Welcome back, Fay. Why
do you write the kind of books you do?
There’s a funny back story to this one. When I first became
serious about writing for publication, you could not have gotten me to admit
that I write romance. I wrote contemporary fiction. One day, I awoke to the
truth. While I’m probably not a hopeless romantic, I love romance, and all of
my stories are romance—even my contemporary fiction. I fell in to writing romantic
suspense because although I can’t watch a suspenseful show when I don’t know
what’s going to happen, I sure love being the one who knows what’s going to
happen and scaring other people who don’t know what to expect.
Besides when you came
to know the Lord, what is the happiest day in your life?
This one’s going to be a little tricky to answer, so I’ll
need to explain myself out of a corner for my oldest son. The happiest day of
my life was the day that I gave birth to my second son. Now, that doesn’t mean
that I love the oldest any less. I love them equally, but I think mothers can
relate. That first birth—it’s a scary thing. You don’t know what to expect. And
then when the child is born, you have all these things to learn. Well, I did
anyway. During my second pregnancy, I wanted a girl. Oh, how I wanted a girl. When
I began to have premature labor, I’d end up at the hospital, and on the last
occasion, the nurse, listening to the baby’s heartbeat, asked if I wanted a boy
or a girl. “A girl!” I said. She shook her head. “I’m sorry, honey. That’s a
boy’s heartbeat.” Well, I wasn’t a happy camper. I didn’t want a boy. I wanted
a girl. And then came the night that he was born. His father counted all his
fingers and his toes, and I lay with my boy in my arms. A feeling of such peace
fell over me. I’d never felt that before, and I haven’t had anything come close
to it since. God knew that I’m equipped to handle boys, and I think that peace
was due to the fact that God had blessed me with two wonderful sons.
How has being
published changed your life?
When I was unpublished, I loved to write. But always, I had
this pie-in-the-sky dream that it would change my life. You envision the myth
of Rick Castle, that the contract is opening the door to a ritzy New York penthouse and notoriety, that Hollywood will be knocking on your door for a
script of your New York Times
Bestseller.
What’s funny, though, is that when none of that happened—I didn’t
even get a small condo in Cedar Key, which was really my dream—I wasn’t too
disappointed. Life went on as usual. I’ve learned how to promote, I’ve learned
that promoting is the hardest thing I do as an author, but I’ve also learned
that I’d write for free, because I love to weave a story. It’s just that
simple.
What are you reading
right now?
I’m not only an author, I’m an editor. Most often I’m reading
stories before they get published, but I did just finish a non-fiction book on
how to teach a Bible study.
What is your current
work in progress?
My current work in progress is a Christmas novel slated for an
October 2019 release. The tentative title is A Room at the End. This, I’m hopeful, will be a new Holiday series
set in a fictional Florida swamp town at the
edge of the Everglades . Of course, there will
be all kinds of quirky characters and a lot of Holiday
romance.
Of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t tell you that my fourth
book in The Ties that Bind series is Delilah,
and it’s releasing in April.
What would be your
dream vacation?
Tahupoo, Tahiti . I have a story
sitting in my brain and on three separate drafts on paper about professional
surfing, and I want to attend the Billabong Pro.
How do you choose
your settings for each book?
My settings find me. My romantic series, The Ties that Bind,
is actually the only series with real locations. That’s because two of the gals
and one of the heroes were raised and attended school in my hometown. From
there, they moved to Orlando .
That series has some great unexpected scene locations, and not the theme parks.
The setting for my Amazing Grace romantic suspense series is fictional, but
anyone familiar with Western North Carolina
can’t help but recognize a combination of beautiful mountain towns. And my
Serenity Key series is set on a fictional island that reminds me of the place I
love so much—Cedar Key.
If you could spend an
evening with one person who is currently alive, who would it be and why?
This isn’t for any political reason at all, but I’d like to
be able to sit and talk with Donald J. Trump. I think there is a lot of depth
in that man that he hides behind his official persona. I’ve never said this
before, but there is something within me that knows without a doubt that one
day I’m going to meet him. I don’t know if he’ll still be president. I don’t
know if it will be this side of heaven, but I’m certain that I’m going to shake
his hand and talk with him one day.
What are your
hobbies, besides writing and reading?
I'm a University
of Florida Gator ’s fan.
When I say fan, I don’t just mean football. We’re football boosters, of course.
We have my husband’s father’s seats that he first claimed in the mid-60s, and
great seats they are. We’re also Gator Tennis boosters, and this year, I was
able to talk my husband into season tickets for basketball, which is my
favorite go-to-game college sport. Of course, my plan is to have so many events
to attend in Gainesville
that we have to move there. Shh, don’t tell my husband.
What is your most
difficult writing obstacle, and how do you overcome it?
