Over the years, I’ve considered different occupations based on how my name, Intisar, has been mispronounced. There’s “Intistar” (Galactic Space Commander?), “Interstar” (Lowly Space Shuttle Captain?), and “Inastar” (Nuclear Fusion, here I come!), just to list a few. So how is my name really pronounced?

Pretty much how it’s written: In-ti-sar Kha-na-ni.

I was born in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and grew up a nomad, with multiple stints living in Saudi Arabia, a boarding school in New Hampshire, and a college split between Minnesota and Colorado. My family is from Pakistan, and I still have extended family there. My husband, two young daughters, and I live in Cincinnati, Ohio. Until a few years ago, I worked with the Cincinnati Health Department on projects to improve community health, which was as close as I could get to saving the world. Now I focus my time on my two passions: raising my family and writing.

If you’d like to chat with me, I check in almost daily on Facebook and Twitter. To find out about new releases, giveaways, and discounts, you can sign up for my newsletter. You may even get a free story or two! And I do love to hear from readers directly–feel free to drop me a note at booksbyintisar@gmail.com.

Intisar Khanani