Warp and Weft - a novel by Vinay Jalla

Post date: 18-Jul-2013 11:11:54

My first novel WARP AND WEFT is now officially released worldwide on the Amazon website – both in paperback (print) and digital (Kindle) editions.

I started writing WARP AND WEFT in 2001. Thanks to my grandmother who gave me sufficient material through her anecdotes about her life in the village of Dharmavaram. I concocted a fictitious landscape in my mind and wrote the novel. Even as a child I was fascinated to listen to my grandma’s wonderful tales and bedtime stories. Her stories instilled moral values and have shaped my point of view in life. She is more than a mother to me – ah yes, a grand mother!

Being an ardent fan of the great Indian novelist R K Narayan and his Malgudi, I too decided to set my novel in a fictitious place. Inspired by Vikram Seth’s A Suitable Boy (one of the longest novels ever published in a single volume in the English language) I aspired to write a long novel.

To concentrate on writing the novel, I made a dubious decision and quit my job as a journalist working for a popular web portal in Bangalore. I would sit in the city’s Central Library and write about 1000 words a day on one-sided sheets of paper. Writing a novel, I tell you, can sometimes become a lonely experience – it’s just the writer and his characters for company. Some days I would saunter across to the nearby British Library for a change of scene or sit on the grass in Cubbon Park and write, while the pigeons flew around cheerfully.

After seven long months I managed to pen about 250,000 words but had to chop more than half of it as I felt I was entering unwanted territories beyond the scope of the central character – Narayana. After editing and proofing, I was left with 100,000 words. Now that I had completed writing my novel, I was really confident that it would get published by a big publisher. And no, I wasn’t thinking about a million-dollar advance. Instead, I used up all my savings to fly to the UK to get the novel published!

I came to the UK in the cold winter of 2001. My novel received an even colder reception – it was widely ignored by publishers. After endless rejections and divorcing a couple of literary agents on the way, I decided to approach Amazon last year to self-publish my book. Thankfully the novel is out now for everyone to read about an unwritten region of India.

Thanks for listening to me. Now please buy my book on the Amazon website. The delivery is free of charge (at least in the UK) but not the book! I’m sure you won’t regret the purchase.

I would really appreciate if you can post your reviews/feedback on the Amazon website. It will certainly encourage more people to read the book and also help me make any revisions, if any.

God made man

Man made money

Money made man mad

Narayana, the protagonist, is orphaned at an early age. He is looked after by his aunt. His aunt dies due to an illness, making Narayana homeless. He wanders on the streets of Zarivaram like a vagrant looking for something to eat. He cannot escape from poverty, which sticks to him like a leech. When drought strikes his village, he witnesses people dying in hordes in front of his eyes. Death brings a new reality; he begins to see life differently. He is shocked to see the Silk Street people untouched by the calamity – they seem to be selfishly enjoying the pleasures that money brings with it. He observes how destiny changes the fortunes of rich people. He makes a selfish pledge to himself: to earn money and become the richest person in his village. He ruminates a lot, patiently listens to astrologers, wise men and fools too. He strives to achieve the impossible. Will fortune favour Narayana?

Amazon UK customers

Click here to buy Warp and Weft (Kindle Edition)

Click here to buy Warp and Weft (Paperback Edition)

Amazon Worldwide customers (including USA, India, Australia and UAE)

Click here to buy Warp and Weft (Kindle Edition)

Click here to buy Warp and Weft (Paperback Edition)

Click here to buy Warp and Weft (Paperback Edition) on CreateSpace for a discounted price

Click here to buy Warp and Weft on BookAdda.com (Indian customers)

Click here to buy Warp and Weft on Pothi.com (Indian customers)

About the Author

Vinay Jalla is a web content developer, creative writer and a graphic designer with over 15 years of experience in print, online and broadcast media, both in India and in the UK.