Kerry Johnson's Blog, page 7

The Jesus Truck

Nearly two years ago I had a difficult season of anxiety complete with racing heart, anxious thoughts spiraling out of control, and life-altering worry that engulfed every thought and breath. It was exhausting. One of the major ways my anxiety crippled my life during that challenging time was when I drove at high speeds on the interstate.

Absolutely nerve-wracking.

Usually when I drive up and down the west coast of Florida on Interstate-75, I���m fine. Driving long distances, at high speeds was never an issue in my life until I had my first experience with anxiety a few years back.

Because my��family lives about two hours south of us, I���ve shuttled myself and my boys those 100 miles on I-75 many, many times. I know each exit and overpass, which sections are two or three-lane, and the busiest cities to drive through.

But when anxiety hits, rational thought escapes like a piece of paper sucked out an open window in a speeding car.

During this difficult season of anxiety, I made plans to meet up with friends at the University of South Florida in Tampa.��It’s a beautiful, sprawling campus, and one particular pond-dotted section is filled��with ducks, birds, and turtles. During the summer I take��my two boys and go to USF often enough that the ducks know��my vehicle��and run toward us when we arrive, begging for corn and Cheerios.

That day I loaded the boys up in our truck, trying to ignore the dread curling my fingers over the steering wheel. As��I entered the on-ramp to I-75 and joined the other vehicles on the large, busy interstate, the double, triple-thump of my heart caused a wave of fear to crash over me.

Scripture came to mind, a balm in the middle of my island of anxiety. ������do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go��� (Joshua 1:9, NKJV).

About halfway��to USF a��truck came into view. It was an old, beat up work truck with two gentlemen���s arms hanging out both open windows in the single��cab. The truck clicked over from the right lane to the middle lane where I was driving, and my eyes almost popped out of my head.

On the back of the truck���s cab window was a large picture of Jesus���s face.

For the next couple of miles the Jesus truck drove in front of me on northbound I-75. My emotions veered back and forth between laughing and crying about the beautiful reminder that Jesus is truly always with us. When the truck clicked back over to the right lane to head onto the I-4 ramp and drive east, I wiped away a tear.

God is always with us. In a season fear, worry, poor health, difficult finances, or just a time of waiting, don���t doubt. He will never leave you or forsake you.

���Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.��� (Joshua 1:9, NKJV)

Filed under: Musings

New Eyes

candidkerry:

Eye can’t believe it’s been three years since eye had my laser eye surgery! :)

Originally posted on A Lamp, a Light, and a Writer:

He is your praise, and He is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things which your eyes have seen. ~ Deuteronomy 10:21

Tonight I��took a walk��under night���s gigantic inky cloak. The stars twinkled and the moon shone opal-bright from its crescent cleft in the darkness, and my new eyes took it all in. I���ve worn glasses or contacts for over 20 years, but not tonight.

Not anymore. Thank you, Lord!

I had LASIK eye surgery a few day ago, and my eyes are nearly back to normal. A new normal. I���ve had some dryness and still have a few red splotchy marks around my cornea, but those side effects will disappear in the weeks to come. Lubricating drops��come in handy throughout the day, sweet little beads of moisture that aid the healing process and soothe my eyes.

A few people asked me about the���

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Filed under: Musings

Interview with Author Jennifer Erin Valent: The Calloway Summer Series

I���m thrilled to welcome author Jennifer Erin Valent to my blog. Jennifer is an encouraging��friend and��author who has a contest win under her belt and three unforgettable novels to her name.

Her first novel, Fireflies in December, won the Christian Writers Guild ���Operation First Novel��� Contest in 2007. The second book in the Calloway Summer Series, Cottonwood Whispers, was published in 2009, and the third book, Catching Moondrops, was published in 2010.

I only discovered Jennifer���s books last year, but I read through the series voraciously, with a growing affection for the colorful cast of characters and sizzling southern setting. I own all three in paperback, and I���m not parting with them. The covers are lovely, nostalgic representations of an era gone by.

Jennifer set the series in the early 1930s. Main character Jessilyn Lassiter and best friend Gemma forge an unlikely friendship in the racially-charged town of Calloway, Virginia. After a tragedy, Gemma, who is black, comes to live with Jessilyn and her parents on their farm, a decision that catches the unwanted attention of the local Ku Klux Klan and sets off a series of events that change all their lives.

