My day had not begun on a good note. I had woken up with a headache that had increased in intensity over the hours. Medicines refused to help. By a happy coincidence, it turned out to be a difficult day at the office too. All in all, I spent most of the day wistfully hoping that a massive asteroid was heading towards earth. Then in the afternoon, I received a message from a Wattpad Ambassador asking me to write down my Wattpad journey. In the middle of the chaos, I found some calm for a few minutes, and forgot to be stressed about my pounding headache and the truckload of work awaiting me.

I began thinking about how my association with this wonderful site had begun. It was in the summer of 2013, when I had been on the lookout for a site where I could post my stories. I wanted a place that would be friendly and comfortable for writers and readers alike. I went through a few sites but they didn't appeal to me. Then, in a matter of just two days, two of my online friends, who were not acquainted with each other, recommended Wattpad to me. I went through the site for a couple of days to understand how it works, and felt convinced that it was the best option for me. And that turned out to be one of my wisest decisions 😊

Regarding genres, I have only written love stories so far. As a reader, however, my favourite genres are crime thrillers/murder mysteries and horror. I hope to dabble in the horror genre someday as a writer, God willing.

My inspiration to write? Well, I have always loved to read, and at some point, that turned into an irrepressible urge to write. I used to write lots of poems in my teenaged years, but no stories. Then, during my college years, the seed of a story started to sprout in my head. I spent years trying to ignore the desire to pen it down because I couldn't imagine myself writing an actual story and used to laugh at myself for even thinking about it. But the details of the story and characters grew continuously in my mind until I had everything mapped out. I still might not have had the courage to write it down if not for the vagaries of fate.

I went through a bad phase many years ago, and I needed something to escape the unhappiness in my life, and that was when I finally began writing the story I'd nurtured in my mind for so long. This will sound excessively trite and cliched, but the plain truth is that the first story I ever wrote, "Prithvi" was born out of pain. But once the story came out on paper, it held my hand and stood by me through thick and thin. When I began writing this story, I had not expected to have any readers. I had begun writing simply because I had to write it. 

My family did not know what I was writing and why I kept typing away during my spare time, but they still offered unlimited support, love and understanding at all times...and that continues to this day. My parents and my sister are my greatest blessings <3, and I thank God every day for giving me such an amazing family. Apart from them, only my best friend in the 'offline' world knows that I write stories online :) She too has stood by me like a rock through every up and down, and I call her my 'soul-sister' <3 All of them have been pushing me to publish Prithvi for 3-4 years now, and I hope that 2020 will be the year that this dream of theirs and mine and many of my readers will come true *fingers crossed*

As for Prithvi, the story had come out of my heart with a will of its own, and I didn't think anyone else would be interested in it. And my only hope was that, if anyone did read it, the story should help them forget their real-life troubles for a while. Years have gone by...but that continues to be the main purpose of my stories.

I still remember my surprise and delight on seeing that first comment on my story. Eventually, Prithvi brought friends from different parts of the world into my life, and they offered great affection and support to me whenever I needed it. Prithvi played a huge role in helping me emerge from that painful period in my life, and that is one reason why it is so precious to me. I have spent so many years with it that the characters have become as much a part of my life as my family and friends.

And needless to say, Wattpad has been a wonderful residence for my beloved characters from the start. And it has become a comfortable home for the writer in me.

Wattpad makes it extremely easy to share my stories and get feedback. I've been able to interact with my readers through comments as well as private messages, and I have loved the experience of getting to know them better. I also appreciate the fact that new features are introduced constantly to improve the experience of using the site. What I love the most about Wattpad, though, is its splendid reading community.

I have been writing Prithvi for years now, and though I've covered a major portion of the plot, I still have a long way to go before wrapping up the tale. I update at a snail's pace, and there are often gaps of a month or two between the chapters. If I was a reader of this story, I would have wanted to strangle the writer – thrice a day. Truth be told, only the most patient human beings would be able to endure the experience of reading Prithvi. And miraculously, I seem to have found almost all of them. My wonderful readers have not only put up with an insufferably lazy author like me, they encourage me in every possible way, and their affection is the reason I've been able to keep writing even during really tough times. They have my greatest respect for always. Over the years, many of them have also become very close friends of mine, and I treasure them immensely.

With respect to advertising, I've never been able to promote any of my stories. In fact, I think I must be the only writer on the planet who often advises new readers to wait for the story to end before they begin reading it.

On a personal note, I honestly believe stories choose their readers as much as readers choose the stories, and those who are meant to read a particular story will find it one way or the other. I restrict my efforts to writing down the tale, and leave it to shape its own destiny 😊

This brings me back to the day I described at the beginning of this tale.

I was still thinking about my journey on Wattpad when I received an intimation from a dear friend that I had won the Wattpad India Award for Prithvi.

I've been in a happy daze since then.

But I lay no claim over this victory, because it is the result of three factors - divine grace, the unconditional love and blessings of my amazing family, and the extraordinary backing and encouragement given by my incredible readers <3

For those who wish to write, I have only one piece of advice. Write just for yourself. Write exactly what you want to write. Write what makes you feel alive. And write it the way you want to. Then watch the magic unfold.

As Rumi says, "Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you truly love. It will not lead you astray."