Parul Sharma is an author whose novels explore memory, belonging, and the quiet struggles of everyday life. Her latest book, 17 Morris Road, tells the story of a woman at a crossroads who revisits her childhood home to reconsider the life she wants. In this conversation, we talk about her writing process, the years she spent balancing creativity with corporate life, and how she rediscovered her voice during the pandemic lockdowns.
Parul shares the difference between nostalgia and homesickness, the agony of not writing, and the joy of finally finishing a story that had lived inside her for years. It’s an intimate, thoughtful look at what drives a writer to keep creating — even when life gets in the way.
Story Highlights
The difference between nostalgia and homesickness, and how both shaped 17 Morris Road
Why writing is both a gift and a burden
The heartbreak of not writing during busy seasons of life
How motherhood, corporate work, and creativity can coexist
The long road to publishing and how it changed her view of success
Quote
“The toughest part about writing is not writing. It’s when you don’t write — and the misery that it gives you.”
About Parul Sharma
Parul Sharma is an Indian author and creative professional based in Singapore. She has published four novels, including 17 Morris Road, By the Water Cooler, and The Wake-Up Call. Her writing often explores themes of memory, belonging, and womanhood in modern India. Alongside her fiction, she has led a corporate research career and mentors aspiring writers. Follow her on Instagram @parulsharma or find her books on Amazon and Kindle worldwide.
Why This Conversation Matters
Parul’s story reminds us that creative work doesn’t disappear when we get busy — it waits. Her return to writing during lockdown is a reflection of how passion can lie dormant and still survive. This conversation isn’t just about publishing; it’s about returning to what gives life meaning after years of distraction.
Turning Points
From her first novel written in stolen hours after work to a long hiatus spent building a business and raising children, Parul’s path shows the patience behind creative endurance. The lockdown gave her the stillness to rediscover what she loved most — the act of writing itself. Each book marks a different season of her life, and her next, The Missing Piece, has been fifteen years in the making. Her story is proof that creativity never truly leaves us; sometimes it just waits for the right time to reemerge.
Key Lessons
Honor your calling. The misery of not creating is its own reminder to start again.
Be patient with your craft. Some stories need years to mature.
Balance is imperfect. Creativity and career often coexist in tension, not harmony.
Feedback is part of the process. Courage is sharing your work before you feel ready.
Keep showing up. Writing — like growth — is about consistency, not perfection.
I’ve always loved to cook. Cooking is a mixture of science and art and I enjoy creating something that has so many factors affecting the outcome. When I cook, I usually end up with a decent meal, but there’s always something I learn through the process to do better the next time. While cooking a nourishing chicken soup last week, I realized that many of the lessons I’ve learned over the years can be applied to content marketing. Both use creativity, measurements, technical abilities and innovative thinking. The similarities don’t end there, read on for some great marketing lessons and take a look at my corresponding Slideshare for beautiful food pics and condensed lessons.
Almost everyone agrees BBQ tastes better outside, turkey and stuffing are best on Thanksgiving, and popcorn is irresistible when eaten in front of a movie. The time and place of eating certain items makes them extra tasty. The same goes for content, we need to promote our products in the right place and time for our work to have the maximum effect on customers. Make sure you vary content depending on where in the sales funnel your audience is and on what channel they will see it on.
#2 – Balance Is Best
Traditionally in Chinese cuisine there are five flavors that should be included in every meal: sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and spicy. Although people generally aren’t that strict now, chefs all over the world agree that a variety of flavors, textures, and ingredients make the most amazing meals. Make sure to include a combination of content types, even in the same piece, to get the best results.
#3 – Engage Your Audience
I find that food tastes better when I’ve been involved in the preparation. Get everyone to participate with discussion and feedback so your audience is more invested in your content.
#4 – Use The Right Tools
Although you don’t always need gizmos and gadgets to cook great meals, having a wide range of tools gives you freedom to create more spectacular dishes and speeds up the cooking process. There are tons of tools available to help you with image creation, social sharing, analytics, and everything else. Check out the post “29 Tools To Enhance Your Business Blog” from Social Media Examiner for some great additions to your arsenal.
#5 – Quality and Consistency Matter
Many people have one or two dishes they are great at cooking, it’s much harder to be adept enough to cook three awesome meals every day for years on end. Consistently create amazing content to build a loyal following.
#6 – Too Much Of A Good Thing Gets Boring
Sometimes we get hooked on a food or dish we really love and eat too much of it. Eventually we eat so much of the same thing, we get tired of it and don’t want to eat it anymore. Keep your content fresh and interesting by varying content types and topics so your audience always comes back for more.
#7 – Simplicity Works
Sometimes the simplest preparations taste the best. Presenting important ideas in a simple and straightforward manner can have a bigger impact than busy graphics and complicated charts or animations.
#8 – Presentation Is Key
We eat with all our senses, so food that looks better, tastes better. Content that looks amazing is more engaging and easier to digest. It may be a common best practice, but taking a little extra time to flush out your content can pay huge dividends. For example, articles with images get 94% more total views (Jeff Bullas).
#9 – Use What You Have
Awesome meals can be created in less than ideal situations, or with fewer ingredients than you’d like to have. I often use leftovers to create a great breakfast. The same principle can be applied to content marketing. Re-purpose content to get the most out of what you already have on hand.
#10 – It’s Good To Be Bad
It’s alright to indulge in some fried or cheesy goodness. Creating a less serious piece of content, or using “hacks” like pictures of kittens or babies is okay sometimes. We all need a “cheat day” once in a while and the change of tone will catch your audience’s attention.
#11 – Get Everyone Involved
Cooking is more fun and efficient when you have help. Other departments of your company can be great sources of content and expertise. Find coworkers outside of marketing to contribute to your content and give your audience a change of pace. If some aren’t comfortable writing or designing on their own, interviews or slide decks can be a great way to get them involved.
#12 – Be Prepared
Professional cooks and chefs are able to cook quickly and precisely in part due to the fact that all their ingredients are prepped and ready to go before the actual cooking begins. Organizing your files and research in a clear and easy to use system will speed up your content creation and allow you to concentrate on creativity and execution.
#13 – Plan Ahead
When I cook I often look at several recipes before choosing one or mixing them together. When you follow recipes you learn from other’s experience and can concentrate more on creativity and improvisation instead of figuring out what the next step is. Create a content calender and study industry leaders and best practices to take your marketing to the next level.
#14 – Spice Things Up
Spices create deep flavor profiles and turn ordinary dishes into extraordinary ones. Spice up your content by including things like quotes, charts and links to deepen its impact.
#15 – Think Outside The Box
The best chefs use creativity and innovation in their ingredients, cooking methods, and presentation to stand out from the crowd. Experiment with all aspects of your content marketing to draw and keep your audience’s attention.
Content marketing and cooking both take creativity and technical execution to get the best results. Both are easy to learn, but hard to master. The next time you are working on a Slideshare or vlog, think about how you can improve the result with skills you’ve learned while cooking and the result will turn out beautifully, maybe even a la mode with a cherry on top!
