“Loving Sarajevo” with C.L. Mustafic
Today’s interview from the Recliner of Destiny features C.L. Mustafic, author of the new romance from Nine Star Press, Loving Sarajevo! Thanks for joining me on the blog today.
I read the excerpt on the publisher’s website, and the book looks wonderful. Tell us a little about Loving Sarajevo.
Loving Sarajevo is the story of Gage and Nikola. Gage is getting older and has yet to find the guy who makes him want to say I love you, even though he’s been in a relationship with Lucas for five years. Lucas, though younger by quite a few years, is ready to start a family but Gage balks at the idea and Lucas leaves him the night before he has to leave on his first ever trip to Bosnia. Gage is left wondering if he’ll ever find someone to love. Enter Nikola (fans self). Nikola is tall, dark, and handsome. Nikola feels an odd attraction to Gage and even though they just met, he’d like to find out if Gage feels the same. When Gage tells him why his former lover left him, Nikola figures things between the wouldn’t work out because he has the one thing Gage doesn’t want. But there’s surprises in store for both men because sometimes what you think you don’t want, is exactly what you need.
What is the most difficult part of your artistic process?
For me, it’s definitely editing the first draft. I’m terrible at self-editing. It’s frustrating and honestly, I can finish a first draft and it will sit on my hard drive for years before I’ll go back and edit it, that’s how much I dread that first edit.
Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with bad or good ones?
When my first book came out, I admit, I read every one of them until I got my first really bad one. It sent me into a spiral and I couldn’t do anything for a week. I decided I needed to distance myself from it all so now I have a very nice friend who checks them for me and will sometimes screen cap a really good one for me. She also summarizes some of the more critical ones but only if they’re somewhat constructive or pointing out a relevant flaw in the book because otherwise they have no real value to me as a writer. Reviews are for other readers who know what they’re looking for in a book and sometimes the bad reviews point out something a reader is likes and therefore, they’re helpful too.
What is the best money you’ve ever spent as a writer?
That’s a tricky one because on the surface I want to say my subscription to Word because without it I’d be lost, but then I remember I wouldn’t be able to do this without coffee to get started and wine at the end. Take that how you will.
Is romance your only genre? If so, why does this genre speak to your writing muse?
It is for now. I have a few projects I’m working on that aren’t romance. I think the reason I write romance is because it’s an escape from real life. As a reader I gravitated to it when life was hard for me so it makes perfect sense that it’s what I’d write. I love getting lost in my own world and knowing no matter what trials and tribulations my characters are going through, they’ll end up happy in the end. It’s soothing to know everything will work out.
Thank you so much for stopping by the blog today! Where can readers interact with you on the web?
I’m on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100010673946675
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CL_Mustafic