WriterStory Interviews of Writers
Sherin has done his schooling from Xavier’s High School, Bhopal, M.P. He completed BDS & MDS from Dental College, Calicut, Kerala. He is currently an Assistant Professor, Dept. of Oral & Maxillofacial Pathology, Kothiwal Dental College & Research Centre, Moradabad, U.P. He has won best paper awards in academics. Let us know more about Sherin`s writing.
What inspired you to start writing?
During my college days, I used to write small features and snippets for the college wall magazine. Writing then was more of an escape from the tedious grind of studies. Now-a-days I mostly write about stuff or things or life the way I want to see them. So I guess writing has always been a means of escape for me: from what is and what could be.
What did you like to read when you were a boy?
Lots of Reader’s Digest and AmarChitraKatha. Then my English teacher introduced the world of books to me and I got hooked. Finished most of the classics by the time I reached 5th class. One major work I read during this period was MY EXPERIMENTS WITH TRUTH.
What is the greatest challenge in writing a book?
Organization. For me the story and idea, the characters and situations all keep swarming in my head. Organizing all this in a concrete and logical manner; to get that clarity of thought is the difficult part.
How much research do you do before writing the book?
Depends on how much I know about the places and topic of my story. LDC was set in a place where I have spent most of my adult life so almost no research was needed there except for some interactions with the caregivers and inmates of the palliative centre. For my next book, I have been travelling to Haridwar quite regularly b’cos the story is set there.
What motivated you to write the book “Life, Death and Cricket”?
The story was a result of two things that happened simultaneously in 2011. One was of course that India won the cricket world cup after a long time. Like everyone else I too was overjoyed; but it didn’t last for long. One of my dearest teacher in college succumbed to cancer around that time. Somehow in my mind, these two events were connected and that’s how LDC came about.
Can you tell us more about your latest book “Life, Death and Cricket”?
The story is set in 2010 and follows the life of two 12 year old boys. Both are terminal stage leukaemia patients and inmates of a Palliative care centre in Calicut. They are the best of friends, love cricket and absolutely adore Sachin Tendulkar. Following rumours that Sachin might retire before the World cup, they come up with a crazy idea where they escape from the hospital and travel all the way to Mumbai to meet up with Sachin and convince him to play further. Their journey and its ultimate outcome form the rest of the story.
How did you come up with the idea of writing inspiring fiction genre book?
I never planned it that way. If I have to point to one person who inspired me to write this story, it would be my little girl, Ammu. Kids are capable of dreaming and doing things that we adults can’t even imagine. Why? Because they are not skeptics like us. That’s why I chose kids as my protagonists’ b’cos most of us in our right minds would not even think of having a chat with Sachin Tendulkar.
Who are your favourite authors?
Paulo Coelho, Khalid Hosseini, Jhumpa Lahiri, R K Narayanan.
How much time do you dedicate for writing on a daily basis?
Approximately 2 hours. I cannot always write everyday b’cos of my job commitments and mostly because I am prone to bouts of laziness. When I do write, it’s mostly early mornings; that’s when the rest of the world is quite and you can hear your thoughts.
What words of wisdom would you like to give to aspiring writers?
I cannot claim myself to be a role model for aspiring writers let alone anyone for that matter. I would say one thing though; the greatest obstacle to achieving anything is the demons in your own mind telling you it’s not possible. Just keep your head down and slog away; success will follow.
You can buy his book now:
