Neelima rao
Neelima Sudabathula Rao, (known by her pen name Neelima Rao) was born on December 9th, 1997. She is an avid writer and artist, known for having a creative streak that dates back to her childhood.
Born in Hillsborough, New Jersey, Neelima grew up with a passion for reading, and had always dreamed of publishing one of her own. She’s extremely passionate about animals, fashion, shopping, and travelling.
Currently settled in Hyderabad, she plans on traveling extensively to find more inspiration for her writing.
Neelima holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Applications from Bhavans Vivekananda Degree College in Hyderabad, Telangana. The author has pursued her career in Digital Marketing, and currently works as a trainer in Accenture.
With experience in short story writing, poetry, digital art, painting, and portrait sketching, Neelima has honed her creativity skills over the years. She served as the chief editor and designer of her college’s annual magazine, Vibha, and has always aspired to turn both writing and art into a professional career.
Neelima’s journey as a writer began by participating in college fests and online competitions like India Writing Project. These experiences slowly gave her the confidence to work on her debut novel, Blood of the Demonified, which is part of “The Maiskrean Trilogy,” a series of three books.
Alongside writing, Neelima is creating official character art, bringing her visualized characters to life. She aims to build a professional platform for both her writing and designing skills.
Lets Start The Interview
The Asian Literature: What inspired you to write Blood of the Demonified and dive into the world of the Demonified and Maiskreas?
Author: I was always fascinated with the idea of there being something special in our blood. Something which made a person… unique. Different from the others. Because, who doesn’t want to feel special? Fire from the palms were something I always wanted as a magic power, since I was a kid. And since blue was my favorite color, well you can figure out the rest.
As for the Maiskrea, well I always wanted to have a pet, and unfortunately the rebuttal I received from my parents was that they already have me and my brothers- and they didn’t have the energy to deal with quote- “another animal.” Which got me thinking about unachievable standards of pets.
Make no mistake. Maiskreas aren’t pets. They aren’t your playthings. But they are your companions, and life with them becomes a tad bit more interesting.
The Asian Literature: Aurelia Vex is such a relatable and layered protagonist. How did her character come to life for you? Is she inspired by anyone real?
Author: Lia, at least the first chapter Lia- was kind of based off of a teenage me. Being the fifth wheel, navigating high school with strict parents, my crush not reciprocating my feelings- those were real life problems that I’ve lived through, especially the icky scenario with Lev. I am not above admitting that it gave a ton of smug satisfaction to play out the first page of the book in real life.
But Lia is much more than that. She is emotional but caring. A bit immature, but always ready to fight for what she believes in. Fierce and kind, and in the end- she has a heart of pure gold. She’s all the things I wish to see in myself, plus some. And the layers are perfect to ensure that she is a relatable character- flaws and all.
The Asian Literature: The book balances teenage drama, supernatural elements, and science fiction. How did you manage to weave these genres together so seamlessly?
Author: Though the storyline is pretty heavy, with topics like kidnapping, fighting, and handling magical beings, we all need to stop and remember that most of these guys are still in their late teens. Meaning that drama is inevitable. But age is still just a number. Some teenagers face challenges in life that adults never even go through in their entire existence.
Balancing these was kind of a challenge at first, but I made sure to ensure that the Dystopian plot was never overshadowed by the romantic subplot. I just had to remember that Xander and Lia’s main focus was on them surviving, followed by them making lovey-dovey eyes at each other- and not the other way around.
The Asian Literature: The concept of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ demon blood is intriguing. How did you develop this unique lore?
Author: Let’s be honest, no book is complete without having a bad guy, a bad side, an evil which needs to be overcome. When I invented the concept of Maiskrea- dragonlike creatures who have fiery blood and reptile-like eyes similar to that of a snake, I always wanted to give the ‘good’ guys a major disadvantage. Let them assume that it’s only the bad guys who can control these beings. But the truth is that it was never about being good or bad- it was about the willpower, the actions, and the intentions behind them.
After all, good and bad are just simple words, and there is always a fine line between them both. It was always about how far the Demonified were willing to cross the line.
The Asian Literature: Xander and Lia have a very compelling dynamic. What can you tell us about their relationship arc through the trilogy?
Author: This was one of my favorite questions! Lia and Xander come under the Sunshine x Grumpy, and borderline Enemies x Lovers trope. I was always fascinated with the enemies to lovers dynamic, because it meant that you always ended up showing the ugliest of emotions to each other in the beginning, and yet they still choose you. And let’s admit- the chemistry is hot.
Xander grew up an outsider- thinking that no one in the anti-Medusa trusts him. He grew a military-like shell, refusing to let anyone in. And then Lia enters his life. She refused to be scared of him, challenging him at every turn. At first he thought that the only reason he was drawn to her was because he felt he owed her for contributing to her father’s kidnapping. But then it became more.
I think it frustrates him to know that she has some sort of hold on him. Especially frustrating to not be able to understand what exactly that feeling is.
The Asian Literature: What challenges did you face while writing the first book, especially as it sets the tone for an entire trilogy?
