Author Trisha Das on writing in age of social media: As long as there's imagination, there will be books

Author and National Award-winning filmmaker Trisha Das says there is no secret sauce to make a book a bestseller. Das has recently released her new book The Grand Samara which pays homage to Georgette Heyer's classic and wildly popular novel, The Grand Sophy. 

The story of The Grand Samara is a bighearted romantic comedy about family and finding the perfect match set against the exuberant backdrop of contemporary Delhi. 
Das spoke recently to WION about her sixth book, about readership in the time of social media and how attached or detached she is to the characters she creates. Here are the excerpts of the interview: 

The Grand Samara is based in Delhi. Does it borrow portions from your personal experience of living in Delhi?

It does. I lived and worked in Delhi for many years and still visit regularly. Many of the places featured in the book are some of my favourite hangouts. Many of the characters are based on Delhiites I know. Not that I’d ever tell them.

What is that one element that is essential to make a book a bestseller?

If we knew then only bestsellers would ever be published. I’ve seen many mediocre books with crazy sales and far too many amazing books that don’t do as well as they should. There is no secret ingredient – it’s about what captures the collective imagination of readers in that moment. A magical combination of a million variables that changes each time. Maybe AI will be able to figure it out in the future.

In the age of social media and digital content, do you feel the number of book readers is dwindling?

Yes. As a content consumer, there are a lot of options out there and books require more attention span and commitment than most. Still, there is a romance in the written word that many people appreciate, no matter the generation. And, books are still the most personalised form of consumer content – you can create your own visuals for a story inside your head, based on your own preferences. Which is why I don’t think books will ever go extinct - As long as there are imaginations, there will be books.

Have you ever thought of adapting any of your literary works into a feature film?

I have. There has been interest in adapting this book, so I’m exploring that route. There might be exciting news to come.

In the current political climate, there are very few who write romance novels. What made you choose this theme for your new book?

Between politics, conflict and the struggles of daily life, everyone needs an escape. A place where joy, romance and a happy ending are guaranteed. That’s why people read romance – to allow their brain to take a vacation. I’ve turned to romance novels as a stressbuster for most of my adult life and so I decided I’d do the same for my readers. I’ve got two more romcoms in the pipeline so I guess I’m as happy writing them as people are reading them.

As an author is it easy or difficult to be detached from the characters you create?

It's impossible to be detached from your characters. In order to write the book, you have to get uncomfortably intimate with the people in it, so that you can predict what they would do in any given situation. It’s like living in the same house with a group of people for a few months at a time – there’s an intensity to the interactions while you’re writing. It fades after the book is written and then you move to the next.