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Welcome to a new season of MyKitaab Podcast. Amar Vyas interviewed Hema Hattangady and Ashish Sen, authors of the book "Lift Off : The Story of Conzerv." This book is the story of entrepreneurship, a journey of growing, scaling a business and creating an organizational culture.Hema Hattangady is a MBA from IIM Calcutta. She joined the business established by her father-in-law in 1990 after a short stint in advertising and brand strategy. Eventually, she was appointed CEO of Conzerv and successfully turned around the company before its acquisition by Schneider in 2009. Ashish is a graduate of King’s College, Cambridge University. He started his career with the Business Standard, Ananda Bazar Group of Publications where he became Assistant Editor. He currently divides his time teaching community media at institutions in India and abroad and is also a theatre practitioner. You can find detailed biographies of the authors on http://l.mykitaab.in/conzervFun fact: This is the first ever in-studio recording for an episode of MyKitaab Podcast. Amar reached out to Hema when he saw a post on LinkedIn about this book, and this interview was recorded in mid-February 2020, in Bengaluru. 

Bengaluru Business Literature Festival (BBLF) is in its fifth year and the 2019 edition of BBLF will be held on Saturday September 7, 2019 at WeWork, Richmond Road.  In this episode, founder of BBLF, Benedict Paramanand, talks about his journey as a journalist, an author, and a book lover. Benedict also talks about his reason(s) for starting BBLF, as well as the evolution of this event over the years. Finally, he talks about some of the highlights of the 2019 edition of BBLF and why you should attend the event. You can learn more about this event by visiting https://mykitaab.in/bblf2019-Benedict-ParmanandCreator and host of MyKitaab Podcast, Amar Vyas, will facilitate a session on regional language books of India.You can subscribe to MyKitaab Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, Hubhopper, Headfone, Storiyoh, TuneIn, Deezer, and many other fine podcasting apps and sites. 

Himanshu is the CEO of Pratham Books, a nonprofit organization that is in the space of Children's reading and education material. In this interview, Himanshu and I talk about his reasons for joining Pratham Books, publishing content under Creative Commons and the phenomenal growth of Pratham books (12,000 titles in 150 languages) over the past decade. This interview is in English, but the last five minutes are also in Hindi.  At the beginning of this episode, there is a new segment that we would like to introduce in the coming weeks: book reviews. Title Image from Storyweaver, used under Creative Commons License Listen to this very insightful interview from Michal on MyKitaab Podcast. You can subscribe to MyKitaab Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Storiyoh, Stitcher and other fine places where you can consume your favourite episodes.

In episode 96 of MyKitaab Podcast, we talk to Michal Stawicki who is an author, coach, entrepreneur who has published over 2 million words over the past 7 years. He has been a past guest on MyKitaab Podcast, and in this episode, we talk about his evolution from an author to an authorpreneur. He and his wife have been able to leave their full time jobs, and they have been supplement their income from writing and related activities.  Listen to this very insightful interview from Michal on MyKitaab Podcast.  MyKitaab Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Storiyoh, Stitcher and other fine places where you listen your favourite podcasts.  You can of course listen to the podcast interviews and get the shownotes at https://mykitaab-podcast.com/michal-stawicki

Welcome to episode number 95 of MyKitaab podcast. Our guest is Yogesh Dashrath, who is the Country Manager for Storytel in India. Storytel is an audio book and ebook  publisher from Sweden.  Yogesh tells his own journey as an avid book reader and an audiophile, and Storytel's journey in India. We also discuss the evolution of the market for audiobooks in India. Specifically, the challenges he faced when he approached publishers and authors while trying to build up their audio book collection in India. We also talked about audiobooks in Indian languages, particularly Marathi and Hindi. This is the first ever interview of MyKitaab Podcast which has recorded it not one, not two, but three languages: English, Hindi and Marathi. This is a very, very exciting and high energy conversation which I am sure you would learn a lot from. As a special for MyKitaab listeners: you can try Storytel for FREE for 30 days! visit www.storytel.com/30days MyKitaab is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Storiyoh, Stitcher and other fine places where you listen your favourite podcasts.You can of course listen to the podcast interviews and get the shownotes at https://mykitaab-podcast.com

