Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am Vikram Suryawanshi. After completing my engineering I worked as a content writer for a couple of years and pursued an MA in Literature to fulfill my urge. After completing my course I have written this fiction with genuine dedication and honesty. This story is based on a social worker who wants to change the world but has to break innumerable shackles. His journey is contrasting to the paths of his friends, but they have a strong connection. The book talks about the philosophies that these friends unfold throughout their lives.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
A Man with A White Shadow is my debut book.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t stick to any schedule. I write whenever I get time, but I think about the book all the time. This way, I get more ideas and enough time to criticize my own work. I do this because I don’t want to write many books, I just want to write a few masterpieces.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Salman Rushdie has been a motivation to me. His writing style, his strong criticism of society has inspired me to write a book that talks about society and humans overall.
What are you working on now?
I have an idea on which I would like to work for the next three to four years. It will a fiction be based on laws around the world and their inefficiencies. I am also doing a three years course in Legislature to deeply understand various aspects of the subject.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have just started promoting the book. The next time someone asks me this, perhaps I will say Awesome Gang.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t write for money. Write for Art. Take your time, as much as you can, and only when you become frustrated on working on it, consider publishing it.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Do not be Afraid. I heard this in Vikings. From that time onwards, I understand that big things need courage and we constantly need to say to ourselves- Do not be afraid.
What are you reading now?
I am starting to read Less by Andrew Sean Greer.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Through my website, www.readersmeet.com I would like to help new writers publish their books. In the meanwhile, I will continue working on my next novel. But as a writer, I feel very sad while seeing new writers taking the act of writing so casually. I think it is the responsibility of writers to bring something new to the world, but most of the writers are publishing to get rich or popular. I would like to give them a good approach.
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?
Shame, Wuthering Heights, The Picture of Dorian Gray would be my first preferences.
Author Websites and Profiles
Vikram Suryawanshi Website