Recently listed on the Gratiaen Long List 2020 for her book Crossmatch, Carmel Miranda has made quite the name for herself, irrespective of the fact that she has been a writer for only a short while. We, at Brunch, caught up with her for a chat on her book and more.
Miranda is a doctor by profession and voracious reader by hobby who discovered her passion for writing about three to four years ago upon a thought on whether she could actually write a book. So, she challenged herself to do it, and that’s how Crossmatch was born.
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Carmel Miranda[/caption]
Giving us some insight into the plot of her book, she said: “It’s a mystery novel told by a medical student. When a poor young boy succumbs to his injuries in the ICU (intensive care unit), no one considers it anything but the result of a tragic accident. No one, that is, but Lotus, an introverted daydreamer who is drifting into a career in medicine more by parental choice than her own. As a chance witness to his final moments, she is unwittingly drawn into his case and soon finds herself both angry and upset trying to understand what really happened to him.”
The plot centres around questions that Lotus has, like, why, for instance, did the boy dash recklessly across the road into the path of a passing vehicle? Why did he have contact with the same name as hers on his phone? What was his link to the luxurious Lotus Hospital? Her sense of justice aroused, she follows a trail that leads her through the hospitals, slums, and mansions of Colombo. Miranda added that her extensive background in medicine helped her greatly in writing the book and worldbuilding.
The pandemic was a productive time for Miranda, as usually, with her busy schedule, she can’t find the time to sit down and engage in her hobbies, but she was granted that opportunity with the lockdowns. “I had been working on the book three years before it was published, but the pandemic gave me the time to actually sit down and finish it. I sent it to a few people to read before I settled on publishing it.”
She further added that her love for mystery and crime novels is what prompted Crossmatch in the first place: “I wanted to write the sort of book I love to read.”
Sharing her thoughts on being a part of the Gratiaen Long List, she said she was very happy because some of the other names on the Long List are very well known. “They are people who have previously been shortlisted, so I was delighted to be amongst them.”
Miranda explained that being a doctor has left her no time to work on another book for a while, since the situation in the country seems to be going back to what we refer to as the new normal. She also does the marketing and distribution of the book on her own, which takes up all the remaining time she has, so she commented that working on another book will be quite difficult anytime soon. She added: “I do enjoy the marketing and distributing aspect because I get to take it around to bookshops, and talk to people about it. When things settle down, then I will start thinking about writing another book, but for the time being, I have no such plans.”
Currently, she wants to focus on getting on with her life and her career while, eventually, finding the time to write what she hopes would be another potentially award-winning book.
Her book is available to purchase at Barefoot, Vijitha Yapa bookshops, Sarasavi bookshops, Chapters, Expographic Books, Rohan’s Book Store. and the Jam Fruit Tree bookshop.
Carmel Miranda[/caption]
Giving us some insight into the plot of her book, she said: “It’s a mystery novel told by a medical student. When a poor young boy succumbs to his injuries in the ICU (intensive care unit), no one considers it anything but the result of a tragic accident. No one, that is, but Lotus, an introverted daydreamer who is drifting into a career in medicine more by parental choice than her own. As a chance witness to his final moments, she is unwittingly drawn into his case and soon finds herself both angry and upset trying to understand what really happened to him.”
The plot centres around questions that Lotus has, like, why, for instance, did the boy dash recklessly across the road into the path of a passing vehicle? Why did he have contact with the same name as hers on his phone? What was his link to the luxurious Lotus Hospital? Her sense of justice aroused, she follows a trail that leads her through the hospitals, slums, and mansions of Colombo. Miranda added that her extensive background in medicine helped her greatly in writing the book and worldbuilding.
The pandemic was a productive time for Miranda, as usually, with her busy schedule, she can’t find the time to sit down and engage in her hobbies, but she was granted that opportunity with the lockdowns. “I had been working on the book three years before it was published, but the pandemic gave me the time to actually sit down and finish it. I sent it to a few people to read before I settled on publishing it.”
She further added that her love for mystery and crime novels is what prompted Crossmatch in the first place: “I wanted to write the sort of book I love to read.”
Sharing her thoughts on being a part of the Gratiaen Long List, she said she was very happy because some of the other names on the Long List are very well known. “They are people who have previously been shortlisted, so I was delighted to be amongst them.”
Miranda explained that being a doctor has left her no time to work on another book for a while, since the situation in the country seems to be going back to what we refer to as the new normal. She also does the marketing and distribution of the book on her own, which takes up all the remaining time she has, so she commented that working on another book will be quite difficult anytime soon. She added: “I do enjoy the marketing and distributing aspect because I get to take it around to bookshops, and talk to people about it. When things settle down, then I will start thinking about writing another book, but for the time being, I have no such plans.”
Currently, she wants to focus on getting on with her life and her career while, eventually, finding the time to write what she hopes would be another potentially award-winning book.
Her book is available to purchase at Barefoot, Vijitha Yapa bookshops, Sarasavi bookshops, Chapters, Expographic Books, Rohan’s Book Store. and the Jam Fruit Tree bookshop.