Fireflies in December is an evocative portrayal of hatred ultimately overpowered by the sure foundation of family and faith. Jennifer writes thirteen-year-old Jessilyn with an engaging, humorous first person point of view; one of the reasons I enjoyed this trilogy so much is Jessie���s strong-willed personality shining through on each page.

Sometimes I wanted to shake her; other times we might���ve high-fived.

Cottonwood Whispers continues with Jessie and Gemma���s enduring, complicated friendship, detailing Jessie���s growing crush on neighbor and older friend Luke Talley and Gemma���s burgeoning need for independence. Before reading Cottonwood Whispers I wondered if the second book could pack the punch of emotion and truth that Fireflies did.

Silly me.

I might even say Cottonwood Whispers was my favorite, except that the last book was even better. Indeed, the stories build on each other in a remarkable way because the reader gets to know and care deeply for the characters, seeing��them through life-changing conflict.

Third and last book Catching Moondrops��was especially fulfilling for my romantic sap self; Jennifer tied the romance strings into a beautiful bow of sweetness tempered with reality — Jessie���s still as strong-willed as ever, and the chemistry between nineteen-year-old Jessie and loyal, protective Luke is sigh-inducing. She also concludes Jessilyn’s complicated spiritual journey in a realistic way.

***

K: Have you always loved writing? Do you have a favorite childhood story or character?

J: Growing up, writing was only a hobby for me, and most of the time I didn���t complete my ideas. I had a notebook I���d write in that was pretty much a jumble of starts without finishes. A few times while I was in school I managed to finish a short story, but besides those the only thing I can remember finishing was a fiction assignment for English class. Fortunately, that all changed once the writing bug really bit!

My all-time favorite character when I was a kid was Nancy Drew. I read as many of those as I could get my hands on. For me there was nothing like settling in to see what trouble Nancy would get herself into next.

K: When you began writing Fireflies in December, did you know it would be a trilogy? And was it as difficult to write that last few pages, as it was to read it? (I seriously dreaded finishing the last chapter.)

J: I originally considered making Jessilyn���s story fit into one novel, but the further along I got I realized it was either split the story up into a series or have people lugging around something the size of Gone With the Wind. In some ways a series was a fun alternative because I���d be able to revisit Calloway County over an extended period of time, but in other ways it was tough to have to leave things unfinished when I typed THE END on book one and two.

Finishing off the trilogy was both satisfying and depressing for me. I had been writing about those characters for several years, and it was very much like saying goodbye to old friends. I wasn���t at all excited to give them up, but at the same time I knew it was the right time to finish the series. No matter how much time passes, those characters will always hold a special place in my heart.

K: I���m going out on a limb here, but winning the ���Operation First Novel��� Contest must���ve been slightly exciting. Please share with us what it was like learning you had won.

J: You know, it was extremely exciting, but after quite a few years trying to get published I was so overwhelmed and amazed by having achieved that goal I don���t think I was completely coherent. People who talked to me for a few days after the win would probably confirm that. It was a bit of an out-of-body experience. I heard my name called as the winner, managed to get onstage without falling on my face, but much of the time directly afterward was fuzzy. And the uncertainty about what was next only added to the nerves. It���s a big step, and there aren���t many books and articles out there about what comes after signing that contract, so there were a lot of questions running through my mind alongside all the exciting ideas.

��K: I really enjoyed the first person POV (point of view) in these stories. Jessilyn is strong-willed and passionate, often charging headstrong into situations with her emotions leading the way. Her maturation from age thirteen to nineteen (the time span for the three books) was beautifully done and realistic; did that flow naturally while writing the series?��

J: In a lot of ways I���m like Jessilyn. I didn���t fully realize that right away as I wrote, but I am. I think that���s why I was able to write her character so easily. When you construct and flesh out characters in a novel, you have to climb into their shoes and think about how they would respond in each situation. Considering that Jessilyn and I wear almost the same size, it wasn���t so hard to take a walk in her footsteps.

K: One of my favorite aspects of this trilogy is the gentle way that Jessie���s faith sprouts with questions and observation of others, then blossoms near the series��� end. I almost caught myself praying for her heart to soften to the Lord during parts of the story. How important was it to show this spiritual growth?����

J: First of all, I love that you felt inclined to pray for Jessie. There���s nothing like knowing my characters came alive for a reader like that.

J: My main goal with Jessie���s spiritual growth was to point out that being around Christians, going to church, reading the Bible��� none of it acquires salvation. That genuine repentance, and thereby a true relationship with the Lord, takes place when we as individuals come to believe the truth in our hearts, even if we���ve heard about it our whole lives. There���s a difference between knowledge and deep understanding, and Jessie finds that out. She can hear it all and see it all, but until it takes root inside of her, it isn���t real, and she knows that.

