Best-selling author Preeti Shenoy talks about her struggles to break into the competitive book market in India and the life lessons she's learnt along the way
BRAND CONNECT
Published: Sep 10, 2019 07:49:35 PM IST
Updated: Sep 16, 2019 03:14:25 PM IST
Preeti Shenoy is a busy woman these days. Between writing best-selling books and giving talks at Amazon, the author also finds the time to travel and practice yoga. She credits her father as an inspiration, a guiding light when the going gets tough.
Shenoy is one of the top-five highest selling authors in India today, but she had to struggle early on in her career. “I got rejected more than 40 times for my second book,” she says, “but I never gave up.” 'Life Is What You Make It' has sold more than a million copies, and has been translated to several languages including Turkish.
Shenoy’s can-do attitude has served her well over the 11 years she’s been in the book business. Her major titles include Wake Up, Life is Calling; Life is What You Make it; The Rule Breakers; A Hundred Little Flames; It’s All In The Planets; Why We Love The Way We Do; The Secret Wish List; The One You Cannot Have, among several others. A number of her titles have been translated into various languages for international release.
When asked what life lessons she’s gathered along the way, Shenoy outlined three: “First, it’s nice to be important, but it’s more important to be nice. Second, the best is yet to come. Third, do your best but prepare for the worst.”
Shenoy has used her mantra for success to bag a spot in the Forbes India longlist of the most influential celebrities in India in 2012. She was also declared as the 2017 “Indian of the Year” by Brands Academy for her contributions to literature.
Other than novels, Shenoy also writes short stories and poetry, many of which have been published inVerve and Conde Nast's magazines. The Financial Chronicle ran a weekly column written by her for years. The self-taught artist also specialises in portraiture, mixed media and illustrated journaling, some of which you can find on her popular blog.
Shenoy’s latest novel, 'Wake Up, Life is Calling', is a sequel to 'Life is What You Make it'. It’s been receiving rave reviews and is well on its way to becoming another success story for the author. Both novels espouse the importance of positive thinking to overcome obstacles, something which Shenoy herself is a great example of.
Disclaimer: The pages slugged ‘Brand Connect’ are equivalent to advertisements and are not written and produced by Forbes India journalists.
