puja-shah

My sister called me today and was upset about her life spiraling out of control, with school, work, the things that can take over, even her, the hippie at heart that she is…

I understood that sometimes that’s all you need. Your sister to lean on, talk to, make you laugh.

I just wrote a part of my story where this happens…Amla is the sister that when she feel this way, leans on Asya for support, for guidance, for love. And when Asya does it, Amla realizes that this is their bond.

And in my real life, I can see how real that bond is.

I have been writing in both Amla and Asya’s perspective seperately, both in first person, rather than in third person or in first person by just one sister.

It makes it interesting and allows me to develop both characters with their own voice, which in turn strengthen’s their relationship, gives the reader an insight to both sisters, broadening the ability to see into their dynamic and actually feel their bond.

I think that the best stories are always ones that are not one sided anyway.

Names are really important to me. As I started writing my new story last night, I couldn’t continue, I couldn’t build the characters or describe them or the experience I was writing about without names.

Since my story is about sisters, somehow, I started writing about twin sisters. I do not have a twin, my sister and I are almost opposites but the same, as sisters often are, and although I intrinsically don’t know what it feels like to have a twin, I do know what a sister bond is, stronger than even hydrogen bonds, (science corny, I know), so think I will be able to write and explore that territory.

But I searched for names in baby books online and found two that I love. Amla and Asya. Amla means “pure” in Sanskrit, Asya means “grace”. It fits the story I want to develop of strong women perfectly. Now, with these names, I think I’m ready to go.