Blog « Christa Allan, author of not your usual Christian fiction

Enter to win a basket of goodies from New Orleans to celebrate the release of my first historical novel!

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LOVE FINDS YOU IN NEW ORLEANS

The story of a woman whose grandparents must consider whether to stop keeping secrets and reveal the truth they’ve known—a truth that will make the difference between a life of obligation and a life of choice.Unlocking the past could open the door to a new future, but is the present worth the cost?

Mardi Gras Beads, Community Coffee, and Beignet Mix and more! CONTEST ENDS ON VALENTINE’S DAY!

Do you know what it means to miss New Orleans? Share your favorite stories of New Orleans or why you’d like to visit the city!

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Girlfriends Gone Wild! Simplying your Christmas shopping here.

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Check out the offerings from the authors at Girlfriends Book Club:

LOVE FINDS YOU IN NEW ORLEANS by Christa Allan

Set to release in February of 2012 and available now for pre-order, this 1840s historical relates the story of a woman whose grandparents must consider whether to stop keeping secrets and reveal the truth they’ve known—a truth that will make the difference between a life of obligation and a life of choice.Unlocking the past could open the door to a new future, but is the present worth the cost? Introduced in the novel is the custom of plaçage, known as “left-handed marriages” among those forbidden legally to be together.

Who would like this book? Readers of historical fiction and Southern fiction.

For more information visit http://christaallan.com/

SAFE HARBOR by Judith Arnold

Childhood pals Kip and Shelley spent their summers on Block Island, swimming, biking, discovering the world together. Then real life intruded, bringing tragedy and heartache. Years later, they both wind up back on Block Island. Can the island’s rugged beauty and their loving friendship heal their wounds? An award-winning novel when it was first released, SAFE HARBOR is available to as a reissued e-book to a new generation of readers.

Who would like this book? SAFE HARBOR is the perfect book for lovers of romance fiction.

For more information visit www.juditharnold.com

LITTLE WOMEN AND ME by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

A contemporary teen finds herself literally sucked into the Louisa May Alcott novel Little Women and discovers she must change a major plot point in order to get back out again. “…a consistently entertaining read that delivers a genuinely original heroine and frequently hilarious satire.” ~ Kirkus Reviews

Who would like this book? LITTLE WOMEN AND ME will appeal to adult fans of Little Women and girls ages 12 and up.

For more information visit http://laurenbaratzlogsted.com/

THE BLUE HOUSE DOG by Deborah Blumenthal

Love heals the heart is the message of this heartwarming picture book about a boy who saves a homeless dog and vice versa. Cody had his own dog once, but his painful loss is buried deeper than the feeding dish he hides away in his closet. All that changes when he comes upon a four-footed friend needier than he is — a sad, lost dog from a mysterious blue house and both learn to trust and love again.

Based on a true story.

Who would like this book? Dog lovers of all ages.

For more information visit http://deborahblumenthal.com

MOTHERS AND OTHER LIARS by Amy Bourret

How far will a mother go to save her child? Ten years ago, Ruby Leander was a drifting nineteen-year-old who made a split-second decision at an Oklahoma rest stop. Fast forward nine years: Ruby and her daughter Lark live in New Mexico. Lark is a precocious, animal loving imp, and Ruby has built a family for them with a wonderful community of friends and her boyfriend of three years. Life is good. Until the day Ruby reads a magazine article about parents searching for an infant kidnapped by car-jackers. Then Ruby faces a choice no mother should have to make. A choice that will change both her and Lark’s lives forever.

Who would like this book? Anyone, especially book clubs who like a good moral debate, will like this smart, haunting, and gorgeously written debut novel that propels a whip-smart plot that will keep you thinking.

For more information visit www.amybourret.com

A SUMMER IN EUROPE by Marilyn Brant

It’s not where you go, it’s what you take back with you… On her 30th birthday, Gwendolyn Reese receives an unexpected present from her widowed Aunt Bea: a grand European tour in the company of Bea’s Sudoku-and-Mahjongg Club. Gwen initially approaches her first trip abroad as if it’s the homework she assigns her students, diligently checking monuments off her must-see list. But amid the gorgeous bougainvillea of southern Italy, something changes. She begins to live in the moment—skipping down stone staircases in Capri, racing through the Louvre and taste-testing pastries, wine and gelato. Reveling in every new experience—especially her attraction to a charismatic British physics professor—Gwen discovers the ancient wonders around her are nothing compared to the renaissance unfolding within…

Who would like this book? Romantics and lovers of travel fiction who might enjoy a grand journey of self awakening amidst the classic architecture and stunning vistas of Europe.

For more information visit http://www.marilynbrant.com

CHILDREN OF THE WATERS by Carleen Brice

Still reeling from divorce, Trish Taylor is in the midst of salvaging the remnants of her life when she uncovers a shocking secret: her sister is alive. After years of drawing on the strength of her ancestors, Billie Cousins is shocked to discover that she was adopted. Though Trish longs to connect with her long-lost sister, Billie’s feelings of betrayal are waters too deep to cross. But when both women are forced to confront their demons, they begin to realize that each may have what the other needs.

Who would like this book? This is a contemporary story between two women who discover they are sisters. Great for fans of smart, moving women’s fiction. Women in interracial relationships or with mixed-race children will especially like it.