Author: I’ll be really honest with you guys. The first seven to eight chapters had come out effortlessly. I randomly picked out stuff from a couple of dreams that I managed to recall, and then punched it all out in the form of a story. After an odd hundred pages, I was completely stumped. To be frank, I’ve had this draft stuck in the back of my files for a decade. I’ve nearly given up on the plan of turning this into an actual book. But then last year, I cricked my neck and decided that I needed to do something about it. Writing a book is like having a bunch of random thoughts in your head, mapping them on paper, and finding words that make sense to fill the gaps between those thoughts. (I swear- I tried to make this sound much more elegant, but this is the blatant truth.)
Things became better once I introduced the thought of the Ofeb. Once I introduced her, the plan for the trilogy smoothened out, as you’ll soon find out in the sequel.
The Asian Literature: Themes of grief, identity, and ethical science run deep in the book. Was that a conscious choice or something that emerged organically?
Author: Identity was always going to be something that Lia would have to find in the journey of the trilogy. She was always defined as the oddball of her group, the girl who never had anything interesting happen to her. I needed to turn her life into an emotional rollercoaster. After all, who would want to read a book about a girl who has everything coming easy to her, with zero problems in her life?
The same goes with grief. If my life isn’t easy, why should Lia’s be? For every tear I shed, I made sure that she goes through tenfold. *evil laughter*
But don’t worry, I’ll make sure that everything works out in the end. Mostly.
Ethical science- hmm. I’ve read tons of books, and watched a ton of movies about using time machines, immortality, and bringing people back to life. And I’ve always seen that it ends in a complete disaster. Life would always have to go in a straight line. No loopholes. Even a single exception to that would probably screw up the universe. And Lia’s universe follows the same rules, no questions asked.
The Asian Literature: The action sequences and powers are quite cinematic. If Blood of the Demonified were to be adapted for screen, who would you cast as Lia and Xander?
Author: Thank you so much for that! Cinematic, yes. It covers all the boxes. A sassy FMC, a handsome MMC, beautiful flames, monsters, zombies, stunning view of the Demonified’s headquarters. I would love to have a movie made on the same. But to be honest, I never considered the thought of having a life action adaptation. I’ve seen so many of my favorite book series and standalones get butchered in the movie adaptation. Too much detail in too little time. But I would love to have a small animated series, with six to seven episodes. This would ensure no detail would get left out.
But if I did have to cast someone as Lia or Xander… That’s a tough one. The male would definitely be someone on the lines of a teenage Sam Heughan. Especially the messy red hair and dreamy eyes. For Lia, I always visualized someone badass and stunning like Maitreyi Ramakrishnan. Her sass in Never Have I Ever is something I’ve always wanted to incorporate in Lia’s character.
The Asian Literature: You’ve created a rich world with a glossary, factions, and even themed playlists. How do you keep track of all your world-building elements?
Author: Ha! This is a good question. Inventing new words felt amazing. I randomly threw a bunch of syllables at each other and hoped for the best. But then it started to get confusing. There were times where I had to Ctrl+F, and replace a word just because I ended up getting the spelling of it wrong. I had to completely backspace stanzas due to confusing the meaning of two different words.
To ensure my dear readers didn’t go through the same pain that I did, I made a point to create a glossary with all the words that I’ve “invented.” They can feel free to go and refer to it anytime while reading the book to make sure that they’re on the right track, and not get confused. Plus it felt cool to add a glossary at the end. Made me feel powerful, like I’m someone who invented a whole new world. Which isn’t exactly wrong.
Coming to the playlists, it was more about covering all the five senses. We read the books with our eyes, touch the book with our fingertips. And don’t get me started on the scent of freshly printed books. I wanted to ensure that the hearing sense got covered too. And creating a playlist was fun! I threw in every song which I felt was relatable to Lia’s life while she was going through Blood of the Demonified. I even chucked in a song or two for Xander, for good measure.
Fun fact: I, ever the overachiever, have already created playlists for all the three books. I even had them ready before I decided on book names.
We’re all wondering what to do about the final sense of taste, right? I’m not saying that you should chew on a piece of the book’s paper, but I’m also not not saying it.
The Asian Literature: What can readers expect from Part 2 of the Maiskrean Trilogy? Will the tone or stakes change going forward?
Author: Oh, you can expect a lot from Blood of the Ofeb! More torture for the Demonified, good and bad ones alike. More angst between the lovers, Lia and Xander. I’ll also be introducing a couple of new characters- including my favorite male character, who shockingly isn’t Xander.
Unfortunately there’s gonna be a lot more deaths. Some of them, pretty creative! Trust me, if the FBI was monitoring my incognito search history- you better pray they don’t. Or else the second book’s draft is going to be coming straight from prison.
It’s also going to feature Lia visiting a tombstone back in the present.
To confuse you guys further, the book is going to start with a wedding. How’s that for emotional whiplash?
Of course the stakes are going to be high! Anti-Cohesion needs to happen for Heine to end. But I’m not going to reveal too much too soon. What’s the fun in that?
Boo k By Neelima Rao Blood of the Demonified
