Molly:
Today I am talking with an Indian woman, Poornima Shankar, who is the mother of pre school twin girls and is living in New Jersey!

Poornima I recently reviewed your delightful children's book 'Roger Rabbit Learns a Lesson.' I enjoyed both your marvelous illustrations as well as the tale you have written. Do you find your characters 'come alive' as you are writing? Do they take over and direct the tale as you go along?

Poornima:
Thank you Molly for reviewing my work. I wrote the story of 'Roger Rabbit Learns a Lesson' on the spur of the moment. My kids were hungry and
pointing to their tummies and laughing as I tickled them. I taught them that when one feels hungry, it is felt at the tummy. That is when, I thought of this story and began writing it. The end result developed as I typed.

Molly:
What inspires you to write?

Poornima:
I have twins aged two and a half. I am reading to them simple, yet effective stories all the time that not only entertain, but also helping in developing visual, imaginative and verbal skills.

I want to the keep the promise I made to my father who told me that the two permanent essences of life that every person needs to cherish and thrive with are MUSIC and BOOKS. He said that without these two wonderful implements of imagination, we are handicapped as individuals. I think he is right. These are the two things that define us and are our friends forever. I am trying my best to enrich the lives of my little ones with these two basic essences to ensure their all round development.
I have always loved books, an inheritance credited to my father and have inherited my mother's wonderful love for art too. My mother taught art and craft apart from science in her 21 years of service at a the same catholic school where I studied.

Molly:
Your father sounds like a very wise man. I enjoy your art work so much that I have asked you to illustrate several of my own children's books. Are you available to do illustrations for others as well? Is illustrating something you would like to do more of in future?

Poornima:
I enjoyed doing all your illustrations Molly. I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to do the illustrations of your wonderful stories. Illustrations help me imagine and create yet stick to the confined boundaries of the story provided and do justice to the writer's originality of story. That is a wonderful challenge to work with.

I would love to do illustrations for other people's work as well and will be happy to take on personal assignments. If interested please contact me at my email id of www.apranv@home.com .

Molly:
Poornima, I know you are a visitor to the U S. Please tell us something about yourself, about your day to day life as mom of beautiful twins! And, about your home in India.

Poornima:
I have been living in the US for four years now after I got married to my wonderful and supportive husband in 1997.

I had the typical 'arranged marriage of India' that is of so much wonder here in the US. I am now a happy and proud mother of identical twin girls aged two and a half who are the centers of my life. They occupy my time while I occupy theirs. It is an exhausting yet fulfilling experience to mother twins whose every day challenges almost always bring a smile to our faces when the roller coaster ride finally stops!

I have been born and brought up in India. I basically belong to the southern part of the country but have lived in the western state of Gujarat throughout my growing years. I am hence, familiar with 5 of the many Indian languages apart from English. I was educated in the English medium of education in a Catholic school. I have my parents, grandma, brother and sister in law living in my home town. I miss them very much. My in laws live in another city in India and my sister in law is our pride...an honors student.

I grew up with my Grandma who had been living with us after my grandfather passed away even before I was born. Listening to her lovely tales, folk lore and mythological stories, I consider myself lucky to have had her during my growing years. She was my teacher, friend and advisor, all rolled into one. Grandma was a buffer in the family...a real pillar that everyone leant on. I wish every child gets to grow with the older generation....they are such a treasure.

I graduated from High School with the Science subjects including math. I then went on to college and graduated in Foods and Nutrition with straight 'A's. I worked for one year on a UNICEF funded project as a Research Assistant that studied the effect of iron supplementation in teen aged girls in both rural and urban pockets. I have worked closely with girls and have had an understanding of their growth spurt and hormonal changes. I still love Nutrition and would like to work in the field of children's nutrition when I get the right opportunity. I am currently writing a children's story regarding the importance of health and nutrition in our everyday lives.

Molly:
Thank you for telling us about your delightful family. I agree, it enriches our lives to have close enduring contact with a grandparent. For me it was my Grandfather. I miss his deeply. Poornima, please tell us how long have you been writing/illustrating?

Poornima:
I was the editor of my school and college magazine for a few years and continued to write after a short break. I had been writing mainly research pieces on issues that I myself wanted to find out about. In the process, I also began writing short stories, that included children's stories since about two years.

I do not have a formal degree in illustration, but do it out of my own interest and creative talent. I have also sold several hand made greeting cards for a charity organization and have even won some drawing competitions.

Molly:
I enjoy your illustrations very much. Who is your favorite author(s) and/or illustrators, how did this(those) writer(s)/artists inspire you and your work?

Poornima:
I do like all the Disney cartoon creations and their book versions. I like detailed works and funny works a lot.

Molly:
Where do you get ideas for your books? Do you plan more children's books in the future?

Poornima:
Ideas for children's stories pop up any time, any place for me. It might be from a dialogue my children have made, a drawing or cartoon I saw, a doodle that I made, a long forgotten story, in the shower, while I cook...just about anywhere!

Molly:
I know other beginning writers will be interested to learn how long it takes on average for you to write a book from start to finish? And, please tell us what are you working on at the moment?

Poornima:
I can take anywhere from a couple of hours to a few days for my book. Most times, the story develops and ends once I begin to write. So, I begin just when I think of a story and allow my imagination to do the rest.

At the moment I am working on a children's story that teaches about the basics of nutrition and health. I am also working on the picture book illustrations for your alphabet book. And it is almost finished!

Molly:
Thank you for such an interesting and informative interview Poornima. Just received the illustrations and they are a delight.