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Author Interview: CAP Series 2 Chinky And Pinky Oodhi Baba! by Hemdiva Dev

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Today I’m doing Author interview with Hemdiva Dev, author of CAP series 2 and many other children books.

Read my review on CAP Series 2 Chinky And Pinky Oodhi Baba! ⇒ HERE 

About Author —
Hemdiva

Hemdiva Dev is a self-published young author with CAP Series 1 being her debut book. She loves to write as much as she loves to read.  She enjoys studying, watching TV, shopping with her mom, drawing and spending time on the internet.

Q & A —

Q. When and why did you begin writing?

A. When I was kid, I had a very special experience and all I wished was to write it down. When I completed it, I realized it could be a book. Since then I had this wish to write books.

I started first with Nanowrimo, writing a book that is yet to be completed. I always participate in Nanowrimo, every year, in November. Then I began writing my personal blog, posting poems, stories and personal thoughts. I really enjoyed myself as I did so.
Then I did enter a few story writing competitions and learned how much people admired my work. That gave me a new confidence and I thought about publishing my first book.
CAP Series 1, my debut book, was completed by me in just a week. And next, it was available on Amazon and all leading websites.
It happened so quick, that I’m still amazed! Like months ago, I had nothing on my mind, and today I’ve written, illustrated and self-published 4 books!

Q. How did you come up with the idea for your book?

A. I always had stories to tell. My kindergarten teacher complained that I narrated stories to my classmates all the time. Though my mom always appreciated me and she’s my inspiration too.

As for the stories, I find a story in each thing. For example, a dumped toy, a crying kid, an abandoned house, a new experience and anything can be a story. I also add my dreams to form a story.
And I just love doing so!

CAP Series 2 was completely inspired by MAKAR SANKRANT, the Hindu festival and my memories with it. Lol… I never met a talking kite though!

Q. What books have most influenced your life?

A. The Secret series by Rhonda Byrne has influenced my life completely. It has changed the way I live my life. Everything actually!
It was recommended to me at, I’d say, the right time but I read it almost a year later. And from then on my and my mom’s life changed magically. I don’t really read books suggested by others, but I’m so glad I did read this one.
In fact I’m amazed by the Law of Attraction and its power.  It’s so wonderful and unbelievable at the same time. Gratitude is the biggest lesson it teaches and that too so effortlessly!

Q. What have you written? (Books, novellas, short stories, poems, blogs, awards or anything of interest.)

A. “CAP Series” book 1 & 2and “Sonu’s Adventures” book 1 & 2, are the two book series by me. The first one falls in the Horror genre and the later one is a Humour!
Though they are my first big books for me, they can be grouped as short stories. In fact, CAP 2 surprised me with a word count of 15000!

I’ve entered many writing competitions, but never won, it was fun anyways. My serials are available on Jukepop.com, for free to read. I do plan to complete and publish them. “The Lifeless” is a horror and “Made For Each Other” is a Romance/Drama.
My first ever blog, http://momsprincesspari.wordpress.com  is also my personal blog.  I found many friends and really great people through it.

I’ve also started a blog recently where I review books and interview other authors, here- http://authorhemdivareviewsbooks.blogspot.com
It’s for the reader in me who loves to read endlessly.

Q. What draws you to this genre?

A. Probably the thrill and the mystery, which I love so much in books. I grew up reading mostly horror/thrillers and fairy tales too. So in my books, somewhere I feel there’s a lovely combination of it. There’s something about horror, the feeling of getting scared and being brave at the same time, that attracts me each time.

Q. What is your favorite book(s) and why?

A. The Secret Series by Rhonda Byrne

Goosebumps by R.L. Stine
The first one is the most amazing book I’ve ever read and it can truly change everyone’s life forever, like it changed mine.
And Goosebumps is something I can read again and again and again because I really enjoy the stories!

Q. What was your favorite chapter (or part) of writing this book and why?

A. I love every part of my book because it’s my book. Yeah, but the chapters where the girls meet the villain, the mummies meet a crying stranger and when the girls start flying are really my favourites. They are the important parts of the story and make it what it is.

Q. What was the hardest part of writing the book? Was there anything that you deleted or altered?

A. Without doubt, the beginning! I wrote many beginnings but wasn’t satisfied with any of it. It took me one year to come up with the most perfect start for the story. I think it took so long because with the first part, the characters had created a unique place in the readers’ hearts and I’d to come up with something that was equally good. I’d wanted to do justice with both the story and the characters. And it is so amazing that I did it! Hurray!

