Interview with historical novelist Monique Roy

Author Monique Roy is here to talk with me about her new historical fiction, Across Great Divides.

Bio:

Monique holds a degree in journalism from Southern Methodist University in Dallas and is also the author of a children’s book, Once Upon a Time in Venice. In her free time, she loves to travel, play tennis, see movies, pursue her passion for writing, and read historical fiction. In 2008, she was chosen by the American Jewish Committee's ACCESS program to travel to Berlin, Germany, on the 70th anniversary of Kristallnacht, to explore German and Israeli relations along with 20 other Jewish professionals from across the U.S. 

Welcome, Monique. Please tell us about your current release.

Across Great Divides is a timeless, World War II story of the upheavals of war, the power of family, and the resiliency of human spirit. When Hitler comes to power in 1933, one Jewish family refuses to be destroyed and defies the Nazis only to come up against another struggle—confronting Apartheid in South Africa. 

What inspired you to write this book?

I was born in Cape Town, South Africa, and my grandparents were European Jews who fled their home as Hitler rose to power. It’s their story that inspired me to write Across Great Divides, my debut, historical fiction novel.

What exciting story are you working on next?

It is another historical fiction novel:

When an Oxford student inherits her grandfather’s art gallery, she unravels the harrowing struggle that befell her grandparents in Nazi Germany and must recover a looted van Gogh painting, only to discover a dark history haunts the present.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

When I was a child, I used to write stories in a journal. I ended up pursuing journalism in college and so always considered writing as a path.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?

I have a full-time job in marketing for a software company in Plano, Texas. I write for work and then I can come home and write for fun – and whatever my heart desires! I carve out time on weekends and during the week to write my books, etc.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

As a writer, you tend to daydream, and sometimes you wish you could write it all down. Luckily, most writers, like me, carry around something to write notes on.

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

I wanted to be Diane Sawyer and a news anchor!

Links:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Amazon | Amazon – Once Upon a Time in Venice

Thanks for joining me today!