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  • Oviya Arulraj

Spectacular and Very Deep Conversation with Author Shruthi Rao :D

Hi friends! This post is all about the amazing author Shruthi Rao! Let's begin!


Background:

Rao has always loved writing since she was a kid. She got her Master's degree in Energy Engineering from a school in India and worked in the IT industry for four years. In the 2000s she began to start writing again, first by blogging and wrote short stories and essays for publications. She has written books for children of all ages, including fiction and non-fiction.


 

The first book we touched on was Kadooboo. Rao says that she was inspired after thinking about "Indian folktales and wondering what modern versions of them would look like - and Kadooboo came out of that." When the book comes out she mentions that readers should especially be excited for the art, "Darshika Varma's illustrations are gorgeous."


 

Diving deeper into the actual writing process, Rao explains that for her the " story in my head is always better than what comes out on the page." The challenging part is to make the story on the page, as close as possible to the one in her head: " It’s a long, hard process. But that point at which it clicks is lovely. I feel that relief and happiness in my whole being!"


The next topic was how Rao comes up with ideas for her books. She says that "Once you start thinking like a writer, everything around you becomes a potential idea." The problem comes when ideas pop up from everywhere when she is busy writing something else.




 

She has plans for many upcoming books, they are all "in the pipeline, in different stages of readiness." Besides writing Rao enjoys reading, cooking, eating, hanging out with her family, and taking long walks in nature.


She hopes to continue making an impact on the Asian and South Asian community by writing "more books about South Asian kids - books that don't necessarily lean into culture and identity."


 

I would like to thank Mrs. Shruthi Rao very much for spending her time with me and talking about her books. Below I have links to her website and work ~ Check it out!


Malhar in the Middle: https://a.co/d/3W4dIQR

20 Indians Who Changed the World: https://a.co/d/0GUZo3p



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