Dr Sandhya Mohan is an Anaesthesiologist from Mangalore. She is a positive person, and she firmly believes in the power of positive thinking. She was born in Mangalore in 1983. Her father Late M C Mohanan was an advocate and mother Rema Mohan a homemaker. After MBBS from K S Hegde Medical Academy, Mangalore, she worked for two years as a casualty Medical Officer in Kerala. She is also a trained Bharatanatyam dancer. She wanted to become a Psychiatrist, but her family was against the idea of pursuing a career in psychiatry. “FROM EMPTINESS TO HAPPINESS, ANAESTHETISING NEGATIVE EMOTIONS” is her debut novel; it is an attempt to create awareness about mental health issues.
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Chit Chat Session
Starting with, give us a little gist about your book. What it is all about?
From Emptiness to happiness is the story of an anesthesiologist Dr Riya who suffers from a serious mental health disorder, a disorder that makes her feel empty, impulsive and experience emotions with a much greater intensity than normal people do. Riya meets Samith a general surgeon in the operating room and falls in love with him. They start dating however things don’t end as planned. Riya is on the verge of losing her mental stability and giving in to her suicidal impulses. She recollects incidents from the past and manages to muster the courage to fight back.The book is all about her journey from fighting the feeling of emptiness, to finding ways to deal with her intense emotions and eventually finding happiness.
Which book inspired you the most?
I am not an avid reader; I do read whenever I find time. The book that inspired me the most is Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom, the book changed my perspective about life and death.
What is the most fulfilling and the most challenging part of writing a book?
The most fulfilling part of the book is being able to express yourself and the most challenging part is editing and of course convincing people to read the book.
What according to you is the most unethical practice in the publishing industry?
I don’t know enough about the publishing industry to comment on that.
This is your first book. So, what according to you are common traps for aspiring writers?
I guess everyone does a research online before deciding on a publishing company or a marketing agency. Not easy to trap aspiring writers, even before publishing my book I was aware that it is not easy to convince people to buy my book; likes on social media don’t convert to sales.
How do you manage writing with your profession?
It took me more than a year. After a long day in the Operating room even my fictional characters appear anesthetized. I usually write on weekends.
Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?
The protagonist is an anesthesiologist, when a practicing anesthesiologist pens down a love story revolving around the Operating table, it’s very unlikely that the story lacks originality. I have written this book to create awareness about mental health issues, at the same time I wanted to bring to light the struggles of a doctor. The increasing incidents of assaults on doctors, also the posts against doctors on social media and mainstream media have affected me to an extent that at times I do feel pursuing a career in medicine was a mistake. I’ve written from a doctor’s perspective, the layman may not like it. I haven’t tried to deliver what people want to read. The book is about borderline personality disorder and I’ve tried my best to describe different aspects of living with a borderline PD.
What does literary success look like to you?
Literary success is when you reach a stage where people read whatever you write.
What’s the best way to market your book(s)?
Writing geeks.
Lastly, Please let us know about your next project.
It’s about a group of people who meet as first year post-graduate residents in a government medical college. It’s about their insane working hours, their struggles both in personal and professional life. I’ve just started working on it; I have no clue when I’ll be able to complete the book.
