Bio: Marion
Ueckermann’s passion for writing was sparked in 2001 when she moved to Ireland
with her husband and two sons. Since then she has published devotional articles
and stories in Winners, The One Year
Devotional of Joy and Laughter, Chicken Soup for the Soul: Miraculous
Messages from Heaven.
Marion loves writing Contemporary Inspirational Romances set
in novel places and has three Passport to Romance novellas published and
contracted through White Rose Publishing, a Pelican Book Group imprint: her
debut novella, Helsinki Sunrise; Oslo Overtures (August 2015); and Glasgow Grace (2016).
She lives in Pretoria East, South Africa , in an empty nest with
her husband and their crazy black Scottie, Wally.
Welcome back, Marion
He has, Lena , and it’s been
such an amazing blessing. At the beginning of the year, I felt God was giving
me the word BREAKTHROUGH, for 2015. Three days later that breakthrough began to
happen when I was asked to take part in a boxed set (Splash!) of summer novellas
with eight other international authors. The decision to become a part of
Splash! has turned my writing world upside down (in a good way) and set me on a
path I never thought I’d travel.
On the horizon, I see a busy time and a lot of hard work. Orphaned Hearts, my Splash! novella was
released independently last month as Book 1 of my new indie published, Heart of
Africa romance series. I am planning to release Book 2 at the end of the year,
so after I attend my first American writer’s conference in Dallas in September with ACFW, I’ll be
working hard on that.
I also have Book 1 completed in Heart of Ireland—another “Heart
of...” romance series I’m planning. That’ll be a northern hemisphere spring
release. Then I need to write to additional three books in that series to
release every three months during 2016.
I’ve just contracted my third Passport to Romance novella, Glasgow Grace (working title), so I’ll
be busy with galley edits on that in the next few months. I still have so many Passport
to Romance novellas I want to write and submit to my publisher, White Rose
Publishing (Pelican Book Group).
And then, of course, in between all the writing, these
releases need to be marketed. As I said, busy, busy, busy.
Tell us a little
about your family.
Oh, golly, where do I start? I’m from a really close-knit
family—two brothers and one sister. At the time I prepared this interview, I
had written that I was blessed to still have my parents, aged 88, although the
sands of time were running out, and that I was making the most of the
opportunities I still had with them. However, on July 17th, my dear mother was
called home to Jesus. I miss her terribly, but am so glad that we don’t mourn
as those who have no hope. I will see her again one day.
I married the love of my life thirty years ago and we have
two amazing sons, and two gorgeous grandsons. My youngest son, Kyle, lives in Budapest with his Finnish wife (that’s when they’re not
living in Finland or Sweden ).
They’ve just bought a tiny cottage on a fairly large piece of ground about a
half-hour outside of Budapest ,
so perhaps they’ll settle down there. They’re missionaries (well, kind of
cyber-missionaries J. You can see what exciting stuff Kyle’s up to here: http://www.awakenmovement.com/team/)
My oldest son, Ryan, and his family live in the townhouse
right next door to our house, and he has his office in our loft. He’s a 3D
Architecture Visualizer. Ryan gets to drink our coffee all day, and we get to
see our grandsons every day if we want. A win-win situation don’t you think,
although hazardous to writing time.
Yes, those
grandchildren are important. Has your writing changed your reading habits? If
so, how?
Yes. I get little time to read now L, except for my
critique partners’ great work J.
What are you working
on right now?
Right now I’m finalizing my Christmas novella, Poles Apart, for another boxed set. Then
I have to plan and prepare for ACFW Dallas. After that, it has to be me and Heart
of Africa Book 2.
What outside
interests do you have?
None. My interests lie inside—in my office, at my desk, and
in front of my laptop. But my, what wonderful worlds are to be found there.
How do you choose
your settings for each book?
I love writing stories set in unusual locations, hence my
tagline “A Novel Place
to Fall in Love.” With the Passport to Romance stories, Pelican Book Group have
a long list of interesting places around the world that they require stories
for. So that list so far has had a strong influence on my setting choice,
although I tend to gravitate to the cities that I’ve been to. In fact, on my
way back to South Africa
after ACFW, I have a seven hour stopover in Madrid . I definitely plan to make a dash for
the city and spend three hours there researching because that’s another Passport
to Romance city, and I’ve had a story brewing in my head since I booked my
airline ticket and realized I could go and do a little European location
digging.
Finally, because I’m South
Africa , stories in Africa
are high on my list of things to do. There are so many beautiful places for my
characters to go in our country, from the winelands of the Cape, to the desert
dunes of Namibia, to the roaring waters of Mosi-o-Tunya (the Smoke that
Thunders)—more commonly known to the traveler as the Victoria Falls.
I have friends who
have a mission school on the banks of Lake Victoria
where they rescue and educate throw away boys. They teach them about the Lord
and teach them skills that they’ll need to make a living. If you could spend an
evening with one historical person, who would it be and why?
