Interview with Tracey Jerald, author of Free To Breathe

What can you tell us about your new release, Free To Breathe?

Free to Breathe is a highly charged, emotional standalone. Two people with a past have to overcome not just their history but the shadows of their present to have a chance at love. This is the kind of love that requires endurance, forgiveness, and self-acceptance.

What or who inspired you to become an author?

I have always loved to read. I wrote journals and kept rewriting the endings of stories I didn’t like. I would talk about it so much, friends and family said, “You should write your own book.” So, I did

What’s on your top 5 list for the best books you’ve ever read?

George Orwell’s Animal Farm, Nora Roberts’ True Betrayals, The Romanovs by Robert Mackey, The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler, and Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House Series.

Say you’re the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest? What would you want to ask?

Hmm, that’s tough. I would love to sit down with Aaron Sorkin. Odd right? A screen writer? But he is brilliant at in bringing characters to life no matter what series he has ever written. As for what I would ask him, I would ask what part of character development does he struggle with? How does he get past it?

What’s your favorite thing about writing?

Being able to do and see so many things so clearly through someone else’s eyes. I can travel, I can fix a problem, I can be a professional baker (though I actually did work in a bakery for a while).

What is a typical day like for you?

I work a full-time job in addition to writing. I’m also a wife and a mother. So, life is crazy for me! I start my day around 7:30 and help get my son off to school. I work from home full time, so I then “head into the office”, where I work until around 6. After dinner, I sit down to write. Weekends are either family time or writing time.

What scene in Free To Breathe was your favorite to write?

I can’t tell you. It’s a complete spoiler. LOL!

Do you have a motto, quote or philosophy you live by?

“You could walk straight through Hell with a smile” from The Script. There has been a lot I’ve lived through personally. For me, that quote gives me strength that I can handle the burden of more and I will come out triumphant.

Tracey Jerald is the author of the new book Free To Breathe

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