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Today, I thought I must speak about the absolute must-do things before you even consider submitting your manuscript to an agent or publisher. And the reason I cite to do so as an editor is: during my long editing career, I have rarely come across a complete and presentable manuscript. Mostly I see the half-baked, hurriedly written collection of words spread across pages. Most writers don’t even pay a second glance at what they have written before they start approaching publishers. Perhaps, this must be their rush to see their books on stands or another: They might be thinking, aren’t agents/publishers going to be editing my manuscript, anyway? I have done my job, the herculean task of writing. Well, yes, to an extent. But more often disastrous. Both agents and editors will go through rounds of Editing before committing a manuscript to be formatted for print or eBook. However, you must not forget, Editing is a cost, both in time and money. An agent with limited time will always prefer a polished manuscript over a piece (YOURS) that needs significant work before it can even be presented to a publisher. A publisher will weigh the expense of a substantial edit against future earnings potential, a factor that costs an acceptance/rejection decision. Now you are ready for your biggest shock. In all probability, your manuscript pitched to a traditional publisher, or an agent has already landed up in a trash can while you are waiting; fingers crossed. Let’s get to the basics. If you have completed your manuscript. Manuscript submission checklist: ü Title page ü Dedication ü Epigraph ü Table of contents ü List of illustrations ü List of tables ü Preface ü Acknowledgements ü Any other front matter ü All text matter, including the introduction and part titles ü Notes ü Appendixes ü Glossary ü Bibliography or reference list ü Any other back matter ü All illustrations and all tables ü Illustration Captions ü A list of special characters used in the manuscript ü Abstract(s) and keywords ü All permissions, in writing Once you have all these (You may not necessarily need all of the above depending on you book) in place, I strongly recommend closing your manuscript. Set it aside, and don’t even think about it for at least a week. Now all the anxiety, anxiousness and excitement would have settled, and the clutter cleared. Pick up your manuscript and start the clean-up process, cover to cover, word by word. Weed out everything from typos to grammar errors, unwanted pieces or paras. Repeat the process until you are satisfied that you have done all you can to the best of your ability. Well, now you have in your hands a completed manuscript ready for a professional editor. This task is essential to let the editor focus peacefully on his Editing instead of spending his precious time and your precious money cleaning the manuscript. As to whether or not you need one, well, you do, always. You shouldn’t consider a professional edit to be a luxury any longer. At a time when over a million new titles a year are being added to Amazon each year, your book will be in brutal competition against so many other works. You must do everything possible to ensure your manuscript rises above the fray. Whether you’re submitting to an agent or a publishing house (self or traditional), a professional edit is crucial to ensuring your book gets a fair shot. Don’t take the risk. Get the manuscript edited! However, I can’t promise that doing these things will get your book published traditionally. But we can promise that doing them will help your manuscript stand out from the slush pile. Bobby George

“Religion is the only word that means divine, but understood as divide.” “Correct me if I am wrong—a phrase used by people who don’t like to be corrected.” “Knowledge is like wealth; no matter how much you acquire, there’s always somebody with more.” The weight of your wisdom is directly proportional to the height of your success. “Hope is farther than life; it outlives us every time.” “People think writing is like switching gears at your own sweet will. But it is much more than a mere gear-switching mechanism. “Struggle, when it meets success, is acknowledged and held in awe. Or else, it is any other survival activity no one cares about.” Bobby George

