Weaving fantasies and setting records

KOCHI: When teenagers spend vacations playing and travelling, 14-year-old Sana Sajan decided to immerse herself into the world of books. Soon Sana turned into an author. She was just 10 when she started writing a fantasy novel series around the protagonist Kleta Maxen. The youngster has now completed two books, Kleta Maxen And The Quest To The Baities (277 pages) and Kleta Maxen And The Rise Of The Monarch (422 pages). With these two books, Sana has entered the International Book of Records for being the youngest fantasy writer in the world. 

More than toys, Sana’s companions were books. She started reading Malayalam and English novels at the age of eight. Sana started on her first book while in Class V. She is now pursuing Class IX at Rajagiri Public School in Kalamassery. The young author was inspired by the writings of Jane Austen’s classic novels and fantasy fiction by various authors such as J K Rowling.

 “Out of love, I started to write a story about 11-year-old Kleta who fights against terrible things and saves people around her. It took two years to complete my first book. I needed only one year to complete the second book. There are two more books in the series and I am now working on the third one. Kleta is a product of my imagination - what would I do if I had superpowers,” says Sana, the younger daughter of the doctor couple, Sajan and Swapna. 

Sana’s books were published only recently. Due to the pandemic, printing was delayed. The young writer is persistent in penning down her words and wants to grow as a fantasy writer. Though she started reading Malayalam novels, Sana is more comfortable writing in English. “It’s not that I don’t write Malayalam but my interest is in English. In the coming days, I plan to write a Malayalam book too. The record book entry gave me confidence and motivation to write and reach more readers, especially youngsters like me. The two books helped me understand how to frame my words,” says Sana.