One of my favorite moments in her spiritual journey is in Cottonwood Whispers when Jessie asks Miss Cleta why she can���t figure out how to believe, and Miss Cleta tells her, ���Oh, honey, just sayin��� that tells me Whose you are. You just don���t know it yet. If you want to believe, someday you will. You just wait. God���ll open your heart when you least expect it, and He���ll take that wide-open heart of yours and fill it up with believin��� till there ain���t no room left.���

Salvation is a conscious choosing to believe, to repent, and to humble yourself at the feet of the One who gave His life for yours. My hope was to convey that as clearly as possible through Jessie���s experience.

K: Your dialogue is sharp and witty and replete with southern twang. Was it tough to write in that old-fashioned southern dialect?

J: Well, here in Virginia you still hear folks droppin��� their Gs. I���ve lived here all my life, and I���ve heard a lot of different Southern accents (including my own!) so I had that advantage when writing the dialogue. Sometimes I had to go internet hunting to try to find out when certain phrases became commonplace, things like that. But all in all I���d say I naturally heard their voices in my head as I wrote.

K: Miss Cleta is my favorite secondary character. She���s full of sass and spiritual wisdom, the perfect guiding light Jessilyn needed during her turbulent adolescence. Do you have a favorite character from this series?

J: I share your sentiment about Miss Cleta. I���ve often said I want to be her when I grow up. I adore her. She���s one tough cookie��� who makes a darn good cookie, too! I love that she���s sweet and funny and full of wisdom��� and if you mess with her or someone she loves she���ll whip out her shotgun. That���s my kind of lady!

K: Lastly, do you have any writing projects you���re working on that you���d like to share with readers?

J: My latest finished manuscript follows the journey of a young war widow in the late 1940���s as she attempts to get beyond her abusive past. It���s an important story to me and one that I want so much to get out to readers. So many women know what it���s like to be mistreated in their relationships, and this story encourages them to move beyond that pain and find their identity in Christ alone.

My agent is at work seeking a publishing home for the book, and, prayerfully, we���ll be able to find the perfect place for it soon.����

~ Quick Questions ~

Any pets? Not now, but I had a Shetland Sheepdog when I was a kid.

Favorite Holiday? Christmas, definitely.

A color we���ll never see you wear? Lime green. Turns my skin lime green��� not the best look.

Night owl or mourning dove? Mourning dove

A book you���ll never part with? Well, the obvious answer is the Bible. Try to take that from me, and I���ll go all Miss Cleta on you. As for fiction, the one book I���ve kept the longest is a copy of Victoria Holt���s Pride of the Peacock. It���s one I���ve read a bunch of times, and I just like to have it handy.

Favorite way to spend a lazy day? On the beach with a book.

Thank you so much for visiting my blog, Jennifer! Readers, if you’re interested in purchasing Jennifer’s books, click on the book pictures above. You can also find Jennifer here.

Filed under: Musings Tagged: Author Jennifer Erin Valent, candidkerry, Catching Moondrops, Cottonwood Whispers, Fireflies in December, writers, writing

To Watch or to Read: Unbroken

Last night my hubby and I had a��much-appreciated movie date night; we��watched the World War II survival story of Olympian Louie Zamperini. We read Unbroken last year (well, he listened on audio CD and I read it), and had��been��looking forward to watching Louie���s unbelievable story��splashed across��the big screen.

What did I think? How did the book and movie compare?

Let’s start with that book. (*Spoilers*)

The Book

At 528 pages, Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption is an intimidating read. But please believe me when I say it’s a worthwhile investment of your time to do so.��Louie,��Phil, and the crew of “Super Man” are��unforgettable characters set in a true-life, haunting story of perseverance and pain.��Of love and loss. And of suffering and pain.

Of forgiveness and grace.

As��author Laura Hillenbrand states, Louie’s “almost incomprehensibly dramatic life”��makes for a page-turning��World War II Survival story.��The book gripped me tight,��settling into��my mind and heart and memory. It’s a narrative that ranges the full scope of human experience and emotion, almost unbelievable, yet not.

It’s also beautiful in its truthful depiction of the ugliness of war and the indelible loss of life for love of country.

If you’re wondering if you should read the book, stop wondering.

Read it.

