Indian English literature seems to be blossoming these days. The Indian literary landscape is graced by a young crop of writers like Preeti Shenoy, Ravi Subramanian, Suhail Mathur, Ravinder Singh and many more. Ravi Subramanian is a banker by profession and is the author of the following books: God Is A Gamer (2014), Bankerupt (2013), The Bankster (2012), The Incredible Banker (2011), Devil In Pinstripes (2010), I Bought the Monk’s Ferrrari (2008) and If God Was a Banker (2007). His books are about banking and bankers, and he has been awarded the Crossword Book Award for The Incredible Banker and The Bankster. Here are 5 lessons writers can learn from Ravi Subramanian.
1. Gripping style of narration
The Bankster begins with three parallel stories about Joseph Braganza in Angola, Greater Boston Global Bank (GB2) in Mumbai, and Krishna Menon in Kerala. The author interconnects all the three stories in a gripping narrative style filled with twists and turns, keeping readers glued to it from the start to the finish. As a writer, one approach you can use to create gripping narration is through the “revelatory beat.” When the reader understands the twists in the plot, the understanding is so powerful that it compels the readers to re-examine everything that they have understood about the story. In the revelatory beat, they are impelled to emotionally re-experience the entire narrative.
2. Blend of real and fictional worlds
Ravi Subramanian artfully blends the real and fictional worlds in his writing. This is evident in most of his works. In Bankerupt, he depicts real issues like the Gun Control Act and American elections along with twists and turns that make you wonder if you are reading something that is real or fictional. As a writer, when you craft a story that depicts the real and the fictional, the journey from the real to the unreal and vice versa makes the reading experience meaningful.
3. Learning
Though most of his works are laced with jargon and terminology from the banking industry, it is not difficult to understand his writing. Readers get to learn some new vocabulary from the banking/finance industry. An astute reader may love to enhance his or her vocabulary. As an author, you may have opportunity to do this if your writing is grounded in a plot that belongs to a particular industry, and has characters that operate in that sector.
4. Past and present technique
Ravi Subramanian deftly bounces from the past events to the present events and vice-versa in his writing. In Devil In Pinstripes, he builds anticipation by referring to the past events and the present events and making his readers go through a whirlwind of emotions. The climax of the plot is a surprise worth reading! Devil In Pinstripes traces the strange twist of fate in Chanda and Amit’s lives and takes readers through the sharpest minds of New York International Bank. The journey from the past to the present and vice versa leads to a psychical time connectivity in your readers’ minds.
5. Multiple themes
Readers are exposed to different themes in Ravi Subramanian’s writing. In Devil In Pinstripes, there is the self-righteous boss to whom people say Yes Boss just to please him. Then you have autocracy, corporate governance, backbiting, boardroom politics, life-work balancing struggle, cut-throat competition, numerous loopholes, office politics, devious power games, etc. When you use multiple themes in your writing, it creates a strong sense of suspense. Readers will continue to read to find out the connections among the characters.
Ravi Subramanian’s inspirations are John Grisham and Jeffrey Archer. He admires Jeffrey Archer for his simple and crisp narrative writing style and likes John Grisham’s ability to write thrillers without being repetitive.
Image credit: Subramaj on Wikimedia Commons and reproduced under Creative Commons 3.0[author] [author_image timthumb=’on’]https://writingtipsoasis.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Smitha-Abraham.jpg[/author_image] [author_info]I’m Smitha Abraham. I love traveling in my flights of imagination and use these flights to craft short stories and poetry. I am a budding writer from India. My passions are reading, creative writing, listening to music, learning new languages, meeting new people, getting acquainted with different cultures and traveling. Authors like Isabel Allende, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Carlos Ruiz Zafón, genres like magic realism, historical romance, and writing styles that are imaginative and flow effortlessly fascinate me. I love to unwind with a book curled up on a sofa or by gazing at the stars by the sea shore. I am a nature lover and spending time admiring the sunset and sunrise is relaxing for me.[/author_info] [/author]
