First, a bit about Annie:
“I grew up “Annie” at home, but decided at age seventeen that I should start going by “Anne Elisabeth,” just to be complicated. People notice a complicated name, even if merely to be annoyed by it. I figured that, if I’m going to be an artist/writer, I needed to be noticed. So I switched to the double-name, and now every time I meet someone new I’m obliged to say: “Yes, both names, thank you.”

I spent my early childhood in England in a picturesque brick house with a lovely rose garden, down the road from my very own Goldstone Wood (also known as the Common). How could I not end up writing fairy tales?

I drink copious amounts of tea, due to this English upbringing. This is convenient since the Handsome Young Man in my life is from Sri Lanka, and he knows how to brew a brilliant cup of tea!

(Tell your Handsome Young Man I want the secret to his tea brewing.) :)

My favorite music to listen to is grand opera, especially anything by Puccini, though Saint-Saëns has his place in the world. But I can’t sing opera to save my life, so I sing jazz standards instead.

(I’ve heard you sing. You have a beautiful voice!)

My first novel, is officially out as of July 1st. It is a fairy tale in the classic, princesses-knights-and-dragons vein about sweet Princess Una who is so busy looking for a handsome prince to marry that she neglects to pay attention to warnings that the evil Dragon King is hunting her. Which, as you may imagine, is a mistake.

The Dragon King Seeks His Princess–Who Dares to Stop Him?
Princess Una of Parumvir has come of age and will soon marry. She dreams of a charming prince, but when her first suitor arrives, he’s not what she’d hoped. Prince Aethelbald of mysterious Farthestshore has travelled a great distance to prove his love–and also to bring hushed warnings of danger. A dragon is rumored to be on the hunt and blazing a path of terror.

Una, smitten instead with a more dashing prince, refuses Aethelbald’s offer–and ignores his cautions with dire consequences. Soon the Dragon King himself is in Parumvir and Una, in giving her heart away unwisely, finds herself in his sights. Only those courageous enough to risk everything have a hope of fighting off this advancing evil.

When and how did you know that you wanted to be a writer?

I have always known that I wanted to be a writer. I come from a family of storytellers–not only is my mother, Jill Stengl an award-winning novelist, but also my father is very handy at spinning a tale that will keep listeners highly entertained! All three of my brothers are excellent storytellers as well, so it was very natural for me to become a writer.

Can you share with me some of the highlights of your writing journey thus far – something particularly memorable or humorous?

I wrote my first novel when I was nine years old. It was an eight-chapter epic about a kitten named Barry who desperately wanted a girl of his own, and all the adventures he went through to find himself just the right owner. This little “novel” and its sequels taught me that all-important lesson every writer needs to learn at some time or another: Write what you love. I love cats!

Me too! Tell me a bit about what you write now and what you hope/plan to write in the future. Do you have a favorite genre?

Well, along with a love of cats, I also have a deep and abiding love of fairy tales and legends. Anything from Beowulf on (though the old Greek and Norse mythologies hold a certain fascination for me as well). Spencer’s Faerie Queen, the epic poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, several of Shakespeare’s more magical plays, and many other great Fairy Tale works have inspired the development of the Tales of Goldstone Wood. I adore the classic fantasy genre as written by Tolkien and Lewis and, a few generations earlier, George MacDonald. These brilliant gentlemen knew how to craft the beauty of those older legends into stories more approachable for their current audiences, but without losing that high romance. And they were just plain fun!

That’s the kind of work I hope to write as my career progresses, stories with a sense of history and perhaps a few surprising layers of meaning, but which are simultaneously a rollicking fun read.

Was there ever a sense that God has led you to do this work? When you aren’t writing, what is it you like to do best?

I know beyond doubt that God has guided me into this work and hope that all my books will be honoring to Him. Many times while writing Heartless, I felt God’s presence as the story took shape, often in ways I never intended or expected, resulting in a simple but (I hope) beautiful allegory.

When I’m not writing, I enjoy painting portraits and teaching art classes. I also play classical piano and a bit of jazz, and I love to sing. Recently, I took up fencing classes, and while I’m not lethal with a blade yet, I have a lot of fun advancing and lunging, parrying and riposting. I’m also a collector of cats, including two rescue kitties and a beautiful Abyssinian who lords his great beauty over the rest of us. I name all my cats names that begin with “M,” – Minerva, Molly-Boots and Marmaduke—so do notice that the cat in Heartless also has an “M” name.

Name three of your favorite books. Do you have a favorite author(s) who has inspired your own work?
Oh dear, only three? Let me try.

The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald. I adore this author, for he represents so many of the things I want to be. His fairy tales for children are the most beautiful allegories, but the reader never feels “preached” to. He simply tells his tales in a lovely, natural voice that includes the allegory so seamlessly that it is inseparable. I have given several literary nods to favorite authors and works of fiction in Heartless . . . so for those of you who have read The Princess and the Goblin, look for my nod to George MacDonald!

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. Mr. Dickens, on a good day, is incomparable. On a bad day he puts me to sleep (O! those Pickwick Papers!), but A Tale of Two Cities is sublime. The way he takes such a dark subject as the French Revolution and creates such horrifying characters as Madame Defarge, yet still manages to make his readers laugh along the way . . . it’s pure genius. Dickens tackles the darker subjects of humanity but puts a comedic slant on them so that we are able to recognize the ridiculous. Yet he never trivializes. Oh, to have that gift!

Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett. Mr. Pratchett is, I believe, this generation’s Dickens, though he takes the opposite approach. Where Dickens writes about dark subjects with a comedic slant, Terry Pratchett writes about the most ridiculous situations and characters but manages—in the midst of side-splitting laughter—to make his readers think. I love all of Pratchett’s work, but Guards! Guards! is my favorite.

There are so many other authors who have inspired and influenced me, but those three are certainly in the top ten, perhaps top five.

Can you share one struggle that entered your life as a result of writing and how God helped you to overcome it?

Probably the greatest struggle I have encountered is that unending pull between what I want to be creatively as a writer, and what I need to be on the business end of the spectrum. Sometimes those two fit hand-in-glove . . . sometimes they don’t mesh so neatly as I should like. But God has given me grace and many lovely people working with me. And I believe He has given me the gift of storytelling and will enable me to use that gift well, no matter the pressures that may arise on the business side of writing.

Likewise, is there a particular joy or some new thing you have learned that has blessed your life as a result of writing?

Every book is a new learning experience, which is both a pain and a joy. Every time I write a book, I feel as though I am relearning how to tell a story. But while this may be stressful sometimes, that is also where the real beauty and joy of writing comes into play. There is always room for growth. There are always new ways to develop my art. There are always new twists to be explored, new characters to discover, new epic risks and high stakes. I hope I will never get comfortable in my work because that would mean I am no longer growing. My hope and dream is that each book I write will be better than the one before it.

You are so right! As writers and human beings we can never stop growing and learning. There is always something we don’t yet know!

