Born to Shine: Gonzales Shares Her Self-Discovery as…

 

By Chantalé Fletcher

TWENTY-nine-year-old first-time author and live-in caretaker says never give up as she continues to reach for the “moon and stars” despite life’s challenges.

Her first publication, an action-romance novel – Sensual Fantasy: Four Seasons to Love partially fulfilled a childhood dream.

AZPNews.com sat down with Kerry-Ann Gonzales recently, as she discussed her passion for writing, many career paths, her desires to become an author, challenges faced while along the journey to self-love and insights to future plans.

She was born and grew up in Mon Repos, San Fernando, the last of three children and two other stepbrothers.

Gonzales said, “Growing up, though the youngest, I was like the mother hen, a protector yet sometimes the trouble maker.”

Her nurturing habit seasoned well with her current job as a live-in caretaker for the elderly.

Gonzales believed that her best trait was her ability to spread love and create ideas for her stories, while her worst feature was overthinking and giving up quickly.

A one-word summary of herself was “ambitious,” as she recalled the determination to keep going in life.

Plus size and proud, Gonzales embraced her sensuality as a woman. Asked what she disliked, she paused, “I’m sometimes in a battle to love and embrace myself when faced with others’ perceptions.”

She added, “So, I am still learning to love myself.”

Asked about any life philosophies, she said, “Standing to make a difference but never giving up the fight.”

Always self-driven, Gonzales described her personality as type X.

“I’m very protective of those I care and love about.  An out-going and genuinely loving woman, cautious yet indulgent in minimal risks.”

When asked about her ideal match, she replied, “Someone who would love me regardless of my flaws. I should be the apple of his eyes and our energies should match in order to build a future.”

Dreams to Remember

At age ten, her love for writing was fuelled with escaping into her own fantasy world to escape the harsh reality of life.

Gonzales attributed this found passion for action-romance to watching action movies.

“I would often fantasise about any and everything, in which my dreams of becoming a teacher changed into becoming an actress, the idea quickly formed and I took off running.

“I started scribbling ideas and summaries for my movies due to my mother, Sharon’s love of romance novels from Harlequin, Loveswepts, Mills and Boons which captured my interest.

“After several novels and a melted heart, I developed a desire to share with the world my idea of romance.”

However, she admitted that the road was not easy, as many times she doubted her own story.

With a tearful eye, Gonzales said, “I just want to make my mom proud and give her the moon. She’s always been my biggest cheerleader, my motivator even when I’m slumped.”

She also acknowledged her best friend Kriston Meighoo for the years of constant support and encouragement to finish the race.

Gonzales said both her mother and Meighoo were extremely proud of her accomplishments while her father was still not used to her decision on becoming a writer.

Trusting the Process

Second Corinthians, chapter five, versus seven said, “For we walk by faith, not by sight,” this was her motto moving forward.

She said, “My life was surrounded on the teachings of this scripture as it allowed the creator to take the wheel.”

However, Gonzales credited her vivid imagination and creativity to God, which has enabled her to challenge herself in different genres of writing.

“My first book took a total of five years to complete from writing, thorough editing and then publishing.”

She described the journey as “exhilarating yet scary” as fears that her work would be rejected by others always popped into her mind.

The book focuses on teaching persons to embrace light in a dark world, with a troubled protagonist like many others, who discovered what it meant to love and be loved whilst on a journey of self-discovery.

It also reminded persons that true love conquers all.

“Honestly, most days, I just wrote off the top of my head as inspiration flowed, then it all came together,” she said.

And finally, Four Seasons to Love was published on August 8, 2018 and produced 100 soft-cover copies aimed to warm the hearts of many.

She explained that the name of her first book was actually Four Season to Love, while Sensual Fantasy was the brand name behind.

“One day, I hope Sensual Fantasy would become a brand name around the world just like big brands like Harlequin, Loveswept and Mills and Boons.”

In 2019, she even selected for NALIS’s first-time authors programme, which was promoted in the libraries and gained her recognition.

Challenges

Gonzales, said, “I became my biggest challenge and doubted my ability to write but the support of my cheerleaders kept pushing me forward, as deep down I knew I could do it.

“I faced a lot criticism from people after they knew I was working on a romance novel; some went as far as to ridicule my capability and dreams yet I preserved.

“Staying active and eating healthy were also challenges faced, my work was demanding and involved a lot of strenuous activities. My only downtime was writing which allowed me to sit down, but then this became a problem, as I lost all strength to try and exercise or become the woman I wish to be.”

A past student of San Fernando Government Primary School, she later passed for Couva Junior Secondary for three years before transferring to Marabella North Secondary School.

“Shortly, I took care of my grandfather until he died while at home. This was followed with my first job as a sales clerk in the mall, which shortly ended and I was home again.”

Days in school felt long, yet she was determined to be back at it again and is currently pursing Mathematics, Human and Social Biology and Principle of Accounts through continuation virtual classes.

Additionally, Gonzales has added self-development courses to enhance her writing even acting classes to begin her other roles.

“In the near future, I hope to travel in order to pursue my dreams of becoming an actress. At one time in my life, I had dreamt of becoming a radio personality as I believe that I possess the ability to spread the word of love and help people in their lives.”

A full plate, she gets up early to begin her day and provide full duties as a live-in caretaker.

“Some days, it’s a hassle in balancing work with personal affairs whilst still trying to maintain my personal life.”

She admitted although there was excitement as an author, there were several challenges faced in terms of finances to thoroughly edit and publish each book.

“Bringing in the books was also a cost- factor, my publisher is based in Miami so I’m trying to source a local company to print my all my novels moving forward, to cut costs.”

Moving Forward

Gonzales hopes to become an inspiration to others, “pride and joy” was how she described her first book.

Her message to everyone. “You can become whatever you aspire to be.”

Spoiler Alert: Book two on the way, hold your hearts. Gonzales gave AZPNews.com, a sneak peek into book 2, titled Sensual Fantasy: Taming the Sheikh, which was currently in its tedious editing process.

Readers are sizzled into the sands of Egypt for what she described as a “scorching romantic adventure” between a head strong young headstrong doctor and ruthless Sheikh.

She smiled, “I hope to have it published in the early parts of 2022 while book three was almost completed with book four in progress.

“I’m pushing to have Four Seasons to Love into local bookstores in 2022 so everything is in God’s hands.