Madhulika Liddle

1. When did you find yourself in the world of words? 
A. My very first memory of books is from when I was 7. I remember sitting in my school bus waiting for it to leave the school, and overhearing two boys - both much older than me, in high school - talking about reading the Hardy Boys books. And I remember thinking, "How immature they are. I've already read most of the Hardy Boys series." - and feeling stupidly smug about it. 
I grew up in a family that was devoted to books, so I was surrounded by books since I was quite young. From when I was about 6, I wrote short stories, travelogues, and concocted recipes, all of which I shared with my parents and sister, till well into my teens. It was only in my late twenties that I began writing in earnest, with the intention of being published.  
 
2. What do you think about the newly emerged genre "Micro-fiction"?
A. I have two opinions on microfiction. As a writer, I find it deliciously challenging, and therefore something that excites me. As a reader, I find it hard to come across really good microfiction, so I am more often than not disappointed by what I read.
 
3. What are your views about Indian publishing industry? 
 
A. The Indian publishing industry has come a long way in just a few years. When my first book (The Englishman's Cameo) was published in 2008, there were only a handful of reputed publishers around, and most of them were interested in only publishing 'literary' books. Today, there's a wide range of publishers, including smaller ones like Speaking Tiger, Amaryllis and Aleph, which produce some of the finest books in the country. Even better, more publishers are now willing to experiment - we're seeing books in genres (crime, chick lit, erotica, humour, among others) which were very difficult to get published till a few years ago. So there's a lot happening, and much of it is exciting. 

On the flip side, there are things I'm not very keen on. Publishers, for instance, seem to be increasingly taking their hands off marketing books (especially when it comes to non-star authors), which means that lesser authors have to then try and market their books themselves. For some authors, this is fine; for people like me, who are shy and cringe at trying to push their books, it makes publishing painful. Also, the glamourization of literature - authors as celebrities, the burgeoning number of lit fests, and so on - isn't something that appeals to me. To my mind, it takes away from the very private joy that writing (and reading) can be. 
 
4. Tell us about your food love. 
A. I've been a foodie all my life. Food was one of the reasons I did my graduation in Hotel Management, and though I've never made a living off cooking, I still like it. More than that, I am interested in food itself: its history, its sociology, the amazing ways in which food ties into other aspects of our lives, down to politics. I invariably end up writing about food in my books (and if it's a historical, you can be sure that I've done my research and know exactly what I'm talking about), and I love reading about food. Not so much in the form of cookbooks, but in the form of books that explore food. My favourite food writer is Michael Pollan. 
5. Tell us about your book/s

 A. I'm known mostly as the creator of the detective Muzaffar Jang, a 17th century Mughal nobleman who debuted in The Englishman's Cameo. Muzaffar Jang is, as far as I know, is the first Indian historical detective (there are lots of historical detectives set in many different periods and areas). Since 2008, I've written three other Muzaffar Jang books, the latest (published in 2015) being Crimson City. In addition to the Muzaffar Jang series, my contemporary black humour short stories have been published in a collection as My Lawfully Wedded Husband & Other Stories. Another collection of short stories, most of them non-genre, is due to be released later this year. 
6. A message for the reader's community...
 
A. When you read, please write a review, on Goodreads, Amazon, Flipkart, your blog - wherever. All writers would love a favourable review, but if you can't find anything favourable to say about a book, it still helps to say what you did not like - because feedback, when constructive, is always a good thing.  

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