Blog Tour: Chocolate Aftertaste

Where do you hail from and what do you love most about your hometown?

I grew up in a lot of places. I was born in Angola, went to Namibia (my parents’ country) when I was eight, lived in South Africa for three years, and lived in Germany for seven years. I now live in Vienna Austria with my husband. But the hometown of my heart is Windhoek, Namibia. I love so many things about the city; the open spaces, not too many people, the sun.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

My early childhood was not a very happy one (it inspired my novel, Tangi’s Teardrops). I guess, I was just living one day at a time. The future seemed so far away.

Tell us about your latest book.

Chocolate Aftertaste is my second novel. It is a story of choices and how they impact our lives. For years Nora has allowed her controlling father to be the man behind the steering wheel of her life. Until one day she realizes he isn’t always right. She then decides she wants the control of her life back in her own hands. As a result, she risks losing the only family she has, but stands to gain her freedom and hopefully find love. And she does, after overcoming a few obstacles.

Do you have anything new in the works and can you tell us a bit about it?

Yes, I’m currently working on my next women’s fiction novel, Honeysuckle & Jasmine which is inspired by a true story.

The novel is about two African Au-Pairs who meet in Germany and embark on a journey that leads them to the true meaning of friendship. Together they laugh, they live, and they grow. And then everything changes. Suddenly their carefree days are over and the struggles that come with living in a foreign country begin. The only thing that can hold them together, when everything falls apart, is their friendship.

What advice would you give to writers just starting out?

Don’t write what you think you should be writing. Write what you’re passionate about.

Do you ever suffer from writer’s block? If so, what do you do about it?

Oh, yes. I do. To get rid of it, I just try not to focus too much on it. Usually I choose a few chapters or scenes in my novel that I’m really proud of and read them, to remind myself that I’m not writing complete rubbish. That often does the trick. If that doesn’t work, I just take a little time off to relax, to read a good book, or watch a nice movie.

Who is your favorite author and why?

I enjoy reading Jodi Picoult’s novels because I’m attracted to books that deal with real life problems. And the author knows how to tell a story that grabs me by the collar and doesn’t let me go until “The End”.