Let's Talk with Debra H. Goldstein

 Today, April 10, is National Siblings Day. Research has demonstrated that 80% of American children have one or more siblings. I’m in the group that only has one. So, here’s a shout out to that one sibling, my sister, Michelle.

In researching the day, I discovered that Claudia Evart, having lost her siblings at a young age, founded the Siblings Day Foundation in 1997. Its purpose was simple: lobby and campaign for a National Siblings Day to be recognized by the United States. Eventually, the organization became a non-profit with the same goal. Although National Siblings Day isn’t a declared federal holiday, many states via their governors and several international countries have issued proclamations declaring April 10 to be the day to celebrate siblings.

When I wrote the Sarah Blair series, I knew that the emphasis would be on Sarah, a woman who finds being in the kitchen more frightening than murder. Her background would be that she dropped out of college and got married at eighteen. When the rat played around behind her back, she ended up divorced at twenty-eight having to trade her luxury lifestyle for an efficiency apartment and RahRah, a Siamese cat. During the five books in the series, Sarah grows more confident and moves into a much a nicer home that is owned by her cat. Other than owning the house through an animal trust, RahRah is simply a cat without magical powers. He can be a sounding board, but RahRah does not offer the love, arguments, and support of a sibling.

I assigned the sibling role to Sarah’s twin sister, Emily. To make the books more interesting, I gave them contrasting features. One is blonde, one is dark. In the beginning, Sarah is finding herself, but Emily, knowing she wanted to be a chef from when she was a child, has pursued that goal with laser precision. The differences between the sisters and their loyalty to each other hopefully reflect a true sibling relationship.

Although not all siblings interrelate the way Sarah and Emily do, the blood tie always exists. Do you have siblings that you adore or might consider trading in for a different model?

Want to learn more about our author Debra H Goldstein? Visit her WEBSITE.

While you’re here, check out our April contest, where we offer two books to one winner! The contest runs from April 1-22, so enter today. CONTEST LINK.