Beth K. Vogt's Blog, page 84

Behind the Book: An imaginary character interviews a real-live author

So often the author interviews the heroine of their upcoming novel.

Not this time. 

Ginnifer Goodwin: the inspiration for Kendall Haynes of Catch a Falling Star

Just because I’m imaginary doesn’t mean I can’t hijack this blog!

 Kendall, it’s my blog.

 True, but Catch a Falling Star opens on my less-than-happy birthday. Have you ever wanted to skip a birthday?

Everybody wants to skip a birthday at some point in their lives.

You’re being vague—be specific.

Well, turning 40 didn’t bother me, but for some reason, the thought of turning 41 did.  And then I ended up “celebrating” that birthday finding out I was pregnant. The mother of three teenagers—and pregnant!

Whoa! How’d you celebrate?

By laying over the side of the bed and holding onto a bucket. Can you say all-day morning sickness?

Couldn’t your doctor help you with that?

I’m married to a doctor, Kendall—

I know. That’s why I’m a family physician, right?

Why waste real life experience and 24-hour access to my “expert” whenever I had questions?

Is my practice, Rocky Mountain Family Practice, similar to your husband’s practice?

 

A view out of Kendall’s loft

My husband is a solo family physician in Colorado, just like you are in Catch a Falling Star.  But he doesn’t live in a loft above his office.  That was a bit of creativity on my part.

I love my loft. And my waveless pool. Thanks for those.

You’re welcome.  It’s fun to spend imaginary money when I write a novel. The overall design of your office reflects my husband’s office—and your staff prays before the workday begins, just like my husband’s staff does.

Can we talk about why you made me 36 years old? I mean, couldn’t I have been a sweet young twenty-something?

If you were twenty-something, Kendall, you’d still be in medical school, which changes the entire plot of Catch a Falling Star. And besides, how believable would it be if you were a 21- or 22-year-old lamenting how life hasn’t turned out the way you planned?

Good points.

But, more importantly, I wanted you to be 36 because older women—

Hey!

Ahem. Women in their 30s and 40s—and older—fall in love.  And I wanted to write a romance about one of those women.

Couldn’t the romance have been a little less complicated?

Is romance ever not complicated, Kendall?

Not for me.

Exactly.

Was there one thing you wanted readers to learn from Catch a Falling Star?

Releases May 7, 2013 (Howard Books)

Did you learn anything?

Lots of things—but the one thing I’ll share here is that love is worth the wait. Gosh, that sounds so clichéd. How about the guy who looks all wrong for you just may be Mr. Right? Or it’s best to hold onto dreams loosely . . .

You’re full of wisdom, aren’t you?

Did I learn what you wanted me to learn?

Sometimes I was as surprised by what you learned as you were.

What? I thought you had the story all planned out.

I did. But plans—both in real life and in fiction—change.

They do, indeed. And I’m good with that.

In Others’ Words: Bruises

I bruised easily when I was a little girl.

I’m not sure that I learned any significant lessons from those bruises — except maybe to walk a little slower when I climbed the stairs from my bedroom in the basement.

Even now, I’ll knock into the corner of the coffee table and think, “That’s going to leave a bruise.” Lesson learned: Give the coffee table a wider berth.

Then there are the invisible bruises that caused my heart to beat off-rhythm … the words-will-never-hurt-me bruises that tripped up my significance …

Lesson learned: Invisible bruises never fade away … until they are submitted to the gentle touch of the God who Heals (Jehovah-Rapha).

It took me years to trust my heart-bruises to God’s care. To believe His thoughts toward me were lovingkindness and peace. (Isaiah 54:10 NIV) Once I believed in His lavish grace, not a miserly drip … drip … drip of grace that could never satiate the longing of my soul, then my bruises faded in light of who He was — and how much He believed in me.

In Your Words: What lessons have the bruises in your life taught you?

In Others’ Words: Good Friday

First the darkness . . .

then the waiting . . .

then the dawn . . .

May you embrace His story in a new way this Easter.

In Others’ Words: Going Dark

 

I’m “Going Dark” this week for a couple of reasons:

It’s Spring Break for my daughter.
I’m traveling — and Wi-Fi connection is intermittent at best.
I’m still on deadline.

So, I’ll see y’all next week.

 

In Others’ Words: Bite Your Tongue

I wanted to let someone have it last night.

And I know that person wanted to say a few … um … special words to me too.

But I didn’t.

I could feel the words banging on the back of my clenched teeth. I could almost see them forming in a cloud above my head.

But I knew once I said those oh-so-perfect-for-the-moment words, I wouldn’t be able to take them back.

Been there.

Said that.

And regretted it for years.

Yes, years.

This time, I kept my mouth shut. Swallowed my words. Let the moment pass. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned a few things … and one of them is that silence is often the wiser choice.

 

Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam;

so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out. (Proverbs 17:14 NIV)

 

In Your Words: What do you do when the wrong words are on the tip of your tongue?

 

 

In Others’ Words: Breathing

I took breathing for granted until I developed asthma.

I had years of inhaling and exhaling without giving it a second thought — I mean, isn’t respiration supposed to be automatic? And then, within months of my family’s move to Colorado, suddenly my chest got tight when I worked out at the gym.