Welcome to episode number 94 of MyKitaab Podcast. Our guest today is Jason Van Gumster. Jason is from Atlanta, Georgia in the United States, he is a creative professional, an author and an advocate of open source programs. His books include the GIMP Bible and Blender for Dummies He is also the creator and the host of the Open Source Creative Podcast.  We had used Skype for recording this call, and occasionally you may hear a drop in the audio quality, particularly after the call had dropped around two thirds of the recording. We had originally recorded this interview in April 2017, and we are publishing it in December 2018. MyKitaab Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Storiyoh, Stitcher and other fine places where you listen your favourite podcasts.  You can find the shownotes and links mentioned in this episode at mykitaab-podcast.com/

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/mykitaab-how-to-publish-and-market-your-books/id1073960469We were on an unexpected, extended break for the past year, but now MyKitaab Podcast is back! Starting July 11th, we are re launching in a new format, with exciting interviews every other week, which will alternate with a news and analysis show. We looked at the listener analytics (over 55,000 listens, THANK YOU!) and we noticed that there is a considerbale interest int he news and analysis casts that we used to publish back in 2016. So we thought, with the relaunching of the show, why not add a new flavour to MyKitaab Podcast? Also note that we have a new website mykitaab-podcast.com. Over the coming weeks, we will update the links to the shownotes for the existing episodes as well. If you have any questions or comments, write to us at contact at gaathastory dot com. You can listen to MyKitaab Podcast on Apple Podcasts (formerly iTunes), Google Podcasts, Bookmyshow Jukebox, Stitcher, and Otto Radio.

Ritesh is a former investment banker turned entrepreneur in the book publishing space. He is the Co-Founder of Read Out Loud, a Mumbai based book publishing, marketing and distribution company. Ritesh and I talk about how to price your books in India, trends in publishing, how International authors can market and sell their books in India, how to use WhatsApp for book marketing, the controversy about the Times of India competition for authors;and finally, film options for books. Shownotes and links mentioned in the interview are available on https://mykitaab-podcast.com/ritesh MyKitaab Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Storiyoh, Stitcher and other fine places where you listen your favourite podcasts.

Last year, we published the interview of bestselling author, angel investor and entrepreneur Kashyap Deorah. We re-visit his interview, where he talks about his writing process, marketing and finding a publisher for his book.

Tony Ballantyne is the author of Dream London, the Penrose series and the Recursion series. He has also written many short stories. Recursion, his first novel, was published by Tor UK in 2004. He has been nominated for the BSFA and Philip K Dick awards. He now lives in Oldham with his wife and two children. His hobbies are playing the piano, accordion and cornet. He also enjoys walking and cycling. He is the author of Dream Paris, the follow up to Dream London, and is working on series of stories set in the Recursion universe. You can learn more about Tony by visiting http://www.mykitaab.in/tonyB

In this episode, I talk to Shilpa Gupta about her books Ananya and Double or Quits. A Chemical Engineer from IIT Roorkee and an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad, Shilpa has 13 years work experience in Investment Banking. During this period, she was ranked among the top Indian financial analysts by Asia Money, a leading international publication. At present she is a member of the national CII committee on ‘Ethics in Healthcare’. Shilpa took a break from her active corporate career to follow her passion for writing. Her first work of fiction ‘Ananya - A Bittersweet Journey’ published by Rupa Publications, ‘Double or Quits’, her second book, is published by Jaico,. It is the first corporate crime thriller in India with a female protagonist. Through Jyotsna’s journey, Shilpa brings out the constant struggle to find the right balance between emotions and practicality, aspirations and values, short term gains and sustainable life. Shilpa has been been a speaker, moderator and panellist at several literary and corporate events and an active member of various writer groups. Shownotes from this episode are available at http://www.mykitaab.in/shilpa

Paul Brodie is a Seven time Amazon bestselling author. He believes believes that books should be inexpensive, straightforward, direct, and not have a bunch of fluff. Each of his books were created to solve problems including living a healthy lifestyle, increasing motivation, improving positive thinking, traveling to amazing destinations, and helping authors publish and market their books. What makes Paul’s books different is his ability to explain complex ideas and strategies in a simple, accessible way that you can implement immediately. Paul is lifelong learner and educator and earned an M.A. in Teaching from Louisiana College and B.B.A. in Management from the University of Texas at Arlington. In his spare time he loves to read and write books, travel (especially to Maui and Las Vegas), and is an avid sports fan. The shownotes from this episode are available at https://mykitaab-podcast.com/paulbrodie.  You can subscribe to MyKitaab Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Storiyoh, Stitcher and other fine places where you can consume your favourite episodes. You can of course listen to the podcast interviews and get the shownotes at https://mykitaab-podcast.com

