Author Spotlight Is on Sapna Srinivasan

I’m so pleased to welcome fellow Tule author Sapna Srinivasan back to the Author Spotlight.

Sapna lives in Seattle, WA with her perfectionist husband and perfect daughter. Her name in Hindi means “dream” and true to its meaning, Sapna finds gratification in dreams and storytelling. She was born in southern India, raised in northern India, and spent the better part of her adult life in the United States. She, therefore, unabashedly clutches her Indian roots while embracing the American in herself. She loves to cook traditional Indian food and, yes, she uses cilantro in practically everything. When she isn’t cooking, writing, or being intellectually stumped by her daughter, she may be found running down the nearest trail by her Pacific Northwest home. The inspiration for her debut novel, A New Mantra, has been her own journey as both a woman of color and a runner; the latter being a sport that was introduced to her by her husband.

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The Hidden Opportunity Behind Writer’s Block

I’m at my desk, coffee in hand, and wondering how to make this a good one. Say something clever, or interesting—something worth reading. But the buzzing in my head has been all about my own self-growth. And this piece is going to be all about how that buzzing in my head, the action of self-growth, and overcoming emotional obstacles, helps the creative drive.

My penchant for writing has been a constant player in my life. I even like writing down my grocery list just for the heck of it. Last week I wrote down, “Milk” on my palm before driving out to grab some from the grocery store. It’s an expression of some kind that carries with it an invisible closure. That’s been my experience.

But while the instinct to put pen to paper has been unwavering, there’s been one factor that has influenced my creative output in life—mental and emotional health. There are times when life can be trying for all of us. We’ve all been there. Frustrations caused by delays in life events; or maybe relationship woes; or the extended family decides they want to “surprise” you with a two-week long visit (the same week the new Traitors season was going to drop).

It’s an especially unique situation for writers when we run into an emotional trench. It tends to have an odd effect on our creativity. For some of us, it fuels creativity. Agatha Christie’s most iconic creative pieces were a product of her emotional distress.

But for some of us, it’s an obstacle that blocks the creative juices from flowing freely. I am one of those people. I can’t create in the absence of an equilibrium. It’s a problem, I know. And it used to scare me. Because I knew I couldn’t always control an event that could send me down a path of anxiety and stress, or frustration, or hurt. Sometimes I had control—like if talking to someone makes you want your mommy, then best maybe don’t talk to them. But what about the things I couldn’t control that impact me emotionally?

It took me time to understand the lay of land, but I am happy to report that there is hope for those of us writers or creatives who don’t benefit from stress. And here is what I came away with – these stressful situations were in fact a growth opportunity. A chance to be better, stronger, wiser, more objective, maybe less petty, even. It sounds like something Tony Robbins would say, I know. But I tried it. And it works, I promise.

Here’s what I did. I considered the stressful situation in-hand. I spent some time (alone, me-time, with a cup of tea) thinking about why that situation was distressing. Specifically, what was the emotion tied to that situation that was causing the stress? Was it uncertainty, anger, jealousy, fear, anxiety? And then I thought about the reason behind that emotion. What was the starting point of the feeling. For example, if my stress was caused by anger, then I thought about where that anger originated. At what point did I feel it, what was the triggering event. I then started working my way up from that event, that starting point, to create a new sense of perspective for myself. If it was anger, then finding closure through conversation, or disassociation, or through the lens of empathy.

There is a huge catharsis that comes with that moment. A feeling of being spiritually uplifted. When you know, deep in your waters, that you did the right thing. It helps us sleep better, and feel better, and happier, even if the situation remains unresolved. You are resolved.

Changing my perspective and viewing stressful situations as a way to become a better human has helped me become a better writer. It’ not easy to do, nor will I say it works 100 percent of the time. But it works enough to make me want to keep doing it.

You’ll find all four of the Sood Family novels here.

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