Nandana Dev Sen
When?
I write whenever I get an idea, which happens with alarming frequency. I scribble down notes on anything I can grab — a diary, my phone, an envelope, the back of a phone bill... Sometimes I write several thousand words at a stretch, sometimes it’s barely a hundred.
Where?
I can write almost anywhere, as long as it is quiet. I wrote the first draft of my last book Talky Tumble of Jumble Farm in the waiting room of Sloan Kettering hospital in New York. It’s because I need silence that I usually write at night, often at our dining table where I can spread my scribbled notes and my inelegant storyboards all around me in a grand mess. And my favourite writing retreat is our family home in Shantiniketan.
How?
My notes are handwritten, but I always write the book on my laptop. I devour enormous quantities of walnuts as I write.
Inspiration
My writing is inspired by my years of working with kids as an Ambassador and advocate for organisations that focus on child protection. I’m also inspired by all the authors I loved as a child like Rabindranath Tagore, Lewis Carroll, and Roald Dahl. Finally, I am inspired by the pure fun, fantasy, and silliness that writing for children allows me to access.
She has written books like Mambi and the Forest Fire and Talky Tumble of Jumble Farm. She is also an actor.
Richa Jha
When?
My writing time is erratic, scattered and always in bits and pieces (though the stories are creating themselves in my mind all the time).
Where?
I think I write better in a noisy environment. Too much quiet, and my eyes start drooping. I can write just about anywhere — waiting halls, moving trains, eateries, cinema halls, my kids’ annual day functions, mall staircases...anywhere.
How?
There are stories that write themselves down so beautifully on paper that I don’t have the heart to force them off those pages! And then there are some stories that flow easily on my laptop. I scribble on scraps, on my cell phone, on my palm.
Inspiration
I find inspiration in the different stupendous ways in which a child’s mind works!
She is Publisher, Pickle Yolk Books, and author of books including Thatha at School, The Unboy Boy, Vee Loved Garlic, and more.
Jane De Souza
When?
If I’m not excited about an idea, I don’t bother writing at all. I do something else — a walk, an errand, a chat, and soon enough, the idea hops over and tickles my ear. And when the bug hits me, I write on and on... limitless sessions late into the night, later into the early morning, interrupted only by coffee (welcome) or a courier guy (unwelcome).
Where?
At my old wooden desk near a window to my terrace, and surrounded by many pictures and cards of people (and dogs) I love. I need to be completely alone, because I often read aloud to myself whatever I’m writing in whichever voice my character has. Obviously, I can’t do that in a public space, café, or library without some rather strange looks.
How?
On an old battered laptop, with a coffee, a large jug of water, and a small brown dog at my feet .
Inspiration
My dad who had a crazy sense of humour, and authors who write funny, like Sue Townsend, Roddy Doyle, Dr Spock, and Jerome K Jerome.
Author of the SuperZero series and other children’s books.
Ken Spillman
When?
Jack London once said that you need to go after inspiration with a club, and I agree with him. If inspiration comes, that’s wonderful, but I never wait around for it — I get to work. I know that if I am completely present in my work for long enough, everything will fall into place, so I aim to work for two sittings of four to five hours each day.
Where?
I’m very flexible, often working in such places as airports, hotels, and cafés. I do have a home office, but my favourite places to set up my laptop are all public libraries. The most conducive writing environment for me are places where there are people, none of whom are interested in me or what I’m doing.
How?
Once upon a time, I wrote everything by hand. After a period of transition, I, long ago, reached the point where I think best in front of my laptop. I rarely see my books on any paper at all until they are published.
I feel I simply must have at least one coffee before I sit down to write. In recent years, I have done some of my work listening to some kinds of music without words.
Inspiration
A simple love of stories, and a belief in their power to change lives.
Author of more than 35 books including the Jake series, No Fear, Jiyaa, Advaita the Writer, and The Strange Story of Felicity Frown
How to write a story?
1. Have an idea of what you want to write about, and the genre — comedy, adventure, drama, etc.
2. Plan the setting of the story (a forest, space, castle, train, farm...), and the characters (animals, kids, wizards, talking furniture...)
3. Sketch the basics of your story — the main characters, the good or bad guys, the conflict/ problem, the solution, and the resolution. The conflict, which is the main part of a story, could be between two characters, within the character himself, or the character and a situation.
4. With these ideas in mind, get down to writing the story.
5. Re-read what you have written, and make corrections or changes as you wish.
Kick-starters
Here are some prompts or ideas to help you write a story:
A spaceship lands on your terrace late at night
Something strange is happening to a school science project
There’s a noise coming from under the bed, and you are alone at home
A lion and a porcupine plan a picnic. But it does not go as planned
You wake up and you can hear the furniture speak
A diary entry of a baby dolphin exploring the sea
