Any message for your readers? 

Ans: My dear readers, I am waiting for you to tell me, “Sonali, when are you publishing your next book?” 

Thank you for giving your time with us.