Margaret Brownley's Dawn Comes Early

Today my guest is New York Times bestselling author Margaret Brownley. 

Thrills, mystery, suspense and romance: Margaret penned it all. Nothing wrong with this—except Margaret happened to be writing for the church newsletter. After making the church picnic read like a Grisham novel, her former pastor took her aside and said, "Maybe God's calling you to write fiction."

     

So that’s what Margaret did.

With more than 25 novels to her credit, the first book in her Brides of Last Chance Ranch series “Dawn Comes Early” was released this month. The book will be followed by Waiting for Morning January 2013.

Margaret’s first non-fiction book Grieving God’s Way: the Path to Hope and Healing will be published in July by Thomas Nelson. She wrote this book following the loss of her son and it’s especially close to her heart.

Anne – Welcome, Margaret. With so much to discuss and so little time, let’s get down to business and talk writing! Tell us about your book.

Margaret: It’s called Dawn Comes Early.

Heiress Wanted

Looking for hard-working, professional woman

of good character and pleasant disposition

willing to learn the ranching business in Arizona Territory.

Must be single and prepared to remain so now and forever more.

Her latest dime novel banned, twenty-nine-year old KATE TENNEY answers the above advertisement for heiress to an Arizona cattle ranch. It seems like the perfect solution for a disgraced novelist with no intention of getting married—ever.

Trouble begins the moment she steps foot in Arizona Territory. The west is nothing like she wrote about in her books. Not only does she have to deal with a hard-nosed ranch owner, and nefarious outlaw, but a traitorous heart. Kate does not trust men and has no intention of falling for LUKE ADAM’S charm. She’s determined to learn the ranching business and prove to the doubting ranch owner that she’s up to the task—if it kills her. If only she could stay away from a certain handsome blacksmith and his two matchmaking aunts.

Anne - How did you get the idea for the book?

Margaret - The idea was inspired by a group of fifty ladies of the First Church of Millford who formed a society of old maids in 1861. Each member vowed she would not marry. Each woman paid five dollars on admission with the principal going to the one who remained unmarried the longest. According to an article in The New York Times thirty years later all but fifteen of the original had married. I was never able to find out who won the prize—and being a romantic I sincerely hope that no one did—but where real life stops imagination takes off.

Anne - What do you enjoy most about writing? What part do you loathe?

Margaret - I love when characters start talking to me. That’s when I know my story is flowing. I just wish they wouldn’t be so chatty in the middle of the night. 

Promoting a book is close to the top of the “things I least like to do” list along with exercising and figuring out my tax return.

Anne – LOL. Tax returns are my least favorite thing, too! How many rejections have you received? Was one more memorable than others? Why?

Margaret - I could paper a house with the number rejections received through the years. I remember not just one but seventeen rejections in particular—all for a single title. I remember them because when the book finally sold, it sold big and helped launch a new line. That taught me to view rejections as a second (third, fourth or fifth) chance to get it right or find a better publisher. A rejection is not the end of a story; sometimes it’s only the beginning.

Anne – So true! Any words of advice for struggling, unpublished writers?

Margaret - Enjoy the journey. Being published comes with its own challenges so you really have to enjoy each step of the way, or you won’t survive. Surround yourself with a support group and celebrate every success. Celebrate when you finish a chapter; enter a contest; pop a query in the mail; or sign up for a writing workshop. This is what kept me going during the five years it took me to sell my first book, and it will keep you going, too.    

Anne - Have you experienced writer's block? If so, how did you work through it?

Margaret - Writer’s block is the subconscious telling you “this stinks.” Somewhere you made a wrong turn, lost your story or took your characters astray. The only way I know to fix the problem is to backtrack to where the problem first occurred. Apologize to your characters and start afresh. Try writing the chapter in another viewpoint. Sometimes (oddly enough) it helps to change a character’s name. It could simply be that your character outgrew your original vision and name.  

Anne – What’s this I hear about a “Daily Reasons to Smile” Contest?

Margaret – Characters from my new book Dawn Comes Early from the Brides of Last Chance Ranch series will send you a reason to smile every day until April 11th. Join in the fun and you could win a book, potted cactus (the story takes place in Arizona Territory) or an iPod Nano and alarm clock docking station. To enter send an email to info@NancyBerland.com. Be sure to put “Reason to Smile” in the subject line. That’s it!

Anne – I’ve enjoyed this immensely, Margaret, and wish readers the best of luck in your “Daily Reasons to Smile” contest.

To ensure you receive future Piedmont Island Trilogy posts, interviews or giveaways, why not become a follower on either GFC (Google Friend Connection) or NetworkedBlogs? It’s as easy as a click of the mouse. Thank you, and as always, happy reading!

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Sandra Orchard's Shades of Truth

My guest today is Sandra Orchard. Sandra lives in rural Ontario, Canada where inspiration abounds for her romantic suspense novels set in the fictional Niagara town she's created as their backdrop. Married with three grown children, when not writing, she enjoys hanging out with family, brainstorming new stories with fellow writers, and walking her dog in God's beautiful creation. An active member of ACFW, RWA, several of its chapters, and The Word Guild, Sandra likes to encourage aspiring writers. She also enjoys offering her readers “extras” to enhance their experience of her books

Anne – Welcome to my little corner of bloggerland, Sandra. When did you first realize you were destined to be a writer?

