Tuesday

Book review : Kissing the Demon



About the Book

Title: Kissing the Demon
Author: Amrita Kumar
Publisher: HaperCollins Publishers India
ISBN: 978-93-5264-303-5
No. of Pages: 245
Price: 350 INR
Genre: Self-help guide

About the Author

Amrita Kumar is an anthologist, novelist, writing-mentor and creative writing teacher. She began her career in the godowns of Daryaganj to select books for a chain of bookshops, moving on as research writer for the Department of Culture, Government of India, then on to publishing as associate editor, Penguin India; editor-in-chief, Roli Books; managing editor, Encyclopedia Britannica; editor, Indian Design & Interiors magazine; and vice-president, Osian’s Literary Agency. In addition, she has freelanced for Rupa & Co., HarperCollins India and Oxford University Press. She lives in New Delhi.

The Cover Speaks

The white cover with the embossed title gives makes it elegant to hold. It is a handbook written for creative writer to help him/her in his/her writing sojourn.

Synopsis

Do you have a great story to tell but don’t know where to begin or how to give it shape? 

Whether you’re an aspiring writer or a seasoned one, a writer of fiction or narrative non-fiction, Kissing the Demon will help you navigate the maze of plot construction, narrative viewpoint, character development, dialogue creation and description even while allowing your imagination to flow. 

Written by an editor and publisher who has for over four decades nurtured some of India’s finest writers, it also tackles the insular world of publishers, agents, contracts and editors. It tells you how to find a publisher or agent, what gets a publisher’s attention and what turns it off – all the stuff writers take years to learn. 

Finally, it offers solutions to the vexing issue of balancing everyday life with writing, a problem every writer faces and the reason why so many books remain unwritten. 

George Orwell once described writing as a horrible, exhausting experience, and that he wouldn’t have written a single book were he not driven by some demon he could neither resist nor understand. Kissing the Demon will make your journey as a writer a little less painful, make you look upon that demon with a little more love.

Book Review

This book is written for writers, be it a neophyte or a pro, to help him handle the demon of writing in a more placating manner. Every writer when makes an advent to his writing journey often comes across several problems, from procrastination to writer's block, from struggling with the story plot to penning down the climax, from publishing to marketing. All these problems have a solution and author Amrita Kumar with her wide experience in the writing field helps in finding the solution. She has diligently explained how can one approach in making the story plot more interesting. She hasn't limited herself to fiction but non-fiction writers will also get to learn strategies devised by her to make their drafts more appealing. She has well explained the nuances of character building. Amrita has written a self-help guide to show the correct path to every writer. The book also tells you how to get your book published and make your new write-up reach to a wider audience. This is a must book for every writer of you are stuck in your plot or write-up, struggling with the dialogue creation or confronting with the editors. A gist of her experience in the world of writing and publishing is bound to help the budding writer.

Happy Reading!


My Rating
3.5/5

Gracias! 
  


'I received a copy from Writersmelon in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.'

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