‘There are tales of hope even in the face of relentless destruction’: Wildlife writer Stephen Alter

Stephen Alter is a multifaceted author with more than 20 books of fiction and non-fiction. He writes extensively on natural history, travel and wildlife, and his fiction also flows from these themes. His latest book, The Cobra’s Gaze, took him two and a half years to finish and focuses on a topic that’s close to his heart – ecology and the environment. He talked to Scroll about his latest book, the research that went into it, and the urgent need to protect our environment. Excerpts from the conversation.

You have written children’s books, fiction for adults, and books on travel and wildlife. How do you navigate and harmoniously blend various genres with equal clarity? What are the challenges you face while attempting different writing styles?
If I were to write the same kind of stories for the same readers over and over again, I would get bored very quickly. Juggling with genres allows me to explore and experiment with a variety of voices and narrative styles. One of the key challenges for a writer is to surprise his or her readers with something new and unexpected. Writing for different age groups and audiences keeps your words fresh and compelling. At the same time, certain subjects or themes, like wildlife and conservation, repeat themselves in most of my books. We usually think of nature writing as a non-fiction genre, but it has a place in fiction too, even in an espionage thriller or a fantasy tale for younger readers. At the end of the day, writing is difficult work, but the moment it becomes a repetitive chore, I’ll quit.

The Cobra’s Gaze is a dense book. How long did it take to complete writing it? What are some of the challenges you encountered?
I hope you mean “dense,” as in a dense jungle full of exciting creatures and adventures. Of course it is a big book, which covers a lot of ground, both geographically and in terms of the subjects it explores.

The Cobra’s Gaze was written over two and a half years, during which I travelled to a variety of wild places in India from north-eastern Assam to the rain forests of western Karnataka, as well as Ladakh, Saurashtra, the Satpura Mountains in Madhya Pradesh, and Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, just to mention a few. Many of these destinations were places I’d always wanted to visit and writing a book about wildlife gave me an excuse to experience an array of unique landscapes while seeing creatures I’d never encountered before. Though king cobras and snow leopards are a big part of the story, I was also interested in observing lesser-known species like bioluminescent fungi that appear in Goa during the monsoon along with fishing spiders and typewriter frogs. Though the book may appear to be just about snakes, it isn’t. I’ve included journeys in search of elusive and often-ignored wildlife such as slender lorises, rusty-cheeked scimitar babblers or plants and trees with names like geedar tambaku (jackal’s tobacco) or churail papadi (witch’s biscuit). More than anything, I hope it’s a book that celebrates the rich diversity of India’s wild heritage.

Though there are so many threats to India’s forests and other wild habitats today, I didn’t want to dwell on the doom and gloom aspects of conservation. It’s very easy and understandable to slip into that tone of voice, sounding an alarm every time forests are denuded or degraded. However, there are hopeful stories too and tales of resilience, even in the face of what might seem to be relentless destruction.

The urgency to protect wildlife echoes through your work. According to you, what are the pressing environmental concerns that demand immediate attention?
To begin with, I’m not a wildlife scientist, so I would defer to those who have much more expertise in this field than I do. However, the obvious answer to your question is that we need to protect and preserve every hectare of wild habitat that remains – whether it be forests, mountains, deserts, wetlands and rivers. Larger species like elephants and tigers require extensive territory with minimal disturbance by human beings. Therefore, our national parks and sanctuaries must be sacrosanct. Wherever possible, wildlife corridors should be established to connect these protected zones.

At the same time, many species can thrive in much smaller spaces, which should be protected with equal diligence and determination. Aside from land controlled by government agencies, there’s a lot of scope for conservation initiatives to take place on private property. Initiatives like the Jabarkhet Nature Reserve near my home in Mussoorie have been highly successful and there is a lot of room for innovation. One example would be for schools, colleges and universities throughout India to designate their campuses as wildlife sanctuaries and make every effort to encourage the presence of wild species.

The climate crisis is becoming impossible to ignore, even for the naysayers. Do you have any suggestions on what we as city dwellers can do to live harmoniously with nature?
Yes, climate change is real and there’s a lot to be concerned about. Individuals can certainly help ease the threat by making choices that reduce their dependence on fossil fuels. More than anything, however, we should demand that political and corporate leaders, who can make a significant and lasting difference through policy decisions, accept that mitigating climate change be a priority, not just for India but for our planet.

While traversing India, you must have had countless encounters with the flora and fauna. Tell is about what you consider the most memorable encounter you had while writing The Cobra’s Gaze.
Visiting Tal Chhapar Wildlife Sanctuary in Rajasthan stands out as one of my most memorable experiences while working on The Cobra’s Gaze. Within a relatively small area of less than 9 sq km, blackbucks have been able to thrive and multiply. It is also a haven for migratory birds, particularly raptors, and one of the few places where spiny-tailed lizards can still be seen in considerable numbers. Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park in Jodhpur and Kishen Bagh Sand Dunes Park in Jaipur are two other examples of limited spaces surrounded by urban sprawl that have been protected and sensitively restored as ecological heritage sites. Researching and writing The Cobra’s Gaze allowed me to go in search of ibex and urial in the Himalaya, feral horses on islands in the Brahmaputra, sea snakes in Goa, and fiddler crabs in the intertidal zones of the Sundarban Delta. There were so many magical experiences, I can’t begin to list them all…

Tell us something about your process of writing. When do you write and do you have a favourite corner you retreat to while writing?
Every morning I try to write 1,000 words. That’s not always easy, particularly when I’m travelling but it’s a discipline that I learned more than forty years ago, when I began writing professionally. Every author has a different daily quota and his or her routine, but unless you work steadily and with complete dedication to the process, you’ll never be able to produce a book that someone else is going to want to read.

My study at home in Mussoorie is the place where I feel most comfortable writing, especially since I have all of my books within reach. However, I can write almost anywhere, as long as there is a chair, a flat surface on which to put my laptop, and minimal distractions. For ten years, when we lived in Massachusetts, my study was in the basement, which flooded regularly. I laid out a series of stepping stones so that I could reach my desk without getting my feet wet. Somedays it was like working in a swamp. Of course, there are places where I cannot write – on aeroplanes or in a dentist’s chair.

Crafting fiction opens a gateway to endless possibilities. What do you experience when you write fiction?
Fiction allows a writer the freedom to invent characters, relationships, and locations. But fiction also has its constraints. You need to be able to convince your readers about who or what it is that you imagine. Even science fiction or magic realism must follow certain rules of logic, though it might take place on a different planet or within an alternate universe. If, for instance, you create a world in which all frogs can fly your story needs to remain true to that reality. If one frog is unable to fly, you need to explain why it can’t. Similarly, if you create a character who is villainous and sadistic, then he or she suddenly becomes gentle and loving, there needs to be an explanation for that change. After working on a non-fiction book like The Cobra’s Gaze I enjoy writing fiction because I don’t have to stick to the facts but, at the same time, I must tell a story that won’t seem illogical or absurd.

What are the three books you read this year that you would recommend, and why?
Gould’s Book of Fish by Richard Flanagan. A wonderful novel about a prisoner in Tasmania who paints different species of fish. Flanagan reimagines history while questioning England’s colonisation of Australia.

Riding the Ranges by Bill Aitken. A great travelogue about motorcycle journeys through the Himalaya and the Western Ghats. Rereading it after many years, I enjoyed all of Aitken’s adventures and misadventures. This book is out of print and deserves to be reissued.

Crimson Spring by Navtej Sarna. A powerful historical novel set in the aftermath of the Jallianwalla Bagh massacre in 1919 that brings to life characters involved in the Ghadar movement and the freedom struggle in the Punjab.