Author Interview: RUBINA RAMESH

Rubina Ramesh - Author, Blogger, Reviewer, Marketer

Hi Rubina,

Welcome to Flaming Sun - my blog; my space. I am glad to have you here and feel proud that I will be the first one to interview you.

To my readers,

Rubina Ramesh is ace reviewer, promoter. She has reviewed 300+ books on her website - www.rubinaramesh.com and interviewed 150 authors (including Yours truly).

Ms. Ramesh’s The Book Club exists because “We promote so that you can write…” Since The Book Club was launched in November, 2013, they have conducted blog tours for 45 books from different genres. As we talk, TBC fan page has 1834 Likes - all of them organic. They have a pending list of 36 books that have blog tours lined up.

While a number of bloggers come together to read and review the books, TBC otherwise is a one-woman show, where Rubina Ramesh creates the spotlights; co-ordinates with authors & bloggers; promotes book reviews; guest posts and author interviews across 200+ social media platforms.

I bring you Rubina Ramesh….

Rubina: Thank you Sundari. This is my first official interview. Needless to say, I am damn nervous :) But also very excited.

Sundari: Tell us something about yourself - where you hail from; where all in the world you have lived in; your education; your work profile; your family…

Rubina: I am a world citizen. Originally from Ranchi, I think from the day I came out of Ranchi, I have never stopped travelling.  Before marriage it was within  India from Guwahati to Karnataka.

Then I married my childhood friend. We both come from different cultural backgrounds - him being Tam Bram and me a Bengali. It was an interesting, learning experience for both the families :D Now blessed with two kids,  Ritika and Ritvik, we have finally settled down in Phoenix, Arizona after travelling from UK to The Netherlands; and then Malaysia to Phoenix. Often I am asked why I don’t write a travelogue. Frankly speaking, if I don’t see another plane for the next ten years, I won’t shed a tear.

I always wanted to be a journalist and ended up in IT. After I completed my MBA from Liverpool University, I had envisioned a dynamic career but due to the H4 Visa rule, I had to say goodbye to my web designing career too. During one of my lowest moments in life - the writing bug revisited me. Thank god for that.

Sundari: “WAKE ME UP” is part of the anthology Marijuana Diaries - a collection of short stories based on addiction. I find yours very different from the rest of the stories. How did you come up with the idea? Was it written exclusively for MD?

Rubina: Thanks Sundari, for appreciating my story. It was originally written for another anthology where fear was the theme. But when they asked me to pay for the story, I decided to withdraw. I have nothing against paid publication, but during that time I did not feel comfortable. When Paulami Duttagupta came up with this wonderful concept, I showed her my story and she did the honor of accepting my story. I kept the addiction as 'superstition', though some reviewers do feel that I did not comply with the theme. To me it was an addiction of superstition. The father’s addiction to superstition makes him sign a contract in blood. Which means - you part with your soul by giving the object you love most. In this case, it was his daughter.

Sundari: This is not the first story of yours that’s been published. Can you tell us about your other published works?

Rubina: My first story was published in an anthology called Writings From The Heart by Beth Ann Masarik. That story I first wrote when I was eight years old. It was once published in a local magazine. I remember an anecdote here. One army colonel wrote to me after reading that story, and asked me why I was so sad; if my mom was my stepmom. I was aghast and my mom was horrified. But today, when I look back, I think it was the biggest compliment I got as a writer :P

Then there were two short stories named Let me Go and You stole my Heart, both were part of Indireads first published anthology Long and Short of It. For personal reasons I hold Let Me Go very dear to my heart. Both the stories, I am turning them into novels. Fingers crossed :)

Sundari: You wrote your first work of fiction when you were eight. I am amazed. You are truly a born storyteller as I always believed. You review and promote other authors. But more than that, you are also a great storyteller. When should we expect to see a whole novel in your name?

Rubina: Haahah.. As soon as the publishers realize they cannot live without me :P and if they don’t realize it soon, Amazon will adopt me :D. But definitely by 2016.

Sundari: Please give us a short excerpt from your story Wake Me Up.

Rubina:

       Thinking the morning sunlight would disturb her sleep, she got up to close the window. The rusted latch was difficult to close but finally, she managed it. Turning around, she gave a scream of terror. Holding a lantern, her white face looking menacing, Swagata stood in the doorway, glaring at Arya. 
       “You didn’t come for dinner?” She asked, as if this action of Arya had cost her to fall into some kind of problem.
       “I wasn’t hungry.” Arya managed to say.
       “At this stage, you should eat properly.” Swagata looked up and down at Arya, her face a clear mask of disapproval at what she saw. 
       “You are too thin!
      This ashram was a madhouse. Arya couldn’t understand what Swagata meant by her statement. But then, nothing till now was making any sense either. 
       “I’m not hungry.” She murmured. “But I would like to meet your Acharya.” 
Swagata looked scandalized at this suggestion. “You can’t meet the Acharya so late at night.” 
      “But it’s urgent,” protested Arya. Moreover, she was planning to leave by morning. And she needed her answers before she left. 
       “No,” stated Swagata almost rudely and turned to leave. Then as if a thought occurred to her, she turned and looked at Arya, a look of regret making her face more grotesque. 
       “I wish it could have been different. I wish you could go away.” 
       Arya felt a cold shiver running down her spine. The ominous words played in her mind as she watched the retreating back of Swagata into the oblivion. 

Sundari: It’s not just Arya who must have felt a cold shiver down her spine. I am sure your readers will feel it too. I, for one, felt the heebies jeebies after reading your story. :D

Thank you so much Rubina Ramesh for gracing my blog and answering my questions. I am looking forward to reading your full-fledged novel. Inshallah, it will happen soon!

You can get in touch with Rubina Ramesh here:

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Buying Links for Marijuana Diaries: Stories of Addiction

Amazon.in | Amazon.com