A Conversation with Namrata Gupta, Best-Selling Romance, Thriller Author

Namrata Gupta is an English Literature graduate from Hans Raj College, Delhi University and has a master’s degree in management from LBSIM, Delhi. Namrata wants to make an immutable influence on the minds of the readers through her writing. She loves travelling and exploring new things. When she is not writing or travelling, you will find her interacting with her readers on social media. It’s time for a conversation with Namrata.

Let’s get started with a quick rapid fire.

Q1. Do you read your reviews? What’s your take on bad reviews?

Yes, I go through the reviews. Bad reviews highlight the areas where I can improve as a writer and deliver even better the next time.

Q2. Till now what’s your opinion about what actually a reader likes to read, as in genres?

Different people have different preferences. Some people like romance novels, some are into mythology, some don’t read fiction at all and would rather go for non-fiction. It’s all about identifying the right target market for your book.

Q3. What are the top 3 wishes in your bucket list?

To travel the world, to win an acclaimed literary award and to write the script of a movie.

Q4. Any particular genre or book that you are not much into?

I am not into non-fiction books.

Q5. Being an author of three popular novels, how do you balance your writing and working career?

I utilize the commuting time and don’t waste my weekends by doing nothing.

Q6. Since, the book “together we were whole” is a thriller romantic book, can we expect more thriller books from you in the future?

Yes, definitely.

Q7. There are many incidents in the book that are so relatable in real life, do you blend your real-life incidents with the plot?

Yes, it helps in making the incidents relatable.

Q8. What do you do besides writing and traveling?

Netflix and chill. I also love to connect with my readers on social media.

Q9. What all can the readers look forward to in the book, Together We Were (W)hole?

There is romance, suspense, lies, deception, misunderstandings, betrayal, revenge, deceit, power plays within the narrative. The plot has business partnerships, corporate life, a warm love affair and thirst for vengeance.

Q10. How do you come up with names for your characters?

I ideate a lot on the names then finally go ahead with the one that sounds good to me as per the character sketch I have in mind. For example, Mr. Kushal Dev Kashyap in Together We Were (W)hole sounded right to me for a successful businessman with a daunting personality.

Q11. Message for your readers.

Readers, you guys are my support system. You keep me going and make me so happy! Thank you very much for supporting me. Your messages mean a lot to me. I am blessed to be able to reach out to all of you through my books. Please keep supporting me always.

It’s time for a more detailed conversation, Namrata.

You’ve answered our rapid fire brilliantly, Namrata. Now, it’s time for our readers to know more about the person behind the book.

Q. We would love to know about you in detail.

I am an English Literature graduate from Hans Raj College, Delhi University and have completed my post-graduation in Masters of Business Administration from Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Management, Delhi. I reside in New Delhi. My poems were published in national newspapers like Punjab Kesari when I was ten. My write-up has been published in Hindustan Times. I have academic scholarships awarded by CBSE to my name. I have authored four popular novels, A Silent Promise (2015), The Full Circle… Stumbling Upon A Sinful Mystery (2018),Together We Were (W)hole (2020) and Lost Love Late Love (2021). My books have won many hearts. A Silent Promise, a readers’ favorite, was launched by Mr. Petko Doykov, the Ambassador of Bulgaria to India. The book was also released by Mr. Sudhir Mishra (Indian film director) at Gurgaon International Film and Literature Festival, held at DLF Cyber Hub (2015), where a reading session was also conducted for the book. The Full Circle… Stumbling Upon A Sinful Mystery was best ranked #26 in Crime, Thriller and Mystery and #33 in Contemporary Romance on Amazon. Together We Were (W)hole (2020) was recently ranked #1 In Romantic Suspense and #2 in Crime, Thriller and Mystery on Amazon. I want to make an immutable influence on the minds of the readers through my writing. I love travelling and exploring new things.

Q. I read about you that you want to make an immutable influence on the minds of the readers, so according to you how much have you done to progress in this above statement.

Well, more than what I had expected when I started writing books. Readers have reached out to me and told me about how my books have inspired them or given them hope or helped them in some way. I get overwhelmed by reading their responses to my stories. It is amazing how a work of fiction can move people and help them in turning their life around. There are days when I feel demotivated but as soon as a message pops up from a reader, I am reminded of how blessed I am to be able to bring about a positive change in others’ lives. My readers are my biggest support system. But, I believe that I still have miles to go. I have to write a lot of books. I have to reach out to more people, influence more lives and inspire more people. There are still a lot of stories waiting to be told.

Q. Summarise your novels in a paragraph each.

A Silent Promise (2015) is about the journey of a youngster, Avantika, towards finding herself and the purpose of her life after an initial setback. She meets a person who helps her find the true meaning of life, only to be tricked by destiny. It is through the trials and tribulations she faces that she grows, becomes stronger and matures. The book also questions social conventions and touches upon social issues like the question of real blood. The story is empowering in its own way. Besides, the book also keeps suggesting to the readers the impending doom, the game that is played by destiny later in the book. So the entire aura of the end is kicked off from the beginning itself, which is one of the things I liked introducing in my debut novel itself.

My second book, The Full Circle… Stumbling Upon A Sinful Mystery (2018) is a Romantic Thriller. The book captures the story of a traveler, who on his journey to finding a ‘home’, ‘home’ in the spiritual sense of the word, becomes a part of various stories and helps people in his own way. The book breaks stereotypes at many levels and questions ‘settlement’ as being related to ‘fixedness’. The concept of a ‘home’ is shifted from the physical domain to the spiritual one and the book asserts that home doesn’t necessarily has to be a place. Home can be a person too. The book opens up in Darjeeling, where Aditya meets Zinnia while staying as a tenant in her mother’s house. As the narrative progresses, he stumbles upon a devastating secret about Zinnia’s past that turns her life upside down. The past and the present merge beautifully as they uncover the truth behind her past.