Time or the sense of being pushed against a clock is my
greatest obstacle. I wrote for many years without a deadline because, well, I
didn’t have a contract. I was blessed to have eight books in different stages
of completion when I did receive a contract. Finishing them was easy. I don’t
write well under deadline because I’m a finicky writer. You can’t say that my
words are prose or literary-esque, but I do like to think that each word counts
and tells a story that readers will remember. The irony, though, is that I also
work best when I feel I’m being pushed against a clock.
What advice would you
give to a beginning author?
Study the craft, work on the art of writing, and don’t seek a
contract or self-publish until you know all the elements that go into good
fiction.
Tell us about the
featured book.
Frozen Notes is the story of two people who lost their dreams.
Lyric’s dreams were taken from her by Balaam who set off for stardom,
abandoning her and their unborn child. Balaam’s dreams may have come true, but
they nearly cost him his life. Now, Lyric’s life has become a nightmare, and
Balaam must fight his own demons to save her from the danger his abandonment
has caused.
The story is set in Western North Carolina
against a winter backdrop, and it is filled with twists and turns and a villain—to
two—that the reader will never see coming.
Please give us the
first page of the book.
A hush fell over the small crowd loitering outside Lyric
Carter’s house as paramedics placed the bodies of the two men, both encased in
body bags, onto separate gurneys and wheeled them to the waiting ambulances. Gun
residue test completed, Lyric backed away from the woman who’d done the test on
her and fell hard into the chair at her kitchen table near the opened front
door. The winter chill seeped into the house.
She fought to keep her tears at bay while investigators
plundered through her home looking for shell casings, additional bullet holes,
and other evidence. A murder-suicide was pretty cut and dry. The investigators
wouldn’t search for much else.
Her body lifted with her sobs. If her husband, Braedon, had
only looked at the documents he couriered from Raleigh , he and Matthew Roberts would still
be alive. He’d left them unopened on their table before a phone call sent him
out, and he’d left her behind. Before Braedon had returned, Lyric hid the evidence
where no one would find it, prepared to face Braedon’s wrath should it come to
that.
“Which one do you think she’s crying over?” Joe Johnson from
the Amazing Grace Gazette said from
somewhere outside her home. She’d recognize his haughty voice anywhere. He
wouldn’t be so close to her now if Braedon and Matthew were alive and not
stretched out on the gurneys ... or if Balaam was here.
No. She stilled her thoughts. Braedon deserved more respect
than that despite what he had done. Balaam had no place in her thoughts—not
tonight—not ever.
The flashes of several cameras pulsated from outside and
through her windows and doors. The blossoming migraine delivered pinpricks of
pain behind Lyric’s eyes. She ran her tongue over the cut on her lip and felt
the mass of swelling beneath the surface of her skin then wrapped her arms
around her to stave off the cold.
A stomp at the front door announced a new arrival. Lyric
turned in her chair and bit her lip to squelch a rising panic attack.
Sheriff Daniel Dixon pointed toward the newshound standing
in her doorway then toward the street. Johnson ducked around the sheriff and scurried
off behind the paramedics. Daniel moved around the crime scene, ignoring his
investigators. He’d look in her direction soon enough. Could she bear up under
his scrutiny?
Everything she’d struggled so hard to redeem or protect—her
reputation, her son, her vulnerable heart—they were all in danger.
Interesting. I’m
eager to see what comes next. How can readers find you on the Internet?
Here are links where you can find me:
FB Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorFay/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/FayLamb
Newsletter Sign Up: http://eepurl.com/c6m7DX
Amazon Central: amazon.com/author/faylamb
Frozen Notes link: http://bit.ly/FrozenNotes
Thank you, Fay, for
sharing this new book with me and my blog readers. We’re all eager to find out
what comes next.
Readers, here are links to the book.
Frozen Notes (Amazing Grace) (Volume 4) - Print bookFrozen Notes (Amazing Grace Book 4) - Kindle
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This sounds like it will be really interesting. I would love to read more. Linda in CA
ReplyDeletelkish77123 at gmail dot com
Thank you, Linda, and thank you, Lena, for inviting me to be a guest on your blog. I always enjoy your interviews.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the interview with Fay Lamb. I really enjoy getting to know authors more than the book jacket write up. "FROZEN NOTES" sounds like an amazing book. After reading the first page, I know I have to read this book. It's on my TBR list now, but I'd love to read it sooner than later. Thank you for the opportunity to win a copy!
ReplyDeleteKay Garrett from Mountain View, AR
2clowns at arkansas dot net
Great interview! I am intrigued by this book. Thank you for sharing! Melanie Backus, TX
ReplyDeleteThank you to both Kay and Melanie.
ReplyDeleteThe book sounds amazing and very intriguing. Thank you for the chance to win it. I live in Tennessee, USA
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this excerpt and interview.
ReplyDeleteConnie from Kentucky
290 Harmon Lane
Hillsboro, KY 41049
Enter me in your awesome giveaway for the print copy!!
ReplyDeleteConway SC.