I’ve never really been into history... I’d probably love to
spend a night though chatting to our former President, the late Nelson Mandela.
I think he was just an amazing man with much wisdom to impart. It would be an
evening not only of learning much, but an entertaining one, too. Mr. Mandela, I
think, was quite a character, too. He really loved people. I know he’d probably
spend the evening though asking me about my writing and encouraging me to
follow my dreams.
What is the one thing
you wish you had known before you started writing novels?
ALL the rules of writing!
Some of those aren’t
really rules, just suggestions to make our writing better. What new lessons is
the Lord teaching you right now?
To breathe ... and just take one thing at a time. Eventually
it’ll all get done.
What are the three
best things you can tell other authors to do to be successful?
Write ... every day. When you don’t, it’s hard to get back
into it.
Network! Other authors play such an important part in your
success as a writer, whether it be in your critique partners polishing your
work, or just the opportunities you come to know of because of your writer
friends. No writer can be an island.
Do not be in a hurry to publish. Allow God to use the
unpublished years to prepare you for what He’s called you to.
Tell us about the
featured book.
Oslo Overtures is set high in the Norwegian skies (a lot of the
time) and takes the reader on an adventure into the fascinating world of
wingsuiting. Danger, excitement, romance, and an unusual setting make this a
great story. The story is about overcoming fear from painful wounds of the
past, and discovering that God moves in the situations of our lives to
accomplish his plan for our lives.
Anjelica Joergensen and renowned wingsuiter Kyle Sheppard
from New Zealand meet in Oslo when they join an
international team to break the formation flying Guinness World Record where
Kyle goes from one blunder to the next in front of the beautiful Norwegian.
Anjelica carries the scars of a tragic loss. She’s not
looking for love, but love soon finds her and has her questioning whether
falling for another wingsuiter is such a good idea. When Kyle makes a foolhardy
decision, Angelica has to make a hard choice.
Sometimes you have to lose it all, to win it all. The same
can be said for Anjelica and Kyle’s love story. It’s a story about losing, and
winning.
Please give us the
first page of the book.
Anjelica drank in the beauty of the surrounding mountains
that hugged the dark blue waters far below. The climb had been worth it. As
usual. She could never get enough of the view across the fjord. Beside her,
pockets of snow filled the gaps between flat gray rocks.
She stepped up to the edge, closed her eyes, and inhaled
deeply. The butterflies in her stomach were determined to be the first to take
flight. Standing at the exit point—whether a precipice, skyscraper, or
aircraft’s open door—was one of the scariest moments. She could turn away and
fail or step forward into moments of death-defying adventure. Despite her
anxiety, this was Anjelica’s favorite place.
She raised her arms and leaned over the rock. Her body
dropped through the air before she stretched her limbs like a bird. As the wind
wrapped around the shape of her wingsuit, she began to fly.
Visions of the week ahead filled her mind. She exhaled
slowly. Her helmet warmed inside at her breath. She had to calm her
thoughts—focus on the flight was paramount to success. For the next few
minutes, she and the currents would wage war against gravity and error.
Determined to improve on her previous time in the air,
Anjelica raised her head. She bent her body at the waist and looked ahead,
slowing her rate of descent and forward momentum.
I can’t wait to read
this book. How can readers find you on the Internet?
I look forward to interacting with readers at any of the
following places:
WEBSITE http://marionueckermann.com/
TWITTER https://twitter.com/ueckie
PINTEREST https://www.pinterest.com/ueckie/
Oslo Overtures releases tomorrow and will be available on
Amazon and Pelican, and probably the other sites listed below:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Nook
Thank you, Marion, for sharing this new book with us. I know my readers will love it.
Readers, 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.)
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10 comments:
Sounds like an exciting read! Thanks for the chance to win.
Beth in Montana
sounds like a great book!Shelia from Mississippi
Marian, I am so happy to see you have a new Passport to Romance book. I enjoy these quick romance reads. I won't comment here, but I have seen your posts on fb. I hope you are doing well.
Terrill Rosado, Lynden, WA
An exciting beginning. This sounds wonderful.
Mary P
QLD AUSTRALIA
Thank you, Beth, Sheilia, Terril and Mary for stopping by and your comments. All the best in the drawing. Hope you all get to read Oslo Overtures.
Terrill, my third Passport to Romance has just been contracted - set in bonnie Scotland, Glasgow city. Once again, it was great fun writing the story.
Marion, I'm sorry to miss you in Dallas. I plan to go to Nashville in 2016. Good to read about your indie launch. I wish you the very best, which is what the Passport releases have been.
Wow! Marion, you are a very busy woman and it sounds like Breakthrough was your word. Lena, thanks for sharing this interview and giveaway.
Connie from KY
LoRee, Sorry I won't see you in Dallas. Yes, Passport to Romance has been wonderful. Looking forward to my third one releasing, and still have many more I'd like to write.
Connie, busy doesn't begin to describe my life at the moment ... I guess that's what happens when God gives you a Breakthrough :) All so exciting though.
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