For more information visit www.carleenbrice.com

AN APPETITE FOR MURDER by Lucy Burdette

Aspiring food critic Hayley Snow follows the man of her dreams to Key
West, FL. Instead of landing the job of her dreams as a food critic,
she lands in the police blotter, the main suspect in her now-ex’s new
girlfriend’s murder.

Who would like this book? Fans of Diane Mott Davidson’s cozy culinary
mysteries will enjoy this book.

For more information visit http://lucyburdette.com/buy-the-books/

SLIM TO NONE by Jenny Gardiner

Abbie Jennings is Manhattan’s top food critic until her expanding waistline makes staying incognito at restaurants impossible. Her cover blown on Page Six of the New York Post, her editor has no choice but to bench her—and suggest she use the time off to bench-press her way back to anonymity. Abbie’s life has been built around her career, and therefore around celebrating food. Forced to drop the pounds if she wants her primo gig back, Abbie must peel back the layers of her past and confront the fears that have led to her current life.

Who would like this book? SLIM TO NONE is the perfect book for anyone who’s ever gone on a diet (or believes they should).

For more information visit www.jennygardiner.net

MY JANE AUSTEN SUMMER by Cindy Jones

A young woman who has squeezed herself into undersized relationships all her life hopes to realize her dream of living in a novel when she is invited to participate in a Jane Austen literary festival in England. She jumps at the chance to reinvent herself, imagining escape into Austen’s fictional world where bookish women are heroines. There, in the rich, promising world of Mansfield Park, Lily finds people whose longing to live in a novel equals her own. But real-life problems have a way of following you wherever you go and unless Lily can change her ways, she will share the fate of so many of Jane Austen’s characters who repeat the same mistakes over and over again.

Who would like this book? MY JANE AUSTEN SUMMER is a fast-paced, romantic, and humorous book that will appeal to book lovers, especially those who can’t get enough Jane Austen.

For more information visit www.cindysjones.com

ALL THE NUMBERS by Judy Merrill Larsen

An arresting, heartbreaking, and ultimately hopeful first novel. A recently divorced mother of two boys, Ellen Banks is just learning to make her way through the uncharted territory of single parenthood when the unthinkable happens. Determined to seek justice, and to mend the deep wounds in her family, Ellen must first heal herself, finding a way out of a grief that soon turns to defiance. This is an unforgettable journey of power and emotion, poignantly depicting a woman as she reckons with her own vulnerability and finds in the wisdom of motherhood, the redemptive grace to begin again.

Who would like this book? ALL THE NUMBERS is great for discussion so it’s perfect for anyone in a book club or who just wants characters you’ll argue with, worry about, and hope they make the right choices (and yes, I love connecting with book clubs!).

For more information visit http://www.judymerrilllarsen.com/

LITTLE BLACK DRESS by Susan McBride

Two sisters whose lives seemed forever intertwined are torn apart when a magical little black dress gives each one a glimpse of an unavoidable future.

Antonia Ashton has worked hard to build a thriving career and a committed relationship, but she realizes her life has gone off track. Forced to return home to Blue Hills when her mother, Evie, suffers a massive stroke, Toni finds the old Victorian where she grew up as crammed full of secrets as it is with clutter. Now she must put her mother’s house in order—and uncover long-buried truths about Evie and her aunt, Anna, who vanished fifty years earlier on the eve of her wedding. By shedding light on the past, Toni illuminates her own mistakes and learns the most unexpected things about love, magic, and a little black dress with the power to break hearts . . . and mend them.

Who would like this book? The story of the Little Black Dress weaves together bits of history, mystery, magic, and family, so I hope it appeals to readers who love women’s fiction in the vein of Kate Morton and Sarah Addison Allen.

For more information visit http://SusanMcBride.com

THE OTHER LIFE by Ellen Meister

“A resonant story about the importance of mothers, both having one and being one … making for a riveting tale of love and choices.” – BookPage

Quinn Braverman has a perfect life, with a loving husband, an adorable son, and another baby on the way.

Quinn also has an ominous secret: she knows there’s a portal to another life, one in which she made totally different life choices. But she’s never been tempted to switch lives … until a shocking turn of events pushes her to cross over, and she discovers the one person she thought she’d lost forever. Her mother.

But Quinn can’t have both lives. Soon, she must decide which she really wants—the one she has … or the other life.

Who would like this book? Anyone interested in the beautiful, heartbreaking and complicated relationships between mothers and daughters.

For more information visit ellenmeister.com

MOMFRIENDS by Ariella Papa

Momfriends is a story of three vastly different people who meet through motherhood and become friends through womanhood.

Ruth is almost at the end of her rope with her new baby when a knock on her door changes everything. Claudia’s life is all about rules. Everything is going perfectly until a flirtation with colleague makes her throw out her rule book.

And Kirsten is an artist and a dreamer. What she discovers late one night confirms that her life is not everything she dreamed. Momfriends is about how people roll with lives they can’t control. And whether they choose to swim with the current or against it, it’s about the realization that everyone needs someone to throw out a life preserver once in a while.

Who would like this book? Momfriends makes the perfect gift for your best friend, the new mom in the neighborhood or the mom you’d like to invite over. It’s an ebook so it’s even easier to read and multi-task.

