In Search of Kudos

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For a copy of "The Remix of Orchid" order-mail to nanda_lit@hotmail.com (nanda underscore lit at hotmail dot com)
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Even before “The Remix of Orchid” is formally launched, I’ve to think about its review. Or that’s what everybody says. But if I’m to recall what all happened to my earlier book “In Harness”, I don’t think I’m experienced enough. “In Harness” was my book of poetry, published in 2004 by a reputed publisher, the Writers Workshop, Kolkata. Even that publishing house could not do anything material to secure a review for the book. When I asked its proprietor Mr P. Lal about this a few months after its publication, he had practically nothing encouraging to share. On the other hand, he gave me to understand that the editors of newspapers of repute do not usually like to be contacted for review. So I kept quiet.

But that was a book of poems, my first attempt at creativity. Now I should act like an experienced fellow, more so when I’ve decided to self-publish my book. So the first thing I’ve to do now is to forget what I was told about the review business: editors do not like to be influenced. It’s a different matter that I’ve no reach for the cherished world of review. In fact nothing workable has come my way so far in this respect excepting the offer from a website to carry a review.

Everything about this will look up if I decide to help myself, and I’ve already decided to do that precisely. For the present I should concentrate on who should review my book rather than where it should get published. That’s where I have something to share today.

Yes, I’m talking about Professor Jatindra Kumar Nayak. He teaches English at Utkal University, Bhubaneswar. He won the Katha Translation Award, 1971 and Hutch Crossword Indian Fiction Translation Award, 2004. He is associated with an organization named RUPANTAR that publishes quality books of translation from Oriya to English. The institution has a website too, with a link http://www.rupantar.net/ where we can find the books published by it. A few books edited by Professor Nayak are: “From Bondage to Freedom”, ISBN 81-901759-4-7; “Meeting the Mahatma”, ISBN 81-901759-7-1.

And Professor Nayak has agreed to review my book “The Remix of Orchid”. What a nice thing to share in this blog!

With his review in my hand, I should be able to convince a newspaper fellow to publish it. So, can kudos for the book be far behind?

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By
A. N. Nanda
Bhubaneswar
26/04/2007
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Just a Few Days More

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Want to have a copy of "The Remix of Orchid"? Mail to me at nanda_lit@hotmail.com nanda underscore lit at hotmail dot com
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Yesterday I had been to meet Shri Rameshwar Thakur, His Excellency the Governor of Orissa. I showed him a copy of "The Remix of Orchid" and it was a moment of pride for me when he appreciated my effort. It was encouraging and rewarding. I now propose to formally present the book to His Excellency and attract some media notice of it. But before that I've to get it formally released and I'm working towards that. It is expected to yield some result by a week or ten days. That's OK for me. My readers and I can wait that much of delay after having waited so much for one reason or the other.

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By
A. N. Nanda
Berhampur
18-04-2007
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To Showcase

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For a copy of "The Remix of Orchid" please mail to me at nanda_lit@hotmail.com [nanda underscore lit at hotmail dot com]
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Finally, the printer could deliver the first consignment of five copies of "The Remix Of Orchid". It took the establishment a 70-day long processing time to come up with something good and presentable. When I had enquired about the delivery schedule at the time of handing over the material, I was given a cryptic reply: 'It should take only four days to print a book of 350 pages and whatever time it should take at the page layout and cover design stage is extra. Plus a week's time for binding.'

So, it took time, substantially more than I had imagined. But the result is stunning. I'm going to post here a couple of images to showcase the result. Let the pictures speak a thousand words!

One more pic to upload, please.

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By
A. N. Nanda
Bhubaneswar
14/04/2007
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Newsworthy?

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To order a copy of "The Remix Of Orchid", mail to nanda_lit@hotmail.com [nanda underscore lit at hotmail dot com]
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The other day a friendly fellow from a newspaper gave me to understand that a new book must have something of news value to get a coverage on the pages of his newspaper. In other words, it should earn its publicity through newsworthy means.

I was then reminded of a book I read years ago. It was one "The Almighty" by Irving Wallace and it underscored one point again and again throughout the book: "News is not to be collected; it should be created".

So there is a lot of truth in what the newspaper fellow told me, rather expected of me. I reflected. A book in order to be regarded a newsworthy object must have a few things at the minimum. Let me try to enumerate.

1- A catchy title catches. I've not given any catchy title to my book, like "Seven Ways to Hit the Jackpot", or "Who Moved My Kebab" or 'The Secrets of a Long Life". But then I've given it a name "The Remix of Orchid", and doesn't it sound a bit weird? So, if everything weird could be a style, won't it apply to my book?

2- The book must stand for something widely believed, or even go against it, say vegetarianism or Zionism, to get (appropriate) a stage already established. People have made names by writing on Indian poverty, animal rights, Yoga, or if I go back a century, on white men's burden. The literary fad these days, I'm told, is feminism, Dalit literature and Marixism. Then what does "The Remix of Orchid" stand for? Reading pleasure-does it subscribe to any belief or "ism"? Patriotism-does it make any substantial sense at present when thinking global is the fad? The struggle for existence-does it convey sense in an age when excellence, not existence, is the motto?

3- Sometimes what is written is not as important as who is publishing it or what he is publishing it for. Books are made to order. If it is to be marketed among women, make it a tear-jerker, say a mother-in-law troubling her daughter-in-law; a hubby hobnobbing with another "bad" woman. That's not all; I've read stories in the net involving father and daughters, not the step-daughter but the real ones, and they are such as would shock the sensibilities of one and all. There are gay themes, violence, drug abuse-to name just a few. All these have been written to write something fresh, to tread a path untrodden. As for "The Remix of Orchid", the book is not something that is made to order; it's just an expression of the writer's love for writing, expressing himself through text craft. So, should I expect a great success with such a traditional treatment of creativity?

I've taken some time from my newspaper friend to come back to him and explain him why he should give coverage to my book. Still I'm looking for an appropriate way to articulate. Possibly, I can't say that the book has a foreword by Mr Ruskin Bond and that's why he should write a feature about my book on his newspaper. Even before I could have thought of saying so, he has made it clear.
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By
A. N. Nanda
Bhubaneswar
08-04-2007
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