Interview with MG Christian author Dana Rongione

Today's guest author is Dana Rongione. She's wrapping up a virtual book tour with Virtual Book Tour Cafe today for her new MG novel The Delaware Detectives.

There's a chance to win an e-copy of the novel. Details after the interview.

Welcome, Dana. Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

Hi! My name is Dana Rongione. (Yes, I know that's a mouthful.) I live in Greenville, SC with my husband, Jason, and my two dogs, Tippy and Mitch.

Having been a Christian for nearly 28 years, I know what it is like to experience both joy in the journey and weariness in well-doing. Currently self-employed as a writer and speaker, I struggle (like many other Christians) to balance the demands of work, family, church, health, chores, etc.

I enjoy all types of writing, but my true joy lies in writing devotionals that will encourage and uplift the weak and weary Christian. This blog, A Word Fitly Spoken, is currently read in over 15 different countries, allowing me the opportunity to spread the message of hope and joy throughout the world. I also have another blog, Song of the Day , that offers the truth of the Word in song.

I currently have three published devotionals. two children's books, a healthy living handbook and numerous articles in magazines and e-zines across the country. I am available to speak at local ladies' meetings or writers' workshops. You can find out more about me and my ministry by visiting my website at DanaRongione.com.

Please tell us about your current release.

The Delaware Detectives is a novel intended for readers in the age range of 8-14 years, though that's not to say readers of other ages won't enjoy it. In fact, one of the most enthusiastic responses I've received about the book was from a lady nearing her 70s. The story is about a brother and sister who discover a cryptic clue while visiting their grandfather for the summer. That discovery leads them on a hunt to try to uncover a secret fortune that may or may not truly exist. The book is filled with mysterious elements, comical characters and valuable morals.

What inspired you to write this book?

I first began writing The Delaware Detectives as an assignment for a course I took through The Institute of Children’s Literature. Through the course, I had learned to write about what I know and what I’m passionate about. As a mystery lover and elementary school teacher, I could think of no better story for me to write. Based on some true life experiences, The Delaware Detectives was born. Sad to say, that was six years ago. Yes, it took me six years to finish and publish the story, but now that’s it’s finished, I can’t wait to begin the next one.

Nice segue. What exciting story are you working on next?

I currently have several works in various stages of completion. I have three new devotional/Christian living titles that I hope to have completed within the next few months. Additionally, I have two children's picture books that are in the process of being illustrated and one young adult book that is in the editing/revision stage. And, as if that weren't enough, I'm in the planning stage for the next book in The Delaware Detectives series.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

I've dabbled in writing all my life, but I don't think I seriously considered myself a writer until I left my teaching job to write full time. Even after that, it took a couple of years before I could say, "I'm a writer" without getting a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach. Now that I have several publications, it's easy to say, "Yes, I'm a writer, and I'm proud of it!"

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like?  If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?

Despite my young age (wink, wink), I have a lot of back and shoulder problems. Because of this, I can't spend long periods of time sitting at my desk. So my writing process usually involves writing for thirty minutes to an hour then getting away from my desk and doing something else for a while, whether it be doing the dishes, walking the dogs, reading a book, sweeping the floors, etc. Most of these things work as a good time for me to think about what I've just written and what I want to write next. Then I'll go back to my desk, write for another thirty minutes to an hour and then get up again to do something more physical. At first, I was afraid all the ups and downs would prove to be time-consuming and distracting, but I've actually discovered the opposite to be true. By taking breaks before my body grows tired, I'm able to get more writing done in any given day. Additionally, the time away from my desk gives my mind the time it needs to rehearse and compose what needs to be said when I get back to my writing. It's strange, but it works for me.

In my spare time. . . sorry, I had to stop laughing. . .like there's any "spare time" around here. Anyway, when I'm not writing, I keep myself busy with church functions and obligations (I serve as church pianist, sing special music, teach the ladies' Sunday School class, etc.), teaching (I teach at a local Bible college), hiking, reading, and the million other things that come into my life during any given week.  I also strive to set aside uninterrupted time to spend with my husband, like our weekly "date night".

