: About Me

I was 15, when my first story was published in a national english daily in India. The story was published in the "middle" section of the Edit Page.

It was about a stray cat that my mother used to call "Meenakshi". We had to leave the cat back when we moved out of the apartment and my raw teenage emotion of that time got encapsulated into a 600 word story. My father used to work as a Journalist and he was surprised that my first submission to a national daily got actually printed. I did not realise that it was an achievement then.

After biting on the initial success, I kept submitting stories over the next couple of years and was successful a few more times in seeing my name on print. Then I got employed and life started dictating its own terms to me and I seldom found the time or energy to write after that. Occasionally, I would contribute to "Letters to Editor" column of some leading dailies and my foray into the world of "writing" for the last 17 years used to end with these contributions.

Recently, I came across "Helium" and its large community of writers. My passion for writing that was smouldering within me for a long, long time has been ignited now and I really hope that I utilise the various opportunities thrown upon me by this totally utilitarian website. My blog posts can be accessed at http://avrmenon.blogspot.com

My passion is ...

Writing, Travel and Photography

I know too much about ...

General Insurance. I am an Underwriter by profession and I specialise in Property, Construction, Engineering and Casualty Insurance.

My parents always told me ...

Speak the truth always (even if your head is about to be chopped off) - Yes, they were quite serious about that and I find that I am totally at peace by religiously sticking to this philosophy.

My childhood ambition ...

Honestly, I did not carry any ambition when I was a child. I was one of those "happy-go-lucky" kid who used to have fun playing in the ground with friends and coming home to hot sumptuous food and later getting down to bed for a good night's sleep. Yes, I did not have any ambition to spoil my blissful existence at that time. However, I cannot claim that to be true now, as I stopped being a child long time back. I hope to rekindle that bliss with Helium.

My favorite memory ...

My wife claims that I have a very short memory particulary for those good delicious food that she prepares. I normally live for the moment and do not tag my memories as "favourite". I enjoy the good times and tide through the bad times. Recently, I had been with my parents for Onam (a festival celebrated in Kerala) and that was a moment that I cherished recently.

Why I write ...

There is a writer inside me who constantly flatters me that I can be a writer of stupendous demand. I have decided to try out Helium and see whether this "writer-fellow" inside me is right or wrong.

What I am reading/watching/listening to ...

I am currently reading a collection of some of the best short stories written in the 19th century. The collection is good. As for watching / listening are concerned, I just do that on my leisure time and anything that occupies my attention is good enough for me.

My first job ...

I started working as an underwriter in the general insurance industry. But, before that, I can claim that my first remuneration of my life was that story that got published when I was 15.

My best moment ...

I would not have had an answer to this question until I joined Helium. But now, I can definitely state that my best moment was when I saw my name on print for the first time.

My inspiration ...

I like the writing style of Mark Twain. Recently I read a poetry on "Kiss" by Suzie Bluze on the Helium website and this poem inspired me to delve into the beauty and malleability of English as a language.

Creative Writing > Reflections Reflections: How can child labor be eradicated?

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Child Labor cannot be eradicated as long as our society continues to view employment of children as a "not-so-serious" offence. A large majority of our population feel that it is a "social-service" to employ children as they come from very poor families who do not have any means to support their basic survival. Most of these children are orphans without any support system. Changing the attitude of a society as a whole towards Child Labor is not easy. Educating the society may reduce to some extent the number of people who employ children, but that will not solve the problem. This will only...

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