The Movie

Since the movie’s Christmas release,��there’s been a furor surrounding the spiritual content��included (or rather, not included) in��the movie.��Louie’s conversion to Christ, after the war,��is conspicuously absent from the film, I read��in friends’ posts and comments on social media.

Going in, I��was skeptical. I greatly valued the message at the end of the book Unbroken, that true peace and forgiveness can only be found��through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Louie’s story resounded with me (and many others) because though the majority of us haven’t experienced��the horrors he did, we all need God’s forgiveness and grace.

Could a secular director helm a movie��based on a��life��replete with God’s redemptive power?

In my humble opinion, the movie soars like the B-24 Liberator “Super Man”��Captain Phil and his crew flew across the Pacific so many years ago. Director Jolie��and the cast created a vivid, honorable take on Louie’s life and��war-time experiences, sketching as best they could in a two-hour movie.

The movie Unbroken cannot encompass all that the book does; don’t expect it to, movie viewers. Instead the movie focuses on Louie’s childhood, highlights of his Olympic experience, and details the alarming physical battle waged on the Pacific by the three-man raft and later in the prisoner of war camps.

It’s brutal to watch at times,��and the actor portraying “the Bird”��gives viewers a thorough look into the psychotic��mess Louie dealt with while a POW.

I was touched by the movie’s tender portrayal of Louie and his brother Pete; I only cried once,��when Pete kisses Louie goodbye��as he heads off��to war.

I also found the affection and camaraderie between pilot Phil and Louie genuine and bittersweet, particularly when they were separated before being sent off to separate POW camps.

Was Louie’s faith left out?

I do not believe so.

The movie is not the book.��It paints a slightly different, but still effective, rendering of Louie’s life.

The��movie touches softly, but��firmly, on��Louie’s faith. One of the first scenes��shows��pre-teen Louie in church with his family, half-listening��as the Pastor/Father reads scripture about��Jesus and forgiveness.��The scripture is from Matthew (I believe), words about forgiving one’s enemies.

This scene is��powerful and meaningful, foreshadowing exactly what Louie will later need from the only One who can provide true forgiveness.

My only major complaint about the��movie? The abruptness of the ending. Not necessarily because��Louie’s actual conversion was left out, (there is a blurb about Louie’s life after the war, his marriage to Cynthia, and his��life-changing faith), but because I felt a��sense of ‘loose ends’ when I walked out of the theater.

I highly,��highly recommend the book Unbroken. I bought the Young Adult version to read with our boys eventually. I��also highly recommend the movie; though it doesn’t quite compare to��Louie’s��amazing story found in Laura’s book, it’s still a worthwhile two-hour look into the human spirit seen through Louie Zamperini’s blue eyes.

Filed under: Musings Tagged: Book review, candidkerry, Laura Hillenbrand, Louie Zamperini, Unbroken, Unbroken movie

Two Who Matter

I had just dropped the boys off at school when I clicked on the trucks’s radio. My breath whooshed��away at the horrible words the reporter murmured.

���A father threw his five-year old daughter from the Sunshine Skyway Bridge yesterday������

A father threw?…his daughter?…

My mind jumped, scrambled to find it. That verse. The second-to-last verse of the Bible. ���He who testifies to these things says, ���Surely I am coming quickly.��� Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!���

���Please come quickly Lord Jesus!���

I jabbed the radio button silent, dammed up my tears because I had to work in an hour, and groaned in prayer. Pleading questions that burned my throat and heart.

The tears came anyway.

A father ��� did this? To his own daughter, who couldn���t even swim? A father who is supposed to love, protect, cherish, and adore his little girl?

���Even so, come, Lord Jesus!���

A heart-wrenching incongruity rattled me even more. There���s a local family, dear friends of our dear friends. We don���t know them personally, but have prayed for this family, for��the battle they���re fighting to hold onto their middle daughter���s life as she fights a terminal brain tumor.

The five-year old tossed heartlessly into Tampa Bay and the six-year old covered in prayer daily by thousands both matter.��No matter their life circumstances, they are two who matter to the One who created them.

When I fling my tears toward heaven it’s mostly with the suffering of children. With the��young lives beheaded thousands of miles away��and with the��many distended bellies filled with air, not food.

The apostle Paul knew suffering.��Body-breaking suffering.��Better yet?��He knew Hope.

Jesus.