Heartless is available now. It is Book One in The Tales of Goldstone Wood series with two more to follow:

Veiled Rose, (working title) Book Two in The Tales of Goldstone Wood
Moonblood, (working title) Book Three in The Tales of Goldstone Wood

To learn more about Anne Elisabeth Stengl, visit her blog. Thanks Annie, for joining us this month on Spotlight!

Tosca Lee

A former model and first runner-up to Mrs. United States, Tosca received her B.A. in English and International Relations from Smith Massachusetts. Tosca loves to travel—Italy to Singapore, Austria to Transylvania, she relishes a great adventure. High on her places-to-see list: Mongolia.

What people don’t know about Tosca is that she makes a mean pot of split pea soup and is exceptionally gifted at closet cleaning. In her spare time, she sleeps.

I’ve read both of Tosca’s upcoming re-releases – Havah: The Story of Eve and Demon: A Memoir and thoroughly enjoyed both of them! Highly recommended stories! Here’s the back-cover copy for Demon:

Demon: A Memoir
Recently divorced and mired in a meaningless existence, Clay drifts from his drab apartment to his equally lusterless job as an editor for a small press–until the night Lucian finds him and everything changes with the simple words, “I’m going to tell you my story, and you’re going to write it down and publish it.”

What begins as a mystery soon spirals into chaotic obsession as Clay struggles to piece together Lucian’s dark tale of love, ambition, and grace–only to discover that the demon’s story has become his own.

And then only one thing matters: learning how the story ends.

When and how did you know that you wanted to be a writer?

I figured out that I wanted to be a writer by my freshman year in college. I had by then been writing, been published and winning writing contests for years… but for some reason, it took me a while to figure this out.

Can you share with me some of the highlights of your writing journey – something particularly memorable or humorous?

One of my first, big book signings took place at ICRS, the International Christian Retail Show. I signed 200 books in two hours. Granted, these books were being given away by my publisher, so it’s not like everyone standing there had to *buy* them. But still, what a moment! I remember one of the sales guys saying, “Do you need a break?” To which I said, “Are you KIDDING ME?” After all those years of trying to get published and nights of working and reworking Demon after it finally sold… I had dreamed of this moment.

Okay. So I also dreamed they’d be lined up to pay for the book, but that came later on. ;)

Tell me a bit about what you write now and what you hope/plan to write in the future. Do you have a favorite genre?

Right now I’m writing the story of Judas. I’ve been called a Biblical fiction author, though it’s more about fleshing out maligned characters normally cast in a two-dimensional light for me than about Biblical fiction per se. We are all scarily like Clay. We are even, in some regards, scarily like Lucian. We are all Eve. And we are all Judas.

I found your take on both Eve and Clay and Lucian fascinating. Your comment reminds me of an Amy Grant song where she says, “There’s so much good in the worst of us and so much bad in the best of us.” We’re all complex 3-D people, as were the men and women of Scripture. I love it when we dig beneath the surface to understand the people God has immortalized there.

Do you consider your writing the work God has given you to do for a lifetime or for a season of your life? If you could pursue anything else, what would it be?

I think I was made to make people think and feel in general. I think that’s what my life is about. Whether it’s writing or speaking, music or dancing (I used to be a classical pianist and ballerina), it all comes down to that. I’ve set aside the piano and at 40, there’s little chance of a return to ballet for me (and I’m really enjoying the luxury of longer fingernails and manicured toes). I love speaking to groups, though find I grow more introverted with age. So that leaves writing.

Are there people in your life who encouraged you, who are responsible for you becoming a published author?

Teachers—most specifically, Dr. Cognard and Pat Kaltenberger at Lincoln East High. My parents. And later on, other writers with whom I did some collaborative story writing. These days, it’s readers and other writers.

Can you share one struggle that entered your life as a result of writing and how God helped you to overcome it?

I deal with consistent anxiety and perfectionism. I have not yet overcome them, but you cannot do this professionally and not confront them, at least a little at a time. So it’s a process for me.

So true! Likewise, is there a particular joy in this writing business/ministry that God has used to remind you that He is, in fact, using your words to His glory?

Yes! Receiving letters from readers and hearing what these books have meant to them, or how they have impacted their lives. Because I know that has everything to do with God and little to do with me. At that point, I am just honored to have been a part of the project.

What’s on the horizon for Tosca’s writing?

Demon: A Memoir (re-releasing from B&H June 2010) Peer into the spiritual realm. The world will never look the same.
Havah: The Story of Eve (re-releasing from B&H August 2010) Eve. Myth and legend shroud her in mystery. Now hear her story.
Iscariot (releasing Fall 2011) Thirty pieces of silver. Betrayal with a kiss. The most hated man in Christendom comes to life in 2011.

To learn more about Tosca, check out her website.

Thanks Tosca, for joining us this month on Spotlight!

Kacy Barnett-Gramckow is addicted to books and has no intention of EVER giving up her habit. She loves beyond measure, the Lord, her family, precious friends, cooking, and tatting. She has also been in a tunnel one thousand feet below the earth’s surface and enjoyed every minute of it. Kacy lives with her patient editor-husband, Jerry and their two sons.

I’ve been in some caves that were below the earth, but I’m not sure how far down. One thing though – I did not quite enjoy every minute of it! :)

When and how did you know that you wanted to be a writer?

I’ve always had the usual writer’s traits. I read constantly as a child and scribbled in journals and wrote such wild stories for my teachers that they should have had me evaluated. But I never considered writers to be normal people, so I never thought I should be a writer. That all changed when my “normal” sister-in-law, Kathi Macias, became an editor/writer. One day, she showed me a manuscript she was editing and I was hooked. I forced her to read some of my scribbles and she retaliated by twisting my arm until I wrote devotionals for some of her anthologies. That was in 1986-87. Barring a few quiet years when I’ve taken time off for family reasons, I’ve been composing devotionals and novels ever since.

In the early 1990’s, my dear husband, Jerry, also became an editor. Though he does not write fiction, he understands my passion for writing and is my steadfast encourager on a day-to-day basis.

Can you share with me some of the highlights of your writing journey – something particularly memorable or humorous?

I love meeting readers, and often they find that my mild-mannered author persona simply doesn’t fit the adventuresome image they’ve formed of me before our actual meeting. Once a reader introduced her teenage daughter to me. They had both read The Genesis Trilogy books and loved them. The daughter stared at me for a few minutes, then said to her mother, “She doesn’t look like someone who would write all those things!”

I laughed. And of course she was right. I don’t look like someone who would write about deceptions, intrigues, depravity, spiritual redemption, and end-of-the-world catastrophes.

However, appearances can be deceiving. Much of my research has, for bettor or worse, been derived from personal experience. I’ve been tossed by horses, robbed at gunpoint, threatened with a knife to my throat, floundered through a volcanic mud storm, suffered peculiar fevers, injuries, and medical oddities, as well as spiritual circumstances,  that allow me to vividly describe what my heroines and heroes are suffering, and what they believe.

