This presentation describes the writing process of my children's historical adventure novel Caravan to Tibet. The book began as a short story inspired by my family history and after several years of research, evolved into a coming of age book about a boy searching for his missing father.

1. CARAVAN TO TIBET
 The journey of
a story

2. How did this journey begin?
When I learned about my family history
through:
 Stories told to me in my childhood.
 Accounts of trips to my grandfather’s
village/villages
 Accounts of the trade expeditions to Tibet.
 Learned about the exploits of two explorers
from my extended family Nain Singh Rawat
and Kishen Singh Rawat.

3. The next stage
 Reading about the
journeys of Nain
Singh and Kishen
Singh, the ‘Pundit’
explorers who
mapped Tibet in
disguise.

4. The first book I read:
Indian Explorers of the Nineteenth
Century by I.S.Rawat
 Provided detailed accounts of the
journey to Tibet based on the diaries
of the explorers.
 Descriptions of the landscape.
 Information about animals, birds,
vegetation and climate.
 The food eaten on the journeys and
the clothes worn.

5. More details
 The different kinds of people and
their occupations.
 The local customs.
 The hardships and dangers of the
journey—like attacks by robbers.
 Other interesting details.

6. Map of the route to Tibet
 This map from
Indian Explorers of
the Nineteenth
Century was very
helpful.
 The explorers’
route helped me to
work out the
details of Debu’s
journey.

7. Nain Singh Rawat
 Explored Tibet disguised
as a Tibetan lama in the
nineteenth century.
 Discovered many
important facts like the
altitude of Lhasa and the
source of the
Brahmaputra.
 Received titles and
awards.
 The character of the Lama
in Rudyard Kipling’s Kim is
said to be based on him.

8. Kishen Singh Rawat
 Followed his uncle
Nain Singh in the
work of exploration
and made further
geographical
discoveries.
 Captured by robbers
and was lost in
Mongolia for four
years.
 Received many titles
and grants as well.

9. The result of all this reading
 Articles on the explorers.
 A great idea for an adventure story.
 A long short story published in the
Target magazine annual.
 Published again in Cricket magazine
in the U.S.A.
 The idea of turning this story into a
novel takes root…

10. It requires deeper research
 Further reading.
 Watching films and television.
programmes on Tibet to visualize my
settings and characters.
 Talking to knowledgeable people like
Kishen Singh’s grandson and his wife to
know more about local customs.
 Visiting some of the places where Debu is
supposed to live.

11. Some more books I read
 The Pundits by Derek Waller
 A Mountain in Tibet by Charles Allan
 Madhya Himalaya ki Bhotia Janjati: Johar
ke Shauka by Dr. S.S. Pangtey
 Western Tibet and the Indian Borderland
by Charles A Sherring
 Lost World Tibet by Amaury de Riencourt
 Kailash-Mansarovar by Swami
Pranavanand

12. Shauka customs
 This book provided
details of the
customs and daily
life of the
Shaukas.
 Also provided
useful historical
facts about the
trade expeditions.

13. Shauka women-Debu’s mother
probably dressed like this
 A photograph which
helped me to describe
Debu’s mother-from
Western Tibet and the
Indian Borderland by
Charles A Sherring, a
British official who
made a journey to
Tibet in the early 20th
century.

14. Shauka men
 The term ‘Bhotia’,
more commonly
used, is considered
derogatory now.
 When I found out,
I changed ‘Bhotia’
into the acceptable
term ‘Shauka’ in
the novel.

15. Gyanima market
 This is the first
Tibetan market Debu
visits.
 Charles Sherring's
book was full of
details like the strong
wind and the foul
smelling fuel and the
difficulty of cooking a
proper meal.

16. Dokpa women
 This photograph, also
from Western Tibet
and the Indian
Borderland by Charles
Sherring, helped me
to visualize a scene at
a market.
 Also add exotic details
about local costumes.

17. A Tibetan official
 Again from
Western Tibet and
the Indian
Borderland.
 I found many
details about
Tibetan officials
and an account of
the Gartok horse
race.

18. Exploring the actual setting
 My grandfather's
house in Quithi,
(kind of
abandoned now).
 This village is one
of the places
where Debu lives
in the book.

19. More details to add flavour
to the story
 A window frame
from my
grandfather’s
house in a local
museum.

20. Woman weaving
 Perhaps Debu’s
mother used a
similar loom.

21. Debu enjoyed this view too!
 The Panchachuli
mountains glimpsed
from Munsiyari.
 According to legend
these peaks get their
name from Pancha
(five) and Chuli
(cooking pot).
 They are said to have
been used as cooking
pots for the last meal
the Pandava brothers
had, before their
journey to heaven.

22. Turning a short story into a
novel
 Adding another episode to the three
original main ones—the horse race.
 Putting in more characters, like the
villainous Cousin Trilok and the other
members of the group, the Garphan etc.
 Adding more descriptions and cultural
details.
 Fleshing out existing characters.

23. The End
 Revising, revising and… revising!
 Sending it to a publisher and waiting
patiently for a decision.
 Finally the book is accepted and
published by Puffin!

24. NEXT!
 Caravan is
nominated for the
IBBY Honour List
2008.
 Translated into
Korean.

25. Thank you!
PS. All this research
also inspired a poem
titled “Woman on
the Road to Lhasa”