“For I consider that the present sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope…And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:18-20, & 28)

If you���re like me, God created your soul sensitive. Like a sponge that soaks in others’ hurts and pain and often��can’t quite��squeeze them out.��The human experience cuts us deep and wide. God surely��has great and useful plans for His sensitive souls, plans to glorify and honor Him as vessels to share His love of His creation.

Yet we carry burdens that press us painfully hard into the failing earth.

Sensitive soul, keep your gaze on heaven���s throne. Keep your fingers flipping through His Word.

God does not fail. He does not change. Jesus is all we need. And��our Savior��IS seated at the Father���s right hand, and He will return for His saints.

Two little girls’ faces still fill my mind’s eye. Two who matter. I still don’t understand the whys.��But I trust that their tragically��short lives will affect others in ways seen��most clearly��on the other side of eternity.

Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!

Filed under: Musings Tagged: apostle Paul, candidkerry, children, Jesus, Romans 8:28, suffering, tragedy, Trusting God

The Wrong Gift

Can you believe it���s time to ask how everyone���s Christmas, 2014 was? That we���re a day from ringing in the New Year?

I hope your Christmas was blessed and family-full!

For our family of four, Christmas morning was a flurry of ripped wrapping paper, squeals of Lego delight, and moans of book-lover abandon.

But there was one hiccup in��our gift-opening Christmas morning.

The boys��� school has a small Christmas store each year.��The��students��can shop in ���secret��� and choose a gift for family members for��an inexpensive��price. The gifts are wrapped and delivered to the students a few days before Christmas break begins. We allow the boys to choose one gift for each family member (three total, with Chase opting for a fourth gift for our dog).

Usually the gifts are things like small candles (for me), a flashlight (for Trev), and some sort of ball or sports items for each other.

Christmas morning, Chase opened his school gift from Cole first, which was a dart gun promptly shot into the Christmas tree. When Cole opened Chase���s gift to him,��an odd��expression crossed our ten-year old���s face.

He looked up at Chase, then at us, in embarrassment.

���Why did you get me this?�����Cole’s voice was weak and surprised.

Chase, confused at his reaction, grabbed the gift and ripped it open the rest of the way. Chase let out a loud��cry when he pulled a Princess night-light out of the demolished wrapping paper.

���What? This isn���t what I got him!��� Chase���s face turned a mottled pink that nearly matched the unwanted night-light.

We did our best to defuse the situation, explaining��to them that an honest mistake was made amidst dozens of wrapped gifts at the school store.��Chase’s gift for Cole��was accidentally switched with a girl’s gift.

���A girl from school is probably disappointed right now too because she just opened a boy gift instead. It���s a mistake, guys, and it���s okay. You have other gifts to be thankful for.���

Chase still wore a defeated expression, and I reiterated to pre-teen, easily embarrassed Cole that his brother hadn���t actually chosen that pink gift for him.��They didn’t appreciate my��faux excitement about finally getting��the princess nightlight I’d always dreamed of, either.

The situation eventually��smoothed out, the��unwanted princess night-light forgotten.��But later that evening, when I had a few moments alone to think about the gift Jesus is and why we celebrate His birth,��I realized��something.

Like the pink nightlight, some reject Jesus because they believe He’s the wrong gift.��They believe they don’t need Him or that they’re fine on their own.

God’s Word tells a different story and��promises the right Gift.

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”

(Romans 6:23).

We all — each of us — need Jesus. He is the perfect gift for every single human being, the��necessary heavenly��Gift who bridges the gap to our Creator God.

“But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”

(Galatians 4: 4 & 5)

As you enter the New Year, remember that Jesus is the right gift. That He gives��believers hope, forgiveness, and grace for each new day.

“This is Christmas: not the tinsel, not the giving and receiving, not even the carols, but the humble heart that receives anew the wondrous gift, the Christ.” ~ Frank McKibben

Filed under: Musings Tagged: candidkerry, Christmas, Christmas gift, gift of Jesus, Jesus, Romans 6:23

Interview & Giveaway with Author Brandy Vallance ~ The Covered Deep

��I���m excited to welcome author Brandy Vallance to my blog today! Brandy���s debut novel, The Covered Deep, released in October; part historical romance, party mystery, and part adventure, The Covered Deep takes the reader on an emotional journey from Appalachia to London, to the streets of Bethlehem.

The Covered Deep is the winner of the 2013 Operation First Novel Contest through the Christian Writers Guild, and winner of the 2012 ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) Genesis Contest for Historical Romance.