I know what you mean. I seem to have these epiphanies when I go through something difficult – like my kids moving out of state – and I’ll think, “I wonder if Rebekah felt like this when Jacob fled.” But more than the physical, the characters’ spiritual journeys seem to mesh often with my own. Sometimes that can be really hard!

Tell me a bit about what you write now and what you hope/plan to write in the future. Do you have a favorite genre?

I love history! If the Lord allows me to continue writing, it will most likely be in the Historical and Historical-Biblical genres. History may seem like dry bones to some readers, but when you realize that historical events were experienced by real people like us—often ordinary people thrown into extraordinary circumstances—suddenly those old dry bones take on living flesh, with the ability to speak to us today.

And you did a great job with history in your Genesis Trilogy. I hope you get to continue with another series soon. I love history too and it’s always great to find authors who bring history to life in novel form.

Do you consider your writing the work God has given you to do for a lifetime or for a season of your life? If you could pursue anything else, what would it be?

I’m unsure if my writing is for a season, or for my lifetime. Right now, I can’t imagine my life without writing at least a few pages a week. However, I would love to find time for volunteer work in the community—that would be a joy. The problem is that I’ll have to retire from my “day job” first!

Are there people in your life who encouraged you, who are responsible for you becoming a published author?

So many that I’m afraid if I list them, I’ll forget some very important people. My parents, of course. My great-uncle Roland, who was writing for archaeology journals in the 1960’s. My dear sister-in-law Kathi, and my husband, Jerry. Above all, the Lord has inspired me and relentlessly insisted that I write. How can I refuse?

When it’s the Lord who is inspiring, refusing is not an easy option! (I can’t imagine!)

Can you share one struggle that entered your life as a result of writing and how God helped you to overcome it?

Every author struggles with balancing writing time and family time, and I’m all too familiar with the guilt of having to demand time alone at my computer. As a result, I often write at night or in the early morning, when my family is asleep. I cannot say that I have overcome this—I’m all too human. However, God is far more consistent than I am, and He often provides unexpected stretches of writing time, complete with inspiration. He is so Good.

He is good indeed!

Likewise, is there a particular joy in this writing business/ministry that God has used to remind you that He is, in fact, using your words to His glory?

I write because I love books and the Lord “hard-wired” me with a passion for the written word. My husband insists that I have an obligation to write. But I never thought of writing as a ministry until I began hearing from readers, over and over, “These books have made me open the Bible and read Genesis!” Truly, I believe a reader’s desire to open the Bible and read Genesis is prompted by the Holy Spirit, using the Genesis Trilogy. It’s very humbling.

I’ve had the same response with people turning to 1 and 2 Samuel after reading Michal or Abigail. It is definitely humbling and the greatest of honors. And by the way, I loved your books!

For more on Kacy Barnett-Gramckow you can find her on:
Facebook
Shoutlife
Her website

Thanks Kacy, for joining us this month on Spotlight!

Sarah Sundin

Sounds like our Shadow and Tiger – furry distractions.

When Sarah is not ferrying kids to soccer and karate, she works on-call as a hospital pharmacist and teaches Sunday school and women’s Bible studies.

Sarah’s first book, A Distant Melody, Book One in the Wings of Glory series, releases this month (March 2010) with Revell (my favorite publisher!)

Here’s the blurb:
Allie Miller is promised to a man she doesn’t love, but Lt. Walter Novak, a furloughed B-17 bomber pilot, captures her heart—will she honor her family’s wishes or take a chance on true love?

Never pretty enough to please her gorgeous mother, Allie Miller will do anything to gain her approval—even marry a man she doesn’t love. Lt. Walter Novak—fearless in the cockpit but hopeless with women—takes his last furlough at home in California before being shipped overseas. Walt and Allie meet at a wedding and their love of music draws them together, prompting them to begin a correspondence that will change their lives. As letters fly between Walt’s muddy bomber base in England and Allie’s mansion in an orange grove, their friendship binds them together. But can they untangle the secrets, commitments, and expectations that keep them apart?

A Distant Melody is the first book in the Wings of Glory series, which follows the three Novak brothers, B-17 bomber pilots with the US Eighth Air Force stationed in England during World War II.

I love historical fiction! I can’t wait to read this one!

You can purchase A Distant Melody at these online bookstores:
Amazon
CBD
Barnes & Noble

When and how did you know that you wanted to be a writer?
January 6, 2000. How’s that for exact? Although I always read voraciously, I didn’t consider a writing career. Instead I chose a practical career in pharmacy which allowed me to work on-call and stay home with our three children. Then in 2000, I had a dream with such intriguing characters that I felt compelled to write their story. That first novel will never be published, nor should it, but it got me started.

Can you share with me some of the highlights of your writing journey – something particularly memorable or humorous?
In 2005 all doors to publication seemed closed and padlocked. No one wanted to buy historical fiction, I was accumulating “good” rejection letters, and I wondered whether I had heard God correctly. Was I meant to write? Was I wasting my time when I could be doing something more productive?

Sounds very familiar!

That year at the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference, I went for a morning walk under the redwoods and stopped to admire a little white flower. I praised God for the flower and felt touched—had He made that flower just so I would praise Him? Then I looked around me. Hundreds of redwoods covered the hills, and thousands more out of my vision, all surrounded by white blossoms. How many of those flowers would ever cause someone to stop and praise God? Were they created in vain? Did the Lord waste His time creating them? Of course not. God is a creative Being, and He made us in His creative image. In His mercy, the Lord showed me that even if my writing was never seen by another human being and never caused anyone to praise Him, I did the right thing obeying His call to write. I was not wasting my time.

Great insight. Thanks for sharing that, Sarah.

Tell me a bit about what you write now and what you hope/plan to write in the future. Do you have a favorite genre?
I just completed the rough draft of the third book in my Wings of Glory series, which follows three brothers who fly B-17 bombers during World War II. I have plans for another series set during World War II. Right now I’m drawn to historical fiction, although I could see myself writing contemporary women’s fiction as well.

Do you consider your writing the work God has given you to do for a lifetime or for a season of your life? If you could pursue anything else, what would it be?
I’ll leave that answer up to the Lord! Since my call to write was such an abrupt change for me, I’m acutely aware it could be just for a season. He could remove the desire and/or ability to write just as instantly as He gave it. However, I deeply hope it’s a lifetime calling. I can’t imagine anything else I’d enjoy more.

Are there people in your life who encouraged you, who are responsible for you becoming a published author?
Too many to count! First of all, I’ve learned so much from my critique group (Diablo Valley Christian Writers) and from the faculty at Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference and from the membership of American Christian Fiction Writers. My supporters include my entire church family, which has prayed for me since I began this adventure, and especially my small group and my book club. I couldn’t do it without them!

