Vauhini Vara began writing her debut novel, “The Immortal King Rao,” in 2009, sold it to a publisher just before the pandemic hit in March 2020, and will see it published in hardcover by W.W. Norton & Company on May 3. “The Immortal King Rao” by Vauhini Vara. (W.W. Norton & Company) “The timing is wild,” Vara said over the phone from her Fort Collins home this week.