About Brandy:

Brandy Vallance fell in love with the Victorian time period at a young age, loving the customs, manners, and especially the intricate rules of love. Since time travel is theoretically impossible, she lives in the nineteenth century vicariously through her novels. Unaccountable amounts of black tea have fueled this ambition. Brandy hopes to avoid a similar fate as the writer, Honor�� de Balzac, who met his death via caffeine poisoning. At this point, the balance may not be tipped in her favor. Brandy’s love of tea can only be paralleled by her love of Masterpiece Theater Classics, deep conversations, and a good book.

 

About the Book:

Bianca Marshal is holding out for the perfect husband. Finding a man that meets the requirements of her must-have list in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains has proven impossible. Bianca���s mama insists that there���s no such thing as a perfect true love, and that Bianca���s ideal man is pure fiction.

On the eve of her twenty-fifth birthday, Bianca discovers a devastating statistic: her chance of marrying is now only eighteen percent. Unwilling to accept spinsterhood, Bianca enters an essay contest that propels her into a whirlwind search for her soul-mate. Via the opulence of London and the mysteries of the Holy Land, Bianca’s true love will be revealed, but not without a heavy price.

 

 

 

My Review of The Covered Deep:

I finished The Covered Deep yesterday, and I still catch myself gazing at the cover. Thinking about Bianca and Paul. Replaying zippy dialogue and decadent descriptions of scenery in my mind. Savoring phrases used like word sculptures throughout the prose. And smiling at the last few pages.

I really didn���t want to close this book.

Author Brandy Vallance has written a unique, adventurous romance, a story that is breath-taking in its twists and turns and secrets. Her characters are larger-than-life, humorous, and relatable. The secrets the story holds will drive you pages and pages in, until questions finally get answered and God’s grace is revealed on the streets of Bethlehem and back home in the heart of the US.

The story begins at the banks of the Ohio River, carrying the reader along to museums in London and the moon-drenched streets of Jerusalem on the back of an Arabian horse. Each scene packs emotional punch and builds to the story’s end, bringing full-circle the themes of forgiveness and grace.

I will long remember brave, bright Bianca and thoughtful, mysterious hero Paul. Their interactions on the page and chemistry were lifelike and sigh-worthy.

The Covered Deep offers readers the heart-pattering chemistry of a romance, the vivid detail and background of a historical, and the buried secrets and regrets of a mystery. It’s a truly unique and unforgettable story, one I highly recommend.

Brandy Vallance has a talent with words and description and has a gentle magnifying glass into the workings of the human heart.

***

Winning the Operation First Novel through the Christian Writers Guild must have been a dream and a half come true. Try to share the emotion of receiving that phone call!

Yes, indeed! It was a total dream come true. I was in Starbucks when I read online that I was a finalist. I started crying right there! The night that I won, I was at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs at the Writing for the Soul Conference. Jerry Jenkins went to the podium and welcomed everyone to the conference. After a few matters of business, he asked the finalists of Operation First Novel to stand. I had seven guests with me that night (my writing support group, family, and literary agent). When he announced my name, it was like a resonating yes went through my body.

I read in a previous interview that you rewrote this story several times, over a period of years. If you could go back to the beginning of that time, what���s one piece of advice you would you tell yourself on this journey to publication?

Perseverance is key. Dream big. God makes the impossible, possible.

I appreciated the uniqueness of The Covered Deep. I don���t think I���ve read another story quite like it ��� romance, historical, and mystery. When you wrote the first draft, did you consciously set out to create such a fascinating mix of genres?

Thank you! No, it wasn���t conscious. I just wrote the book I wanted to read.

Your heroine, Bianca Marshal, is a starry-eyed bookworm from Appalachia. She���s na��ve, yet plucky and courageous. Do you consider that she���s similar to you, or very different?

All the characters have a little of me in them, I suppose. Bianca is a dreamer and a bookworm, and that���s not far off. However, Bianca is a lot funnier than I could ever be on the fly. She���s like the best friend I wish lived down the street.

I absolutely the love the scene in the British Museum when Bianca meets Paul. He���s so mysterious and appealing; their chemistry was riveting throughout the story. Did you have a favorite character in this story? A least favorite character?

I love that first scene between Paul and Bianca! I went to the British Museum in 2011 and stood in the King���s Library where I had them meet. That was a wonderful moment for me. I just adore their chemistry. It was so much fun to write! Paul and Bianca are my favorite characters, I think, but I have a place in my heart for all the characters in The Covered Deep.

The Covered Deep weaves a test of faith into the storyline, for both Bianca and Paul. Why was this important to you?