For more information visit ariellapapa.com

DEAR NEIGHBOR, DROP DEAD by Saralee Rosenberg

In Mindy’s yoga-obsessed, thirty-is-the-new-wife neighborhood, every day is a battle between Dunkin’ Donuts, her jaws-of-life jeans, and Beth Diamond, the self-absorbed sancti-mommy next door who looks sixteen from the back. So much for sharing the chores, the stores, and the occasional mischief to rival Wisteria Lane.

It’s another day, another dilemma until Beth’s marriage becomes fodder on Facebook. Suddenly the Ivy League blonde needs to be “friended,” and Mindy is the last mom standing. Together they take on hormones and hunger, family feuds and fidelity, and a harrowing journey that spills the truth about an unplanned pregnancy and a seventy-year-old miracle that altered their fates forever.

Dear Neighbor, Drop Dead is a hilarious, stirring romp over fences and defenses that begs the question, what did you do to deserve living next door to a crazy woman? Sometimes it’s worth finding out.

Who would like this book? DEAR NEIGHBOR, DROP DEAD is perfect for anyone who loves to discover friendship in surprising places … while laughing out loud on every page.

For more information visit saraleerosenberg.com

MIMOSAS, MISCHIEF, AND MURDER by Sara Rosett

“Charm, Southern sass, and suspense abound in the sixth delightful cozy mystery.” –FreshFiction.com

Super-organized Ellie thinks she’s prepared for everything when she and her family set off for an extended visit with her southern in- laws in Alabama, but the one thing she hasn’t planned for is cold-blooded murder. When the patriarch of the family passes away under suspicious circumstances, the quirky Avery family closes ranks and Ellie can’t help looking for motives among the mourners.

Publisher’s Weekly called it “winning” and described it this way: “A rumor of hidden money, secret letters from a famous recluse, a fire, a threatening message, and a crazed gunman add to the cozy mischief.”

Who would like this book? Fans of mysteries and southern fiction will enjoy Mimosas, Mischief, and Murder.

For more information visit http://sararosett.com

BEAUTIFUL DISASTER by Laura Spinella

As a college student in Athens, Georgia, Mia Wells meets Flynn, an enigmatic stranger who pushes every boundary she knows. Their relationship is intense, passionate and, for Mia, life-changing, making it all the more painful when he vanishes. After finding the wherewithal to move on with her life and pursue her goals, Mia eventually marries. Twelve years later, Flynn mysteriously resurfaces, gravely injured. Mia is terrified that he will die, awestruck at the prospect of his survival. Flynn’s return ignites a powerful tale, a story that is greater than honor or friendship or the passing of time. More than a romance, this 2011 Penguin release was recently named Best First Book in the NJRWA Golden Leaf contest.

Who would like this book? BEAUTIFUL DISASTER is women’s fiction with a heavy thread of romance, making it the perfect book for readers who like relationship fiction that includes a thought provoking love story.

For more information visit lauraspinella.net

LOVE IN TRANSLATION by Wendy Nelson Tokunaga

After receiving a puzzling phone call and a box full of mysteries, Celeste Duncan, 33, is off to Japan to search for a long, lost relative who could hold the key to the identity of the father she never knew. There she stumbles head first down the rabbit hole into a weird, wonderful world where nothing is quite as it seems.

Not knowing Japanese, Celeste finds a friend in her English-speaking homestay brother, Takuya, and comes to depend on him for help. As they cross the country following a trail after Celeste’s family, she discovers she’s developing “more-than-sisterly” feelings for him. But with a nosy homestay mother scheming to reunite Takuya with his old girlfriend, and her search growing dimmer, will Celeste find what she’s looking for in Japan?

Who would like this book? Love in Translation will appeal to armchair travelers who love a good love story!

For more information visit: http://www.WendyTokunaga.com

Most of the these books are available at your favorite bookstore. To buy online, visit the author’s page for ordering links.

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HOW A LITTLE CAN CHANGE A LOT by Jessica Dotta

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NOTE FROM CHRISTA: This post was originally written by Jessica Dotta for the Inspire a Fire blog, and I’m participating in Gina Holmes’ call to tithe my blog by copying here. If you could help the poorest of the poor just by running an article, would you be willing? If so, just copy and paste onto your blog.
“We have much to be judged on when he comes, slums and battlefields and insane asylums, but these are the symptoms of our illness and the result of our failures in love.” – Madeleine L’Engle

When my brother traveled to the Sudan he had an encounter that changed his life—and as it ends up, mine too.

He stood in Darfur at an orphanage filled with children leftover from the genocide. There were over 800 children, and during the night wild dogs were dragging them off and killing them.

My brother already felt shell-shocked from the travesties he’d witnessed in Uganda.

The day was hot. The sun beat down upon him. His camera had nearly been ruined from all the dust. He’d barely slept. His gear was heavy. Yet his conscience was seared by the numbness he felt, so he turned and confessed to a Sudanese pastor.

“We shall pray right now that your heart will be opened,” he was told.

Not long after that prayer three young children approached Joshua and started to follow him. After a bit, his father nature kicked in and he stopped and sang Father Abraham. It didn’t take long before the four of them were dancing and going through the motions.

