Member Spotlight: Lini S. Kadaba

Why is writing important to you and why do you think it’s an important medium for the world? Since I could write, I’ve written as a way to record my thoughts and explicate my emotions. First it was Dear Diary. Then it was oodles of blank books filled with the angst of middle schools, high school, college and more. As a journalist, I wrote essays on various life events, from being Brown during 9/11 to my Tiger Mom tendencies. Then my mom died. I wrote a novel. It’s therapy, I suppose. But it’s also for readers, to help others come to an understanding about life.

What are your tried and tested remedies to cure writer’s block? When I’m stuck, I do something else. I garden. I go to the gym. I take a walk. I sleep. During all of that time, especially overnight, my mind is working, working. Often, I get an idea, head back to the laptop, and manage to put something down that inches the process along.

What is your favorite time to write? I’m an afternoon or late-night writer. Often, I go to my lovely public library and spend an afternoon writing. Something about the quiet (usually) and all those books seem to foster creativity.

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received and would like to impart to other writers? It took me 16 (!) years to write my debut novel. Even though I’m a professional journalist, it was hard work, and I was lost at times, until my publisher suggested Story Genius by Lisa Cron. The most important advice: Know what your main character’s misbelief is. It drives the arc of the story. Constantly ask why — why is the character doing that, why is the character saying that, why is the character feeling that.

What excites you most about being a writer in today’s age? I’m grateful that small presses still exist despite the intense competition and financial pressures. A small press is what got my novel out into the world. Even though self-publishing is much more respected now, I’m old school and really wanted a traditional publisher to sign me.

Lini S. Kadaba’s Leftovers After Life is out now with Blydyn Square Books.