Ello.
My name is Umair Mirxa. I live and write in Karachi, Pakistan. To be
a published author is a dream I have long held and cherished, and it
has finally, slowly come true over the past year or so. I have the
honour of being published in several international anthologies, but
there is much yet to achieve, including my first novel, and
hopefully, an epic fantasy series. More recently, I have taken up
drawing as a secondary creative outlet. When I am not writing, I
spend my time on Netflix, reading, and watching football as an
Arsenal FC fan.
Tell
me about your writing process: schedule, environment, inspirations,
etc.
The
greatest and most ever-present inspiration for me is, and forever has
been, J.R.R. Tolkien. I read my favourite passages from The Lord of
the Rings whenever I’m stuck with my own writing or even generally
if and when something has me down. Charles Dickens, Neil Gaiman, Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle, and Christopher Paolini are just a few of the
other authors who have inspired me.
I
don’t really work to a strict schedule unless faced with a looming
deadline. I do, however, make a point of writing every single day,
even if what I produce turns out to be spectacularly ridiculous
rubbish. If the muse is singing, I have been known to write for 14-16
hour sessions without food or sleep. There are, of course, plenty of
days when even a 100-word drabble seems like the most horrible chore.
I write digitally using a desktop PC, sitting at a desk which has a
notepad, a pen-holder, an ashtray, several mugs of coffee, and snacks
and smokes in a room which contains my bookshelf, a TV, a PS4, plenty
of light, and a couple of extremely comfortable leather sofas.
Walk
me through your publishing process from final draft to final product,
including services hired as a self-published author, and marketing.
While
I have been published in nearly three dozen anthologies recently, I
have yet to self-publish a book. Once it is ready, and hopefully the
day is not too far off, I plan on seeking out a couple of author
friends to beta-read the final draft, and then upload the final
product to print-on-demand platforms like Amazon and Lulu. I am lucky
enough to have professional experience as a graphic designer and a
digital marketer, thus eliminating the need for hired services. I
hope to create a decent cover myself, and I will definitely be doing
my own marketing, at least for a while yet.
Talk
about your support system online and IRL, especially your biggest
cheerleaders.
I
feel I have been truly blessed when it comes to having a support
system as a writer. My wife does everything possible to facilitate my
process and schedule, and has been the greatest, most constant source
of motivation and encouragement. My mother, both sisters, brother,
mother-in-law, and sisters-in-law and even their husbands have all
cheered and spurred me on, and I have the greatest group of friends a
guy can ask for in my corner, always. They have supported me,
encouraged me, chastised me when necessary, and contributed ideas and
advice for my stories.
Lastly,
and most certainly not the least, I have been incredibly fortunate to
have a rather remarkable group of author and publisher friends online
who have beta-read my work with honest feedback, shown me submissions
opportunities, encouraged me to write and submit, and given me
excellent advice not only for writing but for life as well. They
include, and I apologize in advance if I fail to mention someone I
should, authors such as Steve Carr, Shawn Klimek, David Bowmore,
Bruce Rowe, Mark Kuglin, Patt O’Neil, Mehreen Ahmed, Pavla
Chandler, Aditya Deshmukh, Nerisha Kemraj, Ximena Escobar, Kelli J
Gavin, Arabella Davis, and Dawn DeBraal, and publishers/editors Grant
Hudson, Dean Kershaw, Zoey Xolton, Madeline L. Stout, and Stacey
Morrighan McIntosh.
How
does life influence your writing and vice versa?
In
every way possible, I imagine. For most of my life, reading fantasy
stories has been a way of escape, and now I write them myself, more
often than not, for the very same reason. Yet no matter how fantastic
a landscape I portray or how outlandish my characters, the essence of
my own personal experiences permeates all of my writing. My
characters, therefore, and much like I do myself, will generally hate
racism and discrimination in any form with a vengeance, and they’ll
tend to be quiet and introverted, with only a small group of close
friends. They will have experienced loss and adversity, will enjoy
books and food and travel, music and solitude, and the all the simple
pleasures of life.
Simplicity
is perhaps the greatest lesson taught to me by the art and practice
of writing. Too often, we complicate our lives beyond reason by
chasing after material and financial gain at the cost of all that is
good and pure in our time on Earth.
What
do you love most about your creativity?
The
ability to bring to life characters and things and places, and entire
worlds which I can visit and explore at leisure. To be able to have
conversations with people I would never actually meet, to give them
lives and loves, experiences and friendships. To dream of a world
which has never been and might never come to be but still be able to
envision and set stories within, and then to share them with the
world that is.
I
love how my creativity means I am never, ever bored and can
comfortably be alone for days, even weeks on end if necessary. I
enjoy discovering potential stories when I’m out at a restaurant,
mall or park, and can create characters of the people I see and meet.
More recently, since I have taken up drawing, there is the additional
joy of studying light and shadows, form and shape and perspective,
and then to try and apply all of it to a blank canvas.
Most
importantly perhaps, and I know all authors crave an audience, but I
absolutely love when someone tells me they enjoyed reading one of my
stories. It is one of the greatest pleasures in life, I believe, when
your work is the source of joy for another.
Connect
with Umair:
Website:
http://umairmirxa.com/
Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Umair-Mirza/
Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show\.Umair_Mirxa
BookBub:
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/umair-mirxa
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/UMirxa/
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/UMirxa12
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/mirxa.umair/
Author
Extra: Write a 50-word story right here, right now!
Brynhildr withdrew her sword
from the fallen warrior’s chest, swayed, and collapsed herself.
Slowly, the dark descended, and she felt herself ascending. Strong
arms around her. A gentle caress. The weight, the pain, the fear. All
of it, gone.
She
opened her eyes, and with a smile walked into Valhalla.
Author Extra Extra: Art Gallery
Starting over, Xanthe and her mother Flora purchase an antique store in a small town, where Xanthe’s extra-sensory connections to antiques impel her into a time travel mystery to rescue a young woman in the 17th century to save her mother’s life. Details of time travel are cleverly meted out through Xanthe’s discoveries and conclusions, increasing tension by placing credible limitations on Xanthe’s experiences. Urged on (and threatened) by the ghost of the young woman’s mother, Xanthe makes difficult decisions with every move, resolving impossible conflicts with verve and panache, even sacrificing romance for her mother, which is as it should be. Repeated references to the injustice in her own history could have been more subtle. The ghost mother could have been developed a bit more. The damsel in distress was a lovely vision of mystery even after the reader meets her in person. That she was rescued by a woman is a brilliant move on the author’s part. Readers who love time travel and / or female antagonists who save the day will appreciate this story. I received this wonderful story from the publisher through #NetGalley.