I love deep conversations and I suppose I wanted the book to reflect that. I���m all about getting down to the deepest truth, both for my characters and myself. So much in our modern world is muddled. I wanted to ask some hard questions in the book and find real answers. What does it mean to be a true Christian? Was Jesus who He said He was? Those are some of the issues that I wanted to explore.

~ Quick Questions ~

Any pets?

Great Dane���Nessie

Cat���Gryphon

Favorite Holiday?

Valentine���s Day.

A color we���ll never see you wear?

Hmmm . . . I don���t usually wear pastels. I love jewel tones.

Night owl or mourning dove?

Night owl!

A book you���ll never part with?

The King James Bible.

Favorite way to spend a lazy day?

Drinking tea and reading!

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Brandy, thank you so much for visiting my blog! I relished each moment reading The Covered Deep, and highly recommend this one-of-a-kind romantic adventure. Please keep writing! I look forward to your next book! (I would love a sequel for Sir Adrian.)

Thank you so much!

***

In honor of Brandy’s love of��good books��and tea, I’m��offering one copy of The Covered Deep along with��a delightful assortment of tea to one reader who comments on this interview.

In your comment, please share either A) your favorite genre (type) of book to read, or B) your favorite kind of tea.

Contest opens Friday, December 5th and closes midnight��Thursday, December 11th. Only for U.S. residents, please. You MUST leave an email address with your comment��so I can reach you if you’re the winner.

I’ll draw the name Friday morning and post it here on my blog; if you win I’ll be in touch for your address soon.

Thanks so much for reading!

��

��

Filed under: Musings Tagged: Author Brandy Vallance, candidkerry, Christian fiction, Inspirational Fiction, Operation First Novel, The Covered Deep

Thoroughly Thankful

��

Do you ever gaze over the memory of��a year through pictures?

I did that last night. Sixty short minutes pulling up��2014’s pictures on my laptop, my face pinched with nostalgic emotion as another sprinting year draws to a close.

Pictures I took of our boys, of me and my parents, of��my hubby and me, of family members, of beautiful Florida sky and clouds, of places we visited, of God’s intricate flowers, of me doing one of my favorite things ever – walking barefoot in a cold mountain stream, of precious time spent with faraway friends,��of animals we spotted while walking our neighborhood, of sweet moments worth remembering.

They are too numerous to count, but each treasured deep.

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.” James 1:17

 

 

And as the month of Thanksgiving draws to a close, I’m warmed through by thankfulness. Thorough thankfulness for God’s goodness. For His mercy despite my often-selfish attitude, for His gifts of friendship and affection through others. For the many moments of love and laughter.

For Jesus.

For His patience and grace��given��when we draw near to��Him, for more of Him.

So I��hold on to this��thorough thankfulness, because now we celebrate Him who “came to His own and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name” (John 1:11 & 12).

Jesus coming to earth��for you, and for me!

I hope you and yours had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

“Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.” Psalm 106:1

 

Filed under: Musings Tagged: candidkerry, God, God's goodness, Jesus, looking back, Psalm 106:1, Year's Memories

Cole’s Corner: Book Review ~ Johnny Tremain, by Esther Forbes

From the Back of the Book: A story filled with danger and excitement, Johnny Tremain tells of the turbulent, passionate times in Boston before the Revolutionary War. Johnny, a young apprentice silversmith, is caught up in a dramatic involvement with James Otis, John Hancock, and John and Samuel Adams. Johnny is swept along by the powerful currents that will lead to the Boston Tea Party and the Battle of Lexington – and finally to an important discovery in Johnny’s own life.

It’s historical fiction at its most gripping, portraying Revolutionary Boston as a living drama through the shrewd eyes of an observant boy.

Cole’s Review: Johnny Tremain is an interesting tale for middle schoolers. This book is about a boy named Johnny who lived at the start of America. Johnny had a bit of a temper with other people. He was learning to be a silversmith. He had an accident while he was working as a silversmith with his hand. It was kind of bad and a little bit gross and frightening.

The story is his point of view which I like because he was a daring boy. He liked adventure. One of the most exciting parts was when Johnny went through a battlefield.

The parts I did not like was all the description. The author gave too much description in most of the chapters. It was a lot of extra words to read.

There were lots of colorful characters and action made it an exciting book to read. The story will teach readers what it was like to live during the Revolutionary War in Boston.

