Geetha Krishnan's Blog, page 16

The Lost Race

So, this is something I’d earlier published in KDP, but decided to rewrite because it seemed like I could do better with the whole storyline. Despite many people praising it, I was always not fully satisfied with it. So now I’ve unpublished it from all platforms and am going to rewrite it. I decided to post the first few chapters here as I’m rewriting.

Chapter One

The stars which shone on the vast emptiness seemed to be mocking him. Mark had no idea where they were. The constellations that he could make out were completely unfamiliar.

A fine leader I turned out to be. I’ve just got everyone lost and I have no idea even about the galaxy.

He might not be the only one in the ship with experience, but he was the one who had gotten them into this. Standing here, watching the strange sky, he was beginning to think he had been a fool to think this could work. All their technology and advanced weaponry had only gotten them to the brink of extinction, and did he really think he would be able to save humanity?

Bile rose to his mouth and he swallowed hard.

“Mark?”

He turned around to see Andrea, a hesitant look on her face, which was so unlike her. But probably she had been able to sense his discombobulation.

“What’s it, Andy?” He attempted a smile.

“Are we lost?” No mincing words. Straight to the point. It was one of the many things he loved about her. He hesitated for a moment, before answering her. Andy deserved his honesty, and he had never been a fan of prevarication anyway.

“I think so. I don’t know where we are, so technically yea.”

“Technically?” her brows rose.

“It’s not like we had any specific destination in mind,” he shrugged.

“If we don’t find a habitable planet soon, we may all die here.” She said, her eyes shadowed. For all her capacity for reading him, he had never been able to read her. She spoke the words so matter-of-factly.

“I know,” he said, not sure if she wanted confirmation or comfort. “We may find a planet in this new galaxy.” He could always hope.

“Or we can return to earth.” She avoided his eyes, but he caught the wistful note in her voice. So that was it. Mark shook his head, but she continued still without looking at him, “I know it’s a long way off, but it’ll ensure at least some of us will survive, and-“

“Andy” he interrupted her, “By the time we reach, earth will no longer be habitable.”

If it was even there. But he did not say those words aloud. If earth was destroyed, it was likely that the entire solar system could be thrown out of balance. A planet that had formed over millions of years and had survived so long and all it took humanity was a few thousand years to ensure its destruction. He swallowed again. He was the one averting his eyes now, because he didn’t want her to see the devastation on his face.

“You don’t know that,” she said, but her voice shook. He could see in her eyes that she knew he was right, but it was a hard truth to accept, and so she would fight it.

“Isn’t that why we left?” He asked, his voice low and it felt as if his entire being was being wrung out by the words he spoke. “To ensure that the human race would survive?”

Perhaps they shouldn’t have left. After all, why did they deserve to survive when their planet and the millions of life forms on it didn’t? Especially since it was their own fault.

“But we’re going to die here anyway,” she whispered, her voice dull.

Perhaps that was what they deserved. Perhaps it was only fitting that they die here amongst these strange stars, drifting in space forever, the relic of a race which had destroyed their own planet.

Mark sighed. He was the one who had talked everyone on the ship into leaving earth, convinced them it was their only hope for survival. And now they were all going to die anyway, slowly, from lack of food, water, and air. At least on earth it would have been a quick death.

“Am I interrupting?” Jake didn’t look too worried. “Cheer up. I bring good tidings. We have spotted a planet. Scanners indicate presence of life, and it looks like it may be habitable. Shall we make for it?”

Life!! Habitable! Mark could not believe his ears. He could have hugged Jake. Make for it? Need he even ask? He was about to say “Yes” when it crossed his mind that perhaps he was allowing desperation to overcome his reason.

“How many know of this?”

“Just Ben and I; he was the one who did the scanning.” Jake spoke as if he understood the reason for Mark’s question. Was he that transparent?

“Don’t spread the word.” Mark said. “We’d better send a small party ahead to know if the planet will support human life. We also need to make sure there are no hostile aliens there. If everything’s good, we’ll make for it.”