Can you share one struggle that entered your life as a result of writing and how God helped you to overcome it?
In 2001, I was working on a (really bad) contemporary romance, and the Lord used it to show me I was living under a heavy cloak of shame. My heroine and I learned together how to absorb the truth of God’s forgiveness and to shove off the shame that held us back. That was important work in my life, and soon after, the Lord drew me into service in my church, and my writing career grew. I was able to use this journey again in the second book in my World War II trilogy, A Memory Between Us.

Likewise, is there a particular joy in this writing business/ministry that God has used to remind you that He is, in fact, using your words to His glory?
Every time someone reads A Distant Melody and tells me it blessed them, I’m stunned that the Lord can use this little suburban carpool mom!

Coming up for Sarah:

A Memory Between Us, Book Two in the Wings of Glory series, Fall 2010 from Revell. Maj. Jack Novak has never failed to meet a challenge until he meets Lt. Ruth Doherty, a striking nurse with a shameful secret—can they confront their deepest sins, face their greatest fears, and learn to trust and to love?

Book Three in the Wings of Glory series, Fall 2011. Young widowed Helen Carlisle buries her pain in volunteer work, but the sparks of her romance with Lt. Raymond Novak flings them both into peril—can they find the courage they need to face their trials?

To learn more about Sarah or her books visit her website or her blog.

Jerry B. Jenkins

To release February 17, 2010:

Before the Tribulation, before the Rapture, before there was a legacy that could be left behind…there was Jesus. Now the authors of the phenomenal Left Behind series introduce The Jesus Chronicles—four books that individually and collectively paint a vivid portrait of the Prince of Peace told in the voices of those who knew Him best: the gospel writers, John, Mark, Luke, and now Matthew…

Matthew’s Story: Sinner to Saint

Levi was studying to be a priest, but an unspeakable tragedy causes him to turn his back on his faith and pursue riches and luxury instead. Much to the disappointment of his family, he becomes a tax collector, reviled by Jews and Romans alike.

Although he is a success, his chosen trade does not bring him contentment. And when he hears about Jesus, the man who some are saying is the prophesied Messiah, he begins a quest that leads him to question his very existence. As he follows Jesus and records His words and deeds, Levi is shaken to the core and transformed. Jesus renames him Matthew—literally “gift from God”—and the tax collector is called to give up his work and his passions and claim Jesus as his Lord.

Matthew’s Story is a novel that brings to life the most unlikely of apostles—a sinner turned saint—and his time with the Lord. With Matthew, we will walk with Jesus as He gives the Sermon on the Mount, performs the miracles of healing the sick and raising the dead, contemplates his faith and the Last Supper and in the Garden of Gethsemane, is crucified, and most important, resurrected. Thrilling and uplifting, Matthew’s Story shows how the true Messiah changed the life of one man, and forever altered the course of history.

When and how did you know that you wanted to be a writer?

I was injured playing sports in high school and turned to sports writing to stay close to the sports scene. I knew almost immediately that I had found my niche. I started stringing for local papers before I was even old enough to drive. I became sports editor of a daily newspaper when I was 19.

Can you share with me some of the highlights of your writing journey – something particularly memorable or humorous?

The Left Behind series selling 70 million copies worldwide is a phenomenon I do not expect to see repeated in my life time.

Tell me a bit about what you write now and what you hope/plan to write in the future. Do you have a favorite genre?

I just finished my 178^th book (more than I have ever read) and have written as-told-biographies of famous people (Hank Aaron, Walter Payton, Nolan Ryan, Billy Graham, etc.), fiction for children, fiction for adults, documentaries, devotionals, marriage & family books, etc. My favorite genre is adult fiction.

Do you consider your writing the work God has given you to do for a lifetime or for a season of your life? If you could pursue anything else, what would it be?

I don’t sing or dance or preach; this is all I do. I can’t imagine doing anything else.

Are there people in your life who encouraged you, who are responsible for you becoming a published author?

My father was a bit of a poet, my mother a wordsmith, and I was encouraged by my high school journalism teacher.

Can you share one struggle that entered your life as a result of writing and how God helped you to overcome it?

Writing has brought nothing but joy and reward.

Likewise, is there a particular joy in this writing business/ministry that God has used to remind you that He is, in fact, using your words to His glory?

The thousands of messages from people who tell me they became believers in Christ through reading the Left Behind series.

A few of Jerry’s current and future novels:

Riven (Tyndale House, 2008), my favorite of all my novels

Matthew’s Story (The Jesus Chronicles, Putnam, 2010), a novel based on the Gospel

The Last Operative (Tyndale House, 2010), an international spy thriller

Chicago Showdown (Tyndale House, 2010), the first novel in a police trilogy

If you want to get to know more about Jerry, please be sure to visit his website or his blog.

Thanks, Jerry, for joining me this month on Spotlight!

Kaye Dacus is the author of contemporary and historical romances with Barbour Publishing and Harvest House Publishers. She holds a Master of Arts in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University, is a former Vice President of American Christian Fiction Writers, and currently serves as President of Middle Tennessee Christian Writers. She loves action movies and British costume dramas; and when she’s not writing, she enjoys knitting scarves and “lap blankets” (she’s a master of the straight-line knit and purl stitches!). Kaye lives in Nashville, Tennessee; and even though she writes romance novels, she is not afraid to admit that she’s never been kissed.

Kaye’s latest upcoming February 2010 release is:

A Case for Love: (Book 3 of the Brides of Bonneterre series)

Welcome back to Bonneterre, Louisiana, for the delightful conclusion to the Brides of Bonneterre series.

The Alaine Delacroix that all of Bonneterre knows is the carefully polished image she puts forth every day on her noontime news-magazine program. When her parents’ home and small business is threatened by the biggest corporation in town, Alaine is forced to choose between her image and fighting for the life her family has built.

Lawyer Forbes Guidry is used to making things go his way. But when he’s asked to take on a pro bono case for a colleague, he’ll learn that he can’t control everything—including his feelings for his new client: Alaine Delacroix.

Alaine’s only option to help her family is hiring Forbes, but can she bring herself to trust the handsome, disarmingly charming lawyer? And will Forbes Guidry be able to make a case for love before losing his job and family? Can both trust that God will present a solution before it’s too late?

A Case for Love is available from these online bookstores:

Amazon
CBD
Barnes & Noble

When and how did you know that you wanted to be a writer?

I’ve heard a lot of people say they started writing stories when they were in elementary school. When I was that young, I wasn’t a writer—I hated writing, as a matter of fact. I made up plenty of stories, but they were acted out with my Barbie dolls or in my imagination as I played outside—other people, other places, other times all came alive in my mind’s-eye; and I didn’t mind playing by myself. In fact, I rather preferred it because I didn’t have to explain to anyone else what I was envisioning and try to get them to play along the way the story went in my head.