When they finished, he asked the children to tell him how they came to be there.

The oldest, a girl, answered. “The soldiers came and shot my mother and father, so I came here.”

The two other children nodded in agreement. “Me, too.”

He was grief struck, but it was what transpired next that tore my heart. “Do you have a Mommy?” The little girl asked my brother.

“Yes,” he answered.

“And a Daddy?”

Again, his answer was yes.

“Oh,” she said, her voice hinting at a strange intermingling of numbness and grief.

Her question stirs me still. For I believe it came from her soul and revealed the thoughts of her heart. She didn’t want to know what his country was like, what kind of food he ate, or what he did for a living. She had her own bullet holes leftover from the genocide. Her world consisted of this single question: Who still had parents and who didn’t?

In her questions I heard her worry and fear. Imagine being trapped in a war-torn country, a land of famine, drought and disease. Imagine trying to survive it as an orphan with death threatening you every hour. No matter how much she’s endured, at the end of the day, she’s still just a little girl. And all she really wants is her Mom and Dad.

I imagined my daughter living as an orphan in the Sudan. If I were shot and dying, it would be my hope that my brothers and sisters would care for her. But what if her aunts and uncles were killed too? What was it then, that her parents hoped?

As members of the body of Christ these children are not alone. They have aunts and uncles. Multitudes and multitudes and multitudes of them. Talk about staggering! These kids are our nieces and nephews! Mine. Yours.

So who, I wondered, within the church has the responsibility to step in?

I didn’t like the answer that came. Earlier that week I was shocked to learn that globally I was one of the richest people in the world—even though as an American, I’m pretty poor.

Like it or not I was the rich aunt. I had knowledge of the situation. That made me accountable.

I wasn’t comfortable with the knowledge then, and I’m not comfortable with the knowledge now. But I am determined to do something. Anything.

That day Joshua had in his possession a picture book that someone had asked him to give to someone in the Sudan. It was a children’s book with a story about how we have a Heavenly Father who always loves and cares for us. Joshua read the book and gave it to them.

An American woman took it upon herself to raise the money to build shelter. Every person who donated, even a dollar, helped to create a place where the little girl now sleeps safe from wild dogs.

When Joshua told me he’s going to start a branch of Watermelon Ministries called Media Change, a non-profit encouraging Americans to give up a portion of the money spent on entertainment to serve those fighting world hunger and thirst, I wanted to support it.

For seven years he’s helped non-profits raise money that serves the “least of these.” He’s seen the impact a small investment can have. This is a brand new initiative. He’s not quite ready to launch, but you can sign up and be kept updated at www.mediachange.org. His first goal is garner the support of 10,000 people who are willing to give $10 a month. I’m number #3.

This is only a blog post, but who knows what one blog post can do.

What if the task of helping others isn’t as overwhelming as we make it?

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What time is it? Thyme for Love with Pamela S. Meyers

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April Love has always dreamed of being a chef.

But she didn’t expect a former fiancé or murder to be part of the recipe for her new job.

When April Love signs on to be an in-house chef at an old lakeshore mansion in Canoga Lake, Wisconsin, she comes face to face with her long-lost love, the drop-dead gorgeous Marc Thorne. It doesn’t take long for their old magnetism to recharge, but how can she trust the guy who left her nearly at the altar eight years earlier? Her gut tells her something happened to Marc in between—something he’s reluctant to reveal.

When April’s boss is murdered, Marc is accused of the crime. Unless April can find out who really killed Ramón Galvez, her chances for love will end up at the county jail. But someone else is just as determined she not solve the mystery…and will go to any length to stop her.

Q: Give us a little preview of Thyme for Love.

A: April Love has always dreamed of being a chef. When her Aunt Kitty hears of a in-house chef position for a non-profit organization housed in a lakeshore mansion next door, April returns to Canoga Lake, Wisconsin, where she’d spent many summers growing up, to apply for the job. When she discovers her former fiancé Marc Thorne working there, she wonders if this position was really God’s intention for her. After all, Marc all but left her standing at the altar to chase his own dreams in California. It doesn’t take long to realize Marc is hiding secrets and despite returning feelings for the man, April determines she will not make the same mistake as she did eight years earlier. But when their boss is found dead and Marc is framed for his murder, April has no choice but to turn sleuth to keep Marc from being accused of a murder he didn’t commit.

Q: What made you want to write this book?

A: I’ve always loved romance and mysteries, and decided to write a story that married the two elements together. I grew up in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin and have always been fascinated by the many 20^th Century mansions that dot the lake’s shoreline. I toyed with the idea of setting the story in one of those homes, but decided to create a smaller lake and village just to the east of Lake Geneva to gain more freedom with some of the details of the story and its characters. I loved having the area located close enough to Lake Geneva that April and Marc could go there for a meal at one of the actual restaurants there. I also gave them backgrounds that involve working on Geneva Lake as many college students do during the summer months.

Q: Have you always wanted to be a writer?