Sandra - In Grade One when one of my stories was printed in the school yearbook. Eventually school killed the creative side of my writing. I thought I’d write non-fiction. Then after my mom died, I discovered Christian fiction. Seeing characters face and triumph over trials similar to my own helped me tremendously. After several years of reading novels, a yearning grew to write them.

Anne - Tell us about your latest release.

Sandra - Shades of Truth is the second book in my Love Inspired Suspense series, Undercover Cops: Fighting for justice puts their lives—and hearts—on the line. However, you won’t be lost if you haven’t read the first novel. Each story stands alone. They simply share the same setting and some of the same characters. For example, the heroine in this book was the friend of Deep Cover’s heroine.

Here’s the blurb:

Big city detective Ethan Reed is working deep undercover at a Christian youth detention center. The kind of place he spent some harrowing time in as a kid. Ethan’s mission: ferret out who’s recruiting resident teens for a drug ring. He expects help from the lovely, devoted director of Hope Manor. But Kim Corbett won’t tell Ethan anything— even when she’s threatened and attacked. When Ethan discovers what Kim is protecting, his guarded heart opens just a bit wider. Enough to make this the most dangerous assignment of his career.

Anne - I LOVE the cover, btw. It's gorgeous! What do you enjoy most about writing? What part do you loathe?

Sandra - I enjoy brainstorming new stories. I love the energy and creativity and the feeling that I can take this story anywhere. I loathe getting bogged down in the middle of writing the story, feeling like it’s not interesting enough, or that the pace is wrong and then grappling to know how to fix it.

Anne - What is the most surprising thing you’ve learned about yourself from writing?

Sandra - That I really can dream up stories. For many years, I didn’t think I had the imagination needed, but I cultivated (or perhaps revived it) and now story ideas continually crop up everywhere I look!

Anne - Tell us about the defining moment when you felt as if you’d finally made it as an author.

Sandra - July 16, 2009. The night of the Daphne DuMaurier Award presentation at RWA’s national conference. The coordinator called me at home during the ceremony to tell me I won. I was thrilled. Over-the-moon excited. She tried to tell me more, but the event was too loud so she said she’d try later. After I hung up, I squealed and jumped up and down and hugged my family and squealed some more. Then I emailed a few writing friends who’d been rooting for me. Author Sandra Robbins emailed me back with “you didn’t just win your category, you won the whole show and an agent has requested it!” Needless to say, I went into another round of squealing and jumping. 

Anne – What a wonderful tale! I’m jumping up and down screaming, too! Would you share an excerpt of Shades of Truth with us?

Sandra – I thought you’d never ask!

EXCERPT (from front of book)

Kim’s expression hardened. “I was thinking about the damage that rumors of a hit and run by a former resident would do to the manor. I don’t expect you to understand, Ethan. You’ve only been here a day. You couldn’t possibly care about the manor’s survival the way I do.”

The woman was as loyal and compassionate as they came. How could he have suspected her of trying to protect a drug dealer?

“I’m sorry, Kim. I was out of line. Believe me, I want to help you.” More importantly, he wanted to get her out of here before the police connected her—or him—to the shooting. The last thing he needed was a cop unraveling his cover. “Come, on, I’ll drive you home.”

In the meantime, he needed descriptions of the kids vandalizing Kim’s car, because chances were good one of them shot Blake, or had seen who did. And Ethan needed to talk to them before the wrong cop got to them. Or Kim.

Witnesses in this case had a bad habit of showing up dead.

Anne - How many rejections have you received? Was one more memorable than others? Why?

Sandra - Since the CBA market is fairly small, I haven’t accumulated a great deal of rejection slips. The most promising one came from a senior editor at a major publishing house who I’d met at a conference. He told me that he took my book to the pub board, and although they didn’t pick it up, he invited me to submit whatever else I had.

Anne - Any words of advice for struggling, unpublished writers?

Sandra - One word. Persevere.

Anne - Outside of writing, what accomplishment are you most proud?

Sandra - Raising and educating three wonderful, hard-working children who love the Lord (and their mom <grin>). It was also pretty cool earning full scholarships to university and graduating summa cum laude, but that seems like a lifetime ago.

Anne – Where can readers find you online?

Sandra – At my website, sign up for my newsletter, on Facebook, and my blog.  

Anne - Thanks for chatting today, Sandra. I had a thoroughly wonderful time and especially loved your "made it" moment! 

Reader comments are always welcome and appreciated. Become a follower to ensure you receive every author interview, announcement and/or blog post on the Piedmont Island Trilogy. Until next time, happy reading! J

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Barbara Ann Derksen

My guest today is Barbara Ann Derksen. Her favorite genre is murder mystery, but each book brings forth characters who rely on God as they solve the puzzle in their life. Born in Canada, Barbara lived in the US for 12 years. She is a member of The Word Guild, Manitoba Writer’s Guild, The Writer’s Collective, and Christian Motorcyclists Association where each summer her books are used to inspire and encourage.

