Interview: Arun Batish, Author of 'EKA'

How did you begin writing? Did you intend to become an author, or do you have a specific reason or reasons for writing a book?

It was in 7th grade when I wrote a love letter to my class teacher. It was her response to let me know that I’ve written a beautiful letter. This ignited a fire of writer in me, which I only realized later post overcoming my hormones changes in the later stage of life. This answer might sound funny to many, but like an innocent prisoner, I stand by it.

I never intended to be an author, though I do have my reasons for writing this book and the reason is to help people learn self-help skills and live an independent, meaningful and fulfilling life. I am a strong believer that my book on Self-help genre is extremely empowering and will provide means to all readers of having a customized plan of their life events, making them feel good about them & by reading my book on the said genre one will become a better and wiser person in due course of life.

How long does it take you to write a book?

I think it depends on the author to author. Few take years, few take months and few take days to write a book. As far as I am concerned one-month is enough for me.

What is your work schedule like when you're writing?

No interruptions, no beeps, no notifications, and nothing to check for 30 minutes straight before my house gets lured by the smell of freshly brewed Himalayan coffee wake me up and I start my day of being a Human Resources professional, this is my typical work schedule when I am writing on any given day.

What do you like to read? Which book or books have had a strong influence on you or your writing?

I like to read non-fiction, Realism & True-life events excite my grey matter. I am always fascinated by the words and inspirational writings of Ashoka- The Great, Julius Caesar, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Junior, Nelson Mandela, William Shakespeare & Leo Tolstoy.

Any writing rituals?

My writing ritual is simple, write every day for 30 minutes. I allow no interruptions, no beeps, no notifications, and nothing to check for 30 minutes straight before my house gets lured by the smell of freshly brewed Himalayan coffee wake me up and I start my day of being a Human Resources professional.

How many drafts do your books generally go through before publication?

I think, it truly depends on an author and I can only share my personal experience only here. I only write one copy of my book. I try and write a minimum of 500 words a day, and I start each day by reading the work I wrote the day before. I usually tweak it- add in a few bits I’d forgotten and things like that to make the writing clearer, and then I move onto the next chapter.

I send a copy of my story (when it’s finished) to my editor & publisher, add some grammatical changes if required? into my original file. That’s it. I’ve written both of my books like that only. I just know that when I type “The End” that is the end of my book. I do what I need to do to get it ready for publication and am usually working on the next one by the time my finished work is live on Amazon & other global online platforms.

Do you use any special writing software? If so what is it, and what are a few of your favorite perks of it?

I do not use any special writing software. My software on another note, is the writings of William Shakespeare, Leo Tolstoy & Paulo Coelho. I reckon they are all cult figures in writing where-in no software or any other living person can ever ape their style, thought process & influence on the global audience.

What’s more important: characters or plot?

I reckon, some authors think the character is most important, others think the plot is the most important, but according to me you really can’t separate the two. I think, Plot is what happens to a character, what a character does, or both. You really cannot have a character without a plot. To show who or what a character is, you need to show the character acting, and that is the plot. You also cannot have a plot without a character. If an unknown asteroid is coming toward earth, that might be newsworthy, but it’s not a story until you have characters reacting to the coming asteroid. How is it going to change their lives? What do they do to prepare for the coming cataclysm? What happens to them as a consequence of their actions? That’s what makes a story.

As an author, one needs good characters your reader can relate to virtually immediately. They verbalize plot-driven vs. character-driven stories, but veraciously you can’t have one without the other. Readers want to live vicariously through your characters, but first, they require to trust you, trust that you’ll take them on a peregrination they’ll connect to with characters they care about. Even if what you’re asking them to believe takes place on a peregrine planet with outrageous settings and descriptions, if you do your job correctly, it won’t matter how peculiar the setting or how weird-looking the residing peoples are, human nature can transcend all that weirdness and endear any reader expeditiously and for the duration of the story.

Tell us some more about your book.

My book "EKA – Rendezvous With Your Life Forces" describes that a rendezvous happens with life forces every single day and you are the decision-maker to accept or reject these moments in your life and how ‘EKA –The One, Single and Supreme Sense’ helps you accept them in the purest form. The book describes how having a more vigorous ‘EKA’ can make you understand the realities of life and understand the secrets of an ecstatic life. The authentic essence of these life forces and how they represent part of your experience of being in the world are explained. The author explicates how ‘EKA’ helps you understand the puissance that runs through your subconscious mind and questions arising in your mind by being exposed to the realities and secrets of a blissful life!

Any last thoughts for our readers?

For your readers, if they all want to understand the real essence of life forces? Read a book about different aspects of life forces without being preached less on philosophy and a more practical aspect? Understand the energies of life forces? What are the rendezvous moments of life forces in your life? What value do life forces have in the present? My book is what they all need to seek answers on the same.     

Book link - https://www.amazon.in/EKA-Rendezvous-your-life-forces/dp/1646509676
Instagram Handle - https://www.instagram.com/arunbatish7/