A: In one way or another I’ve always written almost since I could hold a pencil. When I was eight years old I asked for a diary for Christmas and I wrote in it at different times of my childhood. I still have that little book and it contains bits and pieces of my life from age eight until sometime in high school. Even into my adult years I’d journal from time to time, but never thought of turning that “need” to put words to paper into a career until years later. While completing my bachelor’s through an accelerated adult program, one of my professors suggested I could make a living writing. I published several magazine articles, but as the hankering to write stories grew stronger, I began taking fiction writing classes. At a local writer’s conference a multipublished author suggested I could turn one of my short stories into a novel. That was all I needed to hear. I soon joined American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) while the organization was in its infancy and through their writing courses and conferences I continued to grow in the craft.

Q: Have you written other novels besides Thyme for Love?

Oh yes. My first novel which I would classify as a women’s fiction languishes in my computer at the moment. Authors very seldom publish their first written work as that often turns out to be a practice project. The storyline still resonates with me and I’d love to one day pull it out and rework it. There are a couple other stories that will probably never see the light of day. I’m very excited to have a novel set in my hometown of Lake Geneva, Love Finds You in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, coming out in June 2012 from Summerside Press. It’s a 1933 historical romance, and I had a blast researching for the story.

Q. Do you have any plans for a sequel to Thyme for Love?

A. I’m so glad you asked. Thyme for Love is part of a three-book series called “On the Road to Love.” Books 2 and 3 involved April and Marc, and both are set in Canoga Lake. In Book 2, Love Will Find a Way, April moves into an old Victorian home with plans to turn it into a restaurant and catering business. It isn’t long before a discovery made while they are renovating the home threatens to hijack plans for the grand opening. In Book three, Love’s Reward, April and Marc’s wedding plans are in full swing, until it becomes apparent there is someone who doesn’t want them to marry.

Q. How do you get your story ideas?

A. There’s an old adage to write what you know. I might add to that, to always keep your eyes and ears open for a possible story line. That first novel I wrote was sparked by something someone said to me when she showed me a picture of my great-grandfather’s grave. My Love Finds You in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin story grew out of wanting to know the history behind the beautiful lakeshore recreational building that has become an icon of the area. Just today a newspaper article sparked an idea I’d like to develop into a proposal.

Q. What is your daily writing routine?

A. My best writing time is morning, but I’ve had to make myself work outside the box at times when that kind of schedule doesn’t work. Since I am a morning person, I find it best to set my alarm as if I’m going to work. I get up at 5:30 and spend at least an hour in my Quiet Time with God. Then I try to walk daily for exercise before settling down in my home office to write. I recently converted unused space in my dining are into an office and that has helped tremendously with getting the sense of “going to work.” This helps me stay on task. Too many years actually working Monday through Friday probably contributes to that. On days I have an obligation away from home in the morning, I have had to force myself to be creative in the afternoon and early evening. I think as I start working on deadlines more and more that’s going to be essential.

Q. What advice do you have for new authors?

A. Persevere, persevere, and persevere. I started out aspiring to be published in novel writing more than ten years ago. I had the raw ability and desire to write, but that skill had to be trained and honed, much like a young colt has to be trained. I have learned that writers need to develop what we jokingly refer to as rhino skin and also we need a positive teachable attitude. Join critique groups, take writing courses, attend writing conferences where great teaching occurs and you’ll have opportunities to meet with industry professionals and pitch to editors and agents. ACFW has a great yearly conference ever September that is for fiction writers only. I cannot tout ACFW enough. It is a must organization to join for anyone who writes fiction from a Christian point of view.

Q. When you aren’t writing, what fills your days?

A. I volunteer at my church in the multicultural ministry, helping Japanese women learn to speak English and lead a women’s small group Bible study. I’m also chapter president of my local ACFW chapter which meets monthly. Also, I enjoy reading (surprise, surprise) and movies. Love to cook and find new ways of making things. You’ll find an adaptation of a recipe someone gave me called Chicken George at the back of Thyme for Love. I loved having April prepare it in the novel, and look forward to experimenting

A native of Lake Geneva, Wisc., Pamela Meyers currently lives in Arlington Heights, Ill. She served on the Operating Board for ACFW 2005-2009, and is president of her local ACFW chapter. Her debut novel Thyme for Love releases November 14, 2011, and her historical that is set in her hometown, Love Finds You in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, will release in June 2012. She has published articles in Today’s Christian Woman, Christian Computing, Victory in Grace, and Ancestry. She is also a contributor in the compilation book, His Forever.

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WHAT ARE THE TOP THREE QUESTIONS ASKED OF WRITERS? GUEST POST by RICHARD MABRY

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Note from Christa: I first met Richard four years ago when we were both on the verge of publishing our first novels with Abingdon Press. He now serves as Vice-President of the American Christian Fiction Writers. His novel, Lethal Remedy, was nominated for ACFW’s Carol Award. Richard gives generously of his time and talents. He is an encourager and supporter, and I have appreciated and enjoyed his friendship.

When people discover I’m a published author, they always have questions. “How much money do you make from this?” Not nearly enough. “Is it difficult to get published?” No more difficult than swimming the English Channel with one hand tied behind your back and an anchor on your leg. And the number one question, “Where do you get your ideas?”

I hadn’t given much thought to the origin of my ideas until I’d been asked that question a number of times. And as I considered it, I realized that sometimes these things just seem to materialize in my brain and take on a life of their own.

