AN INTERVIEW WITH VEERSEN BHOOLAI
- Your Name and about yourself
My name is Veersen Bhoolai. I was born in Trinidad & Tobago. I came to Canada to further my education in 1985. I have lived in six countries, Canada, TT, Colombia, Turkey, Afghanistan and the Solomon Islands. I am a qualified journalist and ESL teacher.
- Are you happy about being an Author?
I am enjoying it. I have a story to tell. When you start the first chapter the end can seem so far away but with the completion of every chapter there is a certain degree of excitement.
I believe that I have had an interesting life from the cocoa plantations of Trinidad to the mountains of the Solomon Islands to the deserts of Afghanistan. The characters I have met, the experiences I have had make for good story telling.
- As an author , what do you think are the positive things about your writing/stories/publications?
I have never really thought about what was positive. However, what I realized in hindsight is that the negative moments or terrible people make for good story telling.
In addition, as authors we have our own unique experiences and perspectives and that is that I bring to my books.
- Which book or e-books have you published and which are in pipeline? ((You can also write about each of them if you wish to.))
My first book, No, I don’t work in the kitchen-surviving war-torn Afghanistan for three years is already out as an e-book and the paperback will be published on March 13. This is a memoir based on my experiences as a United Nations journalist in Afghanistan from 2009-2012.It has made some good movements in the rankings on Amazon Kindle and can be found on many websites on the internet including Barnes& Noble. The second Trials and Tribulations-a young boy’s struggle is set for release on October 1. It is a coming of age story of a young boy in Trinidad who comes from a well-known, reputable family in TT only to have his life slowly deteriorate as he gets older.
- What’s your advice for budding authors?
Good question. I am an emerging author myself. The first I would say is to edit your book well. This might seem kind of obvious but I have gone back to my book many times and found better ways to write or even typos I didn’t see before. Have a handful of friends proofread a few chapters for you. Give them one chapter at a time as some people mean well but never get back to you due to their own responsibilities.
Make notes of what you observe. You will see/hear/experience some moments that some people might find unbelievable. Save it for your book. 😉
If you can, travel and live, great ammunition for a book.
- Do you believe in “Writer’s Block”?
I am writing based on past experiences, therefore, so far, that has not happened to me. 😉
- What are the problems that you have faced in your Author journey?
Like a lot of people finding an agent. I got fed up after six months of searching for one for my book Trials and Tribulations. I decided to self-publish. However, even that has had its challenges, such as getting responses from your Publisher in a timely manner to having to find out in a secondhand manner how your sales are doing and hoping the figures reported to you are correct. This has stimulated me (like many self-published authors) to learn how be more independent and deal directly with the likes of Amazon etc.
- What Genre of Books do you create and Why you chose it ?
The first two would fall under the genre of a memoir (and so will the third). It’s easy for me as these are based on personal experiences, are interesting and hugely mitigate any kind of writer’s block. All I really have to do is sit down and write.
- If you could tell something to your younger writing self , what would it be ?
The first would be these negative moments might be terrible right now and although it’s minor consolation they will makes for a great book one day. The second is “get off your ass and write the damn book!! Stop procrastinating so much.!”
- Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want ?
Both. My memoirs are unique in their perspective. The first is a civilian/journalist perspective of surviving the war in Afghanistan. The second is a young boy coming of age from the cocoa plantations of Trinidad to the capital city of Port of Spain and a host of characters that you could not begin to imagine. The third which will probably be released in late 2022 is my memoir of having lived in Istanbul from 2002-2009.Where can people contact you ?
I can be reached at vbhoolai@hotmail.com also at my website
