Sajmra Talks Part 3 #wattys2018

Question 5 - Love

'A lot of the times in your stories, your characters are in love before they get married. Do you believe in that yourself?'

Actually, I do not believe that you can be in love before marriage. To really be in love with someone, you have to know them, and I mean really know them. Aside from knowing their personality and their likes and dislikes and what makes them laugh and cry and what scares them, you also have to know them when they wake up in the morning and they're grumpy, know them when they're hungry and in a bad mood, know them when they are sick, or when they get frustrated cause the Internet is too slow. If you can see them throw their socks on the floor, or wear a mud mask, or snore in their sleep, and all of their other shortcomings, and it doesn't bother you, then yes, you can be in love with them. And to know all of that, you have to have lived with them of course which comes after marriage.

HOWEVER

I very strongly believe that you can love someone before marriage. And yes, romantic love. Just like the way you love your parents or your siblings or your friends, you can love someone that way, but in a romantic way. You want the best for them, you care about them, your heart hurts when they are hurting, and it is happy when they are happy. They make you laugh and smile and get on your last nerves but you still wouldn't ever want them to be away from you. And of course to add to this, it helps if they are like a handsome knight and it causes you to be totally infatuated :P

So to recap, being in love comes after marriage, but loving someone can come before.

I hope that made sense!