We were lucky to catch up with Aneesh Shukla recently and have shared our conversation below.

Aneesh, appreciate you joining us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

I was working as a high school English teacher in Chicago. Now, this isn’t one of those “burned-out teacher” stories – I genuinely loved it. I wouldn’t even have qualms about going back to teaching somewhere down the line.

But, my heart always belonged, and still belongs, to writing.

When we decided to uproot ourselves and move to California for a while, I decided not to transfer my teaching license over and to fully devote myself to writing.

You know when you’re young, you think, “Oh, I’m young. I have plenty of time to make money and get a real job and do all of that if I need to. I’ll never get this chance again to fully throw myself into writing and not have to worry about other things.”

Lies. All of it. You do have a life and responsibilities and maybe a family and other such things. Those things are real. They are important. They deserve your love and care and attention just as much as writing does.

As a married couple, you can’t really live comfortably in California on just one average income and the scraps that are thrown at you from freelance writing projects. Can I start a family? Can I splurge on these purchases? Can I go on this trip or attend this wedding or have this experience without breaking the bank?

These are questions that EVERYONE has, sure. But these are the questions that come up in the middle of a writing session when I’m trying to reconcile the motivations of my main character and do some world-building and raise the stakes, etc. Talk about writer’s block – writer’s existential crisis is more like it. Crises, really.

The first risk was dumping my safe, monthly income, moving to the most expensive place in the country, and calling myself a full-time writer. The second risk was, after the first few months, saying, “Oh yeah, I can do this,” and continuing to do it for two years.

For two years, I honed my craft, did some freelance work, and continued working on my novel. Life as a full-time writer, at least at the beginning stages, is not at all glamorous. It’s tough. It’s a lot of blood, sweat, and tears. It’s a lot of temporary jobs here and there to help make money and pay rent. It’s a lot of conversations with your spouse about “Can we really make this work?” and “Is this sustainable?”

As a creative, you don’t want to have those conversations. As a human and a husband and a person, you have to. A writer lives two lives. Duality of man. Nowhere else is it more clear that life within and life without are separate but the same.

I will say this, though. Here I am, two years later, now working a full time job from home, still doing freelance writing projects, and on my way to moving out of this state to a different place where we’ll be able to afford a house. And the novel? By the time this interview posts, it will be on its way to literary agents. And me? I’ll be sipping on coffee while I write the sequel.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

As a writer, I am a student of the craft, and I always will be. I’m constantly learning about different ways to improve and adapt my writing and apply it to the way the world is moving.

Yes, I’d love to sit in an old library with quill and ink, penning the next great novel to be taught as literary canon in schools. Sure, I’d love to be in conversation with my muse 24/7 about the internalization of character, the diaspora of the human experience, and other such literary/philosophical wonders.

And trust me, a lot of my friends and family will tell you that I am and will be. They think I’m nuts and also believe in me. Again, duality of man.

However, the truth is, skills are not, and should not be, used in one, monotonous way. Life moves on. The world moves on. So, when I started working for a company that works on training Generative A.I. models, I found a niche pivot point where the progression of the world’s technological mindset meets the need for creative and imaginative thinking. Now, I do prompt engineering and Generative A.I. model training and other such buzzwords – and really, all I’m doing is applying my ability to think creatively as well as my ability to teach to the current world.

I am proud of my love for the craft and my loyalty to tradition. I am proud that I am seeking traditional publication of a physical book because I love to read and I love what reading has brought to my life and I want to bring that to others. I am proud that despite my Indian heritage and all of the stereotypes working upon that (“He’ll be a doctor or an engineer”), I chose fiction and poetry and writing and art.

But, I am also proud to have had the wherewithal to take my creativity and my craft and do something new and exciting with it. I am both. I can be both. Once again, duality of man.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The MOST rewarding aspect of being a creative is the thing you create. Taking something that blooms in your imagination, running it through your generative system, and then ultimately seeing it appear before you – that’s the ultimate reward.

This sounds poetic and artsy and blah, blah, blah. But, I’ll tell you right now – all of those things are cliche for a reason. You know when you read/see/hear about teachers that say that their job is so rewarding and fulfilling because of the light they see in their students’ eyes and the motivation they give to them to be “more” and all of that?

All of that is 100% true.

And all this that I’m saying about seeing your art come to life and knowing that you “birthed” it – also 100% true. If and when my wife and I are lucky enough to have children – that whole “It’s a tiring and stressful journey but then you see them take their first steps or they smile at you for the first time or they hold your hand super tightly and it all becomes worth it” thing? That’ll also be 100% true.

Teachers don’t become teachers for the money. Big disappointment that would be, right? Creatives don’t create for the money either. The percentage of us that “blow up” is so small. We create because we must. We create because don’t know how not to.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

You know, I think about this all the time. The “why.”

Why am I writing a novel and trying to get it published? Well, here are some things that I’ve thought of over the years:

1. I want to be one of “those guys.” All the writers that have inspired me over the years – the profoundly talented and inspirational men and women that have written beautiful works that have moved me – I want to be on that team. I want to be in that circle. I want to BE that. And JUST that. I want to BE a writer – you know? Not…I am “this other thing” but I also write novels on the side. No – I want to BE a writer. I want it to be something I identify as.

2. Um…

Nope, that’s pretty much it. Neat, right? Why do I want to write? Because I want to be a writer. I mean, I am a writer. Any good writing program, MFA, workshop, etc. will tell you that on day one, right? REMEMBER YOU ARE ALREADY A WRITER.

But what I’m talking about is different. It’s not meant to be uplifting and encouraging. It’s meant to be disturbing. Look at what you want to be and then look at yourself in the mirror. Oh, you’re not that yet? Go out and become it.

That’s when the “how” comes in. That’s when you start learning about things like the Mamba Mentality. 10,000 hours. Goal-oriented outlook and attitude. Obsession. Drive.

For you teachers out there, it’s like Understanding by Design. Backwards planning. You know what I’m talking about.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.aneeshshukla.com
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aneesh-shukla-a1065b236/
• Twitter: https://x.com/ashuklawriter
• Other: https://aneeshshukla.substack.com/