WEAVING A TAPESTRY OF WRITINGS ABOUT HUMAN EMOTIONS

Author Interview: Prabhupad Mishra

Prabhupad Mishra is working as an Assistant Vice President with a leading bank. He is currently based out of Bhubaneswar, Odisha. He was born in Burla which is the educational hub of western Odisha. His writing interests include fiction, romance and self-motivation. He has recently come out with his debut book “Tapestry of Life Cadences”. In a candid chat with Chirdeep Malhotra, he talks about his book, his writing journey, his favourite books and authors, and much more. Read on!



Please tell us more about Prabhupad Mishra as a person.

I am your regular boy next door who makes your life easier by running most of your errands! You wouldn’t fail to notice me on your morning walks in the park. I am the one who is always teaching children new tricks in football and cricket. Another thing people around me love is the way I always takes out time to play with and feed the stray dogs around the colony. My workplace is always abundant with positive energy and you can’t help but love that energy level. My ability to go that extra mile to help anyone in need is what will make you smile whenever you meet me. I have always been a strong believer of the fact that life is abundant with happiness whenever you help a fellow human being. You just work to spread happiness and the Universe works equally harder towards getting happiness into your life.
I was born in Burla which is the educational hub of western Odisha, in India. I am currently based out of Bhubaneswar, Odisha and working as an Assistant Vice President with a leading bank. My writing interests include fiction, romance and self-motivation. This is my first book which is an anthology.



Has writing always been a part of your life? Or did you chance upon it later on and then instantly fell in love with it?

I have been writing short stories and poems since I was a kid. I realised that I could reach out to people in a better way if I got myself published. And, thankfully, it has turned out to be true since I got published! Writing started as a hobby when I was a child and now it has become close to my heart. My father motivated me to start writing my experiences when I was 7 or 8 years old. So that’s where it all began.



Tell us more about your book “Tapestry of Life Cadences”.

“Tapestry of Life Cadences” is an anthology of short pieces and poems, that I have written over the past few years. Most of the pieces we have published are varied emotional experiences that we go through in our lives. Hence, ‘Life Cadences’ meaning, the rhythm of life and the emotions it offers to us. And, the book being a collection of emotional experiences, we added ‘Tapestry’.
This book has 45 chapters in all. You don't necessarily need to follow any sequence in reading it. I have tried my best to ensure that every piece sets the reader on a journey of thoughts. My own favourite piece from this book is one titled – ‘Ruminations on Life’.



How has the response of readers been to your book?

Response has been better than I had expected! It is a very satisfying feeling for a writer when his work touches the heart of a reader. I really love it when my readers reach out to me saying that they loved some particular story.
There are a few readers who come back to me saying how one of my stories matches a part of their story a lot. And I say it will always happen. This is a tapestry of human emotions. So there are bound to be similarities to someone's life, albeit coincidentally!



How did the idea of writing this book originate? When did you start writing this book and how long did it take you to finish it?

I usually tend to write about the experiences I have been involved in directly or have seen as a bystander. The most important thing that inspires me to write – the fact that it is important for every human being to learn about the myriad of emotions which every human being is capable of experiencing.
Most of the pieces in this compilation are at the most 2 years old. I had never planned to publish them. It happened all of a sudden. So, there was no pre-planning in publishing this book.



What challenges did you face while writing this book?

Actually, no challenges as I am not a professional writer. I write out of my heart. And that is why writing is not much of a task for me unlike professional authors.



Can you recommend five books from any genre, for our readers to add to their reading lists, that you particularly cherish?

“The Fountainhead” by Ayn Rand, “Love in the Time of Cholera” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, “Man’s Search For Meaning” by Viktor E. Frankl, “The Buddha's Wife” by Janet Surrey and Samuel Shem, and “The Count of Monte Cristo” by Alexandre Dumas.



What are your other interests apart from writing?

I love photography! That is one of the most gratifying of hobbies one can pursue. And with digital photography, you get to see and improve your skill right away.
I love going on long drives with my wife and daughter. There are instances when we go out on drives without any planned destination. That is something that the three of us really enjoy doing!



What are you working on next? Any new literary projects that our readers should look out for?

Currently I am working on two projects. The first one is a romantic fiction novel. It has a lot of characters and the readers will appreciate romance in a whole different perspective after reading this novel. The second one is an anthology of short stories about women and how powerful their influence is on mundane lives. This one is something that I have been wanting to write about since a long time. It will influence the reader in a way so as to inspire appreciation for all that women in their lives do for them.



There are many new writers and poets who are aspiring to get their work published. What would you say to them?

Just one suggestion – go for it! Any human being shouldn't be held back by the thought of failure. I see many people resist from getting published because of fear of failure. This is something that every writer should refrain from. The moment you get published, you reach out to a wider audience. And that is what every writer should aim for – reaching a wider audience.



Can you share with our readers a motivational quote that keeps you going?

I have quite a few actually! But this one comes to my mind right now. “Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” - Thomas Edison.