Conveying the essence of a fictional character is a challenging task for an author, made no less easier by the myriad tools you can use, from dialogue to body language to inner monologues. Priya Chawla (United Arab Emirates) offers a fresh approach to bringing characters to life, which she employed beautifully in her winning piece for our Novel Writing Competition: “I [described] Roshni’s relationship with the inanimate and animate objects in her life, from the empty corner in her room to her favourite aunt,” she says. “After all, a person is built from the relationships they possess.”
We talk to Priya about this and more, including when she knows she’s found the right name for a character and how this competition helped spark her writing to life.
For this competition, you submitted an excerpt of your novel; tell us about the larger work that your entry comes from.
Honestly, Daughter of Kali only came into existence when I read the advert for this competition. As a university student, I barely had the time to consume proper meals, let alone practice the passions that brought me joy. But when I saw the prompt for the competition, I thought it was finally time to use this as an opportunity to write again. One thousand words seemed easy enough at the time, but since I started penning it, I don’t see myself stopping anytime soon.
Kali is the Hindu goddess of death, time, and doomsday. Growing up, Kali had always been a figure of “femininity” and “strength,” two terms that were rarely associated with each other in the casually sexist society I belonged to. I had always wanted to write about a character inspired by her, a female character who stays strong with her beliefs and lets her spirit fly. Hence was born Roshni.
I hope as I continue writing this story, I can project Roshni as a bold girl that blossoms into a confident woman, who defies what society expects of her and chooses her own path.
Guest Judge Laura Wood said your excerpt “did a wonderful job of communicating her longing for a bigger life in such a small amount of space.” How did you manage to balance summary, scene, and character development in just 1,000 words?
I think a good choice, at least for my story, was choosing the first chapter as my submission. A good introductory chapter in my opinion is one that introduces you to the main character’s core values. I tried to integrate this by describing Roshni’s relationship with the inanimate and animate objects in her life, from the empty corner in her room to her favourite aunt. After all, a person is built from the relationships they possess.
Once the core values are combined with the relationships the character holds dear, summary, scene, and character development come naturally.
How did you go about choosing names for your characters, and how did you know you landed on the “right” names?
Drawing inspiration from real life when it comes to naming characters, to me, is key. I know many Roshnis in my life, and I’d be damned if even a single one of them could be labelled a quitter. Naming characters after people I have personally met is my go-to—it helps make the character come to life and give the character a breath of existence. And thankfully, so far it hasn’t got me in trouble.
Another thing to rely on is simply intuition. If the name fits, if it feels right, it’s definitely the way to go.
What word (or phrase) summed up your writing life in 2021, and what word (or phrase) do you hope will sum up 2022?
I leave 2021 grateful for all the relationships that blossomed and developed throughout the year. I really think “loved ones” would be the apt phrase for 2021.
For 2022, I’d choose the word “hopeful.” I hope to spend this new year writing even more and building on the relationships I made!