Filed under: Musings Tagged: Boston Tea Party, candidkerry, Johnny Tremain, kids' book reviews, kids' books, the Revolutionary War

Writing the Right Way

“Mom, how do you write the right way?”

Oh, um. Well, hmmm. Gee. (Probably not like that.)

My ten-year old looked expectantly at me from across our great room, his forehead wrinkled with an oft-worn frown of deep thought. His fingers were poised over the small keyboard of our “baby” laptop on the boys’ homework desk.

Ever since I started writing this middle grades fiction story in early fall - an idea dropped into my imagination by him one day after our boys played a Lego game – Cole has joined me on this book-writing journey. His story, Joe Sanders, is an action-thriller-mystery currently numbering around 3k.

We mutually decided that we’ll wait until the two stories are complete before exchanging pages. I’m just days away from finishing, although I’m not telling him. I’m planning to surprise him with the edited, printed out version soon.

Cole’s enthusiasm in writing his own story and learning about writing has been fun and challenging. He poses questions simple in nature yet foundational for success with writing and in creating great stories.

“How do you write when you don’t feel like it?”

~ Ouch. Gulp. That’s a painful one because it’s a constant battle for me. Sometimes I’m all over my laptop like a bad rash; other days I’m wiping down baseboards to avoid staring at a blinking cursor. Often the days are just too race-track-busy to write much.

Because adults know from plain ol’ life - when we commit to something, we need to follow through. We don’t always (or often) feel like doing many of the things we’re obligated to do in our lives…dishes, laundry, exercise, bathe our children, clean the kitchen, yard work, day job work, being nice to others…the list goes on and on and on (similar to laundry).

So I was honest when I answered his question. “I don’t always feel like writing, and the result is I waste time doing other things when I should be writing (^^Guilty glance at Facebook^^). I explained that writers have to put their rear in the chair and do it (–>pointing at myself).

Words can’t become stories by themselves.  They need you to shape them into a story like a canvas needs a painter to bring the colors together to create art, I explained.

I remember reading somewhere that Dean Koontz has a separate computer for writing with no internet. Smart cookie, that one.

“Should I kill off a character?”

~ I’m currently working through a scene with a death in it, and it’s tough. Hurts. Makes me feel heart-deep pain for the characters and sadness for the life gone. But that’s when we know that as writers, we’ve put real life into the characters we’ve created on the page.

Don’t kill off characters just to do it; if it helps move the plot along, I told him, then consider ending a fictional life.

“When do I know my story is long enough?”

~ I explained the word count by genre deal, gently reminding him that he doesn’t need to shoot for 30k at this point in his life (though he’s welcome to). Tell the best story you can, then go back and edit to make it even better.

While it’s always advantageous to be aware of word counts, I find that my best writing occurs when I’m not in word count mode but instead deep in my story’s heart, interacting with the characters and giving them problems to solve.

Problems? Oh yes, problems.

“Should the bad guy win?”

~ Uh oh. Trouble. That age-old conflict question. Good vs. evil. Bad guy vs. good guy. Protagonist vs. internal/external conflict stopping him/her from getting what he/she wants. Bring on the conflict! Problems are inherent in life and absolutely necessary in fiction. I’ve had to focus on that one especially. Conflict on every page to keep the reader turning the page.

“Is it bad that I hunt and peck?”

~ I suppressed a giggle at this adorable question. Cole lamented the fact that he can’t type as fast as I can. I explained that it takes time and practice to type zippy-fast like I do (and really, I don’t type that fast.) I have twenty-plus years of typing on him.

(On that note, if only we had this option:)

A little creepy, right? But efficient, I’d say.

***

Ultimately I told him to write the story that’s bursting out of him and don’t sweat all the details (he’s ten, for goodness sake). Because over the past few years, I’ve greatly enjoyed reading author interviews and learning what drives other writers on their writing journeys. Finding out where their stories come from, their struggles and successes, what roadblocks they’ve climbed over to pursue publishing.

Writers have this commonality of characters in our head that won’t go away; stories that claw their way out of our soul to be told and shared; and for Christian writers, a deep desire to honor our Creator with words that point back to Jesus, the Author of life.

If you’re hunting and pecking like my ten-year old – keep at it! If you’re midway through the journey like me – dig in and push through (and keep that rear in the chair). If you’re a published author crafting stories on a tight, stressful deadline, with editors and eager readers breathing down your neck – you can do it! Your words, your stories matter.

You’re writing the right way.

Filed under: Musings Tagged: Authors, books, candidkerry, characters, kids writing, Publishing journey, writing