Writers and poets to come together and publish their books

To start with, a co-operative of 30-odd poets is taking shape. Most of these bards have been short-listed by AAI on the basis of their winning entries in poetry contests. While one poetry contest was held in April, another one is on the anvil in July. “These poets will come together and contribute a minimum amount of Rs 1,000 toward the making of an anthology of their poems. The 60-page book (approximately) will have three selected poems of each of the poets. It will also contain the addresses of the poets who have contributed, so that each of them can gain a certain fan following,” Reejhsinghani said. Once the book is published, under the aegis of AAI, each poet will be given 10 free copies, which can be sold by them. The AAI will sell the remaining copies through its organisational network.

The whole idea is to get the poetry of budding poets into print, which the AAI hopes might prove to be the beginning of a flourishing career. Reejhsinghani said so many writers are currently struggling to get their words/thoughts into print. However, they are discouraged by the publishing network which only promotes established writers. “Our co-operative venture, the first of its kind, will instill confidence in new writers. Moreover, the writer gets back whatever he or she has invested initially.”

The AAI plans to launch a similar co-operative for short story writers as well. Likewise, this co-operative will also hold a writing contest from which entries will be short-listed. While the AAI has so far received entries from Mumbai, Pune, Nashik and some other metros, it would have wide appeal for budding writers from all over the country to contribute to the building up of such co-operatives.