Nagwa Malik

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have been writing since I was eleven. I published my first book in the mid-nineties, I remember, and I was pleasantly surprised at the ratings it got. I have written at least 40 books, but i published only three; the other two being my latest, “Stage One” and “Stage Two” of THE MIST series. I have been slow in publishing my books which was mostly because I was too busy studying, and then I travelled a bit, plus I had my “official” profession as a teacher. But now I am working on being a full-time writer. I do occasionally coach people on Language skills and behavioral skills, but I am focusing more on my writing now.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book “THE MIST” is a two-part series. It is a political spy thriller and I published the first part in 2013 and the second and last part in January this year (2016). I simply wrote this series in an attempt to bring the readers something fresh, something that contradicts the stereotype of the theme on terrorism and war on terrorism. I thought it was time people had a unique perspective on the subject. I saw a lot of questionable information being passed as truths, and i saw a lot of people wanting more than what was being put in front of them…I thought hey, why not show them the other side of the story…why not set down the conspiracies of the real world in fiction? And so i started writing.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t know. I write spontaneously. Is that unusual? I try not to think so much when I write. I let my pen or my fingers to the writing/typing for me. I let my characters do their talking. Then comes the tedious task of rearranging the format, you know; adding meat to the structure. Sometimes, especially of late, I find myself jotting down conversations and scenes as they come to me, and i return to them later to create a flow around them…is that weird?

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Having remained an avid reader from a very young age, and then with Literature as my major, I would say no one in particular. I love words- the formation of words. The writing itself. That is what really got me started on writing.
But of course, we always have writers who have influenced us- our take, so to speak, even without our knowing. In that case I would say Enid Blyton, Agatha Christie, Pascal, and Robert Ludlum, and among others Umar Khayyam, Nazeer Ahmed and Qurat-ul-Ain Haider.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on two books. One is the sequel to THE MIST series. And the other is about a Psychic…this latter is written in first person which I never do and usually find difficult, but the tone of this book is such that it cannot be written any other way, and so it was really automatically that I began it in that form of narrative.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am not sure…at first I thought book retailer sites like amazon was the main way to go, then I went on to other publishing platforms like Smashwords where I seemed to have sold more books in a matter of months than on amazon, but again one can only do so much so one is forced to go out looking for sites that actually deal with promoting new authors.
When it comes to actual book-promo sites. there is a variety of them out there and each of them are in their own unique way so good that it is hard to compare. But then I am fairly new to them 🙂

Do you have any advice for new authors?
To be able to create something is special and it is a gift. I know writing, like everything else, has become commercial. In today’s world it’s all about being fast- but somethings just cannot be artificially pushed. Writing is a process. We all want people to appreciate our creation, our work of art. Sometimes in order to do that we compromise and we lose our voice. I believe if we write what people want to hear then we are no creators. We are no writers. We are like any other salesperson…
A true writer keeps his/her own voice. Best-sellers are overrated. When you accumulate a fan-base slowly and painfully you know they are your real fans. You know they like you and your creation. And you know you have truly accomplished something. Because as writers we have this unsaid task of informing our audience, or educating them, and of giving them their voice back. It is a lot of power and it is not limited to journalists- it never was.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Trust no one but yourself.

What are you reading now?
I am right now watching more than reading. 🙂 You see, I am also a script-writer, so nowadays I am focusing on many of the upcoming series and serials and I am enjoying myself seeing how creatively many have adapted classics and how many have taken it further by creating news worlds out of the classics. I need to keep in touch 🙂

What’s next for you as a writer?
More writing! Hopefully. 🙂

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Any of the Hercule Poirot books by Agatha Christie. Have read them a million times and can read them a million more times.

Author Websites and Profiles
Nagwa Malik Website
Nagwa Malik Amazon Profile
Nagwa Malik Author Profile on Smashwords

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