Author Interview: @NanaPrah talks about her #NewRelease + #giveaway

Hi folks! I am so happy to be sharing this particular book release blog hop with my friend, Nana Prah, because I saw a few chapters of her latest release, Midwife to Destiny, as it was being developed. I can't wait to experience the journey in full and find out how the HEA happened.

Nana also happens to be a fellow Ghanaian author, so needless to say, I am tickled to bits to introduce you to her and her freshly released novel, Midwife to Destiny, from Decadent Publishing's Ubuntu line.

Welcome to casa Empi, Nana. It seems not so long ago that we were celebrating the release of your debut novel, Love Through Time. How time flies!

Let's get right to it:

EB: When did you decide you were going to be a writer? Why fiction? For that matter, why romance fiction?

NP: Writing decided for me. A few years ago I wrote an e-mail to a friend telling her how she would meet her husband (as encouragement, not because I’m a psychic). The tale turned into a novel. Although it never got published, it set me off to write my debut novel Love Through Time.

I write romance because I’m a sucker for happily ever after. For me reading is an escape, and through my own writing I’d like to give people a wonderful place to go where everything ends up as they think it should.

EB: Nice. Do you have any strange habits/quirks when writing?

NP: When things aren’t going well and I’m stuck on a scene, I can clear out my refrigerator and pantry of all junk food. Other than that, no writing quirks for me.

EB: When you say 'clear out' do you mean into your stomach? :-)

EB: As a writer, what or who do you think has been your biggest inspiration?

NP: It’s all of the previous writers I’ve read and loved. Dorothy Koomson, Pearl Cleage, Lavyrl Spencer, Julie Garwood, Terry McMillan, Janet Evanovich and I could list a whole lot more, but it would take up the whole post. These are the great authors who I stayed up late at night reading long before I decided to write.

EB: What’s the best comment you've ever had about your writing? And the oddest?

NP: My best friend couldn’t stop telling me with awe in her voice how much she enjoyed reading my book, Love Through Time. Every time I see her she mentions it.

The oddest, or rather more interesting was a reviewer who said the dialogue seemed as if my characters were in their twenties rather than thirties. It got me thinking about if our conversations change as we mature as adults.

EB: Good question. I think they do, but that's just me. What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

NP: Read, exercise, hang out with my friends, and lots of social media (I’m addicted).

EB: Let’s talk about your latest release, Midwife to Destiny. Where did the idea come from?

NP: I was an observer of an AFRO Romance Competition (where I met Empi)[disclaimer: I did not twist her arms to say that :-), or did I?], and as I read the entries I knew I’d be able to write a romance set in Africa. I wanted it to be set in Ghana because that’s where I live, but I’m not sure how I got to South Africa. I think my muse forced the idea in me.

EB: (shakes head) the things we blame on muses... What was your favourite chapter/part to write and why?

NP: I absolutely adore the prologue where Jason and Ora meet in South Africa. That part of the novel is immensely sweet and we get to tour Cape Town with them, which was fun. Unfortunately Ora also has her first of two “idiot” moments in that scene, but you can’t always tell your characters what to do, can you?

EB: LOL. (Idiot moments). What was your least favourite chapter/part to write and why?

NP: There’s an emotional scene where Ora breaks up with Jason after they get together after three years. My editor had to pull out the emotions from me so I could do justice to the scene. Just like Ora, I don’t do emotions well, but I had to bring it out in her so that the reader could feel her pain.

EB: I know you are big on ‘reasons why’ so here’s your chance to give us three reasons to read your book.

NP: 

1. It’s a lovely sweet romance, which will have you engrossed and closing the book with a sigh.
2. Set in Africa, the reader gets to explore a land they never thought they’d travel to within the context of a good story.
3. The characters are fabulous. I didn’t want to leave them so I wrote a second book about Esi’s story called Destiny Mine.

 EB: Can you give us a peek inside Midwife to Destiny?

 Blurb

Ghanaian nurse Aurora ‘Ora’ Aikins never expected to find the love of her life while on vacation in South Africa. Engaged to another and believing that love has no place in her life, she returns to Ghana, and puts duty and honor first.

