Last year, Indireads released all of its’ authors and their work. The rights for Seoul-Mates reverted back to me. For those who don’t know, SEOUL-MATES was my first ever published book.

I submitted it for a competition for Asian romances and it was accepted. That’s what started my writing career. I will forever be grateful to Naheed Hassan for that step.

Cover Reveal

I worked with Les on this cover. As always, she delivers the prettiest covers. I wanted all the elements of the book.

-Cherry blossoms,

-Bukchon Hanok village in Seoul because there are scenes set there

-And the Seoul skyline with Namsan tower in the background.

-We also chose a colors that went with my brand colors.

On the right is my old cover and the new cover is on the left. I love cherry blossoms. They’re some of my favorite flowers. Remember the gazillion pics I took when I went to the Sakura Matsuri festival in Brooklyn Botanical Gardens? When I envision Eden or heaven, I think of cherry blossoms everywhere. 😊

So the new cover is vibrant and very Koreanesque if I may say so!

The Story

I made a few changes to the story. Took out some problem areas that people complained about when they were reading this book especially the shifting points of view. I’ve cleared that up. The premise and the rest of the plot is largely the same.

Jilted by the man she followed to Seoul, Katia has hit rock bottom. Within months, her whirlwind romance and marriage to Jihan has everyone talking.

Jihan is the heir to the Kwan business empire while Katia is a foreigner, an Anglo-Indian who has no business ensnaring Seoul’s most eligible bachelor. No one knows that their marriage is based on a contract.

Together in chic, metropolitan Seoul the two forge a relationship that is tested by intrigue, jilted lovers and a hidden nemesis.

Can their newfound love survive the forces against them?
Or will the vows they took be in vain?

A sweet romance novella set in Korea for all the Hallyu lovers.

Book Trailer

I’ve kept the same trailer. One of the first I ever made way back in 2016. What a long way since then… 🙂

I will do a YT video soon about writing this book. So far I’ve been kind of tied up with home renovations that seem to be taking forever. So I’m slightly behind on the rest of my work.

Pre-order Seoul-Mates

SEOUL-MATES is on pre-order now and will be out in April. I’ve started the copyediting and we should have it out a little after Easter.

9 Years of Publishing

As I re-release SEOUL-MATES, I can’t help but feel a little sentimental. Nine years ago, I started my publishing journey. I’ve been writing for much longer. It’s been a long, winding road. Every author’s journey is different. Mine started with these small presses and indie publishers. And I’m so grateful for those breaks because they gave me the confidence to put my work out there.

I made some great friends on Indireads. I’m still in touch with some of my fellow authors from there. Neelima Vinod, a poet and author, who now mentors young authors, is one of them. During the pandemic, I remember everyone checking on each other. It was so wonderful to have the writing community’s support.

Next year it will be a decade. Would there be anything I’d tell myself back then? Don’t sweat the details, I would say. It will be fine.

I don’t drink but to this book I would definitely want to open a Moscato and savor the publishing journey so far.

By God’s grace, there will be still many more books to come!

건배 🥂 Geonbae