As an adolescent, I started to read voraciously. My fancy turned to romance novels; and by the age of twelve, I was reading one or two historical romance novels a week—mostly YA, but some adult fiction in there, too. These books grew in me not only a love for history, but a love for storytelling because they inspired me to write. I wasn’t content with a kiss and a happily-ever-after ending. I wanted to know what happened the next day, the next year, the next decade. So the first writing I ever did was around fourteen years old when I started writing “sequels” to my favorite books. This, then, inspired me to start putting some of those stories that were always running through my head down on paper.

That experience—realizing I could put words down on paper and express the stories that I’d always had within me—opened a flood-gate; and for the last two decades, I’ve never stopped writing.

Can you share with me some of the highlights of your writing journey – something particularly memorable or humorous?

After attending my first writing conference in 2001, I started a manuscript as an experiment to see if I could write something from beginning to end (I’d never finished anything before, even though I’d written more than 200,000 words on one “story” and bits and pieces of dozens more). At Christmas that year, I was about halfway through the manuscript. It was rough, and I knew it; but for the first time in my life, I decided to let someone read what I was writing (outside of school assignments, of course). So I printed out two copies of what I had completed so far and put it in nice notebooks for my mother and my grandmother as part of their Christmas presents. I was at my parents’ home for Christmas that year, and Mom started reading it immediately. After a couple of hours, she looked up at me and said, “I’d better not get to the end of this and find out it isn’t finished.” It wasn’t of course. I ended up e-mailing each chapter as I finished it to both my mom and grandmother, which is where my love of writing “hook” chapter endings came from—because I wanted them e-mailing me after each chapter, frantic to find out what happened next.

Tell me a bit about what you write now and what you hope/plan to write in the future. Do you have a favorite genre?

If I said my favorite genre was anything but romance, it would be pretty obvious I’m lying. I’ve tried to come up with ideas for women’s fiction, small-town fiction, or something else, but somehow, everything includes at least one romantic storyline. Historical romance is definitely a little harder to write than contemporary, but I’m so blessed to have been published in both right out of the starting gate. So, as far as I can see down the road, I’ll be writing stories with strong romantic themes (i.e., romance novels).

Do you consider your writing the work God has given you to do for a lifetime or for a season of your life? If you could pursue anything else, what would it be?

Maybe it’s because I grew up the daughter of an Army officer—which meant we lived with the possibility we might be in a different city/state/country the next year—but I never assume anything is “for a lifetime” (except family, of course). I like setting goals for three to five years down the road, but beyond that, I leave it up to God to show me where I’m supposed to go. To borrow an idea from E. L. Doctorow, life is a lot like driving down a wooded road at night: you can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.

The only other thing I could imagine myself doing full-time, if I felt God was telling me to put writing aside, would be to teach writing (composition, professional writing, creative writing), grammar, and/or editing at a community college or small four-year college.

Are there people in your life who encouraged you, who are responsible for you becoming a published author?

There are many people who’ve influenced and encouraged me in my life, but the main ones are my parents. My mom has told me many times over the past few years that, even though I felt like I was hiding what I considered to be an abnormal behavior (my writing) when I was a child, they knew I was doing it and they tried to do what they could to encourage it. The first writing how-to books I have are some that they gave me. I also had a wonderful creative writing teacher my senior year of high school who encouraged me to pursue it further. The wonderful people in the original ACRW (now ACFW) taught me about the industry and were there to celebrate with me as I made my first wobbly steps into being a writer—such as finishing my first manuscript and entering my first contest. My first two crit partners, Cindy Woodsmall and Marci Burke, helped me start applying the writing rules and guidelines I was learning. My faculty mentors in grad school broke me of all my bad habits and helped me find my true voice as a writer. And my agent, Chip MacGregor, who took a calculated risk on me when he signed me as an unpublished author when he was just getting his agency off the ground.

As much as we talk about how writing is a solitary profession, if one wants to do more than just sit in a closet and write stuff that’s never going to see the light of day, it takes a whole lot of people!

Can you share one struggle that entered your life as a result of writing and how God helped you to overcome it?

One of my main struggles, now that writing is my primary occupation, is the tendency to become too isolated. Because I live alone and work from home, there have been weeks when I haven’t seen or spoken to anyone for six days—until I go to church on Sunday. Sometimes, I have to take a break and go walk around one of the local malls just to remind myself I’m part of the human race!

Building friendships, creating my own community, is something that I’ve been working on for the past few months, through finding a new church and starting to get involved there, to reaching out and rebuilding/renewing relationships I’ve allowed to wither. As an introvert, it’s so easy for me to retreat and be that hermit, but I know that’s not the life God has called me to. So I keep looking for the opportunities He wants to give me to be a contributing member of a growing and vibrant community.

Likewise, is there a particular joy in this writing business/ministry that God has used to remind you that He is, in fact, using your words to His glory?

Last spring, after Stand-In Groom had been out for a few months, I received an e-mail from a reader that humbled me and showed me just how little understanding I had of the impact one’s writing can have. She wrote: “I fell in love with your work in Stand in Groom. I am from Louisiana and would love to visit Bonneterre. I tried so hard to figure out what city it was based on. I now live in South Dakota and you took me home. God also used your book to help me realize that I had not totally healed from hurricane Katrina and started that process for me. Thank you so much for being used by God to write this book.”

I can’t lay any claim to that praise. That is all God’s doing.

Thanks Kaye! I totally agree – and isn’t God amazing? I’m glad God opened these doors for you and is using your work to touch the lives of readers.

Coming: July 2010: Ransome’s Crossing (Book 2 of the Ransome Trilogy): Disguised as a midshipman to get to her secret fiancé in Jamaica, Charlotte Ransome discovers that losing her heart to Lieutenant Ned Cochrane is not the greatest danger she’ll face on this Atlantic crossing.

Currently available:

Stand-In Groom and Menu for Romance, books 1 and 2 of the Brides of Bonneterre series. Follow the lives and loves of a southern wedding planner and some of her fun-loving—but meddlesome cousins. The Brides of Bonneterre series is filled with fun, food, family—and lots of romance!

Ransome’s Honor, book 1 of The Ransome Trilogy. July 1814. The war with France is over, but the battle of hearts has just begun in this romantic adventure that combines the wit, romance, and social commentary of Jane Austen with the sea-faring adventure of Horatio Hornblower.

Beginning in 2010:

The Matchmakers, a new contemporary romance series. Every grandmother wants to see her grandchildren happy, especially when it comes to their love lives. Join five active senior ladies—and one gentleman—who take a great interest in the lives and loves of their single grandchildren and become The Matchmakers. Love Remains (August 2010), The Art of Romance (May 2011), Turnabout’s Fair Play (December 2011).

Thanks Kaye for joining us this month on Spotlight!

Kathleen Y’Barbo first discovered her love of books when, at the age of four, she stumbled upon Granny Simpson’s set of World Book Encyclopedias. Letters became words, and words became stories of far-away places and interesting people.

