Interview with Copywriter,Editor and Author Shuchi Kalra

Rahul : Today on Blogger Interviews we Present to you socially active Copywriter,Editor,Author and Supermom Shuchi , Her works speaks a lot about her talent and her future plans are amazing too , Lets try to know a bit about her and her work.
Buy her book Here   1. Can you tell us a little about yourself ,your blog(s)/website(s),and your aspirations and your hobbies!!

As a freelance writer, I have worked with several print and online publications, both in India and abroad. My bylines have appeared in Femina.in, Good Housekeeping, Home Review, Hotelier International, Investors India, Dogs and Pups and Womens Era, to name a few. I have also worked with corporate clients such as The Princeton Review and Skyscanner, apart from many medium and small businesses.  As a rare honor, a popular international blog recently put me on top of the list of “12 Highly Successful Non-Native English Freelance Writers”.

While I can call myself an experienced copywriter and editor, I am very new to fiction writing. Some of my short stories have found a place in anthologies such as ‘Love Across Borders’, ‘Stories for your Valentine’ and New Asian Writing’s upcoming collection. Done With Men is my first solo offering.

2. How you first got involved in with blogging/writing, are you an imaginative person?

Imaginative is all I am. My mind is always restless, constantly buzzing with thoughts. I mostly live in a parallel universe, completely zoned out from my reality.

Writing for me has been a need, more than a hobby or a profession. I just have to write, be it to vent, express, soothe my soul, talk to myself or organize my thoughts. It is much later that I started writing for others and took it up professionally. Somewhere in 2005, I got really sick of my job as an optometrist. I took up a few academic writing assignments on the side for the heck of it, thinking I’d make some extra money out of them. Fortunately, that worked out for me and I dumped that soul-sucking job and took to writing full time.

3. What do you find most challenging about blogging/writing about your topic?

The more challenging a project, the more fun I have working on it. However, I wish I could be more disciplined with my writing schedule. There have been days when I have written half a book and others when I have been totally unmotivated to do anything.

4. Tell me about some of the people you have met while working on your blog?

Lots of amazing people! Through the Indian Freelance Writers Blog, I’ve had the opportunity to connect with other established and aspiring writers, like-minded bloggers and people from the publishing industry. I’m happy to say that I’ve made many good friends along the way.

5. How would (someone) describe your blogging/writing style?

Most describe it as tongue-in-cheek and irreverent. I often hide behind humor to express my deepest, darkest thoughts.

6. What do you do when you are not working on your blog?

I am mom to a preschooler so time just flies. Else, you would find me travelling to less-explored places or fooling around in the kitchen. I love baking and I make my own wine.

7 .Where do you see yourself blogging/writing wise in the next 6 months, and 5 years down the road?

I don’t plan that ahead and prefer to take each day as it comes. I just see myself writing more and more because there’s no other thing that I’d rather do!

8. What networking do you do that you feel helps your blogging/writing business?

Networking is everything when it comes to finding work and building connections in the industry, especially for freelancers because most us work in isolation. I have found LinkedIn very useful in this regard. Not only can writers find credible job postings, there are also several groups where they can share and discuss issues related to the profession. I have recently become more active on Twitter as it is a great medium to interact with readers and promote your work. And it is a hell lot of fun :P.

9. How do you keep coming up with material/content for your blog? Many people struggle with coming up with different articles/posts and they only have one blog.

Unfortunately, due to my other professional commitments, I am no longer able to update my blog as frequently as I’d like. Despite that www.indianfreelancewriters.com got featured among the Top 105 Blogs for Writers & Authors, which was quite unbelievable if you ask me! Right now, most of the recent posts on IFW are contributions from guest writers. They are the ones who are keeping my blog alive!

10. Whats your strategy with your blog in general?

I have no strategy at all. In fact, I never had one. I started IFW because at that time, there were very few resources for Indian writers available online. I just wanted to share my experiences and knowledge with aspiring writers, hoping it would benefit them in some way. It was never meant to be a commercial venture and it still isn’t.

11. Any specific tips you have for newbie bloggers who want to make it in the blogosphere?

There are no short cuts to getting noticed. Just keep up the quality of the content and the rest will automatically follow.

12. What would you prioritize? Content? SEO? Traffic? Readers?

Definitely content – nothing else will work if that is not in place.

13. Whats the best thing a blogger can give to his readers?

Something to smile about. Something to think about. Something to draw inspiration from.

14. A lot of people are interested in blogging/writing for the money earning potential. What are some tips for people interesting in making money from blogging/writing? What are some realistic expectations in regards to what can be made?