“It’s a large planet, larger than earth,” Jake said. “I’m sure any aliens there might be happy to share the planet with us.”

“Besides,” Andrea said. “It’s not as if we have a choice, Mark. Whatever we find down there, if this planet does support human life, then it is our only option.”

Mark had never felt so harried in his life. “All right,” he said. “But I still say we send in a party to scout out the planet.”

“I want to be in the party” Andrea said.

“Me too,” Jake said.

“All right,” Mark said. “We’ll take Dr. Harvey as well. Also Sam and Ron, they’ve had military experience. For all we know, there could be a bunch of hostile aliens tracking us from down there – or even wild animals. Jake, get the team assembled and tell Boris to get the shuttle ready.”

“Aye aye captain,” Jake winked at him before sauntering off.

“I better get ready,” Andrea looked happy, almost. Hope. This was what hope looked and felt like. Mark tried to tamp it down, but was aware of a lightness in his chest and of his lips stretching in a grin. He didn’t know what awaited them on the planet’s surface, but he felt as if he could deal with anything. After all, nothing could be worse than dying out here, could it?

He looked at the stars again. They no longer looked mocking or cold.

Movie Review: Evening Shadows

Review: Evening Shadows

Sridhar Rangyan is known for his championing of LGBT+ rights and his movies depicting the challenges faced by the community in India where, till recently, homosexuality was a crime. His latest offering, Evening Shadows is a coming out story. But more than that, it is the story of a bond between a mother and her son and how she struggles to come to terms with the revelation that her only son is gay.

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The film is set in a conservative small town family in South India with Damodar (Ananth Mahadevan), a tyrannical father who believes that homosexuality is against Indian culture, values and ethics,;Vasudha (Mona Ambegaonkar), the mother who is the typical Indian housewife, one who obeys her husband, and whose life revolves around taking care of her family and their gay son Kartik (Devansh Doshi) who is a photographer in Mumbai and is in a committed relationship with another man, but hasn’t told his parents yet. They think Aman is his roommate.

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In the backdrop is the aunt, Sarita (Yamini Singh) who has left her abusive husband and is crticised by Kartik’s father for her inability to manage her own life and marriage when she attempts to advise him not to force Kartik into marriage; the uncle Ramesh (Abhay Kulkarni), a closeted homosexual who has married to satisfy his family, and who had sexually abused Kartik in childhood, and who still seems to have a thing for his handsome nephew; Aman (Arpit Chaudhary) whose mother has not talked to him since the day he came out to her; and there is the 2013 SC judgement which reinstated section 377 overturning the Delhi HC verdict. In view of the recent SC judgement declaring section 377 as unconstitutional, the 2013 verdict is now moot, but the reactions of Kartik and Aman to the judgement and Kartk’s fears on how it will make it even more difficult for his mother to accept his reality are all brought out well.

The film does seem to border on propaganda at times, but considering its theme, that’s only natural. The propaganda part is not “the-in-your-face” kind, but subtle and is incorporated naturally into the dialogues. The bond between Kartik and his mother is natural and easy and both actors have done an amazing job in their roles. Though some of the changes in Vasudha does seem based on the ideal rather than the real, her acceptance and support of Kartik in the end leaves no one unsurprised. As she tells her husband, whatever or whoever Kartik is, he is hers. If only more mothers had as much strength to stand up for their children!

Kartik’s relation with Aman is mostly phone calls to and from, but the audience is left in no doubt about the depth of their feelings for each other or of how committed they are to each other. They support each other, and have plans to grow old together. They are a cute couple in the only scene we get to see them together. Both Devansh Doshi and Arpit Chaudhary are excellent in their roles.

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Ananth Mahadevan as the ultra conservative Damodar who kicks out Kartik and performs his funeral rites has also rendered a noteworthy performance and the supporting cast are also good, but the star of the movie is undoubtedly Mona Ambegaonkar who is simply stellar as Vasudha.