As she grew up, Kathleen learned that her love of story could carry her off to places far beyond her small Texas Gulf Coast town. Soon she hit the road for real, earning a degree in Marketing from Texas A&M before setting off to such exotic destinations as Jakarta, Tokyo, Bali, Sydney, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Eventually, the road led back to Texas and a career in writing. Within a decade, Kathleen became a best-selling author of more than thirty award-winning novels, novellas, and young adult books. In all, more than 850,000 copies of her books are currently in print in the US and abroad. Soon Kathleen will be adding nonfiction books to her credits as well.

In addition to her work as an author, Kathleen is the exclusive publicist for Books & Such Literary Agency. Thus, the girl who only dreamed of books, now writes them herself, and tells the world about other authors.

Kathleen is a member of the Authors Guild, Advance Writers and Speakers Association, American Christian Fiction Writers, Romance Writers of America, Words For the Journey Christian Writers Guild, and the Public Relations Society of America. She holds a BBA from Texas A&M University’s Mays Business School, as well as a certification in Paralegal Studies. A tenth-generation Texan, Kathleen Y’Barbo has a daughter and three sons.

Kathleen’s latest book The Confidential Life of Eugenia Cooper has an awesome cover and looks like a fun book I need to read!

Here’s the blurb:

Gilded Age romance collides with Wild West adventure! New York socialite Eugenia Cooper longs to enjoy one last escapade before she marries banker Chandler Dodd.

Opportunity knocks, and she heads for rough-and-tumble Colorado. When she takes the job as governess for silver baron Daniel Beck’s daughter, she wonders where her future lies. With Chandler—or with Daniel?

The Confidential Life of Eugenia Cooper is available at:
Amazon
CBD
Barnes & Noble

When and how did you know that you wanted to be a writer?

I knew from a very young age -4 or 5 – that I loved books. But I was from a tiny town on the Texas Gulf Coast and had no thoughts of ever writing anything that I would be willing to share with anyone. Through junior high and high school, I filled scores of spiral notebooks full of poems and stories then hid them away. I convinced myself a history major could never make a living and got my decree in business. It wasn’t until my dad passed away unexpectedly at the age of 58 that I began slowly to realize I should make a serious attempt at writing. Seven years after that, my first book was published, and I dedicated it to him.

Can you share with me some of the highlights of your writing journey – something particularly memorable or humorous?

An ongoing highlight of the writing business is getting to meet readers and other authors. People whose books sat on my keeper shelf years ago are now my friends. Readers are so much fun. One particularly memorable encounter with a reader happened not at my own book signing but at a friend’s event that I was attending for moral support. A man came over with his son who was probably 6 or 7. He pointed to my friend and said (insert Texas accent here), “That there’s a real arthur, son. Take a good look.” Then, with a straight face, he went on to tell her, “I read a book once. They made me.”

Tell me a bit about what you write now and what you hope/plan to write in the future. Do you have a favorite genre?

I write fiction with the occasional nonfiction book thrown in. I love writing historical romances but occasionally I get the urge to do a contemporary. Someday maybe I’ll do a women’s fiction, though I’m sure as soon as my agent hears about that she’ll be shaking her head.

Do you consider your writing the work God has given you to do for a lifetime or for a season of your life? If you could pursue anything else, what would it be?

I think anything God gives you is for a season. Sometimes that season is a lifetime, and sometimes it is not. If I could pursue anything else, it would be a job as a suntan lotion tester in the Florida Keys. As the Lord has not yet provided the calling or the body for that, I’m going to keep writing!

Are there people in your life who encouraged you, who are responsible for you becoming a published author?

Oh yes! My kids are great encouragers, though as far as I know only one of my children has read any of my books all the way through (Bless you, Jacob!). DiAnn Mills gave me my start by taking me under her wing and offering not only a wonderful long-term friendship but also the chance to get published.

Can you share one struggle that entered your life as a result of writing and how God helped you to overcome it, to make you more like Christ?

Sometimes life just doesn’t cooperate, even when you’re on deadline. I’ve had so many times when I’ve had to make choices based on what was good for my writing over what I wanted to be doing. Knowing I am where God wants me to be has helped me to lean on Him when I’m writing even though I don’t feel like it.

Likewise, is there a particular joy in this writing business/ministry that God has used to remind you that He is, in fact, using your words to His glory?

I get so many great letters from readers. Some are heart warming, others heart-wrenching. But each time I realize someone cared enough to let me know that my book touched them, I’m truly humbled.

Has writing opened opportunities for you to give your testimony and witness for Christ or minister to fellow believers? If so, can you give one example?

There are several ladies who, though they are not believers, never miss the chance to read my books. It’s exciting to know that fiction is taking the gospel where it might not have gone.

Coming in Summer 2010 from Waterbrook is Anna Finch and the Hired Gun.

To learn more about Kathleen and her many other writings, visit her website or the Books & Such blog.

Thanks Kathleen, for joining us this month on Spotlight!

Kristin Billerbeck is the author of over 30 novels, including the award-winning Ashley Stockingdale series and the Christy-nominated “Trophy Wives Club”.  She is a lifelong Californian and lives in the Silicon Valley with her husband and four children.  She is currently working on a young adult novel titled, “Perfectly Dateless” which comes out with Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group in the Spring of 2010.

Hey cool! I didn’t realize we’ll be with the same publisher. I’ll look forward to seeing this book! Though it doesn’t release until next year, here’s a sneak peek at the blurb:

One overachieving high school senior with everything, except what she wants: A date for the high school prom.

Daisy Crispin has 242 days to find the right date for the prom. There’s only one problem–her parents won’t let her date or even talk to a guy on the phone. Oh, and she’s totally invisible at school, has to wear lame homemade clothes, and has no social skills. Okay, so maybe there’s more than one problem. Can she talk her parents into letting her go to the prom? Or will they succeed at their obvious attempt to completely ruin her life? With hilarious and truthful writing, Kristin Billerbeck uncovers the small–and large–mortifications that teen girls encounter. Readers will fall in love with Daisy’s sharp wit and resourcefulness as she navigates the world of boys, fashion, family, and friendship.

You can pre-order Perfectly Dateless and watch for the cover art on Amazon,

Jill: When and how did you know you wanted to be a writer?

Kristin: Seriously?  I don’t think I ever really planned it, but I was a big lover of the classics, and a very picky reader, so I suppose it was bound to happen eventually.  I don’t know that I’ll ever be “good enough” to write something that pleases me.

Jill: Can you share with me some of the highlights of your writing journey – something particularly memorable or humorous?

Kristin: The highlight was definitely doing “The Today Show”.  Not because I sought fame, but because I overcame my fear of being in the public eye.  It really changed the core of who I was knowing that I could face that fear.

Jill: Tell me a bit about what you write now and what you hope/plan to write in the future. Do you have a favorite genre?

