Author Interview : Neelima Pudota, author of ‘From Everest, With Love' (Part 2)

Read up, Interview with Neelima Pudota, author of 'From Everest, With Love' (Part 2). Here, she tells us advice to writers, today; what inspired her to travelling solo, her future travel plans and the most fulfilling  and challenging parts of writing this book.

She also tells us, who it was that told her that she could become the author, she is today, what  she does on a daily basis, and who her favourite authors are and why, Folks...

How do you note the points, which you have in your book? Do you come back and write them down or are there any other ways? 

I keep myself very aware of the thoughts that are coming and going out of my mind. The intention is strong and the deadline, I have given to myself is small. So the experience will be very intense. There were days, I woke up in the night to pen down something. There were days I had to stop driving, park the car aside and write down. There were days I wrote in the most unusual places. 

All these apart from the points, I have jotted down on the Mountains. So, yeah, a book and a pen is something I carry with me anywhere I go.

Any advice to writers that would like to be published today? How tough is it to be published? 

Start young and pray your book is published before you die, if you are looking for a traditional publishing. Be very clear on what you want to write and why. ‘What’ you want to write might be an enriching journey, an adventure in itself, where most of the time, the book will open up itself before you in surprising and unexpected ways.

But the ‘Why’ is pretty much a suffering and you must have a strong ‘Why’ to counter it. You must know Why your story must be heard, Why are you any special and Why is your story any special, because the Publisher will rate you not for your writing skills or your moving story, but how many people you can make it reach. So yeah, it is very difficult to be published with the outwards journey that follows immediately after an inward journey.

What has inspired you to start doing this, solo?

The lack of smart people around me? Do we have a choice? I tried being mediocre by fitting into the crowd. Really, I tried a lot. It just didn’t work out for me. I could not contain my spirit to a Monotony. After learning a bit, I wanted to learn and do a little more. I had to explore. Containing the human spirit to a few things looked like an insult to the Human potential. I had to be out there and see it myself. I just couldn’t believe in the impossibilities of many things. I still don’t do. 

Neelima Pudota

I laugh at the silly things that stop people from doing what they want and Laugh more at the people who stop them. Really, at the end of the day, You, yourself and no one else is stopping you. The fear of not trying or exploring something because you are ‘Solo’ is a debilitating mindset. It means you are not clear why you want to do, what you want to do. If your goals and thoughts are clear, being ‘Solo’ is in fact the best place to be.

How has your way of thinking changed since you first started travelling?

Like you can see in the answers I have given above, travelling did open up to my mind to new avenues and the possibility of dreaming out of my comfort zone.

What is the biggest lesson (positive or negative) you’ve learned through this entire solo adventure?

Khalil Gibran (From Wikipedia)

One quote by Khalil Gibran made sense to me, 'Travel and tell no one, live a true love story and tell no one, live happily and tell no one, people ruin beautiful things'.

You decide, if its positive or negative. 😊

Have you felt ever lonely being a solo adventurer?

I’m not a solo adventurer yet. There are like minded people I find everywhere on an expedition, probably very few women. But I’m not alone here. 

And there is no gender difference to the Mountain anyways. Mountains treat everyone equally. I still have to evolve a lot to try Alpine style climbing and virgin peaks. But yes, its always a work in progress.

And if your definition of adventure is limited to travelling, then solo travelling pushed my comfort zone and opened avenues for Mountaineering. 

Now, I think of Mountaineering Alpine style and to push my comfort zone in Mountaineering. So, Solo traveling is like break for me. Solo travelling is when I need to relieve myself and take a leak. Do you feel lonely in the loo? (wink, wink haha)

Have you ever run low on money during your tour?

Yes, I did. And there are people around everywhere who are ready to help us, if you want to see. The odds will melt away if you have the will to do.

What are your future travel plans?

No travel plans as of now. A lot planned for Mountaineering, though, where travel is just an insignificant part. Like I mentioned before, I will travel if I have to relieve myself and need to take a leak. I cannot tell when and how it will happen. And I will definitely not announce it to the world!

Which particular character do you feel most close to? Why?

In my book, specifically? SAGARMATHA – No Doubt about it. It is not a character, though. Why would I see anyone as characters walking in and out of my life like I was a part of a fictional story scripted by an imaginary character called GOD? I’m glad if you did find it that way though. It means you’ve enjoyed it. Thank You! 😊

Could you tell the readers about your experiences and how it was related to what you wrote?

Aak is Pak. Pak is Aak. Aak Pak Karepaak! The book IS a personal account of experiences on Everest.

What is the most fulfilling part of writing this book? And what is the most challenging?

The most challenging part is the most fulfilling part. You must remember that it is a true story and to track my Sherpa down was the most challenging part to make a closure with him and also the most fulfilling part.

Who was it that told you that you could become the author, you are today?

It’s my mother who encouraged me to write since my childhood and the first one to have probably said that I will become an author some day. 

People have always connected to my words and wanted me to write more. So, I guess it was a natural transition.

What else do you do on a daily basis?

I train. Very hard. It’s a life long commitment I gave to myself for choosing to be a Mountaineer. I’m also a co-founder to an Outdoor Adventure company called Third Pole Adventures Pvt. Ltd. So, it keeps me very busy.

Who are your favourite authors and why?

Krishna Shastri Devulapalli (From Goodreads)

Krishna Shastri Devulapalli and Trevor Noah. I love them because of their refreshing perspectives on realities and how they can laugh at life. 

Trevor Noah (From Wikipedia)

We don’t need anymore people to remind us of our suffering and struggles in a bad way and in a self-victimizing mode. We need writers, who can laugh at the bad experiences and learn from them. And these are the people I personally learn a lot from their writing too.

Yuval Noah Harari (From Wikipedia)

From Wikipedia

Which book are you currently reading?

'Sapiens : A Brief History of Humankind' by Yuval Noah Harari.

You can Read the Review, here the First part of the Interview here and Buy the Book right here, as well.