You’re asking the wrong person! Like I said, my blog is not really a commercial venture. However, it makes a meager amount of money from Google Adsense, but that can’t qualify as “earnings”.

15. What motivates you most in life?

Just an urge to be a better version of myself with each passing day.

16. What has been your strategy for creating visibility to yourself and your blog?

Right from having my own website and being active on freelancer forums to guest posting on high profile blogs and using social media to share my work, creating visibility for myself and building a credible online presence has been a multi-dimensional process.

17 What was the most challenging moment in your blog content development process and why?

There have been many or different kinds, at different times. The most challenging thing, however, is to go out there and market your work. I don’t particularly enjoy it but I also know that no one else is going to do that for me.

18. Everyone has a favorite/least favorite post. Name yours and why?

My review of the Writers Bureau course is undoubtedly the most popular post on my blog and also the one that keeps up the traffic.

19. Name some of the bloggers whom you look up to and why?

There are so many I read and follow. I love Vidya Suri’s blog(s), Mridu Khullar, Carol Tice, Sharon Hurley Hall (I’m sure I’m missing out on a lot of names here). Any blogger who can churn out fresh, original, informative and engaging content has my vote.

20. What is the story behind the name of the blog?

The name of my blog ‘Indian Freelance Writers’ is pretty straightforward and was purely chosen from a SEO perspective. Looking back, I think it was a good decision.

21. Your connection with any Blogger Network like Indi blogger or Writeupcafe or any other and the experience?

 Nope, I still don’t know how to work those.

22. Which genre do you feel gets the raw deal?

Horror. It is seriously underrated.

23. Which one plug-in would you suggest all bloggers to have?

Social media share buttons? Sorry, I’m really awful at this.

24. Five adjectives that describe you.

Footloose. Reckless Rebel. Emotional as fuck. Impulsive. Outgoing Introvert.

In one word: Disaster!

Also, Judgmental :P

[ Rahul : Judgmental , This word has story related to twitter rants from me ;) ]

25. What book would you say has made the biggest impact good or bad on you?

I don’t think a book can ever make a “bad impact” on anyone. If anything, it can only make you question your beliefs or offer an alternate perspective, which is always an interesting experience.

26. Do you get easily provoked by positive/negative comments??

If they come from strangers, not at all. If they come from people I love and care about – then definitely. In fact, I can be an oversensitive wreck at times.

27. Do you plan to write a book, as every bloggers dream it is?

Two down, and several more to go. I hope!

28. Are you a judgmental person, do you prefer to take sides instead of standing neutral?

Again, if I am an outsider to a situation, I can look at it neutrally and offer a balanced perspective but if I’m emotionally invested, then it’s a downhill crazy ride. No logic. No reason.

29. Your collaboration with other bloggers, are you much into social networking, tell us everything about it?

Yes, I am quite active on social media, mostly Twitter and to a slightly lesser degree, Facebook. I am lucky to have made many writer friends over the years and I think it is necessary too since they are the only ones who understand your challenges and motivate you to do better.

30. What genre attracts you the most and which genre you avoid?

I rarely judge a book by its genre. In fact, I read everything that I can get my hands on – right from Shakespeare to Murakami, to Sophie Kinsella and even self-published authors if I find their books interesting. I enjoy almost all styles and genres and my writing style is an amalgamation of all the reading I have done since I was a kid.

31. Your Views on Contests and increasing plagiarism?

I don’t know about contests because I haven’t taken part in any, but I see a lot of unoriginal content floating around. At Pixie Dust Writing Studio, we have a zero-tolerance policy towards plagiarism and I take it very seriously. Any writer found indulging in it is immediately fired. No questions asked. No explanations given.

32. Words for me and my blogs Desire v/s Destiny and Blogger Interviews and my Website www.MyMagicJobs.com

You are doing awesome work. I wish you the best in all your ventures!

33. On winning the Award/s , Are they Really necessary.

Well, awards have nothing to do with your worth as a writer. There are thousands of brilliant writers who have never received an award. That said, they make for a good ego massage and I wouldn’t mind receiving one.

34. So whats Next in your list?

My next book, a rom-com involving a plus-sized protagonist, is scheduled for a late 2015 release. Watch out for it!

35.Words for your readers and why they should follow you?

If you’ve read my book, I love you – here’s a hug of gratitude. If you haven’t, you’re really missing out on some amazeballs stuff (just kidding). But seriously, read it. I’m on Twitter and Facebook for anyone who’d like to connect: @shuchikalra and on Facebook

[Rahul : It is truly amazing knowing you and the talent you have got is amazing , Best of luck for your future endeavors ]Buy her book Here