In between writing letters (of the official kind) and sifting through paperwork, I’m having a nostalgia-filled day today. I’d put together Hindi songs from the 60s and 70s for my father recently, and this morning, one started playing on iTunes.

I knew it was going to be a good day as soon as it came on.

I’ve decided to take a break from the blogging every day routine. My husband may mock me for saying this, but even I don’t have that much to say. I’m still going to be blogging regularly, which means probably two or three times a week, but I think I’m going to take it easy in the must-publish-a-blog-post-at-6-a.m.-every-day department and just write when I have something to talk about.

I am finishing up the Freelancing Fact or Fiction series and I’ll start posting once I’m done writing it. I’m guessing it’s going to be the last series I’ll ever do on freelance journalism for this blog, seeing as I’ve pretty much said everything I have to say on the topic. But I am slowly shifting my focus to books (there, I said it), so there are still many interesting discussions to be had.

In the meantime, let me tell you how I discovered my favorite author, Harlan Coben. In 2005, I used to listen to radio show called Writer’s Roundtable in which the hosts interviewed successful fiction and non-fiction writers about the art and craft of writing. The show was also uploaded online and could be downloaded and listened to at leisure. Well, I was thinking about books back then too (we always do, don’t we?), and I heard Harlan Coben speak on that show. That very day, in a move very uncharacteristic for me, I shut down my computer, walked a mile to the nearest bookstore and bought two of his books– Tell No One and Gone for Good– and finished them both over the next three days.

I’m not sure they have the show any longer, but I recently came across the archives and realized what a treasure trove this page is. I’ve always said that if you want to learn, you have to learn from the greats, the ones who’re at the top of their game. If you want to learn good journalism, read Pulitzer winners, if you want to reach the masses through your fiction, learn from the New York Times bestsellers.

Here’s the link to that show. Enjoy!