Ipsita Banerjee: A Silver of Moon beam

Recently we interviewed Ipsita Banerjee, who prefers to define herself as ‘irreverent, crazy, and tactless’. She is an interesting writer nonetheless and never planned to be a writer. Now she is enjoying every bit of her glory and already into her next writing project. Here is what we talked bout with Ipsita-

What’s the title of your book and it’s genre? Tell us briefly about it

The title of my book is “A silver of moon beam.” It is a collection of essays, short stories and poems. The full particulars of the book can be found at the following link: http://frogbooks.net/frog-books-leadstart-virgin-leaf-poolani/a-sliver-of-moonbeam/ 

Any similar titles from other authors published recently? Which authors would you think you directly compare to? Old or new.

No similar titles that I know of.  And I don’t really dare compare myself with established authors.

Tell us in about 100 words about your literary influences?

Well, I’ve always been an avid reader, gobbling everything from Stephen King to Richard Bach and everything in between. I generally do not read or like romantic fiction and very rarely read biographies. I prefer thrillers, something with an element of mystery and intrigue. I am not fussy about the author, any book can hold my attention. As I grow older I find I do not have the patience for long-winded descriptions and details unless it’s by someone like Fredrick Forsyth!

Is there any one book that changed your life around?

That’s near impossible to answer, I could not name “one” book, a lot of books have dug their claws into me, Illusions (Richard Bach), The Shadow of the Wind (Carl Ruiz Zafon), The five people you meet in heaven (Mitch Albom), The Millennium Series (Steig Larsson), First Among Equals (Jeffery Archer) are just scratching the surface. No, there are too many books that have influenced me, I cannot pick on one.

Why do you write in the genre you currently write?

My book was not planned, I never thought that I would actually write a book that would be published. I have a blog (www.asliverofmoonbeam.blogspot.com) and I love writing but being a published author never featured even in my wildest dreams. Friends and family read my blog and somehow their encouragement and support initiated this book.

 What have you learnt so far in your journey from finishing manuscript to becoming a published author  ? Any lessons for unpublished authors.

The most important thing is to market yourself. Like in any other profession today, you really need to sell yourself, to your readers, to your potential readers, even those people who you always thought you could take for granted. And it is pointless to wait for anyone else to do it for you. Unfortunately I am pretty hopeless at this PR business and I have relied heavily on my publishers to do it for me. A mistake, I have realised.

Tell us about your next project ?

My next project is something completely different. For one thing, it is a full length novel set in the backdrop of the insurgent movement in Chattisgarh. The manuscript is complete but the project is yet to take wing.