Book news

Dear reader,

Hello! I just wrapped up a two-day workshop at Whistling Woods International in Mumbai on turning personal narratives into picture books. Thank you, Utkarsha, for inviting me.

I was working with Gen Z and wondered if they’d be open to vulnerability. By the end of day one, they were sharing deeply personal stories. I realized something about myself too: I’ve always made people feel safe—it’s how I learned to avoid conflict growing up. Now, people naturally reach out to me, and I feel overwhelmed. But in the classroom, it felt different. There, holding space felt good — mutual, energizing, purposeful, yes there was the distance of us being strangers and me their teacher. With friends and acquaintances, it can feel like a job.

By day two, I was excited and some of the books had me so invested that I was asking them to sit down, not waste time and finish it. The students created such beautiful work. Some pieces felt almost ready for print; others just needed a little shaping.

Trust is such a powerful validation. Trust that results in art you can hold and savor—that’s something else entirely. My heart was full. yes, you could invite me to work in similar ways in your schools and educational institutions.

In other news, I’m working on my next children’s book. For the first time, I won’t be illustrating it—just writing and designing. It’s about an artist, and they’ve agreed to the idea of making the book. Yay.

Also, Cutpiece Kumar (my book with Eklavya) will be in New York at the UN from Feb 20 to March 13. If you’re in NY, go say hello to him. Also, here’s hoping one finds an international publisher!

That’s all the book news, can someone push me to put my book - Is everyone winging it? (A book on comics on relationships that I have finished drawing) on the Kindle?

Thanks,
Indu

p.s: if you read this press <3