Interview with Najaha Nauf : Author of 'Something More' & 'Wings' | Over Spilt Nescafe with Sammy Ep 02

Aaah its been ages since I did this. I wanted to have one with my characters from 'Germs in my Running Shoes' but thats rotting away in the drafts section for more than a year now 😅 but I finally decided to bring back this series and I thought why not include interviewing real people too! And so I asked a good friend/author to be the first real guest on here and to my delight she agreed!

So why dont you all give a good round of applause for Najaha Nauf!

Najaha is a 16 year old writer (aspiring she says. pfft.) who has published quite a few stories on wattpad which has made readers hearts go numb (she even moved my stone cold one!) and her well known novels are 'Something More' (one of my faves 💖) and 'Wings', a fanfiction based on the international famous k pop band BTS (Google about them if you want to).

                             
   

(some sentences in italics are comments made by me)

1. When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

I can't remember exactly when it happened, but it goes a little way back to when I was fourteen and a lot of things bothered me back then, certain books helped me out so much that I too wanted to help someone in the same way.

2 .Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?

Ideas for my books came naturally at times, for example my first full length novel is based partly on my father's past health issues and nearly every other story I've written has a little bit of me inscribed.
As for information, It varies according to which genre I'm basing the book on. I usually spend hours on Google, skimming through my dad's old reports, breaks in the library reading through the reference books just to make sure I'm not writing utter rubbish xD

3. How many books have you written? Which is your favourite?

So far, I've written a total 5 complete books and a long list of incomplete ones. I can't choose a sure favourite from the ones I've completed but there is a book called Choker that I am working on and it is my favourite storyline by far : )

now i am curious and i wanna read that one 🙎

4. What kind of research do you do, and how long do you spend researching before beginning a book?

I do detailed research (enough to  end up on Google's 4th page sometimes) and it usually varies according to the storyline. I spend a good week or two organizing the story in my head and out on paper in short notes just to make sure I have it sorted. This is not the case all the time tho because I usually write atleast five introductory chapters before gradually researching on things that I want to include in future chapters.

5. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?

That I am actually hilarious ! (Just kidding)
That I tend to be very logical or as close to logical when it comes to plot twists and that just one plot twist is never enough!

6. Do you hear from your readers much? What kinds of things do they say?

I hear from them a lot actually, be it at school or even in private messages. What I hear is usually very lovely things with the occasional 'I need more' response xD A lot of people tell me my writing makes them feel things, sometimes sad, sometimes happy. They call it an overall feel trip and I like that quite a lot!

7. Does writing energize or exhaust you?

Let's go with 75/25. While writing itself is energizing and gives me just the right amount of stress relief, the response gives me anxiety at times because I love knowing what my readers think but I'm always scared they'd expect better from me and that is a little exhausting tbh.

8. What are common traps for aspiring writers?

Cliches. Plot holes. predictability.

See I still consider myself an aspiring writer and even I find it so hard to stay away from these three demons from the pits of hell. Cliches are lovely to read but when it comes to writing it, only certain people can pull it off so you really need to make sure you know what you're doing from the beginning till the end! Plot holes also come up when rookies forget to keep their focus on one plot alone. Word of advice; NEVER INCLUDE MORE THAN ONE PLOT TWIST WHEN YOU WRITE YOUR FIRST STORY unless you are confident you can miss all plot holes efficiently (You do You tho).

Predictability, again, like cliches is nice for the reader but terrible for the writer because We all love to keep our readers at the edge of their seats and if they already guess the ending from the beginning of the story, then it's no fun!

9. What is your writing Kryptonite?

(istg i had google up what kryptonite meant)

wow okay so it used to obviously be positive writing. By positive I dont mean cliche writing, more like stories that gave off a welcoming vibe and ended in a satisfactory manner. When I started writing nearly 3 years ago, I was such a depressive writer, the readers all hated me xD  but I think that's improved a little now : ) As for one weakness now, definitely completing a book. My head is like the ocean and storylines are like the fish that live in it so you can imagine how hard it is to stick to one book because OMG I THINK THIS ONE IS THE BETTER YEAH IM POSITIVE LET ME JUST DITCH THIS BOOK AND GO AHEAD AND START THAT. yikes.

i totally get how you feel when you've got an influx of story ideas in your head and you want to write them all 😶

10. Do you view writing as a kind of spiritual practice?

Truthfully, Yes. Yes. Yes. Writing keeps me sane, I tell you. It is one of the only things that keeps my head afloat and makes me happy at the same time. There's a lot of negative energy inside me and writing is how majority of it leaves me and not writing even for just a day leaves me cranky and confused and frustrated.

11. What’s the most difficult thing about writing characters from the opposite sex?

er..feelings? Yep, feelings. See, I'm a girl but I'm more of a tomboy than you'd bargain for. So you might think writing about a male character is easy for me but it really isn't because while I act macho, boys really do have completely different emotions when it comes to certain things. Writing about boys' feelings involves actually putting yourselves in their shoes and taking a trip down feels avenue and that takes a lot of effort. I tried studying my brothers' behaviours for a year or so but all I could see was a bunch of overly sensitive hooligans who rarely ever explained why they wanted to act like they weren't sensitive at all. Human emotions are hard to portray as it is but boys sure are confusing, fictional and otherwise.

12. Do you have any suggestions to help me become a better writer? If so, what are they?

*screams into prepared paperbag* erhem. You are a hundred or so times better at writing than I am to the point where I look up to your writing. 14 year old me didn't just decide she should think of writing as a serious hobby, she only did after she found out a senior in school had published her own book and was on her way to stardom. But there is always chances and ways to improve oneself! I have like...two? but they aren't anything big, trust me, Your writing is so you and is as amazing as it was when I first read it.
I'd like to see Salma Minhar write longer sentences and include more description when it comes to backgrounds. I'd like to see you write something spontaneous for once instead of doubting your amazing capabilities. These are just my opinions but someone else could give you the complete opposites of those two xD

thanjooberrymush for the very sweet comments and for your words of advice. i will do my best to improve my writing.

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That was a fun one wasnt it. I cant wait to interview more people. If you have anyone in mind do leave a comment. Oso go check out Najaha's works on wattpad. I will link her account down below.

Wattpad : @kth_njh

p.s. 'Something More' is currently taken down due to reasons but do make sure to read her other books while you're waiting 😀