Featured Interview With Siri Zwemke
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born and raised in New York City, although we were evicted when I was in 3rd grade and we moved to a cabin in Central NY where I lived until I was able to escape for college. After college in CT I moved to the DC area, went to graduate school and then moved to Central VA where we live now. I am the Founder and Director of the Siamese Cat Rescue Center and we have a small building on our property that houses up to 20 cats (along with foster homes throughout several states). After being a crazy cat lady originally, we now have just two cats and one dog as personal pets.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I have always loved to read – I was the book nerd all the way through school. I have always enjoyed writing as well and received a lot of positive feedback throughout school on my writing style. As Director of the Siamese Rescue Center, I published several articles and twice a year we published a newsletter for our 15,000 subscribers.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I have a lot of authors I admire and adore – JoJo Moyes, Catherine Ryan Hyde, Liane Moriarty, Jodi Piccoult. I like non-fiction if it’s not too historical. I also love any stories that involve surviving against all odds and coming out alright in the end.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
Rescue Meez is part memoir, part behind-the-scenes detail about running a non-profit and an animal rescue, and part cats and cat behavior. It is a story of how I was in need of rescue and found that through the rescue of so many wonderful animals who needed me. I worked hard to make it lighthearted and humorous (although you may shed one or two tears) as I focused on all the mistakes I made as we grew the rescue from way too many cats in our home to an organization that was placing 800 cats a year at one time. I started jotting down all the different stories about five years ago and finally found the time to weave them all together into a book that documents our experiences as we learned the hard way. I share stories such as the time we drove into the hills of Virginia and were faced with a rifle-wielding hillbilly, the time I gave a fat cat a bath only to find out she wasn’t just fat, the time I found a desiccated mouse under my pillow and danced around the bedroom, screaming, only to find later that the webcam had fallen down and was broadcasting live while I was in my birthday suit.
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