No big deal, right?

I didn’t have asthma.

I convinced myself of that … until the fall day my husband and I tried to outrace a snowstorm on our bikes. We beat the storm. But I collapsed on our bed, unable to draw a complete breath.

I was frantic.

That day, life constricted to my feeble attempts to inhale … exhale … inhale … exhale … inhale … exhale …

The little amount of air I was getting into my lungs wasn’t enough.

Sometimes life is like that.

I’m cramming it full of this, that, and the other thing … and I’m forgetting to breathe. I look ahead and every hour of every day from here to eternity — really, it feels that long — is full to overflowing with too much to do … and no time to breathe.

In God’s economy, life is breathe. Think about it: Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. (Genesis 2:7)

If God equates life to breath … who am I to make it anything else than that?

In Your Words: Are you breathing just a little and calling it a life? How do you add breathing space to your life?

***

Enjoy a free download of the first chapter of my debut novel, Wish You Were Here!

 

In Others’ Words: Fairy Tales

“Fairy tales can come true, it can happen to you … “

Anybody else love that song when it’s sung by Frank Sinatra?

There’s a bit of a fairy tale thread woven into my upcoming release, Catch a Falling Star. And yes, I loved reading fairy tales when I was growing up. Cinderella was a favorite, of course, but I also enjoyed Snow-White and Rose-Red. Recently I enjoyed the updated Disney version of Rapunzel.

What’s the allure of fairy tales? When I was a child, I was thrilled by how they push back the boundaries of maybes and what ifs. Wishing upon a star could lead to a dream coming true … and there might really be someone magical — powerful — listening to me when my heart was broken by hardship or disappointment.

If you think about it, fairy tales offer readers hope. Romance. Happily-Ever-Afters.

That’s why I write … and that’s why so many of the writers I know put hands to keyboard. And yet, somehow, someway, I want to point my readers to something more than a star to wish upon, or to a bitty-bobbity-boo fairy godmother.

Fairy tales are delightful … but the Truth is life-changing.

In Your Words: What’s your favorite fairy tale? Why do you read them?

P.S. Looking for another novel with a fairy tale theme? Watch for best-selling author Rachel Hauck’s upcoming release, Once Upon a Prince!

In Others’ Words: Echoes

“Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up.” (Proverbs 12:25 NIV)

“Kind words are like honey–sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.” (Proverbs 16:24 NLT)

What echoes have I left in others’ lives?

Have I left a sticky mark of kind words —  a bit of verbal honey that encourages someone who wants to quit or helps someone realize they are not invisible?

It’s good — wise, even — to look back and evaluate our words and actions. It’s also good and wise to look ahead and figure out how we want to change.

But the words we speak today — now — will be echoes in someone’s life tomorrow … and the day after that … and the day after that.

Our words don’t have to be elaborate. They don’t have to be well-thought-out or polished.

Kind words.

Words that lift the anxiety weighing down someone’s else’s heart.

Words that refresh someone’s spirit, their very soul, like a sweet cup of cool water.

In Your Words: Whose words of kindness echo in your life today?  

In Others’ Words: Adversity

Whenever I think of Walt Disney, I think of Peter Pan and Tinker Bell and Cinderella and Snow White and happily-ever-afters and theme parks where you meet life-size characters and soar through the air on the Dumbo ride . . . you know, fun stuff!

And then I read today’s quote and I thought, “Really? Walt Disney got kicked in the teeth?”

Reality is, everybody gets kicked in the teeth — if not literally, then figuratively … even Walt Disney, the man who created the Magic Kingdom.

Have I had adversity? Yes.

Troubles? Yes.

Obstacles? Yes.

Ever been kicked in the teeth? Figuratively, yes — and I was once literally punched in the face by another kid — but that’s another blog post.

Can I, like Walt Disney, say that all of those things — adversity, trouble, obstacles — have been the best thing that have ever happened to me?

Sometimes.

Have they made me stronger?

Yes.

And they have definitely made me who I am today … and drawn me closer to God — and I am thankful for that.

“Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials …” (James 1:2 NAS)

In Your Words: How has an obstacle or trouble — a kick in the teeth — strengthened you?

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Congratulations to Angie Arndt, who won the Name a Star Contest! Please email me, Angie, and I’ll get you set up!

In Others’ Words: Tomorrow and Today

Sometimes I wonder: Could I have done what Corrie ten Boom did?

During World War II, she and her family were part of the Dutch underground — hiding, feeding and transporting Jews and other people hunted by the Nazi Gestapo out of the country. When her family was betrayed, they were separated and sent to concentration camps. Corrie and her sister Betsy were sent to the same camp, where Betsy died and Corrie survived.

Back to my original question: Could I have done what Corrie ten Boom did?

Reality is, that question can never be anything more than rhetorical because Corrie lived her life — one of courageous faith — and I am living mine.

Am I able to learn from Corrie’s example? Absolutely. Corrie truly embraced her faith — so much so that she forgave one of the concentration camp guards that so mistreated her and her sister when he sought her out years later. If that kind of woman has something to say about faith . . . or worry . . . or strength . . . I’m listening.

In Your Words: What has one of your heroes taught you?