Novelist Sonee Singh is chatting with me today about her new women’s fiction, Can You Be.
Bio:
Sonee Singh is a Doctor of Divinity, a cross-cultural seeker of deep knowing. She’s an award-winning and best-selling author of poetry and stories of self-discovery to encourage people to accept themselves for who they are and live life on their own terms. Her writing centers on the definitive moments on life’s journey. The mystical and spiritual are integral in her poems and storytelling, as is her multi-cultural background.
Sonee is of Indian descent, born in Mexico, raised in Colombia, and resides in the United States. When not traveling, reading, or writing, she indulges in meditation, yoga, and aromatherapy.
Sonee has multiple articles published on Elephant Journal and Medium.com. Her works include two novels: Lonely Dove and Can You Be; three poetry books part of the Soul-Seeker Collection: Embody, Embrace, and Embolden; and three anthologies, namely Blessing the Page, The Colours of Me, and Hear Us Roar.
Welcome, Sonee. Please tell us about your current release.
Can You Be tell the story of Naina. Naina’s life is as it has always been. She lives in a self-imposed sheltered manner in Charleston, SC, yet wants nothing more than to have the support of friends and family. She is too afraid to put herself out there, having been hurt so much in the past. Her routines give her a sense of safety…until an early August morning, when Naina receives a box. It has no information about its sender and it is left on her doorstep. A mysterious man shows up at her work asking her about it.
Everything begins to change after the arrival of the box, and Naina is presented with a chance to change her life, and to explore compassion, forgiveness, and believing in herself. She struggles to understand the power of connections and the potential of expanding her horizons. Naina’s journey is mystical and, in portions, it takes her through Stockholm, Helsinki, and the Baltics. Will this quest lead her to discover who she can be?
What inspired you to write this book?
I wanted to write a story about an underdog character overcoming their difficulties, showing there is possibility for someone who is quiet to be their personal hero. Naina, the protagonist, goes through challenges where she has to learn to overcome her self-imposed short-comings.
Excerpt from Can You Be:
Naina now knew her perceived invisibility as a child hadn’t been a superpower, but she was grateful she had been left alone. She inferred it was because she was odd, the kind of odd people choose to stay away from.
But she hadn’t been able to outgrow her love for libraries. After consulting all those books, Naina had learned more about angelites and spheres, but they weren’t able to tell her who had sent her the crystal or why. The crystal hadn’t done anything. No matter how much she stared at it or held it in her hands, nothing happened. She hoped it would show her the future, like the psychics she’d read about in so many novels. Maybe she would see how to handle this date with Raiya.
Naina left work that Thursday afternoon and ran into the same mysterious man who had stopped by the real estate office. He was waiting for her at the corner of Meeting and Wentworth. He ate a vanilla ice cream in a cone and wore the same off-white linen suit and dark brown loafers as he had two days before. Naina disliked people who wore shoes without socks. There was no way to clean sweat from shoes, and she was sure when he removed his shoes, his feet would stink.
“Hey there, Naina,” he greeted as she approached. His skin was glowing with the same pearl-like quality she’d noticed on Tuesday, contrasting with his dark brown wavy hair. There was an ethereal quality to him, like he wasn’t really tangible. She wondered if he might be her angel but reasoned he was flesh and blood and thus, clearly from this dimension. He looked young still, although clearly older than her.
She couldn’t quite place his age. She wanted to think he was in his forties but he appeared youthful and yet old with wisdom. Once again, she was disappointed in herself because she couldn’t come up with any story about him.
“Hi,” she said. She stopped two meters in front of him and clutched her purse, as if he were about to steal it. She might have appeared like she was protecting the contents of her bag, but really, she was stopping herself from touching him. Naina had not seen skin so perfect on a man before. It was too tempting. She had to keep her hands holding onto her bag or her instincts would get the best of her.
“I won’t hurt you.” He gave her the tooth-whitening smile.
Again, Naina could have sworn his teeth gave off a twinkle. She said nothing and didn’t smile back. He certainly appeared to be in his mid-forties and there was a fatherly quality to him. She thought maybe he was an actor and that’s why he looked so perfect, but he didn’t look familiar. She squinted at him, scrunching her nose and her forehead, and narrowing her large eyes.
“You shouldn’t squeeze your face. You’re more likely to wrinkle,” he admonished, still smiling. He truly belonged in an infomercial.
Naina straightened her face. She couldn’t believe her lapse in judgment. She had let herself get carried away by the musings of the man and had forgotten all about her skin. That hadn’t happened to her before. “The sun is too intense.”
“Easily resolved,” he said. He walked under the shadow of the tree at the entrance of the Grand Bohemian Hotel.
