Author Shravya Bhinder Talks About Her Romance Novel: Something I Never Told You

  Shravya Bhinder's Debut Romance Novel   Love is a song that the breeze croons as it blows over the mountains, across the mighty oceans and the  drenched skies. It is the fragrance that exudes a secret charm and it is the vibe that binds hearts.  Love is the voice that speaks in silence. It has the sheen that lights the darkest night and the courage to walk through the fire of the morn.   'Something I Never Told You,' by the young author Shravya Bhinder is a novel that is drenched in love. Shravya talks about her debut Romance Novel in an exclusive interview to BananiVista, the digital lifestyle magazine.   BV: ‘Something I Never Told You’ is a love story. It opened at rank 5 in romance and now has a bestseller ribbon on Amazon. Are you in love with the idea of love that sleeps in aching hearts? Shravya: ‘Something I Never Told You’ is my debut Romance Novel and Yes, I have always been in love with the idea of love. After all love is the basis of a fulfilling and happy life. I am overwhelmed by the response, ‘Something I Never Told You,’ has received since its release. I am thankful to the readers who were kind enough to give it a chance and I am glad that it has found so much love and adulation.   Shravya Bhinder- The Young Author In Love With Love   BV: ‘Something I Never Told You,’ is a title that intrigues the curious mind on one hand and gives away the story on the other. Please explain what made you choose this title for your novel.   Shravya: I chose ‘Something I Never Told You,’ as the title of my Romance Novel because that is what my book is all about-the untold feelings. The story is of love, determination, belief and finding one’s strengths - I wanted my readers to get a hint of what the story is about and intrigue them just enough to make them add the book to their reading list.   BV: How do you perceive love as an emotion? What were the challenges that you faced with the story? Shravya: Love is a simple emotion, which we tend to complicate. I wanted to write a story which would depict just that. The protagonist is a boy, and  I wrote the  novel from his perspective - this was the most challenging thing for me, to think like a boy without any prejudice.   BV: Your characters are tailor made for the roles they play. Which character is closer to your heart as compared with the rest and why? Shravya: I love all of them; they have their own importance in the story. But as I did invest a lot of time researching for Raunak’s character; he is a little closer to my heart as compared to the rest.  This was the first time that I wrote the book from a man's perspective and this challenge made it all the more interesting for me.   BV: Have you ever experienced or seen someone experience the kind of love Raunak felt for Adira? If yes, tell us something about that. Shravya: Yes, in fact, I was waiting for this question to pop up. Raunak’s character is hugely inspired by someone I know. So, it is a real-life story with names changed.   Shravya Bhinder Believes In The Immortality Of Love   BV:‘Something I Never Told You,’ is all about admiration and pursuance in love and the present generation doesn’t follow these norms when it comes to love and relationships. Is there an underlying message that will usher a change and see the return of ‘patience’ in matters of the heart.   Shravya: I would not generalise the matters of the heart of the entire generation but I do feel that many young people today have less patience as compared to the previous generation and yes, I wanted to address that. When I thought of penning down the story, I was inspired by the protagonist’s persistence in romance and his will to make things happen. This is what I want to tell everyone who reads my book. My message is that work towards whatever you want to achieve, your dreams are your own and if anyone says you can’t reach them- do not listen to them. Work hard and make all your dreams come true.   BV: How do you perceive the different shades of love that bind us to our parents, friends and special someone? Shravya: Love is a beautiful emotion. It is the purest bond that binds people’s hearts. I believe that when you love someone, either your parents, friends or lover; the emotions are the same; the degree can vary. You can do things, which you would otherwise deem impossible to keep them happy, safe and close to you. Our society is such that we tend to categorize love into brackets. It should not be done; we should let the feeling be, we should let love be.   BV: The cover of the book has two hearts. The blue heart is obviously for the boy and the yellow one is for the girl. Yellow stands for friendship. What do you wish to convey through the cover of your romance novel? Shravya: The day I decided to self-publish the book on Kindle, I gave myself one hour to make the cover. I knew what I wanted; it had to be uncomplicated, just the way love should be. The story is about a guy who has been friend-zoned, which is why I decided to fill the girl’s heart with the color of friendship, yellow. When one is in love, the only thing that matters is the person that they are in love with; this was the reason why I chose no flashy backgrounds or letters. So, the black background gives the two hearts the privacy they need. I believe the cover should summarise the book and, it does just the same.   Shravya Bhinder Feels That Patience Is The Key To Matters Of The Heart   BV: What was your marketing strategy for, 'Something I Never Told You?' Shravya: When you put your work out on Kindle or any other platform, the first thing a writer needs to know as well as accept is that there are many aspiring authors out there who are wooing the readers in different ways. Readers see many covers, hear many advertisements and come across a lot of reviews and a new or relatively unknown author has to go an extra mile to be seen or heard. You need to make your book stand out, and this was my first challenge as I started planning the marketing strategy of the book.   I made it different from all the other books by working on small things, like the cover for instance. Most of the romance novels have bright, colorful covers with words written in bold and cursive. I chose a simple black cover, with two hearts. The cover not only summarises the book well but also stands out. Also, love notes from the book became quite popular.   BV: Why did you opt for Kindle Direct Publishing(KDP)for your book, ‘Something I Never Told You?’ Shravya: I had an uncomplicated love story, and I wanted everything around it to be uncomplicated as well. KDP gave me the freedom of publishing my book in a week. There was no waiting period. I designed the cover of my book in one hour, and my book was ready and so was I to tell it to the world. I believed that my story had the capability of winning hearts.   BV: What is the one question that has been coming your way since you released the book? Shravya: People have been asking me why did I not opt for editing of the book? Well, honestly I didn't have either the time or money to invest on editing. No one has touched the book apart from me, so it comes directly from my heart to yours. The few typos are a proof that the words are all mine.   BV: What is the writing advice you want give to budding authors? Shravya: When one wants to write, they should. Whether the book will find the right publisher, will the story appeal to the readers, will I be able to market it well? - All these questions are secondary. Whenever you do something, give it your 100% and be persistent. In my experience, persistence is the only thing that pays. Be determined never to quit, or walk away. As a writer, believe in your story, believe in the impact of your storytelling abilities.   BV: Tell us something about yourself that our readers will never forget. Shravya: They should be very careful of what they tell me, exciting stories and interesting people can land up in my next novel.   Something I Never Told You Is All About Romance That Blossoms In The Heart     ‘Something I Never Told You,’ that it was a pleasure reading your book and talking to you. Team BananiVista wishes Shravya Bhinder good luck for a bright and prosperous future.   For more author interviews click here.