Author Laurie Alice Eakes - BETTER THAN GOLD

I've known Laurie Alice for several years. This book Better Than Gold is the final book in the Ohio Brides series by Heartsong Presents. My book, A Daughter's Quest was book one, and Tara's Gold by Lisa Harris was book two.

Welcome, Laurie Alice. Why do you write the kind of books you do?

That's easy—they are the kind of books I like to read and can't find enough of; therefore, I write them for myself and am glad others can now read them, too.

Besides when you came to know the Lord, what is the happiest day in your life?

Probably when I got married. The day started out rainy and cold, not good for an outdoor wedding, but by the afternoon, the weather was perfect. It was as though the cloudy part of my life, where I wandered looking for love, had passed and the sun came out.

How has being published changed your life?

I live in a town where the first question people ask about you is, "What do you do?" When I say I'm a published author, I get a double take and silence. Interpretation—people think I'm a little strange. And I don't care. I have more fun writing that working in a corporate office. So I have to say my life is more interesting. Besides that, I never before made such great friends and met so many interesting people.

What are you reading right now?

Second Glance by Jodi Picoult for a book club to which I belong, Everyday Life in Elizabethan England, and Death of a Cad by M.C. Beaton.

What is your current work in progress?

I'm working on an adventure story set in 1816 England, where the hero is a former highwayman and the heroine a widow who has just found out her husband gambled away everything they owned.

What would be your dream vacation?

About six months in southwest Portugal. The sunshine, the people, the food, the ocean there are all incredible. Ten days was not enough. Of course, I'd like about six months in Great Britain, too.

How do you choose your settings for each book?

That depends on the story I want to tell. With Better than Gold, I had the idea, then worked out where the idea would work most logically. In other cases, I fall in love with a setting and want to set a story there. Sometimes, as in the case with Family Guardian, the genre of the story dictated the setting.

If you could spend an evening with one person who is currently alive, who would it be and why?

In thinking of this answer, I ran through a lot of famous people, and decided that, although I find many political and entertainment persons interesting, I'd rather spend my time with someone like Liz Curtis Higgs. Besides being a fabulous writer, she's an amazing human being and woman of God, and I would like to talk with her one on one.

What are your hobbies, besides writing and reading?

Hiking in the mountains and attending live theater.

I've always loved (and participated in) live theater, too. What is your most difficult writing obstacle, and how do you overcome it?

Typing. I'm a terrible typist. Something is disconnected between my brain and my fingers, and I am much, too slow for my liking, which makes writing frustrating at times because I'm thinking faster than I can get the words down. So I've learned to outline extensively so I don't lose ideas in the slow pace. And I edit a great deal to catch as many typos as possible. Time is often a problem, and mostly that is my fault, so saying it's an obstacle is cheating.

What advice would you give to a beginning author?

No matter how much you want to, don’t quit your day job. Again and again, I hear people say that they know they’re called to be writers. Then, a year down the line, the family is in financial straits because they don’t have that income, and the person is whining about not being published yet. If you can only get a page a day written, you will get a novel or more written in a year. Be consistent, though, and finish something. That’s the main advice—get something finished. Something else I see new writers doing is writing three chapters and a synopsis and sending it in hopes of a sale. No one is going to buy on a proposal, so get that novel finished first. Then, while waiting to hear back on that one, start another one and write it all the way through. The average in the industry is that people sell their fourth finished manuscript. Some sell the first one. Others write ten or twelve before they sell. If you are serious, then keep writing full works until you get the right combination of story, talent, editor, and market to make a sale.

Very good advice, Laurie Alice. Tell us about the featured book.

Better than Gold is the third book in the Heartsong Presents Iowa Historical Series. Once upon a time, I came up with the concept of a series of three books where people keep coming to a small town to look for stolen government gold said to have been last known to be in that town. But no one can find it until the last book. I pitched it to Lena Nelson Dooley and Lisa Harris, who got on board with me, and the rest is history. It is, too. Rumors of missing government gold abound in the West. But what the characters all have to learn is a right heart with the Lord and love are far richer than money.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

My web site is http://www.lauriealiceeakes.com and my blog is http://www.seizethechance.blogspot.com.

Thank you for spending this time with us, Laurie Alice.

Readers, check out Laurie's web site and blog.

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