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

Music! I must have music playing when I write. I can't write when it's quiet. If I don't have  music, I at least need nature sounds like a babbling brook, singing birds and the like. Road noise doesn't work. Voices are distracting. But soft music helps me get in touch with my creative side and allows my brain to relax and focus on the matter at hand.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Throughout my childhood, I longed to be a teacher. I played "classroom" nearly every day after school.  (I had the smartest dolls and stuffed animals in the neighborhood!) My mom was a teacher, and I longed to be just like her, except I wanted to teach young children instead of high school. 

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?

Yes, I have a few things. First, I want to thank everyone for following my tour. Second, I want to let everyone know that The Delaware Detectives is currently available in paperback ($7.95) and Kindle (only $2.99) and will, Lord willing, be available in all other e-book formats by the middle of the summer. Lastly, I want to let you know where you can find me online:

Website:  http://DanaRongione.com

Blogs:   A Word Fitly Spoken: Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.

            Song of the Day:  http://ChristianSongoftheDay.blogspot.com

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Dana-Rongione/e/B0064VDD1M/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1338831667&sr=8-1

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/danarongione.author

Twitter: @DRongione

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/DanaRongione

Podcasts/Audio:  http://sermon.net/wordfitlyspoken

Thanks, Dana. And, Readers, don't forget to leave a comment and your e-mail address if you'd like to be in the running to win a Kindle copy of The Delaware Detectives. Feel free to leave a comment without your e-mail, too! Today is the last day of Dana's tour!

Interview with novelist Kathryn Elizabeth Jones

Kathryn Elizabeth Jones is joining us today to talk about her new novel Conquering Your Goliaths: A Parable of the Five Stones. She's also developed a workbook to go with the novel and both released this year.

Bio:

Kathryn has been a published writer since 1987. She has published various newspaper stories, magazine articles, essays and short stories for teens and adults. She is the author of: A River of Stones, a young adult fiction novel dealing with divorce, and Conquering your Goliaths—A Parable of the Five Stones, a Christian novel, was published in January 2012. Her newest creation, Conquering your Goliaths—Guidebook, was published in February of 2012

Kathryn, welcome to Reviews and Interviews. Please tell us about your current release. 

Conquering Your Goliaths: A Parable of the Five Stones is a Christian fiction novel. The story of Ms. Virginia Bean shares her joys and struggles in finding a new job in her hometown of Idaho Falls, Idaho. Fortunately, Ms. Bean has the help of the five stones: Listening, Trust, Optimism, Tenacity and Constancy, and the ever reliable help of God to realize her dream. Funny, it’s never quite what we expect.

What inspired you to write this book? 

My nephew came up with the idea and my husband shared the idea with me. He said, “This would make a great book.” So I sat down to write it. It has been an inspiring journey ever since.  

What exciting story are you working on next? 

I’m actually in the process of teaching some new classes on Conquering Your Goliaths based on the book. I have developed a Conquering Your Goliaths: Guidebook that gives the reader hands-on experiences in the messages of the five stones. The guidebook can be purchased and worked on singly, or the participant can take a class where I teach the values of the five stones.

When did you first consider yourself a writer? 

The first day I put pen to paper. No, I wasn’t very good, but I had the desire to be successful and that desire has made all the difference.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like?  If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write? 

I am a full-time writer, whether that means I am mentoring other writers, writing on my blog, working on my next book, working at my new business: Idea Creations Press, or teaching a class. I love writing in all of its facets!

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk? 

I don’t really outline. I have an idea, a very loose idea of what I want to do, but nothing more. The story comes to me as I write.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? 

An airline stewardess. What are they calling them now? Oh, yes, flight attendants. I really didn’t care for flight; what I wanted to do was travel the world on someone else’s money.

That's good thinking. :)

Anything additional you want to share with the readers? 

Never give up on your dreams. Never surrender. 

Great advice, Kathryn. Thanks for stopping by today and sharing a bit about yourself and your writing with us.

Live chat/interview with novelist Karina Fabian

The Writer's Chatroom presents multi-genre novelist Karina Fabian

WHEN?

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Eastern USA Time.....7-9 PM

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WHERE?

The Writers Chatroom at: http://www.writerschatroom.com/Enter.htm

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Interview with multi-genre writer Robert Earle

Robert Earle, a multi-genre writer is today's guest. His newest book, The Man Clothed in Linen: The Messiah or Herod’s Son? is historical fiction.

