Inspiration Behind Secrets We Keep

Inspiration Behind Secrets We Keep

When I set my foot in the Sub Saharan Africa for the first time eleven years ago, writing a fiction novel was the last thing on my mind. I was busy learning about my new job and the African continent–trying to understand the challenges facing the private and financial sector in various countries, writing different analytical reports, and preparing new projects. 

During my first year working in the Africa region, I visited a myriad of countries: Uganda, Tanzania, Botswana, South Africa, and Kenya. Each country fascinated me in its own, unique way. I still vividly remember the incredible greenery and freshness of Uganda, the hospitality of Mombasa, the thrilling safari experience in Botswana and South Africa, and of course, riding on the magnificent ocean liner from Dar es Salaam to Zanzibar across the incredible turquoise waters.

Then, one day, when I was at a meeting with several high government officials in Tanzania, I heard something which surprised me so greatly that for the first time ever a small glimpse of an idea of a fiction novel briefly entered my mind. One of the participants of the meeting mentioned that he had been to Ukraine (my home country). Apparently, he had studied for his undergraduate degree in the Soviet Union many decades ago. How extraordinary, I thought at that time. Never would have guessed that!

Some months later, I heard the same thing from several other senior officials, this time in a different African country. I was so intrigued that I could not help but do some research. As the result, I found out that the Soviets had been actively promoting ties with African countries to enhance their power globally and encouraged knowledge transfer through various university programs. The African students who went to study in the Soviet Union at that time were generally part of African elite. They came from prominent families.

All of a sudden, I had an plot. What if a young African man (let’s call him Solomon) came to study in the Soviet Union many decades ago, eventually got married to a Ukrainian woman, had a child born, but never told his Ukrainian family any concrete details about his African background? Not even the country he came from? He could have his own reasons for keeping this a secret. Then one day, Solomon gets killed and the connection to Africa is seemingly lost forever. The Ukrainian family has no idea about the tremendous wealth he had come from. They live very modestly, essentially trying to make ends meet, and have no way to ever visit Africa to investigate. Until, five decades later, an opportunity finally comes up to travel to Africa and potentially look for the missing relatives. 

Well, the idea had been there for several years, but I did not do anything about it. I needed a trigger, which came much later. 

At one point, I got fascinated (or even obsessed) by the Kevin Kwan’s trilogy about Crazy Rich Asians. I first watched the movie (at least four or five times), then bought all the three books and read them with a lot of enthusiasm for several months. At that time, I changed regions at my job and started working in the Middle East. I remember sitting by the pool in Tunis savoring the China Rich Girlfriend and later reading the Rich People Problems at my hotel room in Riyadh. I loved Kwan’s writing, the setting, the incredible plot, and all the characters, both the good and the evil. After turning the last page of the final book, I was totally devastated. I tried to find similar books (and bought quite a few), but none of them matched Kwan’s trilogy. 

So, I decided to take a different route. 

I would write my own book with a lot of memorable characters. And it would also be a trilogy. The book would be about Ukraine and Africa, two places very dear to my heart.

It took a couple of years to write and polish the book. My favorite part was developing the characters’ personalities. Not surprisingly, the main characters come from Kyiv, Ukraine where I was born and raised. A lot of action takes place in Kyiv. As to the African country, I needed to change it several times, as I was not sure myself which country would work the best for what I was trying to accomplish. Eventually, the plot itself led me to the country which made the most sense. 

As I was writing the book, it was a real pleasure going back to the photos of my old trips and remembering all the wonderful times in Africa with my colleagues, friends and family-like watching the incredible golden sunset on the island of Zanzibar and going to the delightful Bongoyo island in Dar es Salaam. This helped me to make the book more authentic. I’m glad that these memories will not be lost and they will live in my book forever.

I hope you enjoy Secrets We Keep. The first book will provide some hints to where Solomon came from, but you will need to read the second and the third book to get all the answers.     

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SECRETS WE KEEP

A rising star that fell… Anna Levenko was set to become the next “it girl” in tennis. The first Ukrainian prophesied to win a Grand Slam… And then everything changed. Years later, with a business degree behind her, an unpaid job keeping her busy, and a family that means well, Anna can’t help but dream of something bigger. What’s one little white lie in the grand scheme of things? But Anna’s dream job isn’t just sunshine and roses. Her first project takes her to Tanzania, and everything that could go wrong, does. Not to mention her woeful love life. Will she ever reach the life she’s worked so hard for? Or is success just not in the cards for Anna?

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Tags: featured, women writers

Category: On Writing