Wow! Where has summer gone? Are you ready for fall? Ready to get back to more interesting posts on here? I am. But it was nice to have a break and be able to focus on other things this summer.

I have so many ideas for blog posts on here that it’s hard to decide just what to write first.

So many times fans read books and come up with questions they would love to have a favorite author answer. The only problem is, they don’t think they’ll ever meet that author in person, or if they did, they’d forget all the questions. That’s when emails are so nice. These are a few questions one such fan had for me. I hope you enjoy the answers.

What is your favorite book you’ve ever written?

Oh, dear, that’s a tough question. I think it might be Gift from the Storm. But then, I’m really liking Finding Joy so . . . And writing Through the Tunnel was a delight because it almost wrote itself. I guess you might say I don’t have a favorite.

What was the inspiration for your books?

I get inspiration for my books from so many different places!

The Unexpected Request and Through the Tunnel were both inspired by photos on calendars. So was the first Graham Quartet book.

Home Fires of the Great War came about because of the lack of books for young people during that era.

The Triple Creek Ranch series was inspired by . . . What was it inspired by? I’m not sure. I created three characters, and . . . now I’m writing TCR-6.

Gift from the Storm was just a random idea that popped into my head one evening and I decided to write it down.

Finding Joy had the strangest inspiration! It was 2 seconds of an add (I didn’t know what the add was for at the time), and a picture on Pinterest.

I could go on, but I suppose it all comes down to trying to fill the need for good, wholesome stories that the entire family can enjoy is what really inspires me. Watching my niece and nephews growing up and loving books makes me want to keep writing knowing that there are other children in need of well told stories.

When and why did you start writing?

I didn’t start writing until after I had graduated from high school. Then I was just writing “pretend letters” with some friends because creating stories was more interesting than real life at the time since we saw each other at church every week. It wasn’t long before I realized that all those stories in my head could be written down!

Did the people around you influence your career of writing positively or negatively?

The influence has been positive. There have been times when I thought I would just quit writing. Either I was tired, no one seemed to be buying my books, I couldn’t get reviews or some other reason. But I was always encouraged to keep going. Just because one day, week or even month is slow, doesn’t mean no one needs to be encouraged by the stories I have to tell.

What was the hope for your books and the people who read them?

The hope for all my books is first that they would glorify my Heavenly Father, and second that they would bless and encourage those who read them. I’m always motivated to keep writing when I hear of someone being encouraged or refreshed by one of my books.

 

Do you have any questions you would like me to answer about my writing or my books? If so, leave them in a comment or send me a message and I’ll do my best to answer them.