The 90s years were fun, amazing and also sweet. The romance was in the air and it literally was. Any movie that you wake up from the slumber of the 90s, you will be fascinated by the simplicity and yet, the impactful romance that it will offer. On the other hand, came the 20s and beyond, things began to change and that also at a rapid pace. Adding a name on the list of the novelists who have found their muse in the love affair of the 90s… and not of some random he and she, this is her own story – Preety Praveen entered the world of Indian English literature almost in 2020 with her debut novel entitled Cross Connection. The novel was largely based on her personal experiences as a daughter, a compelled medical student and a beloved to a person whom she might never have imagined in the early teens if someone could have asked her about her fancy fiance or bride. Well, in short, Preety Praveen wrote with heart and mind involved.
What differentiates Preety Praveen’s writing from other contemporary romantic novelists? Well, she uses her memoir and mixes it up with hard-hitting questions asked to the readers, a realism that readers would love to realise and imagination that will add a pinch of fiction to the storyline keeping the readers in the loop all the time. Simple language, effective conversations, compelling storyline, well-developed plot and a wide teme that encircles romance, love, college life and social structure of the 90s ensure that Preety’s writing is not equalled with those authors who are singularly dimensional about their fiction trajectory.
Young authors, especially, make silly mistakes when they write romance novels. They keep zooming in on two leading characters and their romance. And, eventually, by doing so, they tend to make their novels boring after the first half is spent because there is no storyline to support their narrative. On the other hand, Preety Praveen has used her writing skills to ensure that she develops more than ‘only two’ characters in her realistic novel even if it is about her marriage… yes, Cross Connection is based on the true experiences of Preety and yet, she has not been tilted towards this or that.
Well, we cannot be judgemental about someone’s writing just by reading only one novel. However, because this is the only thing available to read right now, this article tries to evaluate Preety’s writing on the basis of the same. Though she did promise a new novel, a sequel to the first one. We will wait for that and see whether Preety can close the loopholes that she might have not taken care of in the debut attempt at writing a novel. For example, at times, the novel becomes too casual to accommodate even casually serious readers who want even a slight distinction between everyday events and a novel being read.
In the end, let’s welcome one more author with potential into the world of readers and writers and hope we get to read more from Preety in the near future.
By Chitra for Intellectual Reader