Meet the author behind Soul Force
Soul Force is Suzanne Franco’s latest novel and follows the life of a young Indian girl, Valliamma Mudaliar.
SUZANNE Franco, an author from Alberton, released her latest novel, Soul Force, in India and it’s made a big impression.
Through this success, she wants to encourage people to believe that anything is possible if you put your heart into it.
Suzanne (51) grew up in Alberton and currently resides in New Redruth. When Suzanne was 21 years old, she realised that she had a passion for writing. She decided to start writing short stories, with “woman-empowerment”-themes, as a hobby.
Ever since then, writing has become her day job. She writes features called ICT Insights for IT Web of Brainstorm Magazine. In her free time, however, she works on her own stories. So far, she has released two novels – Exile Child (2005) and Soul Force (2018).
Inspiration
Her first novel, Exile Child, is a true story based on the life of the South African icon, Sarah Bartmann. She worked tirelessly and did years and years of research before the novel was released in the United Kingdom in 2005, and later in South Africa.
Since this book was released, it made a big impression on many people and Suzanne used this success to give motivational speeches to many women, empowering them to be the best version of themselves.
“My biggest inspiration is definitely Oprah Winfrey,” said Suzanne. “I never missed her shows. Oprah is genuine, has integrity and is true to herself. That’s how I want to be.
“One of my biggest dreams is to meet Oprah in person. I have no doubt that it will happen because if you believe in yourself and you’re determined to reach your dreams, it will happen.”
Making waves
Soul Force is her latest novel and follows the life of a young Indian girl, Valliamma Mudaliar, who dedicated her life to Gandhi’s Satyagraha in South Africa. Suzanne started writing this novel in 2007. She left no stone unturned when it came to research. It took her years to complete, as Suzanne herself visited all the places that Valliamma visited in real life to certify the facts in her novel.
The novel was released in India earlier this year. It made waves and got great reviews from the country’s biggest news companies, including Indian Express. Plans have even been made to turn this book into a Hollywood feature film, to be released next year.
“There have been even more great developments with the release of Soul Force. I had a meeting with the Mbeki Foundation and The Indian Consulate in Johannesburg and we are discussing several public relation events,” added Suzanne.
As for Suzanne’s future plans, she is already working on her next project, which will be a book trilogy about South African women who made an impact on history. Another big dream of Suzanne’s is to create interactive museum sites in honour of Sarah Bartmann and Valliamma Mudaliar, which will continuously empower young women.
The official local launch of Soul Force will take place in Fordsburg on August 18 and is expected to be a very prestigious event.
If you would like to get a copy of either of Suzanne’s novels, visit her website at www.sfranco.co.za. Feel free to follow Suzanne Franco on Facebook to keep up with her latest news and developments.
She concludes with an inspiring message: “Godspeed courage and strength to all who struggle to find their voice. Once found, authentic expression changes lives. Be bold, be yourself.”
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