My first novel, Code Blue, is about a young doctor who flees from her big city practice when her life falls apart, going back to her hometown only to find that some of the people don’t want her there, and at least one wants her dead. The book begins with a black SUV running her vehicle off the road, and I had that scene in my head when I began writing, but frankly, beyond that, I was totally winging it. I’m a seat-of-the-pants writer anyway, and for this one, I just let my imagination take me forward. My characters surprised me at times, and I honestly didn’t know who the villain was going to be until I started writing the last few chapters of the book.

The books that came afterward had varying origins. The focus of Medical Error is medical identity theft—that is, someone stealing an identity and using it to obtain medical treatment. I began pursuing this because one of my family members is almost paranoid about identity theft, having been a victim. The third book, Diagnosis Death, features a doctor accused of the mercy killings of several patients. I started writing that one after a similar charge was leveled at a colleague (who was subsequently exonerated). My most recent novel, Lethal Remedy, centers around a “what-if” scenario: what if one or more of the people involved in researching a new drug decided to falsify data and hide side effects in order to get the drug on the market?

There’s not a lot connecting these books, is there? The common thread is that they sprang from my day-to-day experiences, resulting in ideas I thought were worth pursuing. Do I have other ideas? I have a number of them, preserved on my hard disk and in my memory, and I’ll pursue them one at a time in novels as long as I’m able.

So, back to the question, “Where do you get your ideas?” The answer is simple. They’re the product of life, experience, circumstances, and an active imagination. What more does a writer need?

MORE ABOUT RICHARD:

Author of Prescription for Trouble series

Lethal Remedy, Abingdon Press, Oct 2011

http://www.rmabry.com

http://rmabry.blogspot.com

http://facebook.com/RichardMabry

RICHARD’S BIO: Dr. Richard Mabry retired from medicine after a distinguished career as a respected clinician, teacher, writer, and researcher. He entered the field of non-medical writing with the publication of his book, The Tender Scar: Life After The Death Of A Spouse, written after the death of his first wife. Richard is the author of the Prescription For Trouble series of medical thrillers. He and his wife Kay make their home in North Texas.

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Why I write

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I write because there is no one left in my life who knew me before I knew myself.

I write because I can talk to the paper and not be interrupted or misunderstood or frozen mid-sentence by a quizzical stare from a listener’s eyes.

I write because I can’t (nor would you want to watch me) sing or dance or paint or sculpt or provide anything else of artistic value to the universe other than what I can create with my paper and pen.

I write because my days are numbered; I have less days to live than I have already lived, and the abstraction of mortality is waning, replaced by the very concreteness of careening years.

I write because I kept my mouth shut for too many years of my life. I write because I could exorcise the ghosts of the past, the goblins of the present, the amorphous fears of the future wielding a cheap plastic-barreled pen and a college-ruled notebook.

I write because words spoken are swallowed by time. Words written are meals cooked today for a banquet to be held later. I write because I have lived an unexpected life and the surprises–both full of dread and full of awe–would otherwise drift uncharted.

I write because I want my children to know me, not mother me or wife me, or sister me, or aunt me, or grandmother me. But Christa Me. The deep and the shallow places. I want them to have access to bits of my soul, perhaps slices of me that they may not hunger for until I am no longer here to feed them.

I write because, in doing so, I shape the memories, give them words that will be my eternal life breaths.

6:29 am // Blog,Writing // Comments (6)

What closet are you coming out of?

1:12 pm // Blog,Blogroll,Faith,Issues,Limbs on the Family Tree,Relationships // Comments (14)

Today is National Coming Out Day, and I intended to write a post about its significance because I am the sister of a gay brother, and because my second novel, The Edge of Grace, is partially based on our experiences.

In looking for a picture to use with the post, I tripped across the one you see above. It brought me to Canyonwalker Connections, an I-58 mission by Kathy, who states on her site her mission is: “Loosen the chains of injustice, untie the cords of the yoke, set the oppressed free and break every yoke. Then you will be called Repairer of the Breach.” Isaiah 58. To educate and create dialogue between the Christian Church and the glbt Christian community.”

In thinking about the idea of “coming out,” it occurred to me that not only is the closet not limited to gender as in gays, lesbians, transsexuals and bisexuals; it’s crowded with straight people too. Only they’re closeted in their racism, discrimination, prejudice.

For example, the ones who look around and, not seeing faces of color, begin telling jokes about people of other races or religions. As the wife of a Jewish husband, whose daughter’s husband is black, you’d be amazed (or maybe, sadly, not) at what I hear from people who do not know my family. Pillars of the community on the outside, but their mortar is crumbling on the inside.

People with alcohol, drug, gambling and other addictions are smashed into the closet as well. Doing their best to maintain the facade of “Biff and Buffy” with all their friends and family, they hope the closet door doesn’t have a window.

And, smashed in the closet are straight Christians as well. I’m not just talking about the ones who secretly watch The Ellen DeGeneres Show or The Nate Berkus Show. There are Christians who struggle with all sorts of issues who fear revealing the dysfunction in their own families. And sharing that closet are Christians who tell me things like, “You know, my (insert name of family member) is gay, and I’m okay with it, but….”

