Ruzina Ahad is the author of Dream, du’a do which is a little light hearted self development book that offers strategies for Muslim women to not just survive in today's world, but to thrive. She was born and raised in London, UK and now lives in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
Q: Can you tell us something about yourself that not many people know about? Like your hobbies?
A. I think everyone knows by now that if I’m not writing I love reading and if I’m not reading I love listening to audiobooks on my way to work or the gym! Other than that I love nature! I love travelling and exploring naturally beautiful landscapes around the world!
Q: How old were you when you first began finding the Holy Quran cool?
A. I developed a curiosity for it in my late teens however it wasn’t until I was in my thirties, when I had to teach my own kids quran that my love and appreciation for the Quran actually started to grow. As a mother, I always felt that the primary Islamic education should come from the parents themselves and so I started memorizing the short surah’s along with my kids. Then I came across Nouman Ali khan’s lectures on YouTube and started studying the tafsir. Then I started trying to put what I had learned into practice. Then I began to make small changes in my life, then I started become obsessed with learning more about the gems I found in each surah and actually came to the conclusion that Quran was actually very cool! I realized that I had spent hundreds of pounds on self help/self development books but the ultimate self help book was sitting there right under my nose, all along!
Q: As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A. Easy… a teacher!
Q. What inspired you to start writing your book Dream Dua Do?
A. The inspiration to write this book first hit me in Dec 2019 when my husband gifted me a journal.
As we were closing in on 2019 and beginning a new decade, I began thinking about all the hopes and dreams I had for myself for 2020 and beyond and used the journal to jot them down. The first words that I wrote were dream du’a do. This has been a personal mantra for me for as long as I can remember so it felt completely natural to write that down first thing.
I’m also a big believer of manifesting my dreams through the power of du’a so for each goal or dream that I wrote down in that journal, I also started researching du’as which could help me achieve these goals and started keeping a journal of them too, and soon enough the pages began to filled with ideas of how to make du’a and what were the best times to make du’a.
As I flipped through the pages of my journal, I realised it was a really good concept for a book, especially for the type of book that I wanted to read as a teenager. I realised that growing up, I never had a book like Dream Du’a Do to ease me into practicing Islam so it motivated me to write one for my children.
The pandemic also really pushed me to complete the book. At the start of Covid 19 everything seemed so morbid and I began to really think about all the things I wanted my children to know in order to live a successful life just in case I wasn’t around to tell them in the future!
Q: What is your favourite book from your childhood?
A. I was really into Enid Blyton and Roald Dhal books
Q: What do you like doing when you're not reading?
A. Hanging out with my family and friends, visiting cool places and posing for photos!
Q. Can you describe us your ideal writing space?
A. I love writing by the pool or the beach- theres something about the sound of water that is so soothing and makes me feel so inspired and creative.
Q. What is the most difficult part about writing for you?
A. I’m a real perfectionist, I worry about every word, every punctuation, so the most difficult part of the writing process is learning to let go and allowing your editor or your publisher to make the final call!
Q. How do you handle a writer’s block?
A. Writers block is a real thing. I would suggest that even if you feel like you have nothing to write about- write anyway and be consistent. I treated writing my book like a real job, I would write at 5am every morning whether I felt inspired to write or not. Some days I wrote utter garbage and some days I would walk away feeling I wrote a masterpiece!
One of the best methods I used was the Pomdoro technique. I would break up my work into 3-4 tasks and set the timer on my phone for 25 mins. I would then work on my writing for 25 minute chunks, then get up and have a 5 minute break then get back to writing for another 25 min chunk.
Q. What advice would you give to a new writer, someone who’s just starting out?
A. Be single minded in your pursuit of writing your story! Be crystal clear about what you want and why you want it. Dream big, pray (make du’a) and do whatever it takes to achieve your writing goals because good things don’t come to those who wait, good things come to those who work their butts off for it!
Q. Are you working on anything at the present you would like to share with your readers about?
A. I am looking to have a book launch in South Africa and Bangladesh this year so watch this space!
Instagram: @Dreamduado_official
Buy the book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dream-Dua-Millennial-Muslimahs-Achieving/dp/9948871936/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?keywo
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