Dayeon, from CLN, had the chance to sit down with KavyaAgnihotri. Kavya is the amazing author of Born Warrior (XianWang Version), His Rakasha Bandhan and many others.

Hey, I'm Dayeon from Crazy Late Nighters and you've been nominated by MePotat, Hajabarbie and exxangel to do this interview. Thank you so much for taking the time to do it!

Before we start, what name or pen name do you go by and what are your pronouns?

My name is Kavya Agnihotri and I am a girl. So the pronoun is she of course. XD

If you had to describe yourself in one sentence, what would it be?

It's really a very tough question for me. Well, I can say I am cheerful and bubbly but. . .more or less my character is like Wei Wuxian.

How did you get into writing in the first place?

I started writing about 10 years ago (probably), I don't remember the age. At that time I was reading a poem by Rabindranath Tagore and my teacher told me that he started writing at a very young age of 12 years. So I was like...when he can write then why can't I. So I decided to write my first poem at the age of around 8 or 9 years.

exxangel would like to ask, how do you get such amazing ideas?

Ahhh well. . .actually I have watched a lot of fantasy movies and cartoons and read a lot of fantasy books when I was a kid. So I just pen down my wild imagination and fantasies and it forms a story.

The question from Hajabarbie is: what inspired you to write Lavanya?

I strongly believe in feminism and my strong love for the historical fiction genre made me write Lavanya. I feel like there is no work that a man can do but a woman cannot. Even women can do what men cannot do like conceiving, taking care of a whole family, raising kids, etc. I am just using this concept of women empowerment in my story Lavanya. What made me write Lavanya is that people think that women are weak, and they are always inferior to men. So I just want to portray that women aren't weak since historical times but if they want, then they can be more powerful and dangerous than men.

Does music play a role in your writing process at all?

It's a big NO *crosses both hands to show a big no.* Because I generally listen to high beat songs and once I start to play those songs, my body starts to move according to that beat and I end up dancing like crazy. While writing I try to focus on emotions and details, so I avoid listening to music while writing. Hehe *awkward smile*

Do you plan before you write, or do you prefer to just jump straight in?

I really prefer to plan the whole plot before I write. Because without planning, my story won't turn out well. Actually, I even have experience with it. While writing Love With Cold Heart, I jumped straight into writing without doing any planning and I had to pay the price because of this. While writing that story, I was running out of ideas since I didn't plan the entire plot beforehand. Even I thought of giving up on that story but after one of my readers requested me to update, I decided to continue it. I am really really thankful to that reader.

So generally I plan the entire plot and do the entire character sketch before writing so that I won't have troubles while writing and face writer's block which is like a nightmare for a writer.

What appealed to you about the genre of fanfic?

Well, I generally write stories of romance, action, LGBTQ, and historical fiction. These are my favorite genres. But I write stories of fanfiction because I am madly in love with the actors of The Untamed drama - Wang Yibo and Xiao Zhan. So I cannot help but to stan them. Hehe *smiles goofily*

Are there any authors in particular that you admire?

There are many authors that I admire. So there is no particular special one. I am sorry.

Titles can be a real pain to think of, how do you come up with them?

Finding good titles is really really painful! If planning a plot taking an entire day then thinking of the title takes another day. Generally, I try to use all my imagination to find a good title. But in the end, I come up with a very simple and ordinary title. *huffs* *pouts*

If you could have a meal with any author, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

Well, it will be JK Rowling *screams like a fangirl*. I really really love her. I would ask her how she unleashes her wild imagination and writes fantasy things easily like it's a piece of cake for her. I really want to know about writing tips from her.

It can be pretty difficult when you first get into Wattpad to get the reads. What was it like getting started on Wattpad for you?

When I entered wattpad, I never thought of writing. But after reading a few books, I thought of giving it a try. When I started writing, I didn't have very high expectations, like I need a very huge amount of reads and votes. I was just like. . .I am writing because I love to write. So low reads and votes in the beginning didn't break my heart. But what made me crazy is that people loved my very first book on wattpad and I am really thankful to my readers.

