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I wanted there to be moments of hilarity and absurdity, because we all need that in life, right? We need that balance. I also wanted for humour to be there as a balance to all the melancholy and sadness. And you see how Aakash (queer protagonist), even though he’s endured so much, is also doing things to other people-to his family, to his partner that aren’t necessarily the right things to do. I think in order for there to be empathy, in addition to sympathy, you have to see the character for all that he is, including his flaws. How did you manage to keep the narrative light? Queer literature is often emotionally heavy and replete with stories of struggle. I like to keep the plot moving constantly. I don’t want the reader to feel that it’s too heavy or too taxing, so plot is very important to me. So I’m always thinking that in the layering of the story and going back and forth between perspectives and time periods. Whenever I start writing something, I don’t want it to be boring.
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What were the things that you kept in mind when you started out writing Tell Me How to Be?
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It’s also about sexuality, and all of those themes were present in the short story collection. Tell Me How to Be is somewhat inspired by the short stories because it’s about being brown in America. I had been writing short stories and then they kind of evolved into a collection and turned into a book, and then a novel.