This book will have our talk with the talented ESL authors about their writing journey on this orange land. Let's dive in to read about what their journey looked like, what advice they can give you, and what makes them stand out as an ESL author.
This month, we've got the pleasure of chatting with sssournothings, author of Bekhudi.
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Learn more about her writing skills, inspiration, and her life as an ESL author on Wattpad! Plus, here's a small glimpse into her debut novel, Bekhudi.
Bekhudi follows the journey of Shanzae, a political heiress from Pakistan. Despite being surrounded by the boundaries and social expectations of a patriarchal conservative society, Shanzae is determined to spread her wings and fight for her freedom. The story chronicles her journey as she navigates through the politics, the deals and dramas of her family and a marriage of convenience to budding politician and businessman, Aliyaar.
Together they embark on a journey that tests them and their relationship at every turn. Dipped deep in drama, politics, lies and betrayal, Shanzae and Aliyaar's life is not easy yet love and respect blossoms between the two as they discover themselves and their relationship, falling in love when they least expected it.
But will they be able to survive the dirty politics that's out to destroy them or will they become two forgotten names in the grain of time?
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0.
Tell us about something about the language(s) that you are fluent in?
My mother tongue is Urdu, but I'm more fluent in English. I can also understand basic Spanish.
1.
How did you start writing on Wattpad? And what was your very first story written in English?
I've been on Wattpad since I was a teenager. Hoping on and off, depending on my schedule. However, at that time I was unaware of the budding South Asian community on the platform. In May 2020, at the peak of the Covid Lockdown, I stumbled across a few such stories and those books coupled with a lot of free time pushed me to start writing myself.
My first ever book here Bekhudi, which although written in English was the journey of a Pakistani political heiress as she sought out to finding herself and love.
2.
Bekhudi is a romance set in political background. How was your experience of writing contemporary political lives, about sons and daughters of politicians finding love in the spotlight?
I absolutely love politics and I feel it's a severely underrepresented genre. Politicians, especially in Pakistan, often hail from affluent, well connected families. Their lives and decisions are entangled in cobweb of power, sin and money. And that is exactly what I tried to capture in Bekhudi. The characters lived a life very few get to experience and it was extremely exciting being able to bring together characters that made questionable choices while still trying to stay true to themselves.
Shanzae and Aliyaar at their core were great individuals, yet somewhere deep down there was a darkness that powered their ambitions and goals. And coming from similar backgrounds they both understood each other which developed their connection despite the circumstances of their marriage.
3.
You're currently working on a spin off to Bekhudi. Did your process differ from writing Bekhudi? If so, how?
I definitely feel like my writing has evolved. If there is one word I'd use to describe Bekhudi, it would be raw. And I believe that was what makes it so special for me. But with my second book, while the writing process is still the same, I'm spending much more time editing and developing the characters, their personalities & their quirks.
4.
Every character you wrote is memorable and there for a reason. How do you get to know your characters?
I spend a lot of time thinking about them. And every time I try to envision a character, I put myself in their shoes and immerse myself in their world and then put into perspective how they might think or react. I like to believe I know my characters inside out, but at the same time, I try to create a mystery around my characters, by deliberately pulling back certain aspects of their personalities or even them for that matters. For example, in Bekhudi the main villain never really made an appearance or had any dialogues for that matter. I feel like this allows readers to fill in the gaps with their own imagination.
5.
Do you face any difficulty in writing as an ESL writer? Which aspect of English that you find it hard when writing (e.g. grammar, vocabulary, sentence structure, etc...)?
I sometimes struggle with sentence structure, especially since I've an incorrigible habit of writing very long sentences.
6.
If you could offer a single bit of guidance to an ESL writer, what would it be?
Read, read, read. From a very early age, my school stressed upon the importance of reading books. And today, I truely believe reading is the best way to learn and perfect a language. As ESL writers we often struggle with grammar, vocabulary and expression, and reading give us a platform to learn all those, because you're able to pick up on the words, their usage, sentence constructions, etc
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That's all folks!
Thank you for chatting with us, Salty! We wish you all the best for your future works!
