Today, we’re talking with FRIENDS IN NAPA author Sheila Yasmin Marikar. Welcome Sheila, we’re excited to have you on Reader’s Entertainment. First, tell our readers a bit about yourself.
Hi! I’m Sheila. I grew up in New Jersey, used to live in New York, and am now based in Los Angeles. I’m the author of Friends in Napa and The Goddess Effect, and a journalist for The New Yorker, The New York Times, and several other publications.
How long have you been writing?
Professionally, I’ve been writing since … 2005. Almost twenty years! The entirety of my career.
What does your typical writing day look like?
It depends on what else is going on in my life at the moment. Right now, while promoting Friends in Napa, I am not writing fiction at all. I do have an idea that’s simmering on the backburner, but I won’t put pen to paper (or keys to computer) for a little while. I am actively working on several articles in various stages of completion, and I’m pitching new article ideas. I have been waking up at the absurdly early (for me) hour of 5 a.m. most days, working for several hours, breaking for a workout and meals, and winding down around 6 p.m. Writing at night is generally not my jam.
Tell us about your latest release? Where the idea came from? Perhaps some fun moments, or not so fun moments?
I’ve been to Napa more times than I can count, and I wanted to set a dark comedy there in the vein of one of my favorite television shows, The White Lotus. The fun moments were going to Napa and calling it work. The not so fun moments were struggling to get in the head of a character who wouldn’t cooperate. Eventually I was able to make them bend.
Could you share one detail from your current release with readers that they might not find in the book?
Costa Cara, the fictional Mexican resort community referenced in the book, is inspired by Careyes, a real life Mexican resort community that is as gorgeous as its made up sister (maybe more so).
If you could be one of your characters for a day which character would it be?
Rachel. She has a fabulous wardrobe.
If you could spend the day with your character, what would you do? What would that day look like?
We’d have a spa day and lunch at the Rosewood Miramar Beach in Montecito and she would pay for it all without my having to ask.
What’s your take on research and how do you do it?
I need to experience a place firsthand if I’m going to write about it in fiction. I also need to feel the way my characters have felt before. It’s hard to backsolve for these things.
Do you have a secret talent readers would be surprised by?
I’m double jointed.
Your favorite go to drink or food when the world goes crazy!
Right now, Champagne — not Prosecco, not sparkling wine, tried and true Champagne — and … pizza. Although, if I’m having pizza, I also need red wine. A Nebbiolo if possible. I didn’t used to be so picky about drinks — hazard of the job 😉
Thank you so much for joining us today Sheila!
Readers, below is a bit more about Sheila, a quick look at Friends in NAPA, and links to all things!
About The Author:
Sheila Yasmin Marikar is the author of two novels, The Goddess Effect and FRIENDS IN NAPA, which is forthcoming from Mindy’s Book Studio in April 2024.
She’s also an accomplished journalist whose work has been published in the New Yorker, New York Times, The Economist, Fortune, Bloomberg Businessweek, Vogue, and many other publications. Her New York Times Magazine profile of the chef Gaggan Anand was selected for the 2021 edition of Best American Food Writing. Sheila began her career at ABC News.
A native of New Jersey, she is a graduate of Cornell University, where she studied history. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband.
Website: www.sheilamarikar.com
Instagram: @sheilaym
BUY LINKS
Reader’s here’s a quick look at Friends in Napa
“Smart and wildly entertaining…like drinking a glass of wine with an endlessly witty, scandalous friend.” –Mindy Kaling
Six old friends descend on Napa Valley for a luxurious weekend of fine wine and good times…until old tensions simmer to the surface. So much can go wrong in this dark comedy by the author of The Goddess Effect.
Just get yourselves here, everything else is on us.
Raj and Rachel Ranjani have invited a small group of their ride or dies from college for a celebratory weekend in Napa Valley. On the agenda: three nights in the couple’s vineyard mansion, a lavish dinner at Napa’s hottest new restaurant, exclusive tastings, and the grand opening of the Ranjanis’ ultra-high-end winery. It’s a reunion of six friends who haven’t seen each other in years. What could go wrong?
To start, there’s the less-than-warm welcome: a brick flung through a window and palpable tension between the hosts. But no worries―all Raj has to do is pop a few bottles of vintage Dom, and the college vibes come rushing back. So do old resentments, animosities, and unrequited crushes. Soon enough, the illusion of friendship shatters like a gossamer wineglass, and one of the friends ends up dead. Everyone has their motivations. Everyone has something to hide.
Here’s to a weekend in the valley. Drink up and watch your back.
