Rula, what is your favourite drink?
There are many drinks I love…hot chocolate, tea, fruit/yogurt smoothies…but I must say I can’t live without a really good cup of coffee. Yes, I stumble towards the pot in the morning in search of a caffeine fix, but it’s not just about the caffeine (unless I’m on a book deadline lol). I love the taste, but I’m also really picky about it. I can’t drink a weak, old or otherwise bad tasting brew, even if I need a pick-me-up. Give me a sip of rich, velvety roast with chocolaty hints and my eyes will involuntarily close the way they do after a bite of a sublime dessert like cheesecake…which, by the way, goes great with coffee. Everything goes great with coffee. And it has health benefits. Did I mention how much I love coffee? LOL ;).
Tell us a little about yourself.
What one thing would readers be surprised to know about you?
Hmmm…I think anyone who has read my books or followed my blog and social media posts already knows how much I love wildlife (all animals, actually), nature and organic gardening. As much as I love living a quiet life in the countryside, there’s a little adventurer in me. When my debut book, The Promise of Rain, released in 2014, I mentioned in an interview that I spent some of my childhood years living in North Africa and, during that time, I went on several trips into the Sahara dessert. One of those trips included spending the night with other students in a Bedouin tent and experiencing their traditional dance, foods and way of life. One of my adventures that I can’t recall if I’ve mentioned before
amazing and I still have ‘molas’ (handmade, reverse applique tapestries made by the Kuna indians) from the trip hanging in my office.
I don’t travel as much now (kids and such), but I go on adventures in Kenya through my books ;).What’s your guilty procrastination secret?
Procrastination? Me? I justify all forms of procrastination to the point that I’m convinced it’s not really procrastination. I mean, come on, isn’t feeding my pets, kids, wild birds, or as my husband accuses me of, all the wildlife and stray cats in our county a necessity? That’s why sometimes it’s absolutely necessary that I run to the store for pet food or I have to stop working and make chocolate cake and a zillion other desserts…oh and dinner too. Or the kitty litter needs cleaning. Or all those veggies in the garden have to get picked at that very moment or they’ll go bad. Or boy does that garden bed need weeding and the weather is just right and it’ll rain tomorrow so I have to do it now. Seriously, sometimes unavoidable things come up in motherhood, like the school calling because of a sick kid. But if I really need to clear my head and veg out because I’m exhausted, my guilty pleasure is curling up on the couch and watching a movie.
What does your writing space look like?
My writing space is a small home office at the front of our house. I have it filled with things that are ‘me’, including old books I’ve read, cool rocks/crystals and artifacts I’ve collected. I have those molas hanging on the wall and I hang my writing awards as well…not because I’m a narcissist (total opposite, here) but because if my confidence plummets while writing, seeing them reminds me that I can do it. I also have tall to-be-read piles of books and all my promotion supplies. I try to keep clutter down and usually find that I need to do a ‘clean-up’ between books.
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not writing?
As I mentioned above, I love gardening, tending to my pets and backyard flock and watching movies. I also love reading, both non-fiction and fiction, baking, crocheting and browsing antique stores.
What can we look forward to with your upcoming or next writing project?
I’m really excited about my latest release, Every Serengeti Sunrise (book 4 in my ‘From Kenya, With Love’ series for Harlequin Heartwarming), and I already have the title for the book that follows! Book 5 in the series is due out May 2018 and is called The Twin Test. I’m also contracted for book 6 in this series, plus three more books that I’ll be writing as part of a new series for Harlequin Heartwarming. My ‘From Kenya, With Love’ series kicked off with The Promise of Rain, After the Silence and Through the Storm…and my short story, The Sweetheart Tree, which is part of the A Heartwarming Thanksgiving anthology, is also linked to the series. What’s extra fun about books 4-6 is that they pick up when the children in the first books are all grown up and struggling to find their own happily ever afters. I feel like I’ve known these characters their entire lives. Wait, I have!
Where can we find you and your books online?
Let me start by thanking all my readers and everyone who has been supportive, including Still Moments Magazine. There are no words to express how much I appreciate you all and how much every book review that has been posted means to me. Thank you. For those of you who haven’t visited my website, www.RulaSinara.com, if you pop on over you’ll find a list of all my books, blurbs and some of the buy links. You can also find my books online (print is also available the first few months after release) at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Harlequin, Kobo, itunes and pretty much wherever books are sold online. I hope those of you who have been reading the series enjoy Every Serengeti Sunrise and the stories to follow…and I hope those new to the series love it too! Although the stories are connected, each one can also stand alone. Also, for those new to the Heartwarming line, it’s a sweet romance line in terms of low sensuality, but it’s not sappy. It digs deep and gets to the tough, gritty issues faced in life. It’s the kind of love (and life) stories that can be shared between grandmothers, moms, teens. So whether in print or ebook format, they make great holiday gifts or stocking stuffers. Enjoy! And have a happy, safe and wonderful holiday season full of love, peace and joy.
Before we wrap up our chat,
let's take a peek at,
Every Serengeti Sunrise
Elephants, Africa’s wild savannah and three best friends…
When attorney Maddie Corallis returns to Kenya to fight a humanitarian vs animal rights case, the last thing she expects is for her childhood friend, wildlife veterinarian Haki Odaba, to be the very man she’s up against. Loyal and protective, Haki would never turn his back on the elephants he’s devoted to saving, any more than Maddie could abandon the native tribes she’s come to protect. An impossible battle…but nothing compared to the fight they face when old feelings surface and the soul-deep connection they’ve always shared threatens the worst kind of betrayal...that of their dearest friend Pippa. The one Haki is expected to marry.
Denying their feelings is torture, but giving in is not an option. Not with the suffering it would cause. Besides, Maddie left Kenya once and she’ll be leaving again soon. An ocean, a case and a friend between them. Maybe love can’t always find a way…or can it?
Thank you for visiting, Rula! Your travels sound fun and exotic. I am looking forward to reading Every Serengeti Sunrise.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for having me here!
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