Evening Shadows is heartwarming and beautiful. It is more than a film about homosexuality – it is about the bond between a mother and a child, and how that bond is capable of withstanding even things beyond the mother’s comprehension. As Vasudha tells Kartik towards the end, she may never comprehend homosexuality, but she will always accept and support him. And ultimately, what more can anyone ask for? This is a movie that’s definitely worth watching whether you are gay or not, whether you support LGBT+ rights or not, because the themes depicted are universal, the struggle for acceptance in a world that’s too eager to tell people who they should be and is too quick to judge them for being different.

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How do I write a first draft? The 3 secrets to plotting vs pantsing your novel. 

Creative Frighting

You’re pumped, right? Inspired. You’ve got an idea that you can’t get out of your head – be it for a novel or a short story or even a screenplay. It’s an idea that came to you in the night, maybe. An idea that hopefully popped into your head after my last post – How To Banish Writer’s Block.

But either way, in the here and now, it’s a new beginning. A

fresh start – your first book or your tenth. It’s exciting and scary and

there’s so many possibilities lying ahead.

But there’s that voice again, whispering in the back of your

mind: ‘This is going to hurt, isn’t it?’

Well, maybe. A little. Because writing a first draft? It’s a marathon. A marathon without any real route. You can go whichever way you want. It’s liberating, on a good day. And on a bad?

Well, it’s an…

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Pages of Surprises: The Joy and Despair of Being a Pantser

Uh, pantser?

Simply, it refers to writers who write by the seat of their pants. Those who make it up as they go along. Sometimes they have a general idea where the plot is going, and where it is supposed to go, but mostly, they’re also waiting to find out as they write.

Really? Writers do that?

Yes, they do. You’d be surprised at how many pantsers there are. There’s something so incredibly joyful about just letting go and let your words take you in directions you didn’t even know existed.

Is it bad?

I wouldn’t know. I’ve never done anything else. I tried plotting once, but when I put pen to paper, the whole plot fell apart, and I was writing something that had nothing to do with the outline I made.

So, why am I a pantser?

Again, I’ve absolutely no idea. I mean, I’m a person who needs structure and routine as much as I need air, if not more. I don’t do things spontaneously. If I go on a trip, I have a checklist. I budget my expenses, keep track of them. I know in advance what I’m going to cook the next day. I panic when things spiral out of control, when life feels unsettled. Even an unplanned trip can freak me out. My brain freezes if I’m in a situation like that.

But when I write, I love not being in control, I love letting go, to jump off that cliff in the hope that I’ll fly.

Go figure.

Pantsing sounds cool

Oh, it is! There’s never a boring moment. Since I’ve no idea where my plot is going or what my characters are going to do, I’m as eager, as excited or nervous or scared, and as surprised as they. And I can always hope that my reader will be just as surprised, eager and excited.

To me, the best thing about pantsing is finding out what happens next, what my characters are going to do. Are they going to do the right thing or do they decide it’s too much work? Why are they like this? Everything is discovered as I write.

So, what’s the problem?

The problem is, when you write without any idea of what happens next, sometimes the plot takes you in unexpected directions. Now, as I said before, it can be cool, but it can also be crazy as well as needing a ton of research sometimes.

How’s that?

As an example, one of my works in progress is about a vampire. But after the first chapter, my vampire decided that he doesn’t want to be the traditional vampire. He won’t be an undead or anything related to humans. He’s part of a humanoid race with magic, a separate species, but he still drinks blood. So, I am in a position where I have to do a ton of research on every animal on the planet that drinks blood in order to come up with a biological reason why this species needs to drink blood.

And don’t even get me started on the dragons.

Dragons?

Ah, well, I started writing this story, and it was shaping to be a love triangle, then took a twist and I realised that it was probably going to be a journey of self discovery and personal growth for all three of its main characters and I was super excited till boom! A dragon decided to land in the story, or rather, to take off in front of one of the characters. And now I have five kinds of dragons, a whole new mythology and no idea where my plot is going and my main characters? Looks like they’re going to be secondary characters.

