Sid Kapdi- The Author In Love With Horror And Thriller Genre

Posted by On April 05, 2021 18 Comments
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When you get to hear appreciating words about your work and that too from an author it feels great. Sid Kapdi is one of those Indian authors who managed to show the risk of selecting a genre like Horror and Thriller. Such quality encouraged me to connect with the author for this session. Want to know more about him? Check out the session I had with him.
Welcome to Indiacafe24 platform and we are glad to have you with us Mr. Sid Kapdi. Will insist you introduce yourself to my readers.
It’s my pleasure, feels great to be on this platform. I have been following your book reviews and interviews, and have always felt inspired.
I am Sid Kapdi, an IT professional by day and a fiction writer by night. I have so far written in the horror genre and I love writing crime thrillers as well.
I got to know that you are an avid reader and a movie buff. So what are your favorite genre of books and movies?
I love fast-paced crime thrillers and horror when it comes to books. As for movies, I have a broader taste – I enjoy watching thrillers, horror, drama, sci-fi, and comedy.
You entered the world of professional fiction writing in 2018. How did that happen?
Yes. I was keen to start writing almost a decade ago but started putting real effort in 2018. I attended lit fests, explored and took inspiration from Facebook groups, participated in prompt-based short story contests, and finally participated in the Nanowrimo 2018, thereby writing the first draft of my book.
Horror and thriller genres- You mastered this. So is there any specific reason behind your inclination towards this genre?
Since childhood, I have loved reading the works of Sidney Sheldon, Robin Cook, John Grisham, and Jeffrey Archer.  Fast-paced, edge-of-the-seat thrillers have always fascinated me. I have not read too much of horror in comparison to the movies I have seen, but I chose horror because it was outside of my comfort zone. I found that making readers feel scared is far more challenging as compared to drawing out any other emotions.
Your debut book Scare Me If You Can, is already creating news in the industry. Say few words about the book.
Scare Me If You Can is the story of an anthology. It involves a unique backdrop of a horror-themed resort where an advanced horror-writing workshop takes place. There are nine participants and another mysterious writer, who narrate short stories in a competition, as part of the workshop, on the last day. The idea is to bring in as much scare as possible, hence the name of the competition and the book is Scare Me If You Can.
How the plot of the story came to your mind?
I found that I was good at writing short stories. However, I did not want to restrict to a particular theme and have a bouquet of stories. I wanted the stories to be integrated into a larger plot. I was evaluating various options when I read a joke somewhere, related to three friends who were caught by a lion, and the lion would only spare the one whose joke would make it laugh.
You are an engineer and a Management post-graduate….. Is there any link to your professional life in your stories? Am asking so because literature and technology are two different subjects… how that linked up?
Fiction writing is something I began as a hobby, just to de-stress. However, my day job, although related to technology, involves story-telling and articulation of a different type. I lead a team that specializes in enabling our company to win large and strategic deals. So most of my day is spent strategizing or creating or reviewing client-facing content. I see fiction writing which I do at the night, as an extension of my daily work.
Just heard that you love trying out various types of cuisine… Are you a foodie man? What your favorite dish and why? Do you love to cook too? ????
Haha.. yes, being a Gujju, good quality and variety of cuisine is among my necessities. I love Indian, Italian, Mexican, Thai, and Chinese food (in that order). My favorite dishes are sizzlers, burrito, Thai curry, and daal-dhokla. I love to cook too, I am good at making pav-bhaji and veg stir-fry.
While exploring your website found that you review books too. I am too a reviewer, so want to know what are parameters you keep in mind while reviewing a book.
I generally write about the books I would recommend to others on my website sidkapdi.com. So my focus is more on what I liked about the book. And for a book to merit a place in my recommendations, it should have a solid and interesting plot, strong characters, fast pace, good articulation and somewhat real-world situations which makes them believable.
Do you have any favorite authors and who are they?
Yes, my favorites are Robin Cook, John Grisham, Stephen King, Neil D’Silva, and Dean Koontz.
I believe family support is very important for our growth and progression, both for men and women. So, in your case how you got your family support?
My family has been very supportive and has always stood by me. A lot of my personal time which was meant for them got stolen away but I try to make up for that.
I am sure when it is a bestseller, your readers just loved it…. So If I ask you to tell the USP of this book what will be your answer?
The USP is that it has a unique backdrop, is based in ten different Indian cities and the scare factor rises with each story. The book is loved by new readers of horror as well as seasoned horror buffs.
What are your other passions in life?
I love cooking, traveling, creating videos, and playing with my kids
What are your future plans- what else you want to do?
I plan to write screenplays in the future. I already have a script in mind, it is just a matter of time.
What next in the pipeline in books and of what genre?
I have a couple of novels planned on urban horror stories and another one that is in progress is a rural crime thriller.
Traditional or self-publishing which one is better and why?
It is difficult to say because both have their pros and cons and hence a lot depends on the author’s priorities.  But for me, I would say, traditional is better.
Any dream to become a full-time author in the future?
Not in the near future, but in the longer term, if the outcomes are favorable, then indeed.
Define  Sid Kapdi the author in One line?
A storyteller who can uniquely blend creativity, situations, characters, emotions with words.
 

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