Bio:
Robert Earle was born in Norristown, Pennsylvania and educated at The Hill School, Princeton, and Johns Hopkins. He is the author of The Way Home, a novel; Nights in the Pink Motel, a critically acclaimed memoir of a year in Iraq; and dozens of short stories that have appeared in literary magazines across the U.S. and Canada. Robert Earle also was contributing co-editor of “Identities in North America: Search for Community”. For twenty-five years he was a senior diplomat and national security official,serving in Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Washington, and New York.

He lives and writes in Arlington, Virginia.

Welcome to Reviews and Interviews, Robert. Please tell us about your current release.
The Man Clothed in Linen is historical fiction, a novel that places Jesus at the center of the contending forces of his age: imperial Rome, Rome’s surrogate rulers in Palestine, the Herods, and the Jewish people whose faith and practice was being torn between Temple Judaism in Jerusalem and the Judaism of the hinterlands (embodied first by John the Baptist and then Jesus.)

Herod the Great was the dominant figure of Palestine when Jesus was born, but the novel opens with him failing in health (and possibly impregnating a girl named Mary from Bethlehem who was brought to his bed to warm him). So the question arises: who will succeed him?

Before he dies, Herod takes bloody actions against the Jews to warn them that whoever comes next will face grave difficulties if they rebel against his personal patron, Augustus Caesar. Then he settles on the weaker of his two acknowledged sons, Archelaus, as his heir. Before long, the Romans remove Archelaus while permitting the other legitimate son, Antipas, to retain the title Tetrarch of Galilee and Peraea, but not king.

This is something of an upstairs/downstairs novel because its action is largely perceived by Nicolas of Damascus, Herod’s court historian, who is very close to Antipas’s steward’s wife, Joanna, but also is well-known to Augustus.

Nicolas and Joanna are the ones who save the infant Jesus’ life when Herod orders him found and killed, and the two of them are confronted with the fact, twelve years later, that the boy and his mother and step-father (Joseph) have relocated to Galilee, where Antipas has become Tetrarch.

Living an intimate life in quiet Galilee, where everyone knows everyone, Nicolas and Joanna witness the strange evolution of Antipas’s court and his determination to win back the throne in Jerusalem.

First John the Baptist gets in the way, leading to his shocking beheading. Then Jesus emerges, to whom Joanna attaches herself. This places Nicolas in the position of bridge between Antipas and Jesus on the one hand and Antipas and Pilate on the other.

The story of the New Testament then takes over, incident by incident, miracle by miracle, but is perceived from within the camps of the contending parties. Jesus wants to continue John the Baptist’s work of revitalizing Judaism. Pilate wants Antipas to quiet the disruptions in his land. Antipas wants to see an end to both Pilate and Jesus.

Antipas has come to know the possibility that Jesus is his half-brother by the time Pilate offers him the chance to spare Jesus’ crucifixion. We know Antipas’s decision. We also witness the callous way in which Pilate flaunts his power. He did not need Antipas to take Jesus back to Galilee in order to spare Jesus’ life.

What inspired you to write this book?
I received a somewhat unusual secondary education in Bible studies, ancient history, Latin and Greek. When the “historical Jesus” movement began to flourish (led by writers like Paula Fredriksen and John Dominic Crossen), I was moved to use fiction to get inside the ancient texts and explore them through characters in conflict. A number of these characters had long been compelling enigmas to me: Jesus, John the Baptist, Herod the Great and his sons, the Caesars, and the array of “little people,” like Joanna who are named but not fully developed in the New Testament.

There is only so much that “history” can do with all this; fiction can do more, but one individual, Nicolas of Damascus, was in fact an historian, and he was my narrative key. Nicolas was tutor to the children of Antony and Cleopatra, counselor to Herod the Great, and ultimately a member of Augustus’s court. Can you imagine such a first-hand exposure to history? When I learned what there is to know about Nicolas of Damascus, I saw the whole Mediterranean world come together in a fascinating story.