Anne – Welcome to Piedmont Island, Barbara. When did you first realize you were destined to be a writer?

Barbara - One night, sleepless and in need of a diversion from troubling thoughts, I decided to see if my antiquated typing skills still worked. I wrote a short story and the next day, a friend read the piece. Her eyes filled with unshed tears. I knew at that moment that something had changed from the flat, one dimensional writing I’d done for high school English and beyond. As far as being a writer, that came many years later, when people told me that they liked what I wrote for a newspaper. It was then I decided to put those short stories into a mystery and seek publication. I felt I’d arrived when that first book was published.

Anne - Tell us about your books.

Barbara - Vanished, Presumed Dead, and Fear Not are the first three books in a mystery series. I’m working on Silence this winter…to be released in May.

Vanished tells the story of death, fire, and kidnapping…events that send Andrea Wilton and Brian Strait to the country of Haiti where voodoo, restavic children, and scuba diving lead them to discover a diabolical plot that sets nerves on edge. 

Their story continues in Presumed Dead when they form Shuster Detective Agency, and take on another case to find a missing person. This second book in the series introduces DJ Wiebe, a biker who rides with The Sons Riders, a Christian biker ministry. Another biker, a member of The Demons Raiders, is missing and presumed dead. DJ, his friend, hires Shuster Detective Agency to find him. He initiates Andrea and Brian into the biker culture, a world that encompasses motorcycles, leather, drugs and murder.

In Fear Not, Brian and Andrea discover that relationship and intrigue go together when they embark on their third adventure, back to the Caribbean. A visit cut short, the two sleuths uncover a plot that challenges their faith when they search to clear a friend of murder. Their hunt for truth, aboard a cruise ship, brings them head to head with the black market, human contraband, and culprits who will stop at nothing to line their pockets.

Getting off the cruise ship in Miami, Silence tells their continuing story when Andrea is taken by sex traffickers just before they are to leave for the Dominican Republic to be married. Will Brian find her in time is the question but both characters learn a lot about trust in each other and in God? 

Anne - What do you enjoy most about writing? What part do you loathe?

Barbara - I love getting my characters into situations that, in the beginning, I have no idea how they’ll get out of or who they’ll meet along the way. I enjoy helping my characters learn something about themselves and each other but also about their faith walk too. I also enjoy a reader or the mom of a reader approach and tell me that this was the first book they’d ever read and couldn’t put it down or that they want to know more about my characters.

I do not enjoy editing but realize that’s a necessary part of the writing process. I do dislike the elitist attitude I run across sometime when other authors find out I am self-published. I work hard to write a good and compelling story, have a large following and for a Christian that’s difficult. I make sure my work is well edited or at least as good as the editor I pay to do the job. I have had to deal with poor editors and now feel that that problem is solved. I spend a lot of time promoting. Traditional publishers require all the same things from their authors.

Anne - Tell us about the defining moment when you felt as if you’d finally made it as an author.

Barbara - People email requesting the next book. Pastors send church members to my table to get the next devotional for their men’s bible study groups. People who have never read a book all the way through are reading not only my material but the bible as well because they found my work stimulating enough to carry them through. My characters teach people all sorts of things but most importantly that they can do it too, whatever it is. I’m a writer if my work makes a difference in the lives of the people who read it.

Anne - Outside of writing, what accomplishment are you most proud?

Barbara - I am very proud of the fact that my husband and I will be celebrating 43 years of marriage this June and we still like and respect each other. We still enjoy being together, doing things together, and ministering together. I am also proud of the fact that we’ve raised four wonderful children who themselves are raising great kids. Even though we’ve not been perfect parents, we must have done something right.

Anne - What activity (cause, charity, or organization) consumes your time when you’re away from the keyboard?

Barbara - My husband and I minister with Christian Motorcyclists Association where we are privileged to use our motorcycle as a tool that opens doors for ministry in juvenile detention centers, prisons, veteran’s homes, and churches. We earn the right at these locations and at motorcycle rallies to speak into the lives of participants where we share the love of Jesus in a non-threatening, non-judgmental way.

Anne - Have you experienced writer's block? If so, how did you work through it?

Barbara - Because I write a variety of genres, when I have nothing to write for my devotionals, I concentrate on the mysteries or a children’s story or vice versa. I haven’t had a problem per se with writer’s block but then I only do two books a year, usually.

Anne – Is there a question I haven’t asked that you would like to address?

Barbara - A question I am often asked is how my faith coincides with murder mystery. I tell people that if a person enjoys mystery, they should be able to pick one up that does not have bad language and graphic sex. My character’s faith walk stimulates and inspires yet the mystery continues to entertain. Readers can safely gift my books knowing that the people they give it to will not be bombarded with information that is destructive to their thought processes.

Anne – Where can readers find you online?

Barbara - At my website, Twitter, Facebook and Goodreads.

Anne - Thanks so much for dropping by, Barbara. It’s been a pleasure to visit with you today.

Reader comments are always welcome and appreciated. Become a follower to ensure you receive every author interview, announcement and/or blog post on the Piedmont Island Trilogy. Until next time, happy reading! J

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