Together We Were (W)hole (2020) is a tale of vengeance amidst distorted personal relationships, misunderstandings and masked identities set in a business environment of deceit, power plays and games. Sanaya has looked into the heart of betrayal and managed to stay alive after a perceived emotional and physical battle with someone she cared deeply about. She has risen from the ashes like a phoenix for one purpose, to seek revenge against the man who betrayed her trust and left her to die. It is a Romance Thriller. There is romance, suspense, lies, deception, misunderstandings, betrayal, revenge, deceit, power plays within the narrative. The plot has business partnerships, corporate life, a warm love affair and thirst for vengeance.

Q. What encouraged you to become an author?

I loved writing since I was a kid. I used to write poems and articles for national newspapers and school magazines. I loved English Literature. I was always fascinated by it and found my escape in it. So when I started writing poems, I found myself travelling to a completely different world. The love for such travel increased to a level where I wanted to create my own different world and hence ended up writing novels. So I would say that it was the love for Literature and flights of fantasy, which writing allows you to have, that encouraged me to become an author.

Q. What is more challenging: Writing a book or publishing it.

Both are equally challenging. Sewing the past experiences of characters and where they come from within a narrative, while justifying their present complexities as rooting from the past or being a result of various psychological and socio-cultural influences, and at the same time keeping those intact and running along in the narrative requires efforts from the writer’s end. Plus, the characters also have to grow as persons within the story and that too has to be highlighted, keeping their integrity intact, without them coming out as whimsical, if they’re not supposed to. This is how writing becomes challenging. On the other hand, the entire process of publication right from finding the right publisher for your book to holding the published book in your hand has its own challenges and a lot of hard work goes into it.

Q. Who should read the book, Together We Were (W)hole?

Anyone who likes reading romance thrillers would find this book exhilarating. Also, anyone who seeks inspiration from books, has experienced betrayal or heartbreak, wears a mask in public, pretends to be strong but is breaking down inside, been a victim of misunderstandings, hasn’t healed from a relationship or an event, transformed to become a stronger person or is running from himself/herself would be able to relate with the characters. The book has something for everyone.

Q. Tell us about the characters in the book.

Our circumstances, traumas, the people around us, the way we are treated, heartbreak, loss, struggles- all these things mould our character. Often, the self that we showcase in public is very different from the one we find ourselves to be when we are alone within four walls. The characters in Together We Were (W)hole are no different. Mr. Kashyap’s character is shaped by his traumas, insecurities, ridicule he was subjected to and thus, he wears a mask in public to hide the loneliness deep within him.

Similarly, after looking into the heart of betrayal, Sanaya is completely transformed to right the wrongs done to her. Yet deep in her heart, she yearns to go back to old times and to her unfiltered self. Siddharth runs from his own emotions in the book. In running from his feelings, he showcases a variety of shades and at times, contradictory traits within him.

Q. What is the most difficult part in the process of writing a book, as per you?

I think it would be doing justice to the depiction of the characters in the book. So, for example, in Together We Were (W)hole, Mr. Kashyap’s character is shaped by his traumas, insecurities, ridicule he was subjected to and thus, he wears a mask in public to hide the loneliness deep within him. Similarly, after looking into the heart of betrayal, Sanaya is completely transformed to right the wrongs done to her. Yet deep in her heart, she yearns to go back to old times and to her unfiltered self. Siddharth runs from his own emotions in the book. In running from his feelings, he showcases a variety of shades and at times, contradictory traits within him.

So I would say that sewing the past experiences of characters and where they come from within the narrative, while justifying their present complexities as rooting from the past or being a result of various psychological and socio-cultural influences, and at the same time keeping those intact and running along in the narrative requires efforts from the writer’s end. Plus, they also have to grow as persons within the story and that too has to be highlighted, keeping their integrity intact, without them coming out as whimsical, if they’re not supposed to.

Q. What is the best comment and the worst criticism you have got till date? How did you deal with it?

The best comment I have received so far is when a reader told me that my first book A Silent Promise gave her hope and helped her come out of a miserable condition. The book restored her faith in life. And what’s better than readers relating to your book and being inspired to do the work on themselves or around them. It is extremely joyful. All the mails and messages that I receive from my readers are important to me. There hasn’t been any criticism as such but people have told me where I need to improve. I have been told that I don’t promote my book enough so I have started working on that.

Q. Taking up the 10 year challenge… where/what was Namrata 10 years ago… is now…. 10 years later….

Namrata was very innocent and emotional 10 years ago… More mature now… Don’t know what’s in store in the next 10 years… But I have always been a writer at heart since the age of 10. I began writing poems when I was ten, which were published in national newspapers like Punjab Kesari. So, Namrata was a writer at heart 10 years ago, is a writer at heart now and will be a writer at heart 10 years from now.

Q. What encouraged you to become an author?

I loved writing since I was a kid. I used to write poems and articles for national newspapers and school magazines. I loved English Literature. I was always fascinated by it and found my escape in it. So when I started writing poems, I found myself travelling to a completely different world. The love for such travel increased to a level where I wanted to create my own different world and hence ended up writing novels. So I would say that it was the love for Literature and flights of fantasy, which writing allows you to have, that encouraged me to become an author.

Namrata Gupta can be reached at @authornamratagupta and @namrata511 on Instagram.

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