A bird flew into my room the other day. Had it missed its line of flight or out of curiosity, I do not know. Nevertheless, the moment it entered, it realised its folly and began flapping nervously. Tired of its failure, perched at the curtain rail, it gazed outside helplessly, perhaps trying to assess the situation. I do not shoo it away, fearing it could hurt itself in its frantic attempts to escape. I could have posted a picture of that pretty little sparrow in my room. But I hated to photograph a trapped, helpless creature. The room where I write is large, with picture windows all around. I can gaze from my desk at the mountains, the trees, and the rolling clouds over the valley. I tiptoed and opened each movable section of the window as discreetly as I could, trying not to startle it anymore. However perplexed and scared that it was, it could not tell the difference between the clear glass windows. The poor little birdie crashed on the windowpane each time it attempted to escape. After many desperate, failed attempts, it flopped in one corner. Trembling. It gazed out at the alluring freedom across the confusing windowpanes. It could see the trees swaying in the breeze and the clouds floating over the mountaintops. It could even feel the wind in its wings through the window frames I had opened. Tired and hurt, it sat in its corner silently. Perhaps wondering what could be wrong with its judgement. Why does it keep crashing in its attempted flight to freedom . . .? * Likewise, I, too, sat at my desk every day, after many failed attempts, tired and hurt, musing . . . gazing at the lofty view outside, wondering which window led me to freedom. Or which attempt could give me a breakthrough? We both sat in our corners, trapped in the same room that day, with the same thoughts racing in our minds. To my surprise, the little bird rose again, perhaps for another try. I turned away, unable to bear the sight and sound of the failure. The crashing attempts faded each moment as I delved deeper into my thoughts. * The sound of the thud had stopped, perhaps a long time now. I turned around with a heavy heart, expecting to find it on the floor . . . dead. I looked for the little carcass on the floor to at least give it a small burial before I left. However, I found it nowhere. Epiphany! It had found its window. It had wings; it could fly; it kept trying until it found its skies. Today, as I sat musing at my desk, gazing at the lofty view outside, I found a little note on it, left by that little birdie. It read: Dear mate, remember! WE ARE BUT PRISONERS OF OUR THOUGHTS “You, too, have wings. You, too, can fly. Rise again; why don’t you try? To your freedom, out your fly Don’t you tire, yet another try. Find your window, and soar in the sky. You, too, have wings. You, too, can fly.” -Little birdie, who tried. Bobby George Instagram:@bobbygeorge15 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bobby.george.94617

Let’s be the cacti… I like cacti. They need little care. Yeah, not all are thorny; even if they are, it is their way of saying stay away from me. Most bloom some of the prettiest flowers. I like them. Rather, I admire them. Their resilience inspires me. All they do is grow. You slash, sever, chop, or remove them from their mother stem. They still grow. They grow wherever they are. Water or no water, they manage to stay alive. Rocks or soil, they find their footing. Nothing beats them. In the pots or the fields. In the garden or the barren, they find a way to grow. They survive in the driest of lands yet retain maximum moisture. At times, the onslaught in our lives is relentless, and the terrain rugged. The faith falters, and the pain swells. Let us remember: The cacti who refuse to die… Let’s be the cacti who refuse to die When the hope’s afar, and the fear is nigh Remember the cacti who refuse to die They grow with friends, and they grow with the foe They learn to live and thrive against the flow They grow in gardens or in the pots They grow in the barren or the mountaintops When the tempest rages high Lift up your head and look at the sky Let’s be the cacti who refuse to die Bobby George

Hello Friends, Today, I am in conversation with poet Ramchandran Rajasekharan with his collection of poems, ‘Smiling in my Sleep’. The title is sweet, but the emotions are profound. The language is simple yet reaches readers’ hearts instantly. Reading the book was an absolutely soul-stirring experience for me. Each poem is a crafted emotion of unique ‘tone and tenor’ and forms an unspoken bond with the poet and his poetry. I was so intrigued that I had to learn more about the poet and his splendid work. So, let’s get talking to the poet and find out more. Bobby George: Hello, Sir. It is a pleasure to talk to you. Please accept my heartiest congratulations on your book. I had the opportunity to read it. In my opinion, Poetry is a potpourri of penned emotional moments that usually gets tucked away. When did you decide to bring it out in print, and how does it feel when such an array of emotions and sentiments are on display? R. Rajasekharan: Thank you for reading the book. I agree that the seed of poetry born at a given moment gets tucked away inside and overflows again at a given point. The moment they flow out, I naturally experience those emotions again. Bobby George: When did you start writing poems? Has it always been your