I think I'm from the 18th century, not even the 19th. I don't even use a typewriter. I prefer longhand, and that's how I submit my manuscripts to my publishers.
I am a sleepy fellow. I will take a nice long nap the first chance I get.
Children haven't changed - the world around them has. Their basic natures haven't changed. They like ice creams. They like to have fun, play games if they get space.
My desk is right next to my bed. So I sit on my bed. I write in a big notebook which is on the desk. And if I feel drowsy, I just have to slide into bed.
I suppose in the long run, it's the good work that outlasts the shoddy work, but there's enough room for all kinds of writing.
I don't overwork - a couple of hours a day is fine for me.
Jokes apart, I, like many other, am looking for strong and stable government. I don't want any chaotic political situation where the elected government is being toppled frequently.
A few years after my father's death, my mother sent me to the United Kingdom for 'better prospects' in 1951. Those four years were not easy.
I did all kind of jobs to sustain myself. I worked at a grocery store, in the public health department, and what was then Thomas Cook and Sons. The last job was particularly interesting, but I got fired from it.
I have always discouraged young writers from self-publishing, by which I mean going to a vanity publisher and spending your hard earned savings - say, some two-three lakhs - and getting your book printed. It's not published; it's printed!
I was a bookworm in school, and in those days it was easy to get books. Bigger cities had book shops.
The transition from an English father to a Punjabi stepfather demanded an adjustment that was far from easy for a 10-year-old boy who had just lost his father.
No, I don't want to be a brand. Brand means I cannot go out for a quiet walk without tourists and fans constantly following me.
Unhappy and unsettled childhood helps in writing.
I like talking to visitors, especially children.
I won't usually just sit down to write. I'd have done it in my head already. I visualise a story just like a film strip running in my head. I guess that is also a reason why my books have such a visual element to them. And it's what I tell young writers: plan your story ahead.