Of course, it’s still better than the aliens.

Aliens?

Again, this was a sci fi series I was writing and the first two books were already finished and I started on the third which I was hoping would round things off, but instead, from the beginning, the plot started twisting till suddenly the galaxy I was writing about is facing an alien invasion, which really throws me off because there are no aliens or references to aliens in the first two books which means I am going to have to fix my already finished books. Fun, right?

Does this mean pantsing is bad?

Oh no! It’s confusing, it’s frustrating, but for me, there’s no other way to write. I’ve a great deal of respect for plotters; I’m in awe of them, because what they’re doing is utterly impossible for me. But I love the way I write, and I can manage a few dragons and vampires and aliens as long as I get to occasionally soar when I jump off that cliff.

New Series in Channillo

I’m posting one of my books as a series in Channillo. Don’t forget to subscribe and leave a comment!!

Never a Good Time

Inkling Interview: Clyde Andrews

Ayana Gray

Clyde Andrews

Happy Friday! Party time!

One of my hopes with the #inklinginterviews is to hear voices from a diverse array of writers around the world. Diversity isn’t just about colors, it’s about a willingness to listen to the stories of people who don’t look like us, talk like us, or think like us. I firmly believe that, at core, many of us share the same base beliefs in kindness, love, and respect no matter where we come from. That’s why this week I wanted to venture over to Australia to interview this wonderful writer. His tweets are always so positive and kind. He once caught my attention when he unapologetically took a stand for a particular community in his writing and noted that he was more than happy to lose followers to stand for the people he believed in. (In this social-media centered world, that means a lot to…

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Why Creativity Can’t Be Taught

Writer's Treasure Chest

“What is creativity?

During my research I found there are about as many definitions of ‘creativity’ as there are people. For example:

Henry Rollins says: “Starting with nothing and ending up with something. Interpreting something you saw or experienced and processing it so it comes out different than how it went in.”

Daniel Pink‘s definition is: “Giving the world something it didn’t know it was missing.”

The English Oxford Dictionary‘s definition is: “The use of imagination or original ideas to create something; inventiveness.”

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Now, according to ‘Psychology Today’ creativity cannot be taught. In 2011 they wrote, you can teach everyone how to use a hammer or knitting needles.

But knowing how to use a hammer or a knitting needle doesn’t make you creative. Visualizing, dimensionally manipulating or modeling the chairs you build in your mind’s eye won’t necessarily make you creative either. Whether material or mental…

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The Banished Secret

Chapter Eight

Aditya sat in a corner, feeling out of place and bored. He and Abhi had arrived at Shyam and Vina’s house at six and had been ushered into this room. It was a large room which was already full of people the same age as Abhi and Aditya had immediately felt out of place. He had found a seat in a corner and Abhi had stayed at his side for a while before Aditya told him to go and have fun. Abhi had resisted for a while more before gravitating towards his friends. There were a lot of Aditya’s students among the guests, and they came over to greet him before going back to mingle with their friends. Abhi was dancing with a girl whom he remembered having seen once or twice around the campus. Vina was flirting with one of the boys from their class named Aakash and Shyam was nowhere to be found.

He was wondering if it might be polite to leave and was looking around to see if he can spot Shyam anywhere when a stranger came and sat down on a chair next to him.

“Hi,” the man said. “You are Abhi’s brother, aren’t you?”

Aditya looked at the man. He had never seen him before. He was tall, with a pleasant open face, and pair of very keen eyes.

“Yes,” Aditya said. “But how did you know?”

The stranger chuckled. “Easy to spot the resemblance. I’m Savit, by the way. I’m not from the college. I’m a family friend of Shyam. That’s how I met Abhi.”

Aditya nodded. “Nice to meet you,” he said, before relapsing into silence. What did one say in situations like this? He had never had any skill in making small talk.

“You’re a professor, aren’t you? What do you teach?” Savit asked.

“Economics,” Aditya replied, nearly suppressing a groan. It looked as if Savit wasn’t going to leave soon.

