Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I co-own a consulting company. We have worked around the world on projects with the World Bank and other international organizations, focusing on community development. I speak Spanish, play the piano, and enjoy playing bridge. My favourite city is Paris, where I started to sketch out the plotline of PERIL over a month there.
I have also written a children’s book.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
PERIL: What was Written Has Come True. My book was inspired by what I was observing in Hungary, while I was working for 3 years in Eastern Europe. Orban, the Prime Minister, managed to take over a democratic country in a matter of a couple of years, using populism as a tactic, in many ways following the playbook of Hitler. I decided to write a fictional book that would hopefully raise awareness of the ease with which democracy can be lost. My father fought in WWII to protect our freedom. This book honour’s his service and others’.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m not sure. All I know is that, when I wrote PERIL, I wrote for 3 hours at least, EVERY DAY. When I reached the final third of the book, I wasn’t sure of how the book should end. I decided to take time off and just let the ending come to me, which it did. Then, I wrote for 24 hours straight, until I was able to type “THE END”!
Also, I focused on character development and found that my characters took me in directions I could never have imagined…the power of a blank page and what magically appears on it is amazing.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Golda Meir’s Autobiography;
Daniel Silva’s Books
Helen MacInness’s books.
What are you working on now?
A sequel to PERIL, as my readers want to continue getting to know my characters.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am working on that.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Believe in yourself. Edit, edit, edit.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Each time a character hits a challenge, he/she is transformed, just as we are in life. So, recognize this and allow your characters to evolve.
What are you reading now?
Hillary Clinton/Louise Penny book.
What’s next for you as a writer?
A sequel to PERIL…
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
War and Peace;
Winds of War and its sequel
Golda Meir’s autobiography