Interview with Kanika Saxena, Author of Gift Yourself a Smile

Good afternoon,

We have an interview today with Kanika Saxena, author of Gift Yourself a Smile.

Please see it below and enjoy! (The link to the book on Amazon is found above!)

Best,

-Vincent Lowry

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Interview:

1) What is your author name and in what state do you live (or country if not in the US)?

My name is Kanika Saxena. I live in India.

2) What is the title of your newest book and what is the genre?

“Gift Yourself a Smile” is a non-fiction, self-help book.

3) What is the book about? 

This book is an attempt to make people realize the importance of being happy and smiling. I think that this book is relevant in today’s scenario when most of us are stressed out due to different reasons. This book emphasizes the power of the smile to help one de-stress, build relationships, boost immunity, and enhance the quality of life. This book stresses the fact that we don’t exactly need our wishes to be fulfilled to smile and feel happy. We need to gift ourselves that smile to make our lives more beautiful.

4) Where did you come up with the idea?

The idea came to my mind when I happened to read a What’s App message from a friend. It was a motivational message about smiling and staying happy. The message was interspersed with emoticons of smiles. It was shared by a friend who does not exactly strike me as a happy person or one who smiles too often. It got me thinking about how we have become a generation that is too eager to share smileys and inspirational messages with others without actually “practicing what we preach.” I thought of how communication through devices has become popular in a world that seems to be losing “feelings” and emotions. I thought of writing this book to remind my audience about the importance of connecting on a “human” level instead of through devices. According to my a smile is one of the best ways to connect with others. It not only makes the one smiling happy but also spreads joy to others around. Smiling also brings a host of health benefits. So, this book is my humble attempt to make people smile!

5) How long did it take you to write it?

It took me about 10 days to write this book.

6) Did you learn anything from the project?

Being a professional content writer, I tend to dig a little deep into the topic I am writing on. So, it was while writing this book that I realized the health benefits a simple smile brings. 

7) Do you have an author website and/or blog? How about a book video?

Yes, I have an author website kanikasaxena.com. I am proud to say that I have created this website myself. I created this site in the first week of December and it still needs some finishing to be done. I love to share self-help blogs on my website. I am also in the process of setting up Email marketing for my website so that I can interact on a personal level with my readers. 

This is the second book that I have self-published. The first was “A Lockdown Story” which I had self-published in June. My third book is with the publisher. It is called “Are Teeny Tiny Stress Triggers Troubling You?”

I do have a video of my interview which was conducted after the release of my first book.

8) Do you have any success tips to pass on to fellow authors? How about any great editors/cover artists? 

Consistency is one of the most important things when it comes to writing a book. Make sure that you allocate fixed timings for writing the book. And, even on the days when you don’t feel like writing, try to pen down a few words, maybe 100-200, just to keep up the momentum.

Try to avoid editing in between. Complete the entire manuscript and then edit. This is something that I find difficult to follow myself.

People do judge a book by its cover! So, a well-designed cover is a must.

The title of the book is also an important factor for its success. Make sure that you spend enough time to think of a unique and catchy title.

Just writing a good book is not enough. If you want your book to reach a larger audience, you need to dedicate time to market it also. 

9) What genres do you like to read? Are you open to reading new authors and reviewing their work?

I like to read non-fiction books. I prefer books on self-management and success. As far as fiction books go I like to read crime thrillers.

10) What is your favorite book of all time and why? 

The Bhagwad Gita. On the face of it, this book seems to be a religious text. But it is way more than that. This book teaches some vital lessons that can transform one’s life. It can change our complete perspective on life. This book brought me to a state of “living” from that of “surviving.”

11) Fun Question: Do you have any pets? If so, what kind?

I do not have pets. But other than my family, I do have living things in my life that I take care of my plants. I love greenery and flowers. I even create organic compost using kitchen waste for my garden. So I guess my plants could qualify as my pets!

12) Fun Question 2: Do you own an electronic reading device? If so, what kind and how do you like it?

I do not have an electronic reading device because I guess I am a little old-school when it comes to reading. I enjoy having a book in my hands and reading it.

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Interview with Amelia Marriette, Author of Walking into Alchemy – The Transformative Power of Nature

Hello,

Today I’m very pleased to bring you this interview with Amelia Marriette, author of Walking into Alchemy – The Transformative Power of Nature.

Please enjoy!

Best,

Vincent Lowry

Interview:

1) What is your author name and in what state do you live (or
country if not in the US)?
My name is Amelia Marriette and although I am British I
live in a small town called Bad Sankt Leonhard in
Southern Austria.

2) What is the title of your newest book and what is the genre?
Walking into Alchemy: The Transformative Power of
Nature is a Non-fiction book: a memoir, a story about
relocation, love and finding one’s path in life. It has
passages about nature and the landscape. It includes
some Shakespeare and a bit of Art History too. 

