In Conversation with Prateek Dubey
1. The title of your book is very interesting. Would you like to throw some light on how you finally reached on this? Was it suggested by someone after beta-reading or was it your own idea?
1. The title of your book is very interesting. Would you like to throw some light on how you finally reached on this? Was it suggested by someone after beta-reading or was it your own idea?
The title of the book was a little different
when I conceived the story, but it had ‘The Disobedient Darkness’ in it. After
revising the first draft I concluded that anything more than ‘The Disobedient
Darkness’ was unnecessary. How did the title occur to me? I don’t know or
cannot explain… I believe these are strokes of imaginations which pop into the
mind from nowhere inexplicably. The same goes for the name of the daemōn that
guides the hero of the story. I don’t know what it means or why I chose it;
coming to me one night after drinking four rum and cokes.
2. It’s always hard to start. How does it feel to finally see oneself at the top of the steps?
2. It’s always hard to start. How does it feel to finally see oneself at the top of the steps?
Yes, it is hard to start, even when you are won
over by the idea. The story is about a man without a doubt, and so I imagined
myself being without a doubt. This helped me a great deal spiritually. The
story has many absurd moments in it, but I ploughed through regardless,
believing in their relevance. Now, it is a satisfying feeling that I trusted
myself and let the book happen without interfering or hesitating.
3. Hard is not to combine your thoughts, hard is to convince. What was your experience in this?
3. Hard is not to combine your thoughts, hard is to convince. What was your experience in this?
I would say that it wasn’t very hard, rather, I
didn’t try too hard. The story is pretty crazy, and many times while writing
it, I put my hands on my head thinking, ’Where did this come from?’. But I
trusted the process in the belief that an unknown force is speaking through me
vicariously.
Whether the reader is convinced of the story, I
don’t know yet. Only when people who don’t know me personally read it and ask
questions, will I get to know whether its voice has reached them successfully
or not. I am still waiting for someone to ask me uncomfortable questions like,
‘Why do you say Death is a misunderstood blessing?’. The story has many such controversial
ideas.
4. How you reached at the subject of your book? Any particular incident or is it inspired by something?
4. How you reached at the subject of your book? Any particular incident or is it inspired by something?
There was an incident, which sort of, revealed
me to myself. It is described in the first paragraph of the chapter ‘The
Journey’. I imagined myself reacting the way our protagonist did (in reality, I
didn’t). That event has rankled me time and again, releasing endless chain of
thoughts, consummating into all sorts of consequences. But the story is more than
a cathartic outpouring. I think it is a mirror of man’s journey, his presence
and purpose of existence. Mind you, while writing, I thought it would simply be
an entertaining adventure, but as you know, things have turned out differently.
5. I saw your blog. It is really fascinating to see the vibrant hue. Do you think you can ever find stories from these pictures? Or have you already found something?
5. I saw your blog. It is really fascinating to see the vibrant hue. Do you think you can ever find stories from these pictures? Or have you already found something?
Thank you
for finding my blog colorful. I am usually shy and don’t interact too much with
people, but come a camera in my hand, my disposition changes. I think most of
the characters in ‘The Disobedient Darkness’ have come about from moments I have been through while taking
pictures, talking to people, listening to their stories. In the blog too, are a
few strange and strong personalities, which will perhaps lend themselves into
my future stories.
6. What are your future plans in the field of writing?
At the moment, I am working on a sequel to ‘The
Disobedient Darkness’. It will keep me occupied till the end of this year. I am
inclined to write science-fiction fantasies, especially diverging from the idea
of an alien being the villain (I really don’t believe in villains anyway). I
will be writing children’s stories and poems later.
7. What inspires you the most? People in your pictures or the stories in their eyes?
7. What inspires you the most? People in your pictures or the stories in their eyes?
I think both are inspiring. The stories in
their eyes take me to a different world altogether. It’s a crazy feeling,
standing in an instance and seeing so much beyond it. I don’t know whether you’ll
believe it, but people find themselves in a particular moment to fulfill it
(the moment itself) wittingly or unwittingly. And when every scratch, every
texture, sound, colour, shadow comes together to make a unique symphony, you
get a good picture. This is the essence of photography. ‘The Disobedient
Darkness’ carries forward this theme particularly in the chapters of ‘Pipes’
and ‘Ganga’.
Words are manifested thoughts. But sometimes
they are not enough to describe a feeling. Fiction, especially fantasy fiction
has to be lived, emoted, suspected, questioned to enjoy it fully. If the words
do not take the reader into the unknown, then they are simply words and nothing
more. So, my mantra in this story was to lead the reader into believing the
fantasy, however absurdly it might be coming across, using ambiguous phrases
that had words strung in an unusual manner. It was especially needed when our
hero steps into the realm of death.
14. Your favorite authors, books, genres, literary period?
14. Your favorite authors, books, genres, literary period?
There are far too many. If I mention ten
authors, I would miss ten others. But a few authors, by the force of their
style have left a mark upon me. These are: Earnest Hemingway, Robert Louis
Stevenson, Joseph Conrad, J. M Coetzee, Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, Albert Camus
and Edgar Ellen Poe.
My reading is wide and varied. From the
writers, I have mentioned, you would have guessed that mostly a direct style of
narrative appeals to me. I like to stay away from prose, though I’ve enjoyed
reading Salman Rushdie. For me it is the conviction and honesty of an author
that is enticing and not his/her clever use of language.
These days I am reading John Updike’s ‘Rabbit
Run’ and David Mitchel’s ‘The Bone Clocks’. Both are unusual and brave in terms
of their writing style.