Writers' block is a common problem among authors. Have you ever faced writers' block yourself? If so, how did you overcome it?

Till now I didn't face a proper writer's block and I am really grateful to God about it. Because I know how it feels when a writer faces a writer's block. You will have a pen and paper in your hand but you don't know what to write and it's really really painful. It's like a person has everything which he needs to survive but he doesn't have a happy soul in him.

Even if I have to face writer's block, then I will think about my readers that they love my books and they are waiting for my updates. I think this will help me to think again about some story ideas. (I don't know because I never faced a proper writer's block).

exxangel would like to know what motivates you to keep writing?

The answer to this question is very easy and simple. It's my READERS.

Because whenever I feel low or depressed, they are always by my side, give me advice, and support me. This helps me to overcome my problems and I can focus on my regular life. Writing stories is the only way for me to express my love to my readers. So I keep writing for my readers who show unconditional love to me. So my readers motivate me to keep writing.

When you write fanfic, do you try to accurately represent the celebrities in your story, or do you like to create new personalities or characters for them?

It depends. It's not that I always write stories according to the original characteristics of the celebrities. Generally, I try to give them new personalities of characters but sometimes I write according to their own characters. It depends upon the plot of the story.

What about writing do you find most rewarding?

The most rewarding about writing is that I can pen down my feelings and wild imaginations. I can write my pain and happiness through it. Sometimes it helps to hide from the harsh reality of the world and take shelter in the world of imagination.

Do you have any plans for future books? Hajabarbie would like to know if you will be writing a Zhanyi (Top: Zhan, bottom: Yibo) fanfic at some point?

I do have a lot of plans for my future books. I am thinking of writing a YiZhan story next because it has been almost 5 months since I had last written a proper YiZhan book. But honestly speaking, I love ZhanYi the most, and some of my readers are YiZhan lovers. So I am thinking of writing both ZhanYi and YiZhan stories in an alternate way so that I won't disappoint my readers. :)

What is the best book you've ever read and what made it so good?

I have read a lot of books so there isn't a particular one to point out like I like this the most. I love all of them. I am sorry about it.

Do you have any advice to give to your fellow authors?

I don't have any advice to give to my fellow authors because most of them are better than me in writing. But I have a request for my YiZhan or ZhanYi authors. It's. . .I really want to request them to write a very high action-packed romance story. Because I have never read such a YiZhan/ ZhanYi story. I really really love the story. So it's my little request to all my jiejies. *pouts* *makes puppy eyes*

Do your stories contain a message that you want your readers to take away? If so, what is it?

The message I want to convey is that the submissive ones (generally women or submissive men) in a relationship aren't weak. They are as strong as the dominants. The submissives show submission only because they want to keep a good and happy relationship with their lovers. If someone thinks that submissive people are weak, they are having a very wrong misconception. Another message I want to convey is, hate can never be a solution to peace. Love and friendship can only bring peace among people as well as communities. So I just want to say that spread love, not hate 😊.

Is there anything you'd like to say to your readers and followers?

I would love to convey my thanks and gratitude that they are spending their precious time to read my mere books. They make me feel like I am not alone, they are always with me during my hard times. When I came to wattpad first, I felt that my entire existence is a curse and burden to my parents as well as the world. But my readers and followers taught me to love myself, they showed me that I am not that worthless as I was thinking. They always showed me a bring way whenever I am in the darkness of depression. They always gave me the unconditional love for which I was longing for. They make me feel like a family to the point that it's impossible for me to leave wattpad. So I really really wanna say heartily thanks to all my readers for bearing with me and supporting me in all possible ways. THANK YOU SO MUCH *bows* *cries*

Thank you so much for taking the time to do the interview. We really appreciate it!