Anna Patricio is a lover of ancient history, with a particular interest in Egypt, Israel, Greece, and Rome. She is also intrigued by the Ancient Near East; she has not delved too much into it but hopes to one day.

She undertook formal studies in Ancient History at Macquarie University. She focused mostly on Egyptology and Jewish-Christian Studies, alongside a couple of Greco-Roman units, and one on Archaeology. Though she knew there were very limited job openings for ancient history graduates, she pursued her degree anyway as it was something she had always been passionate about.

Then, about a year after her graduation, the idea to tackle historical fiction appeared in her head, and she began happily pounding away on her laptop. Asenath is her first novel.

1. Welcome to the blog. Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I am the debut author of a quasi-recent historical novel entitled Asenath, which is about the little-known wife of Joseph (of the multi-coloured coat). I have always been an enthusiast of the Joseph narrative, and later on I became curious about his wife. When I looked her up, I found hardly anything on her. I was then inspired to imagine what she might have been like.

I am an ancient history lover, and this factor made writing Asenath doubly enjoyable for me. I used to dislike history until my teens, when I had a brilliant teacher who was more like a storyteller and made history come alive. She did not make us memorise anything either, as is typical of many history teachers.

I love Egypt, Israel, Greece and Rome. A couple of years ago, I was blessed to be able to travel to the Middle East – Egypt, Israel and Jordan. I was only in Egypt briefly, though, as the focus of the said trip was Israel. I do hope I can return to Egypt one day.

2. What made you want to become a writer?

I suppose you could say that my interest in the Joseph story precipitated my writing life. I had read several historical fiction retellings of Joseph, but none of them gave much emphasis to Asenath. I then thought it might be interesting to write about her, especially since practically no one knew about her.

Before that. though, I was interested in the idea of writing, but did not know what to write about. That is to say, I didn’t know if I wanted to write short stories, poems, novels, or even the whole package. For that matter, I never even thought I would write a novel.

When I was a student, I always received good feedback on my writing assignments. And that was encouraging. But I still didn’t know what to write about.

The idea for the Asenath novel came to me one day, out of the blue. And I thought, “This should be fun!”

3. Who are your favourite writers?

A lot. But the ones that immediately come to mind are Wilbur Smith, Pauline Gedge, and Arthur Golden.

I love Smith’s and Gedge’s Egyptian novels. They truly bring the ancient world to life. Smith’s River God was the very first historical novel I read.

I also adore Arthur Golden’s Memoirs of a Geisha. It is one of my all-time favourite novels. In the past, I have convinced several people to read it, and they were all surprised at how much they ended up enjoying it.

I love those Cinderella-type stories, plus I love Golden’s style of writing – especially the way he describes the titular character’s emotions. Chiyo / Sayuri is so innocent and long-suffering. I know there’s a movie adaptation of that book, but the novel is so much better.

4. What’s the most rewarding element of writing for you?

Well obviously, when I was able to land a publishing deal! That, and also being able to reach out to some readers.

(Not everyone has liked my book though, but that is fine because that is their opinion, and it is expected.)

One reader told me that the last pages moved her to tears. That comment made my day.

5. At what point did you think, ‘I’ve done it – I’ve become a writer’?

I suppose after I finished the first draft of Asenath. It was still far from publishability, but it was massive.

Additionally, my beta readers told me the story was good. I then looked to the draft as the first step of a thousand steps – to use a cliché.

6. Can you share a little about your writing process?

It’s very spontaneous. Basically, what I need is a quiet, solitary room. I once tried writing in an airport but it did not work. There were too many distractions – noise, people moving about, etc.

For some reason, I write better at night than in the daytime. I guess I’m more of a “night person.”

7. What’s your most recent book about?

Well, seeing as I already spoke of the titular character earlier, here is the book blurb, which should give you an idea of the plot:

In a humble fishing village on the shores of the Nile lives Asenath, a fisherman’s daughter who has everything she could want. Until her perfect world is shattered.

When a warring jungle tribe ransacks the village and kidnaps her, separating her from her parents, she is forced to live as a slave. And she begins a journey that will culminate in the meeting of a handsome and kind steward named Joseph.

Like her, Joseph was taken away from his home, and it is in him that Asenath comes to find solace…and love. But just as they are beginning to form a bond, Joseph is betrayed by his master’s wife and thrown into prison.

Is Asenath doomed to a lifetime of losing everything and everyone she loves?

8.  When you’re not writing, what do you most like to do?

Read, do some amateur photography, listen to music (I especially like classical and the music of Loreena McKennitt), watch TV and movies, and spend time with my new dachshund puppy.

9. What’s next in your writing career?

Another Egyptian novel, which still takes place in Ancient Egypt, but hundreds of years after Asenath. This one looks like it will be more of a family drama than a romance. I am hard at work on it right now – some months ago, I returned to the library to do research on it.

Connect with Anna online

Blog: http://www.annapatricio.blogspot.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/annapatricio.asenath

Twitter: http://twitter.com/annapatricio

Buy the book

Amazon – http://www.amazon.com/Asenath-Anna-Patricio/dp/1926997263

(Available also from Amazon international sites.)

Barnes & Noble – http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/asenath-anna-patricio/1033320057

The Book Depository – http://www.bookdepository.com/Asenath-Anna-Patricio/9781926997261

Abbey’s Bookshop (For those in Sydney, Australia, it’s available on the shelf!) – http://www.abbeys.com.au/abbeys/home.do