Meet Erin: Erin Healy is the
best-selling co-author of Burn and Kiss (with Ted Dekker) and an
award-winning editor for numerous best-selling authors. She has received wide
acclaim for her novels Never Let You Go, The Baker's Wife, House of Mercy,
and Afloat. She and her family live in Colorado.
Tell us how much of
yourself you write into your characters.
Exactly 18.3%. The part of myself that typically appears on
the page takes the form of my characters’ spiritual/moral/ethical questions,
such as the one that confronts Vance in Afloat: which situations require
action, and which require an obedient staying put? Or the one that defines
Beth’s struggle in House of Mercy:
can I say God is good even when he doesn’t give me what I think I need? I guess
I use story to wrestle with questions that don’t always have clear answers.
What is the quirkiest
thing you have ever done?
That’s a toss-up between ensuring the salvation of my cat by
telling Jesus my dear pet was part of the package when He got me, or, after
reading Harriet the Spy, keeping a
similar spy notebook on people I knew, with bald-faced intentions of using them
in a novel someday. By divine intervention, that notebook disappeared before I
got the chance.
When did you first
discover that you were a writer?
I didn’t discover it, exactly. Instead “you sure can write”
was a message given to me repeatedly by family members, educators, and trusted
friends throughout my childhood and young adulthood. I was blessed to receive
this message so consistently and positively that I began to believe it. Two
defining moments came in college, when a professor urged me to change my major
to English (I did), and when a friend sent me to a writers conference (I went).
Both changed my life.
Tell us the range of
the kinds of books you enjoy reading.
Oh my. Do you have enough room? In the nonfiction arena I
like spiritual insight (there’s a stack of Richard Rohr and Philip Yancey on my
nightstand), books that challenge me to grapple with faith issues (like Love Wins and Misreading Scripture Through Western Eyes), nutrition (big fan of
Furhman and Weil right now), high-quality memoir (Unbroken—one of the best ever), of course books about writing and
editing, and scads of novel research, especially geography, autism, ranching,
architecture, and so on. In fiction I’ll read almost anything—huge fan of
Louise Penny mysteries, Jane Kirkpatrick historicals, Dean Koontz suspense, Marilynne
Robinson’s stunning prose, Tosca Lee’s biblical fiction, and fantastic concepts
like Erin Morgenstern’s The Night Circus
and Martyn Bedford’s YA novel Flip.
How do you keep your
sanity in our run, run, run world?
Uh, maybe the counselor I’ve been seeing for twelve years
would be better equipped to answer that question. In truth, my life seems to be
an upwardly maturing cycle of losing my sanity and then, by the grace of God,
finding it again. I wish I had a more practical answer to offer, but I’m afraid
my how-to is esoteric: I keep learning how to hold things loosely and to not
control my life too tightly. On the bright side, it does seem to be getting
easier.
How do you choose
your characters’ names?
What is the
accomplishment that you are most proud of?
At risk of sounding flippant, I might have to say it is that
I taught myself (alone) how to replace a bathroom toilet (alone). This became
necessary after I (alone) managed to crack the toilet’s water tank. Bear with
me: it’s the symbolism of the achievement rather than the achievement itself
that’s important. Namely, that I faced a challenge completely out of my
intellectual, physical, and educational depth and discovered I was up to the
task. Even if I did go through three wax rings before I got it right.
What is your favorite
food?
Tiramisu: coffee and sugar in their finest form.
What is the problem
with writing that was your greatest roadblock, and how did you overcome it?
Was? Oh for the day when I can completely put it behind me:
I am a conceptual rather than concrete-visual thinker. I think of story in
terms of themes and ideas rather than people and scenes. As a result I spend
too much time writing about abstract notions and interior thoughts. I have
written (and cut) whole scenes of characters standing around thinking but not
behaving. After nine manuscripts my editor still catches me belly-button gazing
through my characters. How I overcome: (1) I accept this weakness as part of my
first-draft creative process; (2) I get it out of my system and then cut
ruthlessly; (3) I rely on my editor to show me what I am blind to, and I do
what she tells me to do; and (4) one note stuck to my computer reminds me to
“Begin with the event,” and the other reminds me that “Behavior is character.”
Tell us about the
featured book.
Afloat is a supernatural-disaster survival story about a motley
bunch of people stranded on a river. They are divided over how to get out alive,
and two deaths expose hidden intentions and dark histories. More than this, Afloat
is a story about human love in the broadest terms. Can we love well when our
survival instincts are running in high gear? What does it mean to “survive” a
crisis? Each of my characters grapples with these questions in different ways.
