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Book Title: Saving Satyavan

Author: romance_lover16

Amethyst: Before we start with the interview, I want to congratulate you again for winning 3rd place in the award! How are you feeling today?

Romance_lover16: Thank you! I'm feeling good today. A bit stressed for my last exam tomorrow, but good! How are you?

Amethyst: Exam 😭 But the good thing is that it's the last exam. My morning has just begun, so I'm still trying to wake myself up.

Romance_lover16: Oof I understand that feeling 😅 but hopefully it goes away soon.

Amethyst: Saving Satyavan was based on the story "Savitri and Satyavan" (please correct me if I'm wrong since I searched it up in Google, but I'm not sure if that's the correct title). I was wondering,

Q: How did Satyavan receive the curse of death?

Romance_lover16: Yes, that's true! The legends never say exactly how Satyavan received the curse of death, as far as I've learned. He was simply just cursed to die a year after his marriage.

Amethyst: I don't even know what to say 😭 I'm speechless with the fact that he was cursed to die a year after his marriage. Like why?😭

Romance_lover16: 😂😂Nobody knows. It's sort of like the curse on Aurora in Sleeping Beauty. The stories don't even say why he was cursed or anything. Mainly, the focus is on Savitri.

Amethyst: Now that you mention it...I didn't question why Maleficent cursed Aurora...🤣

Romance_lover16: 😂😂She kind of had a reason. Because she wasn't invited to her birthday party (or christening, in the older stories).

But tbh, I would have rather stayed home. I hate crowded places lol.

Amethyst: Same 🤝

Now another thing I'm so confused about is King Dyumatsena 🤣 .

Q: How did King Dyumatsena know about Satyavan's death, even though Savitri didn't say anything? How did he know where Savitri was standing when he was blind?

Romance_lover16: So, funny thing, I mixed Dyumatsena's senses with the magic of the myths. So, Dyumatsena hadn't always been blind. He had sight before (I didn't include it in the story, but I've hinted at the demise of Dyumatsena's kingdom and his exile) and was able to sense Savitri's movements through the wind. How he knew about Satyavan's death was sort of a parent's intuition. It's like how your mom knows when you did something wrong or got hurt - for Dyumatsena, it was the same thing.

Amethyst: Ohhh. That makes sense. You hinted at the demise of his kingdom and exile, and I thought that it was like dominos full of bad luck for Dyumatsena.

Romance_lover16: It kind of was, in the end. 😅 But also, it wasn't.

Amethyst: The intuition of a parent is really strong...

Romance_lover16 : Tell me about it 🥲 Sometimes it's great, other times it's...

Amethyst: scary

Romance_lover16: Exactly.

Q: Using three words, what is the main theme of the story "Saving Satyavan"?

Romance_lover16: Acceptance, Perseverance, and Love!

Amethyst: I'm curious. Out of all the hindu stories,

Q: Why did you choose to write the story of Savitri and Satyavan?

Romance_lover16: Well, it's actually due to a school project 😅 that I picked Savitri and Satyavan.

Q: If you were in Savitri's shoes, would you set sail to Dharmaraj's realm in order to save your husband? Why?

Romance_lover16: Hm...I actually would. Being disabled, it's hard to find acceptance, especially in the romance department. If I find someone who can love me despite my flaws, I'd have difficulty letting go of that person. But, perhaps like Savitri, I would learn from my journey that love also means letting go when the time is right.

Amethyst: Finding someone like that is the best feeling ever❤️.

Romance_lover16: I would certainly hope so! ❤️❤️.

Q: What is the most challenging thing to write in this story?

Romance_lover16: Hm... probably the romantic scenes. Since this is based on a legend, I didn't want to offend anyone by making the scenes between Satyavan and Savitri, or Savitri and Suman overly romantic, so I had to tread lightly and re-evaluate how I could show romance in this story. But I eventually found some ways!

Amethyst: There are pros and cons if the story is based on legends, but writing this gives others the opportunity to learn about stories from other countries. You did a great job focusing on the journey of Savitri and sprinkling in some romantic gestures.

Romance_lover16: Thank you! That's partly why I wrote the story, especially in my school, where my culture was almost unheard of.

Amethyst: I know this is kind of out of topic HAHAHAHAHA. But I will warn you that the rest of the questions are all about you.

Romance_lover16: Lol sure! I'm cool with that.

Q: What's your favourite flower? (HAHAHAH. I saw this in chapter 6 and had to ask).

Romance_lover16: 😂😂 My favourite flower is a rose. It's cliche, I know, but being the way I am, I tend to have a habit of striving for perfection, but also working on embracing my flaws. A rose is beautiful, but has thorns, proving that everything has a flaw. I guess that's why I like it.

Amethyst: The explanations are really cute and lovely. 🥰✨

Q: Out of all the gods that have been mentioned in Saving Satyavan, which one's your favourite?

Romance_lover16: Hm...well, I would say Agni. Although not my favourite god in the story, Agni is a symbol of burning passion - in the case of Savitri, her passion for rescuing her husband - but also because I like fire, and how it can destroy but also cleanse.

Amethyst: Agni's the god who has a deal with Lord Indra right?

Romance_lover16: Yep! Which is actually from a different story.😅

Q: If the characters from Saving Satyavan were to be your roommate, who would you choose? And why?

Romance_lover16: Probably Suman 😂 He's based on my cousin (who I consider a bit of an airhead but means well) and I also enjoyed writing Suman! I bet we could totally spend the whole night watching rom-coms or criticising TV shows.

Amethyst: HAHAHAHAHA. Suman is a mood.😂

Romance_lover16: Right??

Amethyst: Makes people feel so many emotions, which doesn't make things boring.

Romance_lover16: Exactly. Suman was who I imagined would be my male best friend.

Q: What's your goal as a writer?

Romance_lover16: My goal as a writer is to just write. It doesn't matter anymore if I become famous or not, or if I become successful in my writing or not. I just want to get as down as I can to show my family one day and to have something that I'm proud of. Ideally, it would be nice to be successful in the writing industry, but if that can't happen, my goal is to leave a mark somewhere, even if it's just in my own house.

Amethyst: Love this! Having at least some people close to you being proud of your work is

Romance_lover16: Thank you!

Amethyst: That ends our interview! It was so great to talk to you! I wish you the best in your writing journey and can't wait for the remaining chapters of your work

Romance_lover16: Thank you so much! I really enjoyed this interview and the awards were amazing! I also really enjoyed talking to you too!

Amethyst: Glad to hear that! Have a great night, Sunny!

Romance_lover16: You too!