Three years later, Dr. Jason Lartey still can’t get Ora out of his mind or his heart. After learning she never married, he takes a risk and moves to Ghana hoping to rekindle what they started. His sudden appearance in Ora’s Emergency Department sends sparks flying all over again.

They’re in the same country, working in the same hospital, and together but distance creeps between them. Can they make their destined love one for the ages?

Buy Links

Amazon | Decadent |ARe | Barnes & Noble| Smashwords

EXCERPT

Ora focused on putting one foot in front of the other as if she were a one-year-old learning how to walk. After turning the corner and seeing the back of his head, she froze. She would know that head anywhere. He’d grown his hair out a little, but his adorable, Will Smith ears gave him away. Initiating the process of pivoting and sprinting out of the ED unnoticed sprang to mind when he turned around and his gaze caught hers.

The air became charged with tension and neither of them moved. Her heart threatened to pop out of her chest with the force of each beat. The nurses stood between them, looking back and forth as if they watched a tennis match. They didn’t bother to hide their expressions of curiosity.

They’d never seen Ora behave in such a manner. Not cool as a cucumber super nurse. Like herself, they kept looking at the new doctor just because of his tall, broad-shouldered, gorgeous stature. The past three years had matured him, adding a few lines around his eyes and the new feature of a goatee with a moustache changed his countenance a little. But otherwise, the same man she’d met three years ago, at least in the physical sense, stood before her.

After an eternity, Ora snapped back to attention. “Akwaaba, Dr. Lartey. Welcome to the ward.” Madam Professional stuck out her hand for a handshake.

Her words seemed to drag him out of his own stupor. “Uh….”

She had rendered the man speechless. Ora’s gracious nature—that’s what she blamed it on, anyway—took pity on him and she touched his shoulder. The contact sent sensual awareness through her and she recoiled her hand.

“Hello, Aurora. Please forgive me. It’s just that I’m a little surprised to see you.”

“Not as much as I am,” she muttered, attempting to squash both the joy bubbling up inside of her at seeing him again and the overwhelming sadness of what she’d been missing for so long.

“Pardon me?” he asked.

“I didn’t expect to see you here. It’s a surprise to me, too.” She tried to smile, but it came out contorted, as if she’d been able to have a painful, rocky bowel movement after being constipated for seven days.

EB: Great excerpt. Love the tension. Okay, now that we've had our excerpt, I'm sure readers would like to know a little bit about the woman behind the writer:

1. Most romantic movie you ever saw?

There are so many, but I’ll choose The Lake House with Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock.

2. Most memorable movie quote

“Kiss this, bitch.” Trinity from the Matrix- she’s my girl.

3. Most vivid childhood memory?

Me and my brother hanging on my mother’s extended legs while she sat and scissored them so my brother and I almost crashed into each other. Good times and lots of giggles

4. If you had to choose a soundtrack to your life's movie, which three songs would be the most meaningful?

This one is too hard for me to answer. My life has been so diverse that it’s impossible to choose only three.

5. Five question marathon:

• Fave thing in your closet: A purple and gold kimono my mother sewed for me.
• Fave ice-cream flavor: Chocolate chip cookie dough
• Coffee vs. tea: Tea
• Sweet vs sour: Sweet
• Guilty pleasure: I have no guilt where pleasure is involved *giggle* 

EB: LOL. That means chocolate, people. Thanks for joining me on my blgo today, Nana Prah. Before I forget, a little birdie told me about a give-away...

NP: :-) I’m giving away a $20 Amazon gift card which will run until the end of April. The rafflecopter link is below:

ENTER GIVEAWAY

Author Bio – Nana Prah

Nana Prah was born in Ghana, West Africa, raised in the US and currently resides in Ghana where she loves her job as a writer and nurse educator. She has been writing since she can remember (in her journal) and has been an avid reader of romance novels since the eighth grade. She has finally been able to utilize the years and years of inadvertent research into writing her own romance novels where love always conquers all.

Contact Details:

Blog | Twitter: @NanaPrah | Facebook: Nana Prah, Author