Naina followed, wondering why she had taken to following strange men without question. There was something about him that felt nurturing and safe, in an odd light-hearted way. “Did you send me the box?”
“I simply made sure it got to you.”
“You didn’t send it?”
“Nope.” He smiled again.
“There was no label.”
“That’s not important. Tell me what you found out about the
crystal.”
“It’s an angelite?”
He nodded in confirmation. He ate his ice cream cleanly and efficiently. Despite the heat, there wasn’t a single melted drop. She was impressed. She only indulged in ice cream while indoors, exactly and precisely to make sure there was no mess, which was a near certainty in the muggy heat.
“What do you make of it?” he asked.
“It’s meant to protect me somehow or connect me with angels, but I haven’t heard anything and the crystal hasn’t done anything.”
“It’s not meant to do something tangible. It won’t come alive in the middle of the night or when you’re not looking – like in Toy Story. Its energy has an effect on you. We are affected by everything around us. Everything carries energy. Crystal energy is subtle, yet potent.”
Naina didn’t confess she was already attached to the crystal. Over the past two days, she had carried it in her purse whenever she left her apartment, taking it out only in the safety of her home.
The mystery man licked his ice cream and stared at her intently, as if peering into her soul.
It unnerved her. “Why did you give it to me?”
“As I said, I didn’t give it to you. I’m merely the delivery man. Continue carrying it with you, Naina. Trust. It is for your good. I’ll check in another time.” He patted her on the shoulder and walked away.
Naina was surprised his touch didn’t cause her to tense. She was unaccustomed to people touching her. Her mother had been the affectionate one. The last time her father hugged her was before he shipped her off to boarding school.
She was filled with a sense of ease as she watched him walk away, continuing to lick his ice cream.
At that moment, she called him Holy Man. At least in her head. For some reason, she felt like celebrating. If she couldn’t come up with a story about him, at least she’d come up with a fictional name. That alone was reason to celebrate. He gave her a sense of security she hadn’t felt in years. She hadn’t asked for his name and she wasn’t sure she’d gather the courage to do so.
Naina walked further down Meeting Street and picked up a chocolate mint ice cream sandwich from Piece Pie before heading home. It wasn’t her cheat day, but she didn’t care.
What exciting project are you working on next?
I’m working on an oracle card deck. The working title is Daily Reflections, although it’s possible it will change. I’m collaborating with an artist, Jess Fowler. The deck has 77 cards, and each provides a message and a reflection. I sent the 77 messages to Jess, with some suggestions for artwork, although she has creative freedom. Sometimes she uses my suggestions but also she comes up with her own. She sends me a sketch and we mutually decide on what will/won’t work. It’s been a beautiful collaboration. Writing is such a lonely endeavor, and it is refreshing to have someone to talk things through. Jess and I have discovered great synchronicity. There are a few drawings we haven’t agreed on, but we’re able to work through our varied opinions. For the most part, we see eye-to-eye. Jess is open to my feedback and incorporates what I ask without problem. When Jess suggests something new, I look up the significance to make sure it’s in accordance with the message I’ve written for the card, and it usually does. It’s been a rewarding experience.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I first considered myself a writer when I completed the first draft of my first novel, Lonely Dove. I had been writing for a while and had published articles, but I needed the validation of having completed a manuscript to make me feel that I was legitimate.
Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your workday like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I write full-time, and I travel quite a lot. When I’m at home my life is more structured. I meditate and do yoga in the morning. I then take care of my social media, marketing, and other administrative tasks. I write after lunch. In the evenings, I love to wind down by reading or streaming movies or shows. When I travel, I tend to write when I’m on a plane or train. There’s something quite magical about writing when you’re in motion.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I write poetry, and when I do, I have to write it by hand. I don’t feel inspired to write poetry when staring at a screen, but a pen and paper feels like an organic way to connect with my poetic inspiration. The same doesn’t apply when I write novels or non-fiction. Then, it is completely comfortable for me to write directly on my laptop. I’m also comfortable editing the poems on my laptop, so I edit them as I type them up, and afterwards.
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I first wanted to be a cashier because I loved pressing buttons. Eventually, I wanted to be a nurse because they gave me a lollipop after I had been vaccinated. Then, and for many years in my youth, I wanted to be a medical doctor. My life took a completely different path than what I had originally imagined.
Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
I write about self-discovery and self-acceptance. In my stories, I focus on the pivotal moment(s) in my character’s lives that lead them on a path of internal transformation, and as a result, external change. I want to encourage my readers to accept themselves for who they are and live life on their own terms. My tagline is “Trust in Your Soul,” and that is because when we learn to listen to our inner voice, and we follow its guidance, we truly live life in flow. We learn to navigate challenges with more ease and embrace and appreciate our blessings.
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