shyamala's world

Children's author Monica Khanna recently released three books for children.  While Misha Makes a Mark and Of Girls and Cars and Boys and Dolls have  been published by Mango Books as picture books, Munches, Punches and Manya's Hunches, a chapter book, has been published by  Story Mirror Infotech P ltd.  The content of all three books are worthy of discussion between parents and children. Monica shared some thoughts around her recent releases.                               1. In today's times, are we doing enough to empower our girls through books? Enough is a relative term, and I am not sure we are doing 'enough', but we have definitely started a trend to empower girls - and are also looking at changing stereotypes for boys. This is equally important - for you cannot empower girls unless you teach boys to think differently about their own roles. 2.  What pa...

Nandini Nayar is India's leading writers for children. She is one of the few authors who has successfully written fiction and nonfiction for children of all ages.  Her wide range of writing has made her a respected name in the world of Indian literature. Kahani Takbak quizzed her about books, writing and life. How did you become a writer? I became a writer when I stopped simply dreaming about being a writer and did something. I wrote a story which was published in the children’s pages of Deccan Herald. At that time I was teaching in a school and a student came up to tell me he had read my story and enjoyed it. This was a very positive and effective encouragement and it inspired me to continue writing. Oh, and getting paid for my story was hugely motivating too. I wrote several more stories that were published in the same newspaper. My first picture book happened when I began telling my son stories and sent two of these to Tulika. Tulika accepted both the stories. I ...

                                         I Need to Pee is a recent picture book from Penguin Random House India.   The picture book rakes up the vital issue of peeing when one leaves the comfort of our homes.   With an increasing number of crimes committed on children outside/inside toilets, I hope this book initiates a much needed discussion about providing a safe toilet experience for children and adults as well.   A must for every home and school library! Kahani Takbak interviewed both the illustrators (Meenal Sigh and Eric Egerup) and author (Neha Singh) about this book. Meenal Singh  and  Erik Egerup  are currently based in Bengaluru and have a studio called Runaway Mill. With backgrounds in architecture, industrial design and game development, they deliver a wide and diverse range of creative design projects. These include illustra...

Velu Saravanan is the winner of Bala Sahitya Academi award winner for Tamil literature (2017).  The prestigious award has been given for the children plays written by him.  Ira Pasi, Thanga Rani, Devalok Yanna are some of them.                                                                      Velu never reveals his age. “I died twice- once when I was pulled out of my mother’s safe womb. The other was when I was separated from my village to pursue schooling.   I write for the 12 year old in me.”  The appeasing of the 12 year old in him has not only resulted in writing and giving thousands of drama performances all across the globe.  So far he has performed all the plays he has written. The only exception being Maalumi, a play about a boy who loses everything in Tsunami...

Kahani Takbak’s first birthday celebrations ended yesterday. Santhini Govindan is an award winning author of children's literature with over 50 published books. She writes for all age groups, but enjoys writing in verse best.  Yesterday’s session on Manuscripts and Mayhem with the senior author and editor, was held on Facebook. The following are questions asked by the participants in the live chat. The most original ideas are taken... Someone said there are no original ideas - we just have to rework them using our own thoughts and ideas... Can't we just treat that idea differently? Absolutely! In fact that's the key - give your own spin to an idea. Do you write the first draft in one fast flow and revise it later, like some advocate? I asked that because they say don't do corrections as you write; it may stop the flow. I have that habit of correcting as I go. It all depends on how the story goes, and how the muse sings. Some stories however, j...

Deepa Agarwal is an award winning writer who has written over 50 books in various genres and for different age groups.  She is one of the rare , enthusiastic children authors who is comfortable promoting her books through school visits and internet.  The Scholastic Book of Hindu Gods and Goddesses  is her forthcoming title. Caravan to Tibet ,  Go Girl  and  Listen O King  are some of her middle grade books. To know about her visit  www.deepaagarwal.com Since virtual author visits are one of the convenient ways to promote a book from home, Kahani  Takbak interviewed Deepa to know more details. 1.What should be the ideal duration of a  virtual author visit? I think 30-45 minutes are enough. 2.                    What should be the criteria for selecting a school for a visitor author visit? The schools approached me directl...