Author Interview: Meera Shashidhara: Living to Be a Hundred: There is no Wealth but Life

Meera Shashidhara was born and raised in Bangalore, India. In 1991 she immigrated to the US, where she did an MBA and worked in California for over six years. Though her career has been in Finance, Meera has always had a keen interest in human behaviour. She is also deeply interested in nature and conservation and is a qualified Naturalist.

  Your real name and pen name?

  Meera Shashidhara

  Please share some of the best memories of your childhood

  My best memories are summer holidays when we would visit our aunt's estate and enjoy hiking, eating, playing and reading to the hilt.

  About your education

  I'm an MBA in Finance from a US University

  What career did you plan during your education days

  I didnt really plan on anything until it came to the point that I had to choose. But I had opted Science out since I did'nt want to do Lab experiments on creatures.

  What languages you can speak and write?

  English, Kannada, Hindi

  What is your biggest source of inspiration in life

  Autobiographies

  What hurts you most in this world

  Betrayal

  If you had to live a day of your life as one of the living or dead personality, who would it be and why?

  As any of the musical Ustaads of India as I love music but have no talent in it. For eg., Pandit Ravi Shankar.

  What is your favorite genre and why?

  Love all kinds of genres.

  When did you start writing? What is the purpose of your writing?

  I started in 2000. To share inspirational stories with the world.

  Which of your work has been published so far? Would you like to share a synopsis of your work?

  Living to Be a Hundred. Also a few articles in the Newspaper.

  What are your forthcoming writings?

  Havent planned anything.

  What are your future plans?

  I've taken off from work for sometime now and would like to get back to work.

  What four top most things you take care of while writing a book?

  That it should be inspirational. That it should touch people's hearts. That it should be edited well.

  How much real life goes into a fiction writing?

  My writing has been only non-fiction so far.

  Is high level of imagination important to have for an Author?

  Yes. Or there should be true stories.

  Your dream destination on Earth?

  Too many destinations.

  Your origin of birth and other countries you have visited/ stayed. What best things you liked in these countries around the globe?

  Born in India, have lived in the US. Traveled in Europe. Love the openess in mindsets of people, love history, museums, food, beaches.

  Your favorite time of the day?

  Teatime

  Your zodiac/ sunsign?

  Piscean

  Your favorite color and why?

  Green...its the color of the forest.

  Your favorite book and why?

  Anna Karenina. It made an impression on my young mind when I read it long back. The depth in the discription of human emotion and characters was fascinating.

  Your favorite food?

  Every kind, but vegetarian.

  Some quickies: Sun or Moon, Laughter or Smile, Morning or Evening, Coffee or Tea, Mountain or Sea, Long Drive or Short Drive, Silence or Conversation, Water or Fire, Air or Earth, Mars or Jupiter, Tulip or Rose, Red or Blue, Left or Right, Glance or Stare

  Sun
  Laughter
  Evening
  Both
  Sea
  Long Drive
  Conversation
  Water
  Air
  Jupiter
  Tulip
  Blue
  Right
  Glance

  What three words come to your mind for each – Technology, Life, God, Humanity, Terrorism, Racism, Childhood Abuse, Love, Parenting, Old age

  Technology - good, helpful, disruptive
  Life-joy, health, happiness
  God-prayer, peace, within
  Humanity-Love, compassion, harmony
  Terrorism-Death, destruction, sadness
  Racism-discrimination, condescending, backward
  Childhood Abuse-Sad, Longlasting, Scar
  Love-Essence, joy, happiness
  Parenting-Joy, responsibility, challenging

  State your signature line/ tagline/ best quote

  There is no wealth but life by John Ruskin