Tomorrow is going to be a long day, becasue before I even get into uniform, I have a 15 hour day ahrad of me....outside in the snow once again. So while I should be getting my gear ready, I am taking a few moments to get this out to you. Our next guest id from Georgia...I'm pretty sure there's no snow down there.
Could you share a little about yourself and what led you to become a writer?
I am in the education field and have been since the age of 19. I am married to an amazing man named John and we have 2 fur babies. I have always had a love of reading and after losing my mom, I channeled my pain and healing into writing a book. I started writing after having lost my daughter, so I can relate to that.
Do you write full time? How much of your life is set aside for writing?
I work full-time so I do not have a tremendous amount of time to write. Usually, weekends and evenings are used for writing but I balance that with the time I spend with my husband.
Could you tell us a little about your novel?
“My Forever” is fictional but I drew on my own grief and loss to hopefully make the reader believe the character’s pain. It begins with loss and pain but slowly evolves into a love story. It has some twists and turns, but the reader will have to read to find out if there is a happily ever after. I am also working on the sequel to “My Forever”. It is entitled “Forever After”
Would you take us on a brief tour of your novel and the world you’ve created?
It is set in the scenic North Georgia Mountains. The main characters both have suffered loss in their past and are both trying to heal. The meet and try to develop a relationship and while helping oneanother heal and grow at the same time. They both work in the medical field. The book is a clean read.
Where does the inspiration for your main character and story come from?
Savannah is loosely
What do you think makes a good romance story?
True love, trust between the characters, ups and downs and a little drama. We're going for the full load here!
How do you handle the emotional side of romance writing?
I feel the pain and anguish that my characters feel. For sure knowing first-hand what those emotions are makes it easier to write down...much more so than trying to imagine what it is supposed to feel like.
Which elements do you think are more important in this type of writing? Emotion. You need to be able to make your reader feel
what the character is going through.
What is the message behind the story? Was it something you specifically wrote a story around or did it develop as your characters came to life? The message behind “My Forever” is to have faith, believe in God and be patient that your blessings will come. The story started as a way for me to heal and such evolved as I wrote. I hope you found some peace through your writing.
Do you work from an outline or just go with the flow?
I do not use an outline to write from. I sit and write when I am in a writing frame of mind and the words flow onto the page. My favorite way to write!
What is the time span in your novel, weeks, months, years? “My Forever” occurs over about a year and a half time frame.
How much research went into your story? I researched Blue Ridge and the size of the town to make it more realistic but I travel to Blue Ridge frequently and am familiar with the feel of the town.
Could you tell us how you go about your research, how you ‘catalogue’ information to make it all work? While I get information on size and location and climate, I really just write what I am feeling at the time.
How do you handle marketing? Do you have a plan, a publicist or just take one day at a time? I have a publisher and they handle some of the marketing but I rely heavily on social media and people that I know to promote my writing.
Do you have any advice for aspiring authors? Start writing and worry about formatting later. Get your thoughts and ideas on paper and then organize them. Never give up. If a publisher turns you down, there are 100 more and someone will say yes when God feels it is the right time. I wrote “My Forever” 7 years before it was published.
Could you tell us what you’re working on now? The sequel to “My Forever” as well as a Biography about a very dear friend with terminal breast cancer.
My Forever
Sarah McLendon
Christian Romance, Romance, Fiction
Only a few years after tragically losing her hearing, Savannah James is blindsided by the death of her mother. Alone, in a world that can hear what she cannot, Savannah struggles to find her way without the most important person in her life. She returns to the radiology department at Mountain View Hospital, hopeful that immersing herself in work will help ease her pain. With her self-esteem at an all-time low, can Savannah's chance encounter with Nurse Carter Reed, with secrets of his own, lead to a blossoming romance? For the first time, Savannah is not self-conscious about being deaf. Will Carter and Savannah be able to overcome the darkness they both have had to face in their lives to find My Forever...
Author Bio:
Sarah McLendon is from Georgia and lives with her husband John and 2 furry children. My Forever is her first published book and she is currently working on the sequel. She is also working on a biography about a terminal breast cancer patient. She has been published in the Reader’s Gazette and was featured in the Blog for London Books (Clean Indie Reads), the home of Flinch Free Fiction. She has spent the last 22 years in the Education Field and she values her Faith in God and uses it daily to help her live her life like she is meant to live it!
Purchase Links:
Contact Links:
Twitter: @mclendonsarah
No comments:
Post a Comment