Sunday, January 07, 2007

Dorothy Clark - A Wonderful Author

Have you ever wondered about how an author looks when they are working. Here is my good friend Dorothy Clark in her working environment. If you haven't read any of your books, you'll want get some right away. She writes books that will keep you turning pages.

Thanks for spending time with us Dorothy. Tell us how much of yourself you write into your characters.

I don’t consciously write any of myself into my characters, but I’m afraid bits and pieces of me sneak in there in spite of my efforts.

As a fellow author, I know how you feel. What is the quirkiest thing you have ever done?

I’ve spent some time thinking about this and I can’t come up with a thing. LOL I’m stuck with being boring. I just don’t do quirky.

I guess you leave that up to people like me. When did you first discover that you were a writer?

When God told me—and I’m not kidding. One day in church a visiting pastor said, "The Lord would have you write down all that He gives you." A short time later a sentence came into my head and wouldn’t go away. I wrote it down and that act of obedience opened a floodgate. Words poured into my mind and 120K words later, I had my first book, Beauty for Ashes. When (again in church) He spoke that I was to write a second book–Hosea’s Bride–I began to suspect this wasn’t a one shot deal, and He was leading me on a new path. Until that happened, I hadn’t a clue as to what the Lord had in store for me. I certainly never dreamed of becoming a writer. I’ve been richly blessed.

What a wonderful story about how God moves in our lives, and I loved both of those books. I know how you feel. Tell us the range of the kinds of books you enjoy reading.

Gracious! That’s a wide range. I won’t read what I call "downer" books. There’s too much suffering and sadness in real life for me to read about it in the name of entertainment. Other than that, I’ll read most anything except horror or Sci-fi. My apologies to those who write them, but they’re simply not my thing.

No need to apologize. We all have our preferred types of books to read. What other books have you written, whether published or not?

My first four books: Hosea’s Bride, Beauty for Ashes, Joy for Mourning (sequel to Beauty for Ashes) and Lessons From the Heart, are all published. I am now working on another contemporary romance and an historical set in 1763.

I can hardly wait for them to come out. I've been one of your greatest fans. How do you keep your sanity in our run, run, run world?

I don’t run. Through a series of personal and family health problems, I learned to say no. Also, our home sits on a wooded hill, surrounded by nature. I’ve only to step outside to feel God’s peace. It’s a wonderful way to slow down when I’m "running" inside.

How do you choose your characters’ names?

So far, they have simply come to me. But if/when I do have to choose one it will probably be old-fashioned. I like common or Biblical names. Oh, and it will be easy to type.

That last bit of advice is good. The book I'm working on has a heroine with a first name that is spelled a very different way. It adds to the writing time. What is the accomplishment that you are most proud of?

Forty-eight years of marriage to my own hero and best friend, and three wonderful children who do us proud.

If you were an animal, which one would you be, and why?

A horse. Why? Hmm. I guess because a horse is so beautiful. majestic and powerful when it is running free, yet submissive and useful, willing to carry someone weaker than itself when there’s a need.

Good observation. What is your favorite food?

Another gracious! How do you choose one? Okay, I’ll fess up. I couldn’t survive without potatoes. LOL How mundane a choice is that? But I love them in all the multitude of ways you can prepare them–especially scalloped or mashed or made into chips! There have been moments when I was quite certain manna was a potato chip.

Very funny. What would you like to tell us about the featured book?



Lessons From the Heart is about the battle between flesh and spirit that every Christian encounters. It’s about choosing to obey or to ignore God’s Word. In the book the struggle for the Christian heroine centers around her love for a man who wants no part of God. Does she obey God’s word and walk away from the relationship? Or does she ignore God’s admonition to not be unequally yoked and reach for the forbidden fruit? My prayer is that the Lord might use the book to spare any readers who are looking with hunger on whatever forbidden fruit is tempting them years of agony or heartache.

I just read that book this last week, and it is wonderful. The subject was handled realistically, but with compassion. Readers, if you don't win it, you'll want to get a copy anyway. But one of you will win a copy, so leave a comment for a chance.

Dorothy, thank you for spending this time with me.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great interview! And may I add that Dorothy Clark is a wonderful friend and critque partner, as well as a wonderful author!

Anonymous said...

Nancy has already recommended Dorothy's books to me so I hope I win this one! rose

Jennifer Y. said...

Wonderful interview! I really enjoy Dorothy's books, so I would love to enter.

Lisa Jordan said...

Wonderful interview, Dorothy and Lena!

Hosea's Bride is one of my all-time favorite books. I've read hundreds of Love Inspired novels, but that's one novel that stays in my thoughts.

Keisha said...

That was a great interview! Thanks so much Lena and Dorothy.

The first book I ever read to get into the awesome and truly heaven-sent world of Chrisitan fiction was Beauty for Ashes. I stayed up all night and read the book. Then I started passing it around my church, and I had to fight to get it back. All the ladies really enjoyed it and then we got Hosea's Bride. This time everyone got their own copy, and I was lucky enough to be the first to get my hands on Joy for Mourning. We even had a discussion group at church about Beauty for Ashes and Joy for Mourning.

Awesome books, Dorothy. You have truly been blessed with the gift of the written word.

Anonymous said...

Dorothy's choice of animal counterparts is on target. But there's more to it than that. She and Ralph are true Thoroughbreds--Andalusians maybe, with more heart than an Arabian.

And listen, you haven't read description until you've read Dorothy's work.

Anonymous said...

I'm always looking for new reading material since I read "voraciously". I think I read Beauty for Ashes and I hope I win the new book! It's interesting to get to know the 'people' behind the books.

Candice Speare said...

I'm loving Dorothy's picture. That's exactly how I sit at my computer!

Candice

Anonymous said...

I enjoyed the interview with Dorothy, and would love to win a copy of "Lessons from the Heart." We also share a common dislike for horror and Sci-fi books!

Valerie said...

Thanks Dorothy and Lena,

It is great to hear how other writer's do their thing. It helps me realize I'm not crazy, and God has a way of working through peoples' lives in amazing ways.
Thanks again :)

Best Wishes,
Valerie