“I’m a total ignoramus where that is concerned,” Savit grinned. “Just scraped through with pass marks in school.”

Aditya smiled faintly, not knowing how to answer or if any answer was expected.

“You’re not drinking,” Savit observed.

“I have to drive home,” Aditya answered.

“Hmm… and your parents are on holiday, I heard.”

“Not exactly. They have gone to visit our grandparents.” Aditya wondered how Savit knew about their parents not being home, but he did not explain that his grandmother was ill and his parents would not be returning in the near future, not till she improved anyway.

“I see,” Savit said, smiling. “Well, nice talking to you, Aditya. Be seeing you around.”

Aditya heaved a sigh of relief as Savit disappeared into the crowd of dancing youngsters. But the sigh turned into a groan as Aakash sat down onto the vacant seat with an ingratiating smile.

“Here you are,” an unknown girl with a bright smile grabbed hold of Aakash before he even greeted Aditya. With a muttered apology, Aakash went with the girl.

“Enjoying yourself?” Shyam took the seat Aakash had vacated.

“Would you feel offended if I say no?” Aditya was tired of trying to make conversations. At least with Shyam, he didn’t have to pretend.

Shyam shrugged. “Not really. Abhi did warn me you were kinda anti-social.”

“I’m not, but I’m not comfortable with people I don’t know.” Aditya was offended. He wasn’t anti-social. He just liked his own company or those of his books more.

“Sounds anti-social to me,” Shyam teased. “If you’re tired of the party, go and have dinner. Buffet is arranged outside. You can go home afterwards.”

“Abhi planning to stay here tonight?” Aditya asked.

“I think so. We’ll be glad to have you too, you know.” Shyam said.

“I think I’ll go. I dread having to make small talk to people I don’t know.” Aditya hadn’t meant to have said it, but he wasn’t regretting having said it either.

Shyam laughed. “Well, Saina saved you from Aakash, didn’t she? You didn’t have to make any small talk.”

“Not with him. But there was no one to save me from that Savit guy.”

“Savit?” There was a slight frown on Shyam’s face.

“He said he was a family friend.” Aditya said.

“Oh him! Yea. He’s a bore. Come to think of it, he wanted to stay the night too. And so did a couple of others.” Shyam frowned. “I’m beginning to realise that we don’t have enough room. Abhi will need to go home. How am I even going to explain that?”

Aditya chuckled. “How fortunate l did not take you up on your invitation!”

“I’m bad at organizing,” Shyam grimaced. “I’ll probably need to sleep on the couch too. Never mind. You go have your dinner. I shall bring Abhi too.”

“He won’t be happy,” Aditya muttered.

“No, he won’t. I’m hoping he’ll…” Shyam’s brow cleared. “I got it! I’ll come with you two. I just need to throw a few things in a bag. How lucky tomorrow is a holiday!”

“What? But it’s your birthday! You can’t just leave your guests and go like that!”

“Vina will manage them. She owes me one anyway. And mum and dad won’t mind too much. You did meet them today, didn’t you?”

“Yes, when we came in. Why do you ask as if they’re strangers to me?”

“Just ‘coz they’ll be asking me later if you and Abhi had dinner and all. They’re not familiar with most of this crowd, but they know and like the two of you.”

“Well, I haven’t seen them since I came in.” Aditya couldn’t really make head or tail out of Shyam’s explanation.

“Oh, they’ll be around somewhere. They don’t enjoy this crowd, but they enjoy parties. I’ll just go and tell them I’m coming with you, and we’ll all have our dinner and we’ll go.”

“Well, if you’re sure, you’re welcome to come with us.” Aditya gave in.

“Thanks big bro.” Shyam flashed him a bright smile.

Author Interview: Geetha Krishnan

This interview is with Geetha Krishnan, author of both The Lost Race and The Elitist Supremacy. The Lost Race is currently available on Amazon.

About Your Novel:

What’s the title of your manuscript / novel? 