10. It is always hard to keep on re-reading your work. You tend to find flaws after flaws. What strategy you adopted to avoid this scenario?
10. It is always hard to keep on re-reading your work. You tend to find flaws after flaws. What strategy you adopted to avoid this scenario?
This is a problem. I am still working to
improve the script of ‘The Disobedient Darkness’ and hope to incorporate the
changes in further editions. One thing I’ve learnt from the experience is to
make people (who you can trust) of various backgrounds read your script before
its final presentation. There are a lot of grammar experts sitting out there
who themselves have very little clarity about it, but their practical
observations will set you thinking and improving. It was so funny in the case
of ‘The Disobedient Darkness’, that the slowest passages had the most mistakes
pointed and the gripping parts very few or none at all. It told me about the
involvement of the reader and the grip of the story.
The only strategy I can think of now, is not giving
up on learning and constantly seeking to improve. How and when to let go, is an
elusive concept for me. The reader is my best guide, that is for sure.
11. Any part of the book which:
11. Any part of the book which:
- None that I can think of right now
- I have always enjoyed reading the, ‘The Gate’, ‘Nanda Devi’, ‘Blood Flower’ and the ‘The Pocket’ the most. In my forty odd revisions, I’ve never found a dull moment in them.
- The chapters of ‘The Gate’ and ‘Nanda Devi’.
- I would say the whole book. Since, I don’t have a very good memory, it is a boon when I visit it after a few weeks and still enjoy reading it. But the poem of the Ganges is especially dear to me, considering, that till the very end, I had no idea what it meant or how it would play out in the story.
12. The trend of writing is changing. Do you feel only exposure is the key to succeed?
Yes, the trend of writing is changing and so of
everything else. People don’t have much time and want results quickly, but that
shouldn’t be the greatest of influence. The most important quality of any
author is his honesty.
Exposure is the life-blood of any creative
person. It is timeless and independent of trend. So, exposure to literature,
philosophy, art, music, movies, politics are absolutely essential to achieve
anything worthwhile.
13. Tell us about your journey after you completed
your book? The journey from publishing to reader’s notice. Your experience with
the publishing firm.
This is the most interesting phase in a
first-time published author’s career. He does not have a reputation and still
has to earn it. For me, the world
responded in an unexpected manner after the book became published. A lot many
people who I considered friends, stopped talking to me. On the other hand, many
with whom I was not in regular touch, connected by buying the book. Then came
the concerned well-wisher; who cannot write a single grammatically correct
Facebook post or a WhatsApp message, advising me on the nuance of language. The
priciest are those members of family, who pucker their nose and say, ’I don’t
read such kind of books’.
My wife, my father and my sister supported me
at every step of the book’s construction. Without their participation, it would
have been an uphill task. I am happy to say, that most who have read the book
in entirety, enjoyed it. Hopefully there will be many more like them.
The publishing house has been very
co-operative. I am lucky to have found them, for they are a patient bunch, accepting
my suggestions without a fuss. I have made new friends on the way and that is
what matters in life for me.
14. Did you focused on catchy phrases and high imageries in your book? They are really an important part of many classics. Or did you just focused on the story.
No, not consciously. I focused on honesty.
There are instances in the story that needed a certain emotional flavour, so I
put myself in the situation and described my feelings in the best possible
manner. Epigrams, maxims, aphorisms and prose do make an interesting read, but
that is not really my style.
The book,
according to many who have read it, is by its nature high in imagery. A
professor of comparative literature told me that it was like reading a
comic-book. I took it as a compliment.
15. Would you like to pass on a message to your readers before they try your book?
The story challenges conventional ideas of
life, existence, death, immortality, good and evil. If you already know
everything, then this book will probably appall you. And if you are an
explorer, a student, a ponderer who likes to scratch his head, then the book
will entertain you and fill you with further questions.
Just to set you up for it, the first chapter is
called ‘The Gift’. So I ask you,
“Is life a
gift? If it is, what are you doing with it?”
Thank you author for your precious time...
About the book :
What is your plan for life? Do you know its dark side? A man trades his doubts for a unique gift from his daemon. This puts into motion his metamorphosis, ' a doubtless mind connecting him to other layers of existence and unravelling some extraordinary latent powers. Using his newfound abilities impetuously for the benefit of others, he inevitably runs into the dark side of goodness. Then, one day, a moment of violence, a call for justice hurls him into a maelstrom of an extraordinary adventure - a quest for a pitcher of ancient mythic water, hidden deep inside the Himalayas. It is the only weapon capable of countering a sinister force abducting humans from Earth. But an unexpected turn awaits him as he moves closer; the water is nurturing a secret intent that could challenge the destiny of mankind.
About the author :
"Prateek Dubey is a photographer, writer and an artist based in New Delhi, India. His work has featured in the Guardian U.K, the Deccan Chronicle, The Hindu and N-Photo magazine besides various photography sites around the world. Writing has been his favourite form of expression for a long time. He has written many pieces of entertaining short fiction using whiskey, Black Sabbath, beautiful aliens and other unconventional elements as his motifs. He blogs (Prateek's World), merging photography with storytelling, on his experiences of life in India. Some of these photo essays have been featured in the Pioneer and Mail Today. He has also had a solo show of oil paintings at the Lalit Kala Academy in 2005 besides participating in various group shows of painting and photography. Prateek is a graduate of chemistry from the Delhi University and also a trained fashion designer from India's premiere fashion institute, the National Institute of Fashion Technology."
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