Kristin: I’m writing women’s fiction now as well as young adult chick lit.  I have written romance and although I have dealt with darker subjects, I always want my writing to be uplifting and sprinkled with humor.  I consider myself the frothy “People” magazine of Christian fiction.

Jill: Do you consider your writing the work God has given you to do for a lifetime or for a season of your life? If you could pursue anything else, what would it be?

Kristin: No. In fact, I’d be surprised if I stuck with anything for a lifetime, but writing…I have always written even in my head at night, so I imagine this is something I will do forever, even if God chooses another pathway for me to bring in income. I love the written word. What I love about writing heroines is that if I’m interested in a particular subject, I can become that subject and leave it when the book is done. I used to say if I could do anything, I would be a speech writer for the president or a sitcom writer/comedy sketch writer. I’m less interested in the politics as I get older.

Jill: Are there people in your life who encouraged you, who are responsible for you becoming a published author?

Kristin: There are many, probably too many to list, but I hold Tracie Peterson and Becky Germany most responsible because they helped me along to that next level.  Tracie plucked me out of the slush pile and Becky gave me the tools to be an effective storyteller.

Jill: Can you share one struggle that entered your life as a result of writing and how God helped you to overcome it, to make you more like Christ?

Kristin: I think I learn “in the negative”, which is why I love books like “Tess of the D’urbervilles and characters like Scarlett O’Hara. These people have to overcome huge obstacles to become better versions of themselves. Though they are never perfect. There are so many paths I’ve walked that have just taught me deeper compassion and understanding that it’s not my job to be perfect. Sometimes, it’s my job to be there for people. To help them through a valley I’ve already come out of. Struggles I’d list are multiple sclerosis, growing up with a severely autistic brother, special needs’ children and more.

All of these rejections/downtimes in life prepared me for what I needed to be able to endure to be a writer. It’s not really the other way around.

Jill: Likewise, is there a particular joy in this writing business/ministry that God has used to remind you that He is, in fact, using your words to His glory?

Kristin: I have many stories, but my favorites of course are people coming to Jesus or changing their lives because God used my words. To think God can change lives through chick lit, I just think that shows how big He is.

Jill: That’s so awesome!

Has writing opened opportunities for you to give your testimony and witness for Christ or minister to fellow believers? If so, can you give one example?

Kristin: I think my gift is to package the Truth in palatable bites.  I want there to be enough truth of life in my books, where you can pass it on to an unbelieving friend, and find common ground. Truth resonates. If there is no truth, there is no comedy. And making people laugh is something that comes fairly easily to my nature. I am not afraid to be humiliated for a good laugh.

Jill: I wouldn’t want to see you humiliated! But I’m glad you write humor. We all need a good laugh now and then!

Thanks, Kristin, for joining us this month on Spotlight! (Don’t forget to check out Kristin’s website to learn more about her and her books!) And if you’re a writer, check our her writer’s page for some great advice. Favorite quote is at the bottom of that page: “A badly finished manuscript can be fixed. A blank sheet of paper? Not so much.”

You can also visit her two blogs: Girly Girl and Girls Write Out.

Carrie’s latest release from Barbour, out last month is A Blue and Gray Christmas, which includes Carrie’s novella A Shelter in the Storm.

Here’s the blurb:

Surrender yourself to the forces of love in four engaging Civil War Christmas romances. Join up with Leah Woods as she searches for her missing fiancé in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Stick to your guns with Arabella Lambert as she pledges her allegiance to pacifist Barry Birch, a man labeled a coward. Ride out the storm with Rachel Thornton as she resists her attraction to the wounded artist-correspondent James Galloway. Saddle up with Confederate-born Hannah McIntosh as she falls for Chris Haley, an embittered Union soldier. Can these couples forge an everlasting union in the tide of civil war?

You can find A Blue and Gray Christmas at these online bookstores: Amazon, CBD, and Barnes & Noble

I asked Carrie to give us some insight into how God is using her and her writing.

Jill: When and how did you know that you wanted to be a writer?

Carrie: I’ve always enjoyed reading, but I didn’t start writing until 1998 after our family returned from spending a year in Africa. I missed it so much, I thought I could relive my experiences by writing a book set there, and so I did. I didn’t know anything about how to write fiction, so it will never be published, but it was a great way to begin the process of learning how to write.

Jill: I know what you mean! My first attempts at fiction are also happily buried in a box somewhere. :)

Can you share with me some of the highlights of your writing journey–something particularly memorable or humorous?

Carrie: Here is one incident I will never forget. As I prepared to board an airplane for a flight home to NJ, I prayed the Lord will open up an opportunity for me to talk to someone and encourage them spiritually. Often people pull out a book, and that is a great opportunity for me to ask them what they are reading and start a conversation. That day, I was in for a big surprise. My seatmate pulled out a copy of my latest book. “I can’t believe you are reading that book!” She didn’t know what I meant, but when I explained myself, we both laughed and enjoyed talking about books and authors we enjoyed.

Jill: What an awesome experience! Tell me a bit about what you write now and what you hope/plan to write in the future. Do you have a favorite genre?

Carrie: I write inspirational romance and women’s fiction. I have written for two companies – Barbour and Steeple Hill Love Inspired. I enjoy writing stories that touch my heart and help me see the world in a new light, and I hope my readers will find that is true of my books as well.

Jill: Do you consider your writing the work God has given you to do for a lifetime or for a season of your life? If you could pursue anything else, what would it be?

Carrie: I believe I am called to love and serve the Lord, and I do that in several different ways. My first priority is loving and serving my husband and children and next is my commitment to our ministry in our church. Writing comes after that, but I am blessed to be at a stage of life where my children are grown and I can devote a good amount of time to writing.

Jill: Are there people in your life who encouraged you, who are responsible for you becoming a published author?

Carrie: My husband has always been a faithful encourager and supporter of my writing. He believed I would become a published author long before it actually happened. I am so thankful for that support. I have had some wonderful critique partners who have faithfully helped me improve my work and challenged me to keep growing as a writer. Through ACFW I have met several authors who are a few steps ahead of me in the publishing process, and several have made an effort to reach back and help me along.

Jill: I know how that feels. ACFW’s published authors have given me the best encouragement as well! Can you share one struggle that entered your life as a result of writing and how God helped you to overcome it, to make you more like Christ?

Carrie: When I first started writing I had five children at home and I was homeschooling, so I struggled to balance writing time with my other responsibilities. I learned how to focus and write with a lot of distractions around me, which is a valuable skill. I had to continually re-evaluate how much time I was spending on writing and how it affected my family. As I said earlier, now that my children are older, I have a lot more freedom in my schedule and time to write.

Jill: I totally agree. The first five years we homeschooled, I wrote one book. I didn’t have time for more. But you do learn to write amidst distractions.

Likewise, is there a particular joy in this writing business/ministry that God has used to remind you that He is, in fact, using your words to His glory?