passion? R.Rajasekharan: I have thought about writing poems only after sixty years. My first book “Dewdrop and Banyan Tree” was published in 2021. Though I started late, I found that writing poems gives me joy. The fair reception of my first book was encouraging. It might have been a passion all along. Both my father and mother were writing poems, and poetry was always in my genes, though I started a little late. Bobby George: It is important for artists to develop their own unique style of writing to ensure that they effectively convey their ideas and themes; what sets your poetic voice apart? R.Rajasekharan: I have read many poets, but each one writes with their signature style. I am also not different. Many of my poetic friends have told me that my writing style is more like that of a storyteller, and my poems are more tactile. Bobby George: Well, how would you thematically categorise Your poetry and yourself as a poet besides being stylistically a free verse poet? R.Rajasekharan: I have experimented a bit. I generally write free verses, as my poems flow like that, rarely rhyme, and are descriptive. I sometimes end my poems with 5-7-5 haiku. Bobby George: There are so many poems that I would like to talk to you about. Poems which make me reflect upon my own life and experiences, but in particular, Acha, Elusive Thirty-Eight, Memories of my Grandparents and Hunger is a Terrible Thing, warmed my heart and welled up my eyes. Are there any from your book that holds a special place in your heart? R.Rajasekharan: My father (Acha) was probably the wisest man I interacted with during his lifetime. He could talk about any subject under the sky. He was born during colonial rule, during which life was probably harsher. ‘Acha’ and ‘Hunger is a Terrible Thing’ are poems about my father and his infinite practical wisdom. In the first poem, I try to portray the void created by his absence, combining metaphorical layers and the ambience with and without my father. The second poem describes his way of conveying a message indirectly so that it stays dead in the subconscious. My mother was so affectionate and was a good teacher.’Elusive Thirty-Eighth’ is a poem about her love for Nature and teaching me to look at Nature. When I took to poetry, I found the poetic symbolism attached to flora and fauna. Bobby George: Another curious question sprang up in my mind when I read about you. Rather atypically, you had a career in Finance, now you present such tender human emotion, a rarity to bring out fascinating beauty. How did the switch from a cool calculative Finance Expert to a Tender-Hearted poet happen? R.Rajasekharan: For me, writing poems to suit a preconceived fictional plot is complicated. I have not tried to experiment that way. Poetry is born when emotions overflow from within. When we observe, say: a bird watching intently, a dirty mossy pond simmering with breeding insects, a seed of the co-existence of beauty and ugliness, the breeding insects become food for the bird, and at some moment, it flows out as a poem. Bobby George: You are from Kerala, a land known for its exquisite and varied beauty. Is that why your poems are close to Nature and paint the subtle beauty of human emotions? R.Rajasekharan: Probably yes. Its beauty is charming and soothing. But Nature means more to all of us. It acts as a balancing force. For example, we exhale carbon dioxide, and the trees recycle the carbon dioxide into oxygen. Many natural disasters arise because of the shortsighted destruction of Nature which cut the root of the sustenance of life in the long run. Bobby George: Are you working on any other book you would like to share with your readers? R.Rajasekharan: Yes. I am working on more books I hope to publish this year. Bobby George: Please let us know about your reading interests? Is there any poet who inspires you or someone you love reading over and over again? R.Rajasekharan: Khalil Jibran and Ivan Turgenev are two poets whose thoughts have influenced me much. Emily Dickinson, KamalaTurgenev, Ramanujam, Seamus Heany and the list can go on like that. Bobby George: Who is the author you most admire in your genre? R.Rajasekharan: I can’t say about one because there are many. Thank you, Sir, for enriching us with your thoughts and experience. We hope to read more from your pen in the days to come. I wish you many enthralling milestones in your writing career. May you find all the literary success you need and deserve. Good luck! R.Rajasekhar: Thank you, it was a pleasure talking to you. Over to you, friends. That was Ramachandran Rajsekharan for you—a poet par excellence. You must get your copy of this exceptional literary piece to experience how poetry can transcend your soul. Stay tuned for the next interview with another new pen on another new day. Don’t forget to post your comments. Until then, Ciao!

