Combining passions of writing, traveling; Reimer completes fourth novel

A life of adventure and discovery are reoccurring themes in Nadia Reimer’s novels, and her newest release “Weeds of Paradise”, continues to honor those motifs.

Reimer bases her novels off of personal experiences and individuals she has been fortunate to meet along her worldly journeys.

As the fourth novel, Reimer said the recent release follows a new type of adventure, while the previous novels focused on archeology in the Middle East.

The novel follows a new protagonist through nine countries while they work to complete their quest. Throughout the journey, the character is being followed by someone, but continues to meet other travelers on similar quests.

Born and raised in Amman, Jordan, Reimer attended Catholic school where she had to learn a variety of languages. Her ability to converse in Arabic, French and English led her to pursue a career as a translator, and in turn, led her into a life of travel and learning.

Reimer always enjoyed writing, and her first attempts at creating a new world and different outlooks took their form as short stories and articles.

During her time in the Middle East, Reimer worked as a translator for the U.S. Aid Program. After working there, she took a position at the University of Jordan.

She then took a leave of absence and traveled to Europe in order to improve her French, and she quickly realized another deep rooted passion in life: travel. During the initial journey, she went to France, Switzerland and Italy.

Another adventure in her life was meeting her husband Greg and moving from the Middle East to the United States.

Greg had traveled to Jordan on an agricultural development project trip through the Mennonite Central Committee. Through her work with the US Aid organization, they met and eventually married, leading to Reimer taking one of the largest journeys of her life.

Not only did she leave a familiar culture, she also moved from the city Jordan to the country in Schrag. After years of convincing though, she said she finally convince Greg to move into Ritzville.

Together the couple raised two children, both who are now grown and have provided the couple with three grandchildren. Reimer said when the kids left for school, she also decided to return to academia and pursue a career.

Reimer said she quickly realized there was not much of a need for a French translator in Ritzville, but a more lucrative language to learn would be Spanish. She worked to earn a teaching certificate, and continued on to work on receiving multiple degrees.

To improve her ability to speak Spanish, Reimer traveled to Mexico for a summer school course and later attended summer courses at the University of Madrid in Spain.

After earning a Master’s in creative writing from Eastern Washington University, Reimer published her first novel. She explained because she was not working full time, she finished her second novel shortly after, publishing two books within 10 years.

She continued on to teach English and French at Big Bend Community College before taking a position in Kahlotus, where she taught for 13 years. She would start and work on her novels during the summer breaks, but it took nearly 10 years for her to complete her third novel.

Reimer retired from her teaching position in 2013, and soon set to work on creating her most recent novel “Weeds of Paradise”. As a world traveler, Reimer said she does base her stories on her experiences and the areas she has traveled to, but she also creates her own places to represent her outlook.

The cover of the novel includes an image of edible plants in Reimer’s garden, as well as a picture she took of a group of children from Venezuela.

She had taken the South American trip with her husband and sister years ago, and their journey took them to Angel Falls, the best paradise Reimer has ever experienced.

Along the journey in the canoes through the rainforest, the group would pass small villages in the tributaries. This experience led to them meeting the group of children and also helped to influence a portion of the novel.

Reimer expressed her gratitude for her husband, as he has always been her biggest supporter and hero. She explained he continuously and unwaveringly supports her endeavors and encourages her to chase her dreams or ideas.

Travel has continued to be an important part of Reimer’s life. Reimer uses the individuals she meets during her travels as inspiration for her characters in her book. She explained most of the characters are true in her own way, based on her view and interpretation of personalities.

Though the couple is beginning to cut back on international travel, Reimer does not have any intention to stop writing. Reimer said the stories come from her heart, and the ideas are always there, helping to motivate her next story.

Writing allows Reimer with a chance to create her own world and to live in it. It creates an escape from reality and the everyday monotony, and allows her to take her readers on a personal journey.

“The novels are in your heart, and I find them out as I write. I have these ideas, and then these ideas come together. It’s amazing how the novel develops, it all starts with an idea. It’s all within you in your heart and mind,” Reimer said.

The current novel begins with the protagonist in Chile, where they travel through countries like Jordan, Venezuela, Morocco, Egypt, Greece, England, Ireland and France. The journey concludes in Amsterdam, Reimer explained, and the characters are relatable and intriguing.

Reimer’s two largest hobbies and passions are writing and traveling. She encourages others to write and travel in order to learn more about themselves and experience the world.

“Travel allows you to get to know people, meet different ethnicities, and you get to love them all,” Reimer stated about her love of traveling.

Reimer explained it is important for individuals to see beyond modern day politics and learn not to create a grudge against different ethnicities.

During her travels, she stated she has loved every country and all of the people she has met. Travel provides an opportunity to see the good in people, Reimer continued, and learn most people are kind and helpful.

With her fourth novel complete, it joins her collection in the Library of Congress, and it will also be available locally for purchase at Cow Creek Mercantile.

Along with her four novels, Reimer has also published a book of poetry in three languages and a book of short stories.