Carrie: Receiving emails and letters from readers who have been touched by my books is such a blessings and encouragement. It is amazing to see the way God can take my words and use them to stir up someone’s love for their husband, or answer a question they have wondered about for years, or teach them more about prayer. I didn’t set out to “teach” those things when I wrote my books, but it’s humbling and amazing to be able to team up with God and see His Spirit work in people’s lives through my stories.

Jill: So true! And a wonderful ministry for you!

Has writing opened opportunities for you to give your testimony and witness for Christ or minister to fellow believers? If so, can you give one example?

Carrie: Yes! I have been in two writers’ groups that have people of different backgrounds. It was a great way to make connections in my community and build friendships with people who don’t yet know the Lord in a personal way. Many of them read my books, and seeds were planted. I also look for opportunities to give away books and use them as a tool to open up conversations with people. Recently, I heard about a request from our local high school for Christian fiction books for their library. I contacted some author friends and together we were able to donate 70 books to our high school. I am praying those books reach kids with God’s truth and love.

Jill: What a great idea! You inspire me!

Carrie’s Upcoming Release:
Home to Fairhaven, Steeple Hill Love Inspired, 2010

Hiding a secret that could destroy her reputation, former teacher Rachel Clark comes to Fairhaven, Washington, hoping to make a fresh start. When she meets handsome frame shop owner, Cameron McKenna, she believes she’s finally found someone she can trust, but will she have the courage to open her heart and tell him the truth about her past?

You can visit author Carrie Turansky and get to know her better by checking out her website.

Thanks Carrie, for joining us this month on Spotlight!

Ginger is a popular speaker at women’s events, and a frequent radio and television guest. Ginger has been interviewed by media across the country including Fox News, The New York Times, FamilyNet Television, National Public Radio, Billy Graham’s Hour of Decision, Harvest Television, and more.

Ginger is a native Texan, a chocoholic, triathlete, and dog lover. She likes slippers more than bare feet, coffee without sugar, and scary movies more than chick flicks. Part Choctaw Indian, part Irish blarney, she stays busy raising three kids and ironing her husband’s shirts.

Ginger’s latest book In the Arms of Immortals, book 2 in the Chronicles of the Scribe series releases from David C. Cook this month.

Here’s the blurb:

“The age of the angels is over. The Age of Fear has begun.”
A strange ship docks in a medieval Sicilian harbor. That night an old man falls ill… then the baker’s wife… then a street urchin. By morning half the townspeople are dead and more are dying—horribly. And no one has a clue what is happening or how to stop it. Not the local priest. Not the rich baron or his powerful knight. And not the three women at the heart of this book: the baron’s proud daughter, Panthea, the outcast healer, Gio, and Mariskka, an unwilling visitor from another time.

Though the Church fights to stand between the plague and the people, the sickness is too powerful for a Church that will not allow medicine to be studied outside its walls. The Church holds a monopoly on healing and on God, but when neither rescues the people, the people lose hope in both, and the conflict between Science and Faith begins its long burn.

In a time when the faithful have no answers and the faithless terrorize the countryside, only the bravest will dare hold on to a silent God.

You can find In the Arms of Immortals at these online bookstores: Amazon, CBD, and Barnes & Noble

I asked Ginger to give us some insight into how God is using her and her writing.

Jill: When and how did you know that you wanted to be a writer?

Ginger: I fell into it by accident. After experiencing a difficult battle with miscarriages and infertility, I began writing short passages to inspire and comfort myself. Eventually, these became my first book, Moments for Couples Who Long for Children. For some odd reason, I went straight from that into my first novel, Chosen: The Lost Diaries of Queen Esther.

Jill: I loved Chosen!. Well done! Can you share with me some of the highlights of your writing journey–something particularly memorable or humorous?

Ginger: I’m short and so is my chair, so I have to sit on books to reach my keyboard. I pick these books very carefully. I hate to disrespect anyone’s work. But then, I must say, Tolstoy offers quite a lot of lumbar support….

Jill: Too bad you can’t tell him that… :)
Tell me a bit about what you write now and what you hope/plan to write in the future. Do you have a favorite genre?

Ginger: I fell into writing historicals, which combine a love of hidden history and a passion for women’s lives today. Women live richer lives when we understand what our foremothers fought for.

Jill: Do you consider your writing the work God has given you to do for a lifetime or for a season of your life? If you could pursue anything else, what would it be?

Ginger: It’s a lifetime calling, simply because it’s in my heart. Hopefully, I’ll keep that for a long time. If I could choose another profession, I would be a virus hunter for the CDC. I absolutely love viruses. Strange but true. They fascinate me completely.

Jill: If you find some, I don’t want to share! But if you find a cure for the common cold or in particular, the flu, I’d love to hear it! (I hate the stomach flu – if that’s what they’re still calling it now.)
Are there people in your life who encouraged you, who are responsible for you becoming a published author?

Ginger: My husband is a laid back adventurer. He likes to see where the river takes him, and this attitude affected me, too. If he thinks it’s safe to dive in, I do, too. His laid back attitude became one of “So what?” when I got rejected. It forced me on. He sees a bend in the river; I fear it’s really the end.

Jill: He sounds like a remarkable man. :)
Is there a particular joy in this writing business/ministry that God has used to remind you that He is, in fact, using your words to His glory?

Ginger: Fear!! When my first novel was released, I panicked. Literally. I lost 20 pounds, I fretted, I cried. I experienced a dread and horror of seeing the book in print. (To this day, I cannot open the cover without feeling sick.) God made it clear to me one day that this fear made Him sad. I could quit writing if I wanted. He didn’t have to bless it, or turn it into a career. I decided to press through it because I want to see where this river goes.

The price I pay is a fear that wakes me up at night, greets me at my computer keyboard, and slips between the pages of my galley. I have to wrestle it down and repeat scripture over and over. I like God’s instruction to Joshua before he entered the Promised Land: “Do not be terrified. Do not be discouraged.”
It is the writer’s commandment, too.

Jill: The discouragement part – I can so relate! I think all writers battle that demon at some time or other.
Has writing opened opportunities for you to give your testimony and witness for Christ or minister to fellow believers? If so, can you give one example?

Ginger Hearing from women who find a bit of comfort or inspiration to press through their trials after reading my work. What more could I be blessed with? To know these words gave someone strength for the journey gives me courage, too. We’re all in this together.

Jill: That is truly encouraging!
Has writing opened opportunities for you to give your testimony and witness for Christ or minister to fellow believers? If so, can you give one example?

Ginger: I led a conference this year for a national Christian women’s infertility group, Hannah’s Prayer. This was the same group that walked me through my own struggle of infertility and loss years ago. Now, to be asked to return and comfort these women, that was an awesome privilege.

Jill: That’s awesome, Ginger! What a privilege!

You can visit author Ginger Garrett and get to know her better by checking out her website. And pick up one of her books. You won’t be disappointed!

Thanks Ginger, for joining us this month on Spotlight!