Q. Tell us about the cover(s) and how it/they came about. Who designed your book cover(s)?

A. I designed the covers myself. Being a girl who judges the book by it’s cover, I wished that my book’s cover should stand out.
As I wrote the story, the pic just popped up in my brain and became my cover.

I always loved to draw, though I’m not a professional not even good at it. So, I just grabbed this opportunity to enjoy my hobby once again. And I was fascinated with my own book covers. After 5 covers and 20+ illustrations for my books, I must say that my drawing is improving too.
My Book Covers by me

Q. How are you publishing this book and why?

A. Self-publishing always! It is super fun for me, I feel like a boss! I think self -publishing came in this world, only and only for me.
It gives the power to me, the author, to create and represent my work as I wish. I love the freedom.
It can be a tiring task for those who only wish to write but for me, I love everything from writing to editing, formatting to publishing and promoting to writing again.

Q. Is there a message in your book that you hope readers will grasp?

A. Yes, the important message is that one should never give up! For one little pain, there are a hundred reliefs! You just need to find and implement them.

 I hope the readers will also understand how vulnerable kids are, how much mothers love their children and how dangerous it can be to trust a stranger.

Q. Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with good or bad ones?

A. As a new budding author, I definitely read all the reviews on my books.  I try to improve from them and bring out the best.
I get over-whelmed by positive reviews and feel really happy to know that my work is being praised. I do a happy dance with my mom and thank God from my heart.
It motivates me to write more and progress ahead.

I remember, the first time I got a negative review, I was furious and sad at the same time. It was like someone was being bad to me, not my book.

 I read that review many times, tried to forget it many many times and even thought about reporting that it! Lol! But then, I talked to my mum and calmed down.

Later, I realized that it wasn’t a negative review actually. Though the review said that the book wasn’t laughable, it had indirectly mentioned what the book really was.
I hadn’t written the book for people to laugh, I wanted them to learn a lesson and feel the horror/thrill. The review had clearly stated that the book is thrilling and a page turner. But it expected a thriller to make it happy. It was for CAP Series 1.

I felt really good and proud for my book, it was doing what it was written for.
I thank all my reviewers, irrespective of what review they gave for my books, as I appreciate the time they dedicated for my book. I learned from all those reviews.

Q. What are your future project(s)? What’s it about? (*if relevant)

A. CAP Series 3 is already outlined in my head. Soon it will be on paper and digital screen. The title is CAP Series 3. The Mermaid Mysteries, where the girls will feel the horror, underwater!

Q. Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?

A. I’d like to say a big Thank You! My readers are really special and I write only for them! Their praises and blessings means a lot to me! Thank you for loving my characters, stories and illustrations.

Q. What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

A. Keep writing and don’t be scared to put your work out to the world.

Q. What is your favorite motivational phrase?

A. “You have the power to change anything” – THE SECRET

Currently reading

I always re-read The Secret. I’m reading a book by James Lee about a girl with a haunted handphone.

Favorite foods / Colors/ Music/ TV show/ Film

Food- Indian, especially Maharashtrian and Punjabi! I also love Italian and Swiss cuisine.

Colors- Pink! All time favorite! Also red, yellow, orange and blue! And pink!

Music- Anything that would make me smile and feel happy.

TV shows- I still watch cartoons!  So Cartoons, daily soaps, comedy, cooking shows, mystery shows and few reality shows sometimes. ‘CID’, ‘Supercops Vs Supervillains’, ‘Tarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah’, ‘Doraemon’ and ‘Shinchan’ are few of my most favorite shows & cartoons!

Films- Finding Nemo, Narnia, Harry Potter, etc. basically everything Disney and Fantasy! I also love Hindi and Marathi movies. Mostly Comedy, Fantasy, Sci fiction, Mystery, Horror and Romance.

Q. Is there anything else you would like to add that I haven’t included?

A. I just recently published my book, Sonu’s Adventures 2 Billions In My Heart!
It’s the second book in the Sonu Series.

Read it on AmazonSonu’s Adventures 2

How can readers discover more about you and you work?

Website

Blog

Blog

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

Pinterest

Youtube Channel

Amazon Author Page

Lulu

Smashwords

Book Links: (Amazon)

Goodreads

Jukepop (Here you can read my 2 books for free)

— Thank you very much for taking the time out of your busy schedule to take part in this interview.

What do you think about the interview? Have you read any of the books by Hemdiva? Do have any question you want to ask to author? Share your thoughts in comment-box below.

Happy Reading!

— BT&R

Hi, I'm Yesha, an Indian book blogger. Avid and eclectic reader who loves to read with a cup of tea. Not born reader but I don't think I’m going to stop reading books in this life. “You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.”

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