OVER THE EDGE - Brandilyn Collins - Free Book

I'm welcoming one of my favorite redheads today. Tell us about your salvation experience.

I grew up in a Christian home and can’t remember a time when I didn’t go to church. So when I first became a Christian, I can’t say. Thirty years ago when I got married, Mark and I rededicated our lives—and marriage—to God. Then in 1998 I had a deeper experience with Christ, with the infilling of the Holy Spirit.

You’re planning a writing retreat where you can only have four other authors. Who would they be and why?

I’m choosing from the ABA since I know so many CBA novelists and have been with them and/or had them to my home at one time or another. Anne Rivers Siddons—characters. (And I love her vocabulary!) Dean Koontz—characters and wordsmithing. (Plus he seems like such a cool guy.) Harlan Coban. (Great suspense author.) Sara Gruen, author of Water for Elephants. Loved that book.

Do you have a speaking ministry? If so, tell us about that.

I teach the craft of fiction at writers conferences whenever I can. I also emcee the ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) conference. And I present keynote speeches—again when my schedule allows me to. Any speaking does pull time away from writing, so I have to be careful not to over schedule.

What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you and how did you handle it?

This didn’t really embarrass me as much as make me blink—hard. I was on my very first live radio interview regarding one of my early novels. And the very first caller to phone in was an elderly woman who accusingly demanded to know how in the world could I—who called myself a Christian—write novels, because they were lies.

Sheesh. Welcome to live radio.

I told her that truth can be told through Story—as Jesus did through His parables. I elaborated a bit on that and managed not to stumble. Later I had to laugh. What a way to break into interviewing.

People are always telling me that they’d like to write a book someday. I’m sure they do to you, too. What would you tell someone who came up to you and said that?

I’m polite and ask the person what the book would be about. I nod and smile. Inside I’m thinking, “Don’t quit your day job.” I know that sounds harsh—but that’s reality. You don’t just sit down and write an effective book. Especially fiction. Learning the craft takes years of hard work.

Tell us about the featured book.

Over the Edge is the book I was born to write. It focuses on Lyme disease—a disease I know all too personally, as I’ve fought it myself. And it’s built around the “Lyme wars”—the battle Lyme patients have to fight against the medical community for proper treatment and testing. The story is exciting, suspenseful, and lives up to my Seatbelt Suspense® brand. At the same time readers will learn something about Lyme disease. At the back of the book is an Author’s Note that gives further information about Lyme disease and the treatment wars.

Publishers Weekly calls Over the Edge “a taut, heartbreaking thriller. Collins is a fine writer who knows how to both horrify readers and keep them turning pages.”

Here’s the back cover copy:

Janessa McNeil’s life looks perfect. Her husband, Dr. Brock McNeil, is a renowned researcher and professor at Stanford University’s Department of Medicine. They have a beautiful home and can give their daughter everything she needs. Theirs is a life others envy.

But nothing is as it seems.

Forces are at work that will shatter everything—Janessa’s marriage, her way of life, even her safety. For her husband’s highly respected assertion that chronic Lyme disease doesn’t exist has done more than inform medical and insurance professionals. It’s ruined lives. One man’s life in particular.

Now it’s time to make Dr. Brock McNeil face the truth. To make him see the devastation Lyme disease causes—up close and personal. And this bitter man has found the perfect tools to extract his revenge …

Janessa and her daughter

Please give us the first page of the book.

How about the complete prologue? You can read it here.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

Please check out my web site to read about all my books, including the first chapters. I’m on Facebook here. Oh, and very soon now—all of you with iPads or iPhones or iWhatevers—you’ll be able to download the free Tick Squish game created for Over the Edge. Sounds crazy, doesn’t it? (But then, so does Angry Birds.) It’s a kick to play. And for those wanting a free sample of the book—conquering each level of the game unlocks another chapter of the book, from the prologue to chapters one through three.

Thanks for dropping by, Brandilyn,

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