Author Vibha Batra discusses the challenges and joys of penning her first graphic novel for young adults.
The book, The Secret Life of Debbie G., by Vibha Batra is a coming-of-age story of a 16-year-old girl Soundarya (who prefers to go by the name Arya), a plus-size south Indian teen studying in a prestigious Delhi school. She is raised by a single mother. Arya is bullied in school but things change when she becomes an online sensation overnight and struggles to deal with this new-found fame and attention. The Secret Life of Debbie G. (published by HarperCollins) is set in contemporary times where social media dictates a big part of a teenager’s life. The story presents the impact of social media on teenage behaviour and emotional health.
Q. What influenced you to pen down ‘The Secret Life of Debbie G.’?
A. It all started when my editor asked me if I’d write a graphic novel for young adults. I replied, ‘Yes, of course! Right away!’ with all the confidence of someone who’s never written a graphic novel before. And then, I dived headlong into the world of comic books and graphic novels.
Q. How did you weave the hypocrisy of society, sensitive topics and certain critical issues in the book?
A. All these elements came together organically. The characters were real to me, and I was happy having a heart-to-heart conversation with them on a daily basis. At other times, I was content being a fly on the wall and watching their shenanigans from afar.
Q. What did it take for you to step into the mind of 16-year-old Arya in terms of attention to detail, conversation, banter with friends and tackling issues that bothered her?
A. I like to think of myself as a young adult so it wasn’t very difficult to step into the mind of a teenager. I guess being a teenager at some point in your life is inspiration enough to write Young Adult fiction. And I was fortunate enough to have had a sufficiently traumatic teenhood. So, no dearth of material there.
Q. Tell us about the challenges of writing a graphic novel?
A. There are plenty of challenges especially if you haven’t written a graphic novel before. But I guess if you read enough of them and get down to writing it and keep at it, it all comes together eventually. As for the process, my editor commissioned me to write a graphic novel. I bounced off a couple of ideas of her. She liked this one best. I worked on a couple of drafts. When the final draft (that we both did a happy dance for) was done, she commissioned an illustrator. And voila! Kalyani Ganapathy, my super-brilliant C-in-C (Collaborator-in-Crime), came on board.
Q. Take us through the collaborative process with illustrator Kalyani Ganapathy?
A. Kalyani shared different approaches and tons of references and made the entire process super-fun. It was so exciting (still is, always will be) to see something that had existed only in my head come alive. I just love how the book looks. The characters, the little details, the cover, everything.
Q. What do you hope readers take away from ‘The Secret Life of Debbie G.’?
A. If it can make them laugh, good. If it can make them think, better.
Q. In your opinion, how can overnight fame and stardom impact the mind of a teenager, a generation that pretty much grew up with the internet?
A. I guess success could go to anybody’s head especially if it comes too soon, too easily. It could lead them to think and behave as if it’s the only thing that matters, the only thing that’s real, and worse, that it isn’t fleeting. Failure would be way easier to handle.