• Deeba: You are a humorist and a thinker, do we see some similarity there with PG Wodehouse? Is he your strongest inspiration/influence?

  P.G.Bhaskar: Well, firstly Deeba, thank you for referring to me as a ‘thinker’! That is a first for me and makes me feel terribly important! But to answer your question, I was not inspired by Wodehouse to write but yes, I am an ardent admirer of his and have read his books many times over.

• Deeba: You are an Author who has warned his readers that you are not done yet! How much more would you tease them? What is the next book you are working on?

  P.G.Bhaskar: I am working on two things right now. One is the third in the ‘Jack Patel’ series, after ‘Jack Patel’s Dubai Dreams’ and ‘Jack is Back in Corporate Carnival’. The other is a collection of thoughts, stories, and quips on various subjects. Whether these turn into ‘books’ or not, only time will tell. I write for pleasure, though always in hope.

• Deeba: Your first book was ‘Jack Patel’s Dubai Dreams’ with Penguin and then your next two books ‘I Stole Her Story’ and ‘So Who Says I Am Middle Aged’ were with Cinnamon Teal and now your latest release ‘The Silliest Autobiography in the World’ is with HarperCollins. In common knowledge, if one book is published with one publishing house, they invariably take all other books and one does not have to go looking for a different publisher. Your experience indicates something else. Can you share with our readers how does publishing work?

  P.G.Bhaskar: You are partly correct. I have actually done three with Harper Collins (India) - ‘Corporate Carnival’, ‘Mad in Heaven’ and most recently ‘Silliest Autobiography .. ’ So it can work that way. But editors and publishers do tend to move from one publishing house to another, so sometimes authors move too. Besides, there could be differences – creative, financial, marketing and any other – so that could also explain a switch. Besides, there is competitive pressure between publishing houses as well, which could explain a change to a rival publishing company.

• Deeba: Did you consider having a Literary Agent? What was your experience?

  P.G.Bhaskar: Very briefly, in the initial stages. But I have never had an agent, so I don’t really know how it works. I have friends who have worked with literary agents and I have mixed reports from them.

• Deeba: Have read on HarperCollins site that you ponder on as varied topics as ‘policy of Trump’ to the ‘lost handkerchief’ (Yours not Trumps!)!  This line definitely has to have come from you! Share with us, please! Even your FB posts cracks us up! Are you as humorous in your daily life and at work? Or have you saved this side of you for your writings?

  P.G.Bhaskar: I confess I wrote that. I used to be very serious as a child. But somewhere down the line, I started looking at life through a prism of humor. In person, I respond differently to different people. There are some people who find me funny and there are others (who shall not be named) who find me boring and grumpy.

• Deeba: Your top five favorite books and authors? What are you currently reading?

  P.G.Bhaskar: This is a little embarrassing.  I must admit that I have, over the last few years, not done much reading. A couple of names that do come to mind are Bill Bryson and Chitra Divakaruni

• Deeba: What is your writing process? How long does it take for you to write a book? Who do you edit your books with?

  P.G.Bhaskar: I don’t know if I have a process. Only with ‘Mad In Heaven’ did I have a synopsis of some sort before I started writing. With all others, I simply started on them and then let it flow.

• Deeba: Do you ever get writer’s block? How do you handle it?

  P.G.Bhaskar: Well, I haven’t done much writing in the last three years, except little snippets here and there. I’m wondering if that is a block of sorts. But it’s probably just lack of motivation because the publishing process can be tedious.

• Deeba: On a personal front, what does a weekend mean to you?  And what is your favorite non-alcoholic drink?

  P.G.Bhaskar: Just the usual stuff. I like to spend time with the family, do some yoga maybe, watch a film … that kind of thing. My all-time favorite beverage is the good old masala chai, made the proper Indian way, with some milk and plenty of sugar!

• Deeba: What strategy would you recommend to aspiring authors of ‘The Write Scene,’ who are working on their manuscripts?

  P.G.Bhaskar: Whatever works for them. I am not sure if one person’s strategy would work as well for another. But do learn to keep kicking your own butt. Else, it’s all too easy to let things drift.

• Deeba: Can we have your views on our new initiative of  ‘Young Author Awards’  to recognize the next generation authors under the age of 30?

  P.G.Bhaskar: I’m so glad to see something like this. These are things that will contribute to keeping youngsters motivated.

To know more about our guest, please log into his website: PGBhaskar.com