Kathy is clearly a brilliant woman because she read my mind about the post I intended to write today, only she wrote it a year ago. In her post, “I’m Coming out as an Ally for GLBT Christians,” Karen writes:

“Yes, I run into closeted Christians all the time. And no, they are not gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. They are straight, like me. But, they love their GLBT friends and family and are coming to a realization that what they’ve been told or thought they understood may not be the heart of God. They see honor, integrity and even Jesus and the Holy Spirit in their GLBT friends. Evidenced in the very same group they have been told cannot possible be Christian because they are queer. In some churches, it is not safe to even ask questions about homosexuality, about any thing. So, how can they dare openly dialogue about this issue, this hot button topic in most Christian congregations?”

I’ve paid a price for writing The Edge of Grace, especially because it’s published under a Christian publisher’s imprint. There are those Christians who have not confronted me or my publisher directly, only in thinly veiled references to my novel, suggesting any critical acclaim for it came from sycophantic Christians. Some who would be content if my Christian baptism could be retroactive. I know my novel brings up questions, and I never claimed to be an authority on psychology or theology. I’m a storyteller, and I know my experiences and my characters’ experiences. I believe Jesus called us to love. Period.

As Karen so aptly stated: “Is there a cost to coming out as affirming? Yes, there can be. Most likely not as extreme as my upfront price. You may get labeled as ; heretic, unbeliever, unrepentant, tool of Satan, words I don’t say or write (and that is by Christians!), lesbian, “at minimal” bisexual or gay. People will argue with you over non-related topics because surely you must now be misguided, stupid and have never studied the Scriptures. Others will unfriend you, unfollow you, unlike you. All because you think Jesus was telling the truth when He said to love your neighbors unconditionally and that “whosoever” really does mean whosoever.”

I encourage you to read the rest of her post HERE.

Overwhelming though, I’ve also been blessed, even by those who may not agree with the message of the book, but who respect the relationship my brother and I share, and who acknowledge that it gave them cause to consider “the other side” as it were.

I hope in 2013, we can look at National Coming Out day as one that gives us pause and cause to consider what we’re holding on to that we fear may cause us to be judged by others.

What closet do you need to come out of?

1:12 pm // Blog,Blogroll,Faith,Issues,Limbs on the Family Tree,Relationships // Comments (14)

The Language of Flowers:Vanessa Diffenbaugh

1:06 am // Blog,Reviews // Comments (6)

“For eight years I dreamed of fire. Trees ignited as I passed them; oceans burned. The sugary smoke settled in my hair as I slept, the scent like a cloud left on my pillow as I rose. Even so, the moment my mattress started to burn, I bolted awake. The sharp, chemical smell was nothing like the hazy syrup of my dreams; the two were as different as Indian and Carolina jasmine, separation and attachment. They could not be confused. Standing in the middle of the room, I located the source of the fire. A neat row of wooden matches lined the foot of the bed. They ignited, one after the next, a glowing picket fence across the piped edging. Watching them light, I felt a terror unequal to the size of the flickering flames, and for a paralyzing moment I was ten years old again, desperate and hopeful in a way I had never been before and would never be again.

But the bare synthetic mattress did not ignite like the thistle had in late October. It smoldered, and then the fire went out.

It was my eighteenth birthday.”

And so begins The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh, and I am awake until the early morning hours because I can’t bring myself to stop reading. It is only when I hear my husband’s alarm, at three in the morning, that I realize how much time has passed. I force myself to sleep, so I can wake up and finish. When I do, I close the book, and think it was a novel I wish I had written.

Victoria Jones, the protagonist, is at once haunting, engaging and achingly real. Flashbacks to her ten-year-old self in the foster care system break you open. At eighteen, she is released from the system and begins to make her way through the world. It’s not pretty…she’s distrusting, hesitant, and awkward. Yet, she communicates through her extensive knowledge of flowers, their meaning, their ability to reflect feelings and emotions.

I found myself, at points, exhausted from pulling for her and urging her on because for a woman who can see with such deep clarity into others, she remains an enigma to herself. She makes a sacrifice that, as a mother myself, I found sacrificial and so reflective of her hesitancy to allow herself to feel deeply for another human being after her own experiences.

I hesitate to reveal too much in this review because what I loved about this novel was its surprising twists and discoveries. It was unlike anything I had ever read, and I only wish I could read it again for the first time.

Don’t just read this novel. Savor it.

ABOUT THE BOOK

The Victorian language of flowers was used to convey romantic expressions: honeysuckle for devotion, aster for patience, and red roses for love. But for Victoria Jones, it’s been more useful in communicating grief, mistrust, and solitude. After a childhood spent in the foster-care system, she is unable to get close to anybody, and her only connection to the world is through flowers and their meanings.

Now eighteen and emancipated from the system, Victoria has nowhere to go and sleeps in a public park, where she plants a small garden of her own. Soon a local florist discovers her talents, and Victoria realizes that she has a gift for helping others through the flowers she chooses for them. But a mysterious vendor at the flower market inspires her to question what’s been missing in her life. And when she’s forced to confront a painful secret from her past, she must decide whether it’s worth risking everything for a second chance at happiness.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Vanessa Diffenbaugh was born in San Francisco and raised in Chico, California. After studying creative writing and education at Stanford, she went on to teach art and writing to youth in low-income communities. She and her husband, PK, have three children: Tre’von, eighteen; Chela, four; and Miles, three. Tre’von, a former foster child, is attending New York University on a Gates Millennium Scholarship. Diffenbaugh and her family currently live in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where her husband is studying urban school reform at Harvard.

