“Love at First Byte” by Divya Ramaswamy is a delightfully fresh take on a young woman’s entry to the corporate world. It tells the story of Annika, a sunny and enthusiastic new graduate, and her foray into an entirely new tech universe in Hyderabad. It is as much a story of her finding her feet in the working world as it is her discovery of what she could be when she truly “grows up.”
Annika’s journey doesn’t just take her through different cities as she tackles new projects, it puts her bang in the middle of unexpected interactions involving ageism, misogyny in the workplace, and career envy. How she tackles this with wit and maturity despite the lack of experience, with the support of her brilliant friends, some much needed wisdom from her parents, and the hope of love blooming on the horizon, is what you can look forward to in this slice of life, coming of age novel.
The last few months in university can be gruelling and overwhelming for many youngsters. There’s so much out there, so much to explore and accomplish, so much information yet not enough on what a career often entails, what stepping into the workforce for the first time means. This novel attempts to address some of the subtler aspects of a first job – the emotions, the learning curves, the exposure to a multitude of people from different backgrounds, the jargon, role expectations, relationships established along the way, among other things. This is often a time where people in their early 20s are thrown into a variety of new situations and their work and friendships there become a bit of an anchor.
The author uses her corporate experience to seamlessly weave together this tale of fun, friendship, and love against the backdrop of a young workforce in a young industry. Having been part of the nascent digital advertising world, Divya Ramaswamy has seen the growth spurt of both people and technology in this field. She’s taken inspiration from her own career path, from an inexperienced entry level graduate to a senior marketing executive. Having worked across multiple countries and with people of different educational and industry backgrounds, she’s woven an entertaining tale that doesn’t minimise or discount challenges that youngsters, particularly women face in the corporate space.
The cities themselves play a key role in shaping the story and core characters’ development. Along with opportunities within companies, today’s employee also has multiple options in terms of locations from which they can work, remote or otherwise. Attitudes and goals are increasingly being shaped by aspirations to move to and work in different countries. This adds an interesting dimension to the interplay between the various characters in this novel, published by Vishwakarma Publications.
“Love At First Byte”, represented by The Book Bakers literary agency, presents a fascinating opportunity to dissect human behaviour as Divya hasn’t come across too many stories in this space. She hopes to entertain her readers while encouraging critical thinking around attitudes and communication in the workplace. She is excited about continuing to take readers through Annika’s personal and professional growth. Following her ups and downs, while striving for “exciting stability,” an oxymoron in itself but more so in today’s fast paced world, is likely to pose an interesting challenge to Divya, as writer, and Annika, as her protagonist.
