About Gopi Menon:
Retired engineer Gopi Menon is an author and a Contrarian Thinker, who asks a lot of uncomfortable questions, about traditionally accepted practices such as religion, ritualized prayer, God, the afterlife, and so on.
Although he had wanted to write a book right from childhood, it was a long, rocky, and winding road to publishing his very first book, at the age of 70!
In fact, it took a near-death experience (while in an ambulance which took all of three hours to get to the nearest hospital), that made him vow to publish a book – if he managed to survive that arduous trip!
He did survive and finally published his first book 'Daily Happy Living', followed soon after by his second book called 'The GOD Soliloquy'.
This year he has just published his latest book entitled "Back to GOD, Away from Religion" in April 2021, which managed to make it to Amazon rank #1 in Agnosticism (Kindle) and #3 in Rationalism Philosophy, in May 2021.
He has been married to his wife for 47 years and they live in Malaysia. They have been blessed with three sons and four wonderful grandchildren.
What inspires you to write?
I have had a questioning mind right from early childhood and kept asking my parents, then my teachers all kinds of questions about life, the afterlife, God, happiness, and so on.
Much to my disappointment, no one seemed to know the answers and I turned to books, seminars, and finally deep introspection to satisfy my quest for the truth!
Sharing what I have discovered over the decades, is what inspires me to write books.
What authors do you read when you aren’t writing?
My old non-fiction favorites were Napoleon Hill, Maxwell Maltz, Paul Zane Pilzer, Dale Carnegie, et al. Among the newer authors I read are Mike Dooley, Derek Rydall, etc.
When it comes to fiction, occasionally I like to read books by Dan Brown, John Grisham, Agatha Christie, etc.
Tell us about your writing process.
Before I ever begin a writing project, I spend hours and days, just pondering the subject and the title of the book I intend to write about.
Once I have the title in mind, I sit at my computer keyboard and begin writing using MS Word. I make up a draft outline of chapter titles and type them as Chapter Headings on pages separated by page breaks. Since I use headings for each chapter, I can easily create a Table of Contents.
Now I have a good visual idea of what my book is going to look like, and then I am ready to type whatever idea inspires me onto the various chapters.
I find that just sitting in front of the outlined draft inspires me to begin writing. I don't insist on going through the chapters in order, but type whatever strikes me into any chapter I consider appropriate. I find that once started, I can be consistent in my written output.
Of course many times I have to cut and paste from one chapter to another to see that the theme and the prose flow correctly.
I normally type about three to five pages per day, since I can only sit for an hour or so at one time – before my eyes start blurring! Thus I can write say a 200-page book in about four months or so, including drafting, proofreading, and editing.
Then I am ready to submit my book to Amazon's DTP since I self-publish mostly on Kindle. I use the Kindle cover creator, sometimes with images created cheaply on Fiverr.
What advice would you give other writers?
Since I only write non-fiction self-help books, I can only say "Write about your own unique life journey!"
You the only one most qualified to write about yourself, and perhaps it may affect some readers positively!
How did you decide how to publish your books?
As I said earlier, I was desperate to get a book published (at the age of 70), and unknowingly I went to a "vanity" publisher. I spent several thousand and got the book published, but I would not recommend it to anyone!
Then I opted for self-publishing and I found that I could publish on Kindle on Amazon for free! It was also so easy for a beginner like me.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I think that the future of book publishing is bright, especially with online publishing and promotion.
What genres do you write?: Self-Help, Religion and Spirituality, Happiness
What formats are your books in?: eBook, Both eBook and Print
Website(s)
Gopi Menon Home Page Link
All information in this post is presented “as is” supplied by the author. We don’t edit to allow you the reader to hear the author in their own voice.
Very good interview Gopi. Always knew, you had it in you.
Gained a lot of knowledge about life during my working life with you, in PD and Sarawak, Thanks. You are a true friend.
You are always in my prayers.
Thank you very much Mark! Writing keeps me occupied, especially during these “lockdown-days”. Cheers.