Vanessa Diffenbaugh is also the founder of the Camellia Network. The mission of the Camellia Network is to create a nationwide movement to support youth transitioning from foster care. In The Language of Flowers, Camellia [kuh-meel-yuh] means “My Destiny is in Your Hands.” The network’s name emphasizes the belief in the interconnectedness of humanity: each gift a young person receives will be accompanied by a camellia, a reminder that the destiny of our nation lies in the hands of our youngest citizens.

Thank you to Pump Up Your Book and Vanessa Diffenbaugh for the review copy of this novel.

1:06 am // Blog,Reviews // Comments (6)

Humor in the rear view mirror

9:34 am // Blog,Education // Comments (6)

I’m on sabbatical this semester, so when I found this post from the beginning of a not-so-distant school year, I laughed. The passage of time can truly contribute to humor.

Since it’s almost midnight, and I have to roll out of bed in almost five hours, I’m going to give the microwave version of the past two weeks:

1. I’m simultaneously amused and enraged by the insolent arrogance of some freshmen who inform me that reading and “writting” will “defiantly” not be important in their future.

2. I have a student who buys books from “barns and nobles.”

3. Another student said that he “learned last year how to profread better.”

4. The favorite book of another is Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Zeus.

5. As for receiving feedback on writing, this student shared: “A teacher who doesn’t writhe on my paper doesn’t care much about what I write.”

6. How did this student learn to write? “Teachers taught me letters of the alphabet which obliviously helped.”

7. Another student is “writing an autobiography of his grandmother’s life.”

8. Writing issues noted in papers submitted to date:

no use of apostrophes when writing contractions, so I find myself “decoding” the following: dont, cant, arent, isnt, wont, theyre, Ill

less than 10% of my students use cursive; I don’t mind that they print…what I mind is that they print IN ALL CAPS or in all lower case. If the periods ending their sentences aren’t the size of green peas, I don’t know where one sentence ends and another begins

use of “i” for personal pronoun “I” is gaining popularity

so far, not one student is using hearts or asterisks to dot the letters “i,j”

usage errors are multiplying faster than clunker cars: your/you’re, their/there/they’re, its/it’s, then/than are the major problems

we’re chanting ” a lot is two words”

paragraphing is apparently becoming obsolete

And, in closing, I’m reminded by one student that “going to collage is important because he wants to become a veet.”

What situations in your life may be funny now that weren’t so much so when they happened?

9:34 am // Blog,Education // Comments (6)

Are you ready for publication?

9:51 am // Blog,Writing // Comments (6)

Not your manuscript. You.

Here’s the test: Strip down to your pre-fall Garden of Eden nakedness and stand on the fifty-yard line during halftime at the Super Bowl while everyone submits critiques of your body on the JumboTron.

If you can handle that without buckets of drugs and/or a lifetime of therapy, then you’re probably ready. Because here’s what I’ve come to learn a year after my debut novel was published and months after the release of my second:

1. You can’t follow your writing. I’ve been chanting this to my students for years (I teach high school English…on a good day), but this never became so alive to me as it has since my own words hit print. If I could tap a reader on the shoulder as she’s finishing my book, I could explain why I phrased that sentence a certain way or why included that simile. The ending of my novel is most frequently slammed. Might I have ended it differently had I known the sequel wouldn’t have been contracted? Perhaps. But as one reader at a book club stated: “I think how people react to the ending says more about them than it does about the ending itself.” Crazily, that’s been true more often than I would have expected.

2. You can’t obsess over ratings. Some days, my Amazon and Goodreads ratings plunge faster than the stock market. When I find myself getting angsty over a drop from 4.2 to 3.25, I look at the front page of the newspaper. It’s called perspective.

3. You are not your writing. Okay, maybe I am in that a writer invests so much of him/herself into a novel. When I read a review like this: “Buying and reading this book was the biggest waste of money and time since buying the magical egg peeler the infomercials. It was horribly written and tedious,” I make a conscious effort to not personalize it as if I’m horrible and tedious (well, don’t count this week any week I’m grading research papers). It also helps to envision dropping the reviewer in a vat of crunchy peanut butter.

If you’re a pre-published writer who feels compelled to vehemently defend or sarcastically retort to someone who has critiqued your writing…fasten your seatbelt. Dealing with an assessment of your writing that might suggest it needs more work pales in comparison to some reviews you may receive. When my publisher generously offered free Kindle downloads of my novel, I read several lovely reviews. Others…not so much. Just a few of the top vitriolic ones:

~the ending was so terrible I could barely justify this 3 (rating)

~this book was unrealistic and a waste of my time

~confusing and in my humble opinion, pointless

But to quote Joyce Magnin of the amazing Bright’s Pond books, “here’s the thing”: If now and forever, all I ever have is that one response from that one reader who said she saw herself in Leah (my protagonist) and changed her life because of that…the emotional nakedness was worth the price.

So, if your response to this is, “Bring it on!” then you are R-E-A-D-Y.