It’s that time of the year, friends! I’ve revamped all my author interviews to bring in variety and fun! The ever delightful Julie Cantrell is the first to share her ‘Fast Favourites’ which I hope you enjoy. Julie’s books have hit the New York Times bestseller lists and are among MY favourite reads, and are perfect for book clubs. Enjoy this insight into Julie’s favourite things and be sure to enter the giveaway below for your chance to win a copy of her newest release, Perennials!

Animal – ALL! If I could spend a day in the wild with one species, I’d choose orangutans. They seem to enjoy having fun in life. My kind of tribe.

Artist –  An Oxford-based artist (and dear friend) named Nicole Gladden whose work never fails to inspire me, but I also have always wanted to see The Dinner Party by Judy Chicago.

Nicole Gladden art

Board Game – Rummikub is sentimental to me because it’s a game I have played my entire life — with my grandparents, my brother, my friends, and my children

Book – ONE? Impossible. But The Poisonwood Bible would be one of the top fiction choices. I also loved Jewel’s latest memoir, Never Broken. She’s survived some incredible circumstances in her life. I am drawn to books written by brave female truthtellers.

Colour – another impossible question… what’s life without color? I tend to prefer beautiful blue shades, especially those that veer into purple, like on periwinkle blooms. Have you ever seen the bright blue sky in western parts of the U.S. like Arizona and Colorado? And the bright greens of spring in the Northeast region like New Hampshire and Vermont? There are no words yet for such colors. You see where I could go with this idea… now I’m writing a novel!

Flower – Oh my gosh! No way! I’ll narrow it down at least. Dahlia. Peony. Passion Flower. Lotus and Water Lily. Hydrangea. Camelia. And… the pink stargazer lily that sparked the story Perennials.

Ice-cream – There was this one amazing brand of ice cream I tried a few times. It was the most delicious vanilla bean, made with such pure ingredients. And it had big blocks of dark chocolate mixed in. The best dark chocolate I’ve ever had. It was a dangerous discovery, and I found myself craving it All. The. Time. Sadly (and thankfully), my local grocer stopped carrying it. It’s taken all the willpower I can muster not to ask them to bring it back to the shelves. I have no idea what brand it was, and I am much safer not knowing.

Movie – I’m a big film buff, so this is another impossible question for me. I loved Crash. That’s one that always rises to the top. The circular story-telling appeals to me, and the plot is layered beautifully. I also prefer stories that connect us to one another (instead of those that draw us apart).

Non-writing activity – TRAVEL! I long to explore every corner of this world and to hear everyone’s stories.

Reading genre – I tend to gravitate to memoirs.

Season – Spring, when the sun and the warmth start bringing me back to life after our gray, dreary winter season.

Snack – Banana on those I’ve-got-actual-willpower days. Ice cream on my forget-about-it days.

Sport (watch or play) – I love to hike, if you call that a “sport.” I am not a big sports watcher, but I do enjoy LSU football, the Houston Astros baseball, and I’m trying to choose a soccer team now too.

TV show – I haven’t had actual “TV” in years, but I just started streaming This Is Us, and it’s truly as good as everyone says.

Let’s not forget Julie’s latest novel, Perennials, available in stores now!

Lovey, grew up in Oxford, Mississippi, surrounded by her mother’s stunning flower gardens.  A shed fire, changed everything. She now served as the family scapegoat, always bearing the brunt of her older sister Bitsy’s blame.

At eighteen, suffocating in her sister’s shadow, Lovey turned down a marriage proposal and fled to Arizona and became a successful advertising executive and a weekend yoga instructor. Her father asks her to come home three weeks early for her parents’ 50th anniversary to work on a memory garden her father has planned as an anniversary surprise. While creating this sacred place, she begins to rediscover her roots, learning how to live perennially in spite of life’s many trials and tragedies.

Years ago, Lovey chose to leave her family and the South far behind. But now that she returned, she’s realizing things at home were not always what they seemed.

Share a favourite scene from your current novel

I don’t know if I have a favourite (by the way, I like how y’all spell favourite… adds a little flavor to the word!)… but I enjoyed writing a scene from Perennials when my protagonist, Lovey, is on her family’s farm leading her aging parents through a yoga session. Her sister, Bitsy, arrives in full self-righteous fury, and I just enjoy the way the scene plays out. I find humour in how the smallest things in life can cause friction or division between us. One person says yoga is good. Another says yoga is bad. And those kind of tiny disagreements can severe relationships forever. It’s always astounded me how we get caught up on the most irrelevant arguments and end up missing opportunities to love one another.

Thank you, Julie!

Julie Cantrell is an award-winning New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling novelist whose work focuses on relationships, resilience, and faith. As a writer, speaker, TEDx presenter, and teacher, she aims to build empathy and connection while inspiring others to live their best life. Learn more:www.juliecantrell.com

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Buy from Amazon: Perennials or Koorong

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You are in for a treat if you listen to Julie’s TED Talk!