BOOKS, WRITING, LIFE
My latest release, Love Comes Later, is a contemporary multicultural romance, set in Doha, Qatar and London, England.
One of the great things about websites and indie publishing is that you can offer readers extra features.
Here’s my first one, based on feedback from beta readers who asked for family tree of my Qatari characters.
We hear songs, watch movies, and yes, read books about that most elusive of emotions: love. No matter if your culture practices arranged marriages (Indian/Arab) or not (the west). No matter if your parents are divorced (fell out of love) or not. No matter if you are married (harder to stay in love?) or not. I could tell you how at one point in human history marriage was thought of a business transaction, a way to consolidate wealth within families or across countries. Or that modern society has not eased up on women to have a man (and a baby or two) in order to think we have it all. You’re smart. You know these schemes around the world’s most sought after prize — finding one’s soul mate.
Love is at the core of contemporary culture. Despite your best efforts, there’s no way to avoid it. From Bollywood to Hollywood the themes are the ones passed to us by the Bard himself, William Shakespeare. Star crossed lovers; repudiated love; timid love; the plot lines are as familiar as the headlines for celebrity breakups. Were, for example, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes ever in love? Or was it a career furthering scheme drafted in the cold light of day between agents? What will happen to Suri Curise, the tiny fashion maven?
Those are questions for a very different story than the one I wrote inspired by the dreams, wishes, and desires of young people living in Qatar.
Love Comes Later is my second novel, a meditation on how non-western people of this generation will find happiness. I’m excited to say the book is now available for purchase on Amazon.com.
As a writer I’m not immune to the questions of the commercial love machine. After all romance readers account for a large portion of book sales year round. Romance writers are like country singers; they come out with albums on a yearly basis and their fans make them best sellers. I’m not sure if I’m going to become what’s called a genre writer and stick only to romance from now on. This story, of three protagonists, Abdulla, Hind, and Sangita, came to me as a love triangle.
I can tell you that based on the five books I’ve released this year, the novel is the one everyone gets excited about. Short stories and essays may get a passing look, but a novel still seems to inspire more wonder and likelihood of risk on a new author. This new project will help me further test my hypothesis… or you can share your thoughts on my theory and enlighten me.
If you like your romance more visual than textual, then have a look at the book’s YouTube trailer. As always, writers need readers, so please take a second and let me know what you think!
We’re back in the studio today, this time with one of the quickest readers I’ve met in a long time, Jolene Perry. Whether she’s talking about the many books she’s reading or the heart of the story she’s writing, her love of fiction shines.
Jolene grew up in Wasilla, Alaska. She is also the author of The Next Door Boys and the upcoming Knee Deep.
Her latest book is Night Sky.
After losing Sarah, the friend he’s loved, to some other guy, Jameson meets Sky. Her Native American roots, fluid movements, and need for brutal honesty become addictive fast. This is good. Jameson needs distraction – his dad leaves for another woman, his mom’s walking around like a zombie, and Sarah’s new boyfriend can’t keep his hands off of her.
As he spends time with Sky and learns about her village, her totems, and her friends with drums – she’s way more than distraction. Jameson’s falling for her fast.
What was the hardest part of writing this book? The hardest part about writing any book is not giving your characters what they want, when they want it. But seriously, if Bella got Edward as soon as she wanted him, Twilight would have been a really short book. So, yeah… torturing my characters is the hardest part of writing any book.
Was there an easy part or any part of writing the book that surprised you? Sky surprised me. Initially Jameson ended up with the OTHER girl – the girl he didn’t end up with once I started writing. Sky had so many more layers to her than I expected, and she was also a walking contradiction until the end.
What advice would you give you aspiring or first time novelists? The advice I give to everyone is to remember that writing should be fun. Of course there are times when you’re editing that it might not be so great, and no matter how long you’ve been writing, rejections still sting, but it’s still so important to relax and enjoy the process.
What book(s) are you currently reading? I read REALLY fast, so I’ll just give you my last few that blew me away. I FINALLY read Jennifer Echols Going Too Far, and really loved that one. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer was a bizarre ride, and I loved that I had NO idea where the book was going. I’m in the middle of North to Beautiful right now and just loving it – though, it did take me a while to get into it. Now I know I’m going to be sad when it’s over.
Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character? Who? Hands down Cricket from Lola and the Boy Next Door. I have a thing for shy, slightly nerdy boys with a quirky sense of style. Yum 😀
What was your first favorite book? When I was a little kid I read Black Beauty over and over and over. Then I got a little older and read Jane Eyre. I still have a huge love of that one. Black Beauty is honestly pretty depressing for my taste…
