Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been writing for almost five years now, but The Beekeeper of New York is the first novel I’ve published.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Beekeeper of New York is about all sorts of things, but at it’s heart is a question about whether invisible things – things we can’t prove – make our lives better or worse. Yusra, for example, has spent her life looking after her autistic brother Someer, but completely underestimated his ability for fend for himself. She’s struggling with mortality because she’s going through cancer treatment – but she doesn’t have a faith to reassure her. Her brother is beaten badly by a crowd who think he’s possessed by demons. And her best friend Sofia is increasingly frustrated by the international community refusing to see the untold suffering underway in their native Yemen.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I phone myself with plot updates. I’m a single mother and I have two boys to look after as well as holding down. full time job. It doesn’t leave much time for writing. So when an idea hits me, usually when I’m driving home from the school run, I leave a voicemail to myself with plot details that I can pick up later. It’s the inspiration for the sweet moment when Someer talks to his dad’s voicemail in Beekeeper. I think that scene brings readers closer to Someer, and it’s because it’s written from something close to reality.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love Paulo Coelho. He influenced me to head to Europe and walk the Camino de Santiago a few years back. He’s certainly an influence in this story, although I also real a lot of thrillers, and some of that influences the second part of the book as the suspense elements really begin to heat up.
What are you working on now?
Trade secret. Although, I think I’ve plotted the perfect psychological thiller set in a community who have been under-represented by writers over the years.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
This is my first book and I’m learning as I go – I guess it’s the same for a lot of people on here. Hopefully my promotional journey will begin and end with Awesome Gang.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
James Joyce said that the art of writing is all about attaching the seat of your pants to the seat of your chair. I think that’s the bottom line. There are so many reasons to get up, get distracted, and to put down what you’re writing… and those distractions really amplify when you hit a difficult part of your story. Just stay put and write something… you can always fix it tomorrow.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Avoid playing internet poker when you’re trying to write.
What are you reading now?
My recent reading – and audio books in the car – includes I Am Pilgrim, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Dark Places Gillian Flynn, Animal Farm by George Orwell, Atonement by Ian McEwan, Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, The Devil and Miss Prym by Paulo Coelho, Fire and Fury by Michael Wolff, Make Me by Lee Child, Ian Fleming by Andrew Lycett, the Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins, catch 22 by Joseph Heller, Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro, On Writing by Steven King, Smiley’s People by John Le Carre, Mr Paradei by Elmore Leonard, and The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.
What’s next for you as a writer?
More writing, of course.
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?
The bible, complete works of Shakespeare, and The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.
Author Websites and Profiles
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