Please give us the
first page of the book.
THE WETSUIT and the water are black, and after the man slips
into both, he seems to vanish from the world. He has come on a starless night
to avoid being seen, to hide a few containers where they won’t be found. He
will be underpaid for this task by his anonymous employer, but times are hard
so he takes what he can get.
He has gone into the water between his bobbing boat and
twelve shadowy structures that float. They are gathered under the weak moon in
a semicircle like disciples awaiting their teacher. But he is not the one they
wish for. As instructed he will secure his packages under the second unit,
which is squat and unfinished. Which will never be finished.
The silky surface between him and building 2 reflects the
sky’s silver stars. For a moment, before he lowers the diving mask, he is
distracted by the glittering scene. The understanding gives him a jolt: because
it is a starless night, and these are not reflections. They are sardine-sized
creatures flashing with their own energy, flickering randomly, tricking his
eyes.
He lets go of the boat and reaches out to touch one,
expecting it to dart away. It flares instead, flaming like a struck match
though fully submerged, and sends a tingling shock through the palm of his
hand. He jerks back. The flame dies. With the thumb of his other hand he tries
to rub the sting away.
The pain won’t die. Nor will his sudden certainty that more
secrets than his are hidden in this place.
He would turn back, if not for the money.
He dives into darkness to do his work, avoiding contact with
the silver things, and as he swims they fade away. Fear hurries him along. He
needs to be gone before the sun rises, before everything concealed comes to light.
What a hook! How can
readers find you on the Internet?
www.erinhealy.com
Here you’ll find details about each of my books, free sample chapters, and links
to my presence on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, and Goodreads.One winner will receive:
- An iPad Mini
- iTunes gift card
- Afloat by Erin Healy
Don't miss a moment of the fun; ENTER today. Tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Visit Erin's blog on the 17th!
Thank you, Erin, for visiting with us today. The book sounds awesome.
Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog.
Afloat - paperbackAfloat - Kindle
Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book on this blog. Please tell us where you live, at least the state or territory. (Comments containing links may be subject to removal by blog owner.)
Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.
The only notification you’ll receive is the winner post on this blog. So be sure to check back a week from Saturday to see if you won. You will have 4 weeks from the posting of the winners to claim your book.
If you’re reading this on Google +, Feedblitz, Facebook, Linkedin, or Amazon, please come to the blog to leave your comment if you want to be included in the drawing. Here’s a link.
Http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com
17 comments:
I would love to win Afloat. It sounds like an excellent book!
Katie J. from Florida
Wow Erin! You have quite an eclectic taste in the books you read. I think that is awesome as it keeps one's mind fresh!
I also love the cover of AFLOAT. It is quite intriguing to say the least. I would love to be entered to win a copy. Thank you for the opportunity.
I live in Indiana.
Smiles & Blessings,
Cindy W.
countrybear52 AT yahoo DOT com
This sounds intriguing!
-Melissa M. from TX
This sounds like such an excellent book.
Blessings,
Jo from Southern Arizona
I have ready Erin Healy with Ted Dekker, loved Burn and Kiss! Would love to try this book as well.
Jasmine A. in Montana
What a fascinating idea for a story. I'm looking forward to reading AFLOAT.
Mary P
QLD AUSTRALIA
I'm not familiar with her books but will buy one for sure now.
I just entered the contest.
Thanks for giving me the chance to do so.
Janet E.
von1janet(at)gmail(dot)com
Florida
please sign me up!
kandrajane at bell south dot net
Kandra in OK
I love Erin's books and this one sounds really good! Thank you.
Carly in NC
I would love to win!
Rebekah Gyger TN
Enter me!!
Sharon Richmond
Blanch,NC.
sharonruth126@gmail.com
This book sounds great. I don't know what I would do in a desperate survival situation. I hope I never have to find out. I bought my husband "Unbroken" and he loved it. I liked your spy notebook as a child. That's cute. Maybe I'll add my two cats and ask Jesus to make us a package deal. Kristie from Ohio. kristiedonelson(at)gmail(dot)com Thank you.
Oh really really would love to win.
Lourdes from Long Island NY
I love survival stories! I'm in MN.
Afloat sounds so interesting, please add me to the drawing! Thanks.
Merry in Mn
Looks like such an interesting and intriguing book! Love the cover too!
Marissa from CO
Afloat looks very good. Thanks for the chance to win it.
Beth from Iowa
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