Readers, I met Bruce
when he was a speaker for our local ACFW chapter and became intrigued by his
stories. His book just came on Saturday, so I haven’t read the stories yet.
Welcome, Bruce. Tell
us how much of yourself you write into your characters.
I suppose there are bits and pieces of me in most of my
characters—some more than others, of course. I think what I more like to do is have
my characters face significant emotional events that I’ve faced in my life and
see how they handle them. If they do well, I’ve written into them more of who
I’d like to be than who I actually am.
What is the quirkiest
thing you have ever done?
Wow, where do I start? I suspect that a list of un-quirky
things I’ve done would actually be shorter than a list of my quirky ones. Being
a seat-of-the-pants writer, you have to have some quirkiness to surrender the
manuscript so the characters will write the story for you. That way you can
blame them if the book flops. There, is that quirky enough? (Hint: ask a writer
who outlines…)
When did you first
discover that you were a writer?
When my wife told me I was one. Seriously, I was introducing
study through the book of Jonah to my Sunday School class, and I said, “If I
were ever to write a novel, it would be about Jonah.” She elbowed me in the
ribs after class and said, “Well…?” That gentle prodding gave birth to A Prophet’s Tale.
Tell us the range of
the kinds of books you enjoy reading.
I love to read (and write) contemporary-historical fiction,
a hybrid where the two storylines parallel or complement each other. Susan
Meissner is a master of this (e.g., The
Shape of Mercy, Lady in Waiting).
Historical fiction is next, and there are so many incredible authors in this
genre I can’t begin to name them. The list scatters from there, where writing
quality quickly overshadows genre. In the non-fiction realm, biographies and
expository Biblical commentaries top the list.
I loved both of those
books by Susan. How do you keep your sanity in our run, run, run world?
I’ve never claimed to have kept my sanity. In fact, I’m not
convinced I ever started out with any.
How do you choose
your characters’ names?
Oh, fun! Character names are really important. Although this
may sound like I was groping, I got all 13 of my grandchildren’s names (or
derivations of them) in Katia. And it worked really well. My 14th grandchild
didn’t make it in time before the book was released, so I’ve named the female
lead in my current manuscript after her. Other characters, well, I agonize over
them. The names need to be comfortable, memorable, and fit the character for
the reader. I just go through name combinations until I hit what I think is a winner.
What is the
accomplishment that you are most proud of?
I’ve been married to my high-school sweetheart for over 41
years. The pride is in that I’ve managed not to chase her away in all this
time. But then, maybe the pride should really be in her perseverance…
If you were an
animal, which one would you be, and why?
A dog. I’d like to love and trust that completely,
unconditionally, and without restraint.
What is your favorite
food?
Easy: pizza. Nature’s perfect food. It has all the major
food groups: carbs, fat … you know.
What is the problem
with writing that was your greatest roadblock, and how did you overcome it?
I’m neither sure how to describe it, nor do I believe I’ve
overcome it—yet. Cec Murphey once told me the greatest compliment he’d ever
received on his writing is when an editor told him how easy he was to read.
When you read a novel by an accomplished author (I’ve mentioned Susan Meissner;
add Allison Pittman, Candace Calvert, Dan Walsh—and many more, not in any
particular order), you can’t really put your finger on what it is that’s so
good. I think that’s why it is so good: the prose is effortless, it disappears
beneath the story and the dream isn’t broken from the front cover to the last
page. I want to be able to do that. Perhaps someday I shall.
Tell us about the
featured book.
Lost
Loves of WWII is a Barbour Publishing collection of three novels, two
of which are mine:
Katia
and
For
Maria (click hyperlinks for reader reviews).
Katia is perhaps my favorite of the books I’ve written (it’s certainly my wife’s favorite),
For Maria is the sequel to
Katia,
also a contemporary-historical, and the historical storyline is definitely
WWII.
There’s also a third novel in the collection: The Train Baby's Mother by Sharon Bernash Smith, which promises to be a great read. Three novels for the price of one, I think, is a pretty good deal. and, although it deals more with the Cold War than WWII, it does have roots in that war. It’s a contemporary-historical novel with one storyline in the present and the other in the mid-20th century.