In this episode, I interview Tim Lewis, who is an author and the host of the Begin Self Publishing Podcast. We talk about book writing during nanowrimo, book marketing, and social media. You can find the shownotes at www.mykitaab.in/tim About Tim: Tim Lewis is the host of the Begin Self-Publishing Podcast and the author of three science-fiction books and two fantasy books. He shares his struggles with publishing and interviews experts in the world of self-publishing to try and understand better what to do. How did you find this episode? We would love to hear your feedback! You can leave us a review on your favourite podcasting channel or in the comments section on MyKitaab Website. You can also subscribe to MyKitaab Podcast on iTunes, Stitcher and ACast. Visit www.mykitaab.in to learn more.

Rachel Amplhett is an author originally from the UK but now living in Australia. Her most recent book, Scared to Death, was published in December 2016. In this interview, we talk about Rachel's bookwriting journey, importance of cash flow for authors, writing productivity, and the highlight of the discussion was how to use Project Management (scheduling, planning, budgeting) for managing your writing career. Shownotes from this episode are available at www.mykitaab.in/rachel You can follow MyKitaab Podcast on Twitter @gaathastory, on Instagram @gaathastory_podcast, and you can subscribe to our newsletter by visiting www.mykitaab.in .

Leigh Martinuzzi is The Hidden Why Guy. He has published his book Virtual Freedom in January 2017, and we talk about his book writing process and book marketing. You can get a free copy of Leigh's book by visiting the shownotes page at www.mykitaab.in/leigh Leigh is an expert in lifestyle design. He helps people go from living a life they hate to living a life they love. His assists people via speaking, coaching, writing and podcasting.Having a corporate background in senior executive positions for various multi-national companies such as ALDI and Masters, Leigh realised that it wasn't the life he wanted.Leigh made a decision and decided to design his life to give him more freedom, fulfilment and happiness. He has successfully transitioned from a dissatisfying existence to life with greater purpose.Now he pays forward what he has learnt to help other people do the same.

Sweek is an app for publishing, reading, and sharing stories. I came to know about Sweek through Instagram, and thought of reaching out to them. Sabine Van Der Plas, Sweek's Marketing Manager and Co-Founder, tells us the history of Sweek: How this idea came about, the road to product development, the genres that are popular on Sweek. She also tells us about geographies (such as Latin America) and languages (such as Spanish) that are popular. Sabine also mentions about the storytelling contests organized by Sweek. Their most recent storytelling competition is at : http://www.sweek.nl/write-your-2017/ You can get the shownotes at www.mykitaab.in/sweek

Kinga Jentetics is the Co-Founder of PublishDrive. In this interview, she tells us about the story behind the founding of her company, and gives an overview of the startup: from the bookstores that they serve, to payment methods. Kinga also provides information on the profile of authors and readers, and also which genre(s) are doing well on the platform. You can learn more about Kinga and PublishDrive at www.gaatha/co/kinga

Lancer Kind is an author form the United States and for the last seven years he has delivered consulting services in China as well as the USA, and has spoken at Agile conferences in the US, China, and India. He's a publishing author of science fiction and a project management comic series called Scrum Noir which made the Amazon best seller list for a week. We talk about his bookwriting journey and specifically, how authors can use principled of Agile project management and Scrum for bookwriting. You can get the shownotes at www.mykitaab.in/lancer #amwriting #scrum #projectmanagement #books

In this episode ,host and creator of MyKitaab Podcast Amar Vyas reflects on the first year of the show. He talks about the journey so far, the lessons learnt, listener statistics, and what listeners can expect for the rest of 2017.

Brandon Cullum is a children's book author and illustrator and author of the #1 Amazon Bestseller: "Alfred the Time Traveling Dinosaur." His other books include Alphabet Fruit and Vinny The Soccer Playing Dinosaur. In this interview, we talk about writing for Kids, illustration, editing process for kids' books, book marketing, and finally, why Publishing's gain is NASA's loss. The shownotes form this episode are available at www.mykitaab.in/brandon. #publishing #books #children's Books