Mismanagement, miscreants, or machination… not to mention those who underplayed their part, the IB and the Police. While we are busy playing ‘Pass the buck’ and flaying aimlessly, left, right and centre. I wonder what led thousands of determined miscreants toward the Lal Quila? It is much more than what meets the eye. Let us not fathom the incident just by the tip of the iceberg. It would be farfetched to believe that the actual protesting farmers who braved the harsh conditions relentlessly for sixty days; went berserk on ‘Republic Day’ to destroy what they had struggled to build so far. How does one ingest the idea that after all they went through, they would destroy it overnight? It is just too fantastic to believe. The government had nothing to lose except the face of failing to come up with a solution despite ten rounds of dialogue. It is not the MSP. The government feels their turnaround would give a booster to the dying opposition parties. A fact they cannot allow or acquiesce to. The farmers have already held on to the protests longer than expected. Creating a deadlock which they can’t undo. Their withdrawal would shatter their unity, integrity, and solidarity once and for all. They can only spurn the proposal. In this ‘Catch-22’ situation, the farmers enjoy the growing sympathy of the nation. A worrying factor for many. Now the ominous questions from the remains of the day are: 1. Has the government accomplished what it had failed to achieve after ten gruelling rounds of dialogue? 2. Was it the wary partners, desperate to find a reason to wash their hands of the movement? 3. Is it the third front which is now scavenging the outcome for their political nourishment and enjoying the crack in the impregnable Modi government for its failure to manage? While sympathizing with the farmers. However, as citizens, we all have certainly lost something as our day, as reverent as January 26th, stands ashamed. Bobby George

“Love in its purest manifestation is the strongest of all human emotions and senses. It easily surpasses hatred, anger, revenge, or all at once. It can trump all physical senses, heat, cold, pain, and pleasure. Nothing compares to love.” Ch.22, Page 230 - ONEwithin… Romance–Let’s break the myth! In the season of Love and Affection. When the velvety zephyr of romance is caressing the hearts of young and old alike. I wonder what the reader community out there is reading this Valentine’s Day. Because one question has gnawed ever since I started writing professionally. Why do some people shy away from reading romance stories, although they have undergone such a feeling at some point in time or the other in their lives? Whenever I hear people who read fiction regularly, including young readers as well, shrugging their shoulders and proudly saying. I don’t read romance. I am into much heavier stuff. My senses scream. Why, man, why!? Is romance a light subject to read? No way! In fact, it has fathomless depths of feel and a plethora of oceanic emotions. It boasts the broadest range of sub-genres, viz., Historical, Contemporary, Religious/Spiritual, Paranormal, Erotic, and Suspense. Perhaps a few more out there that catch the fancy of the author. Whenever we talk about the greatest works of all time in the literary world, at least one or two novels/drama from the genre ‘Romance’ pops up on the list. Clearly, Romance is also a genre without demographical distinction; it evokes the same feeling in human hearts all across. It sees no colour, caste, or creed. It is like a pizza, burger, bowl of noodles, or a portion of curry that anyone can enjoy in any geographic location. Hence, the undisputed King of all genres! Therefore, this Valentine’s Day, I implore all bibliophiles to take a break from whatever they are reading and taste the flavours of the season. Read at least one book from the genre and extend your thoughts in the comment box. You may not be a romance aficionado, but you can try one for a change. Believe me, it does well for our reading. I am sure it will stir the romance in you and leave a passing smile as it touches a fragrant memory from the days of yore in your life. You may pick from my list of – 21 All-time Favourite Romance Titles. Under ‘fall in Love again…’ at georgebobby.com/blogs/ as part of your TBR for 2021. So, what’s holding you? Get a steaming mug of coffee and a book from the genre; sit in your cosy corner and immerse yourself in the immortal pages of master storytellers. Bobby George