3) What is the book about?
The central theme of the book is my personal journey
following redundancy, financial problems, depression and
ill health and my fortunate relocation to Austria. The
book has three other main areas of interest: a love story;
a nature story and a book about art, culture and the
wider world. The love story is one concerning my
chance encounter with my now partner Katie which led
to our relocation to her home town in Austria. I was
surrounded by the stunning scenery of the Carinthian
region, and my love of nature was rekindled. I sought repair and rejuvenation through the completion of fifty-
two, thirteen-mile walks in the span of one calendar
year. This act of repetitive walking enabled me to study
the changing seasons and explore the flora and fauna
of the area; I was able to return myself to health by
considering and reconsidering personal experiences,
emotions, ideas and memories. I also returned to my love
of photography. As the weeks passed, I began to find my
sense of place and my new path in life. I realised that I
was walking into alchemy, mining for gold as I went. It
was then, as a former curator and Shakespeare scholar
that I began to see connections everywhere, and I was able
to invest my walks with meaning from paintings,
musical passages and lines of verse.
I hope that my book Walking into Alchemy will inspire
readers to find their own paths in life, wherever that
might take them.

4) Where did you come up with the idea?
I came up with the idea after I had completed my first few
walks; it was going to be a blog, but I believe in the
written word and the power of printed books. I also
wanted to work on something over a period of time,
editing and polishing it and include images. I approached
the project without a clear idea of the outcome – which
was deliberate on my part; I wanted literally to take
the idea for a walk and allow my ideas to ferment and
develop.

5) How long did it take you to write it?
It took me exactly a year to walk fifty-two walks in fifty-
two weeks and a further two years to write the book –
much longer than I expected. I also completed one extra
walk and included it at the end of the book to give the
book a sense of closure.

6) Did you learn anything from the project?
I learnt so much! I learnt a great deal about the changing
of the seasons, especially in a climate that is much colder
than I am used to. I learnt about local customs and met
local people I otherwise would never have met. I learnt
that as an author “taking one’s story for a walk” really
does open up new and unexpected possibilities. I also
learnt to be calmer, more content and happier with
myself. At the beginning of my journey I found it hard to
recognise beauty in life, by the end of the year I was
looking for and finding beauty in both the minute and the
epic – mining for gold as I went. I also can now appreciate
that there is such a thing as a nature cure.

7) Do you have an author website and/or blog? How about a
book video?
I have a website – (I am also a playwright, radio
presenter and a Shakespeare lecturer):
http://www.ameliamarriette.com

I also have a blog and I blog about once a month on
average.
http://www.ameliamarriette.com/blog

I am currently recording a series of four Zoom talks about
my book. I think that using how technology is helping
authors and I am embracing this idea. I also provide more
information about why I wrote my book and expand on
some of my themes.
My latest Zoom Blog about my book, and authors and how
Zoom can technology is helping to bring new audiences.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6da9wDRkQpY&t=45s

Here is the link to the first YouTube video about my book
using the images that I took on the walk.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEUnw4n5Heg

8) Do you have any success tips to pass on to fellow authors?
How about any great editors? 
My friend, who is also a writer, began the editing process
for me with great tact and kindness. Later, my editor at
Mereo Books, a small publisher in Cirencester, very kindly
made helpful suggestions or pointed out errors again very
gently. We all need editors, but I believe that we also
need to protect ourselves from having our confidence
shattered. I also think that it’s vital that an editor respects
and retains the authorial voice.

9) What genres do you like to read? Are you open to reading
new authors and reviewing their work?
I like biographies, books about trees and nature. Anything
Shakespeare related – modern re-workings of
Shakespeare’s plays for example: Ewan’s Nutshell, Jane
Smiley, A Thousand Acres) and I also loved Headlong by
Michael Frayn – any book that looks at paintings in a
tangential and new way appeals to me and Frayn is also
an excellent comic writer.

10) What is your favorite book of all time and why? 
My favourite book of all time is the Complete Memoirs of
George Sherston – George Sherston is the pen-name of
Siegfried Sassoon. I first read The Memoirs of A Fox-
Hunting Man, followed by The Memoirs of an Infantry
Officer when I was in my twenties. I am against fox
hunting, and I am a pacifist, yet both these books opened
up worlds to me which I then inhabited, roamed about in
and explored. My mind was expanded and opened. I didn’t
change my views, but I did understand much more and
could see both issues from another point of view.  

11) Fun Question: Do you have any pets? If so, what kind?
My partner and I have a pet snail called Brian who lives in
the garden; we put a dab of nail varnish on his shell and
he has been hanging around for over two years – I think
he likes us! We see him once or twice a year – he is no

trouble. We have several hedgehogs, but we rarely see
them.

12) Fun Question 2: Do you own an electronic reading device?
If so, what kind and how do you like it?
I am so old school when it comes to books! I spend a
great deal of time at my laptop and in my study, so I like
to take a book and be away from technology. Maybe one
day I will buy a Kindle – because I do like e-books as I
like to search for words and ideas and the search facility is
great for that!

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Breaking the Barriers: A Girl’s Dream to Play Little League with the Boys ~ By Robbin Miller

During a summer family picnic in 1974, Robbin observes a little league game being played in a nearby baseball field.  Seeing how much fun the game was, and watching the fans cheer for their teams, Robbin asked her dad to teach her to play baseball. As she practiced, over time, Robbin learned that girls were not allowed to play little league baseball with boys. Refusing to give up her dream, Robbin was excited to learn about a famous court case that ruled that same year, that girls were to be allowed to play little league with boys.  The long-standing barrier was finally lifted, and Robbin signed up to play in 1975. A brave and determined Robbin strutted her stuff and showed her community that she could play ball just as well as the boys, on any baseball diamond. Despite encountering jeers, boos, and name-calling from the stands and from the boys, Robbin exceled on the field and played with her head held high for the love of the game.

 

 

 

 

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