Meet Mohit Achra:
Mohit Achra, a native of the City of Nawabs, is a highly acclaimed author and visual artist. With a passion for writing that he considers his superpower, Mohit has authored several books, including his latest work, “Why Gods Remain Silent,” which is poised to be his greatest success..
In recognition of his literary talent, Mohit was awarded the title of “Youngest Fantasy Author of India” by India Book of Records in 2021. He is also the co-founder of Artembryo, a brand dedicated to promoting artists throughout India, and has successfully organized numerous art events, exhibitions, and workshops in Lucknow.
In March 2022, Mohit achieved yet another accolade for his literary contributions, receiving the “Best Writer Award” from PW Publishing House, further solidifying his reputation as one of India’s most celebrated authors.
Let’s get to know him more deeply.
Q.1 Let’s start with Thanksgiving. If given a chance, who would you like to thank for supporting you in your author journey?
It will be my mother. With every resource that she had, she has always supported me. My dreams mattered to her more than anything. I dearly love her, and I couldn’t be capable of living without her blessings.
Q.2 When and how did you become interested in writing books? Tell us a bit about your latest book titled “Why Gods Remain Silent.”
As I said, my mom played a great role in shaping my career. It all began when she had already calculated the possibilities and opportunities for individuals with good English. So since the very beginning, I was sent to Christian schools to study. English storybooks were regularly stacked in my room so that I could read and learn. Eventually, all of it paved the way to my love for writing.
And, Why Gods Remain Silent is basically an ideology. Through this fiction work, I’m telling the readers to do what they like and put all their faith in god’s greater plan.
Q.3 What has the experience of writing and publishing multiple books been for you? How has your Author journey been so far?
So far it has been a great trial and error process for me. I could read and write well, but soon after I released my first book, I realized that there were numerous areas for improvement for me. Be it marketing, publishing, or world-building. I needed to learn more.
Q.4 What factors are most important to you when choosing a book marketer? Any 3 practices that according to you are a must while marketing a book.
Transparency is the most important factor for me. And I really loved this thing about TBI. I loved working with you guys and especially the transparency of progress and the accomplished work hooked me to work with you again. Secondly, I found your services to be quite economical for an indie author.
The 3 practices for marketing books are: you should do these things before you publish your book.
- A concrete plan for marketing
- A good budget for any shortcomings
- A small, but dedicated team to edit, proofread, and make it picture-perfect to your fullest potential.
Q.5 Which are the top 3 books you would highly recommend, and what’s your most favorite genre?
Although my favourite genre is fantasy, I would highly recommend Shreemad Bhagawat Geeta to each and everyone. This book was written more than 5,000 years ago. But it still holds solid relevance and guidance to today’s modern world.
At number two, it is ofcourse the Harry Potter series, because I’m in love with the concept, world building and the magic that it holds. JK Rowling is one of the world’s most exceptional authors!
And thirdly, if I ever find time to go back to some old books in my closet, I would always try to pick any book written by R.L. Stine. He’s popularly known for the Goosebumps series, and that has been a great addition to my reading lists.
Q.6 What are the challenges you faced while writing and how did you overcome them? From where do you get the ideas and inspiration for your books?
First off, I never had any professional mentorship in my writing career. I learned it all from scratch. So that was a big challenge, but I kept learning from other authors’ works. And then I also came to know about the lack of information about the publishing industry. I didn’t know how to market my books, I didn’t know how to reach out to publishers. But all of these hurdles were crossed eventually when I kept researching.
For every story that I write, I like to tackle a negative human emotion. It could be greed, dishonesty, lust, anger or any other negative emotion. That paves the way for the story to begin. And then, I let my imagination play in the field. I brainstorm for hours and write down everything that I come up with, and finally, we get a good blueprint to begin with.
Q.7 What appeals to you more, writing or art? When and how did the idea of establishing Artembryo come to you? Tell us a bit about your brand.
Honestly, art appeals to me more. Maybe because art gives me quicker results. Writing a book can take upto many months, but, painting, sketching or any other creative artwork can be accomplished in 7-15 days. That’s why I do enjoy art more. However, due to the recent turmoil in my life, I have not been able to draw or paint for many months now.
Talking about Artembryo, it was a vision of creating a virtual marketplace for artists and buyers. It was me and my partner, Karan Kumar who founded Artembryo. With the help of digital marketing, we reached artists all over India during 2020-21. We organized several online and offline competitions, exhibitions etc. Our last exhibition was organised at the Phoenix United Mall, Lucknow in October 2022.
Q.8 What do you consider your greatest strength as a writer? What do you plan to write next?
Consistency is my greatest strength as a writer. I aim at writing everyday even if it is just 200 words. I try to write everyday and that keeps me hooked to my goal.
After Why Gods Remain Silent, I’m planning it’s sequel because it was a part of the trilogy. So the second book is in progress, we have the layout, we have the plan and we’re done with 8 chapters. So probably by the end of 2023, we would see it come to life.
Q.9 Who are your target readers and why should they read your books?
Perfect question. Actually, this question should be frequently asked to authors because this is the base of marketing for them.
I’ll try to define my target reader with a glint of my imagination. She clutches her novels close to herself when she walks around the busy corridors of college. Everyone thinks she is a nerd, a bookworm, but she adjusts her square specs and thinks of all the battles that she’s won with the characters in those novels. But as adulthood takes on, she has to pick on her responsibilities. Reading becomes a dusty-but-shimmering memory from her teenage days. She wishes she could go back to those days, but the destiny tells her otherwise. That innocent college-going bookworm is my target reader.
Q.10 Are there any tips or bits of advice you would like to share with budding writers?
Never stop learning. Never stop reading. Never think you know it all. That bubble bursts instantly.
Good writers are avid readers. Always, always remember that.
Thank you so much, Dear TBI team and Nisha for this awesome opportunity!
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I really learned a lot from the interview….keep doing great job