Please give us the
first page of the book.
Since there are two of my stories in this collection, I get
two pages, right? J Okay, we’ll compromise; a page and a half. I’ll
give the prologue to For Maria, since it’s a complete chapter.
1 March 1940
Frau Mahler,
I hope this letter finds you well. I have received no
response to my letter of last December regarding your sister’s baby girls. I
can only hope it reached you, and that your response is en route. I fear,
though, that there may not be time to await its arrival.
Our apartment is being watched, as are so many others in
this district. Rósa and I leave for Salzburg
tomorrow evening…
* * *
“…AND THEY HIDE IN THE SHADOWS LIKE RATS.”
“Stay back from the window, Rósa. If they see you, they may
come before we’re ready.”
Rósa Dudek eased the curtain closed and rubbed her thin arms
against the damp cold permeating the front room of their tiny second-floor
apartment. The chill crept inward from the tips of her frail fingers and numbed
her bony hands, triggering a dull ache in her arthritic joints. She shivered
and pulled a threadbare woolen shawl tighter around her shoulders. Her wistful
gaze flicked to a small fireplace, empty but for the powdery residue of last
month’s coal, now too costly to replace.
“What are you writing, Gustaw?”
Her husband laid his pen onto the table and ran his fingers
through thinning black hair. Cupping his hands around his mouth, he blew into
them, then flexed his stiff fingers next to three stubby candles sprouting from
a triple brass candle holder on the table. A weary halo shrouded the sickly
yellow flames and cast weak shadows across peeling floral wallpaper and a
pockmarked tabletop. The jaundiced glow accented the deep creases in Gustaw’s
lean tired face. He coughed.
“I write again to the Mahlers in Berlin.”
“But why? They didn’t respond to your first letter.”
“I know they didn’t respond, but I don’t know why. The post
is slow since the Germans invaded. There could be many reasons.” He lifted his
gaze. “And we must do everything we can to return the girls to their family.”
Rósa clutched her arms around her slight waist. “Perhaps
they’ve left Berlin.
Or maybe they don’t want the children.”
Gustaw paused, then rose from his chair and took his wife
into his arms. He kissed her forehead. “You understand we must return them,
don’t you?”
Her eyes brimmed as he caressed her cheek.
“God has withheld children from us for reasons only he
knows, Rósa, and lacking a son or a daughter does not lessen my love for you,
you know that. I’m becoming attached to the twins, too, but we cannot take
another family’s children for our own. God would never honor such a thing.”
“Of course I know this,” she sniffled. “But they’re so
beautiful, and they look at me as though…” Her chest convulsed, and she rested
her forehead on her husband’s shoulder. He let her release, as he had so often
over the past twenty-five years at yet another month’s reminder that motherhood
had eluded her.
“Rósa, it’s time we must—”
They stiffened at a tapping on the wall. Three taps, followed
by two. Then silence.
Gustaw rushed to the table and blew out the candles. He
stuffed the unfinished letter and envelope into his jacket pocket. “Get the
children. Now!”
How can readers find
you on the Internet?
I have a website at
www.brucejudisch.com.
If you click on one of the book covers, it will take you to a page dedicated to
that book. The exception to that is the cover of Lost Loves, since it’s a
compilation. Click on the
Katia and
For Maria covers for their respective
pages to see what’s in Lost Loves.
I’d love to hear from any of your readers through the
Contact Me link at the bottom of each of my Web pages. I give discounts for
signed copies cheaper than the cover prices.
Thanks so much for hosting me, Lena.
It’s been fun.
I've enjoyed having you on the blog as well.
Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog.
The Lost Loves of World War II - Christianbook.com
The Lost Loves of World War II Collection: Three Novels of Mysteries Unsolved Since World War II
- Amazon
The Lost Loves of World War II Collection: Three Novels of Mysteries Unsolved Since World War II
- Kindle
Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book.
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 Goodreads, Google+, Feedblitz, Facebook, Twitter, 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
Three months of reading challenge - June, July, August. Keep a list of all the books you read and list them this way:
List two will be the books featured on my blog that aren't in either sidebar. You will get 2 points for these.
- Amazon
- Amazon
- Amazon
- Amazon
- Amazon