Manuscript is titled The Elitist Supremacy

My published work is titled The Lost Race

What genre is your novel?

Both are in the Sci Fi Genre

Give us a quick synopsis and tell us what your book is all about!

The Lost Race is set in a distant future where the earth has been destroyed and humanity has sought refuge in another galaxy. There are two humanoid races already inhabiting the galaxy, one is the benign yet mysterious race of the pendant and the other is the predatory, parasitic race of the Wyrse. The humans are attacked by the Wyrses immediately on arrival but are saved by the race of the pendant who welcome…

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The Banished Secret

Chapter Seven

Arnava stepped into the room cautiously. He was carrying his bow and arrows, his dagger and his sword. The room was empty. The entire building was deserted as was evident from its dilapidated condition. Yet, he had been told to come here. He pushed open the window, which protested with a creak, but one pane still opened. One of the panes was stuck, and Arnava desisted from using force to open it. The slanting rays of the evening sun filtered in through the half open window. Arnava moved to the other side and pushed aside the moth eaten curtains. The dust made him cough, and he lifted his uttariya to his face to cover his mouth and nose. There was a balcony beyond, the door of which had been boarded up.

He was not certain if he did the right thing in coming here. Was it foolish of him to just come here on the basis of an anonymous note? He wondered who had placed the note on his room and why. Why had he been asked to come here? And by whom? There was something fishy about it. The note had burned to ash as soon as he had finished reading, but he still remembered what was written on it. It had directed him to come here at sunset if he wanted to save his brothers and his kingdom from disaster. What disaster? He could not understand, but if any unknown danger threatened his brothers or his kingdom, he could not just ignore it. But seeing the condition of the building, and that there was no one there, he was wondering if he made the right decision. He was glad he was armed.

He heard a noise and whipped around, arrow nocked. A hooded and cloaked figure stood just inside the room. He felt a prickle that might have been fear. He had not heard its approach. It? He did not know why he thought of this person as it, but the person was standing so still, and the faint breeze that came through the window and disturbed the dust and caused Arnava’s uttariya to flutter caused no movement to the man’s robes. The hood and cloak were both black in colour and covered the figure so completely that not even a sliver of flesh was visible anywhere; face, hands, feet all were covered.

“Who are you?” He demanded, not lowering his bow. “Are you the one who asked me to come? How did you get the note to my room? What disaster threatens us?”

“Impatient,” the voice sent shivers down his spine. It was like no human voice he’d ever heard; it reminded him of something slithering across the floor. “So impatient you are, yet, some things are revealed only at the appropriate time.”

“So, it was you who asked me to come.”

The hooded figure bowed his head in agreement.

“If you don’t intend to tell me anything, why did you ask me to come?”

“To tell you of your purpose,” the voice dropped to a whisper, becoming almost a hiss.

“What purpose?” Arnava asked impatiently. “Who are you to give me orders, or tasks?”

“Who I am is irrelevant, but the task you’ve been set is important. Do not question it! It is the will of the gods!”

“Gods?” Arnava scoffed. “I’m sure there aren’t any who look like you. If you’ve called me just to waste my time, I’ll be leaving.” Arnava half turned to leave, when the figure spoke again, sounding agitated, the inhuman voice becoming grating.

“The usurper you have taken into your midst must be killed! You must kill him! Or he will be the death of you all!”

“What usurper?” Arnava frowned as he turned to face him again.

“The one named Bhaskara! Kill him! Or he will kill you all!”

“What?” Arnava was incensed. “He’s my brother! How dare you!”

“He’s death and destruction! He’s not worthy! He must die!” The figure took a step forward.

Arnava took a step back, and released the arrow, fury coursing through him. The arrow passed through the figure and buried itself on the wall. The hood and cloak crumpled to the floor. There was nothing underneath. He lowered his arm and wiped his brow. His heart was hammering. He had no idea what he just faced, or even what exactly had happened, but he knew he had to get back to the palace before his father or brothers noticed his absence.