What exciting story are you working on next?
I am writing a cycle of stories that extends The Brothers Karamazov from its ending (all three brothers are alive) through emigration to the United States and three successor generations of Russian-Americans whose family business comes to be helping Russians first escape czarism and then communism. This is a family saga that covers almost 100 years. As in The Man Clothed in Linen, I make use of certain historical figures: Chekhov, Lenin, Jung, and Solzhenitsyn, for example.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I think I probably saw myself as a writer when I was fifteen. I had been reading Dickens, Hemingway, Salinger, Crane, Twain, Conrad, and the like, and I wanted to do what they seemed to do: create worlds with words that were richer than the world itself.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I write full-time. For me that means sitting down with a cup of coffee between seven and eight in the morning and writing until eleven or twelve. I do this every day of the week. I discovered a long time ago that “life” is so full of distractions that I had to get the writing done first. After I write, I work out for a few hours and then come back to do administrative things--sending out stories, corresponding with editors, etc.-- and pursue my reading. When I’m working on fiction that has a strong historical component, I read piles of books relevant to my subject. Otherwise, I read all kinds of things--fiction, history, philosophy, poetry and several newspapers and journals.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I suppose my most interesting quirk, as you put it, is that I follow my pen when I’m drafting. I try to stay tuned-in to what is emerging and let it have its way. I don’t hold back. I over-write, if you will. It’s much easier to cut later on than to add what once was within your grasp but later on has floated away. I must say that I do admire writers who take a different approach. Graham Greene is said to have written 500 words a day, gotten them just right, and then put his pen down. Nabokov perfected sentences on notecards. I’m not that kind of writer; I call what I do “white water” drafting, as in paddling wildly down a river in a kayak trying to move in generally the right direction. I like that term - white water drafting - great description.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
As a little boy the index and middle fingers of my right hand were mangled in a church door, and a local surgeon, Dr. Jenkins, stitched them back together again so that they’re perfectly functional, if a little disfigured. So I wanted to be a surgeon like Dr. Jenkins, who was known as “Jenks.” And if I couldn’t be a surgeon, I would have liked to play major league baseball. I was absolutely passionate about baseball.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
The Man Clothed in Linen is a story about the birth of Western Civilization. The period I write about is the period when the forces that created “us” came together, uniting Roman, Greek, and Judeo-Christian traditions and values. Nicolas of Damascus clearly is my alter ego, the figure with whom I identify most closely. For me, John the Baptist is the most compelling figure--I just love the passages of the book where he is central to the story--and Jesus, befittingly, is the most enigmatic, but I hope I have captured his rare blend of vision, dignity, compassion and fatalism.

Robert, thanks for being here today and sharing a bit about yourself and your writing. You certainly have variety!

Review of Love Always Prevails by Marguerite Ashton

Genre: Christian Fiction
Title: Love Always Prevails
Author: Marguerite Ashton

Devin Williams didn’t start dating until she was eighteen. Raised in a Christian home, sex before marriage, among other things, was in the “do not do” category. By her nineteenth birthday, unwed Devin finds herself pregnant and strongly encouraged to marry the baby’s father. Even though it wasn’t the most perfect way to begin a marriage, Devin imagines a house surrounded by a yard and a white picket fence and filled with a loving husband and kids.

Love Always Prevails is a story about a woman who takes her wedding vows, given in front of God and family, as a lifetime contract. Her parents are active and involved in her life over the years and those of her three children, as Devin deals with the ups and downs of her marriage.

The author’s choice of using first person for most of the novel brings the reader into the story immediately. It reads as a memoir, especially due to the Prologue and Epilogue, but also due to the experiences the main character deals with and works through. The chapters are kept short and time passes within the novel at varying lengths from days to months to years in no particular rhythm. Devin is a natural character with flaws, but also one filled with compassion, endless optimism, and determination to live the life where love always prevails.

Marguerite Ashton hails from Colorado and now lives in Wisconsin. She is the author of two previous books: Taylini: A Family Saga and Traci’s Story. She has a passion for writing crime and suspense novels, as well as screenwriting. She is a registered screenwriter with the Writer’s Guild of America.

Love Always Prevails is a strong Christian-based story that shows a person can heal and move past the worst of times and that there is always hope for a better tomorrow if one believes in it enough. It is a good read. Reviewer: Lisa Haselton, Allbooks Reviews, www.allbooksreviewint.com.

Publisher: Hi Skool Books, Inc.
ISBN: 978-1449919450
Pages: 218
Price: $20.00

Live chat/Interview with author Miralee Ferrell 4/11/10

The Writer's Chatroom presents Miralee Ferrell.

WHEN?

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Eastern USA Time.....7-9 PM

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WHERE?

The Writers Chatroom at: http://www.writerschatroom.com/Enter.htm

Scroll down to the Java box. It may take a moment to load. Type in the name you wish to be known by, and click Login. No password needed.

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