Welcome back,
Judythe. Why do you write the kind of books you do?
I’ve chosen to write love stories because I love a
happily-ever-after ending. I write from a Christian worldview because that’s my
life and I want to share its principles.
Besides when you came
to know the Lord, what is the happiest day in your life?
The day I married my husband. Looking back, I can say my
wedding day was as God ordained as the day He called my name. We’ve had quite a
journey these fifty-something years and I can’t wait for the next fifty.
How has being
published changed your life?
Being published has opened opportunities for me to shed my
introvert tendencies. I’ve come to enjoy sharing about my books in
conversations and discussing my books at signings and book clubs. I still get
butterflies, but because so many readers tell me how much they love my stories,
I’m eager to talk about my books.
What are you reading
right now?
I’m currently reading Susan Wiggs, Map of the Heart.
What is your current
work in progress?
I’m plotting the next books in the Fitzpatrick Family series
- Eight preacher kids, each with a sweet romance story of his or her own. At
the same time, I’m doing final edits on a romantic suspense. It’s a new genre
for me, and I’m excited about it.
What would be your
dream vacation?
My dream vacation would be to rent a cottage in Ireland
How do you choose
your settings for each book?
My settings depend largely on the story. I do tend to select
places I’ve visited or where I’ve lived. As a military brat and spouse, that’s
many, many places. If the story and a place I’ve lived connect for a plot, then
I’m able to give authenticity to the setting.
If you could spend an
evening with one person who is currently alive, who would it be and why?
I’d love to spend some one-on-one time talking with Dr. Tony
Evans. I listen to his radio broadcasts on a local Christian radio station and
love his down-to-earth approach to spiritual living.
My pastor, Robert
Morris, is a good friend of Tony Evans. He often comes to our church. And one
year, I was privileged to be a teacher at a Christian Writer’s Workshop at his
church. What are your hobbies, besides writing and reading?
I recently started attending Sacred Harp Sings, also called
Fasola singing. It’s shape note singing born from colonial “singing schools.”
It’s not performing but sitting in a square with the four parts facing one
another to sing hymns and anthems from traditional songbooks. “Sacred harp”
refers to the human voice —the musical instrument we were given at birth. If
you’re unfamiliar, check it out on YouTube.
You’ll also find me swimming and doing water aerobics or
baking and cooking. I love to experiment with recipes. The exercise helps to
balance the calorie intake from all the taste tasting.
I have never heard of
“Sacred Harp.” I will check it out. What is your most difficult writing
obstacle, and how do you overcome it?
Once I understood story structure, my next obstacle became
planning or plotting my stories. Every writer has their own system and I spent
years trying to mold my style from theirs. Most of the time I failed miserably,
but I learned my system. I’m not a strict plotter or a pantster. I’m somewhere
in between. I use Michael Hague’s Six Stage Plotting as my guide and let my
characters offer twists and turns as their story unfolds in my head. I call it
being a plan-ster.
That’s a lot like what
works best for me, too. What advice would you give to a beginning author?
Read lots, study craft and, most important, WRITE something,
anything every day. Your creative juices thrive when you write.
Tell us about the
featured book.
One night, in that twilight zone of falling asleep, David Sands,
a secondary character in the PROMISES series, told me he’d lost his Shirley to
cancer. I told him he was wrong, but he insisted. Then Debra Hughes, another
secondary character, confided she’d half-fallen in love with her dead best
friend’s husband. The romantic in me knew I had to find a way for the two to be
together. Since a pendant’s promise started the PROMISES series, it was only
fitting that keeping promises should end the series.
The story:
David Sands lost his wife three years ago. Debra Hughes was
his wife’s best friend and business partner. Debra and David have been friends
for years. They both made promises to his wife before her death.
He promised to sell their condo and donate the proceeds to
their foundation that support families of MIA and POW soldiers. Debra promised
to look after David. They’ve comforted each other in their grief now as they
work together to close out the wife’s estate, their bond grows into mutual
attraction. Will keeping their promises open their eyes and hearts to a future
together?
Though Promises to Keep is book four in the
PROMISE series, all the books are standalone stories.
Please give us the
first page of the book.
David Sands bypassed the elevator and took the stairs two at
a time hoping to slip unnoticed into his Until They Return (UTR) office in the
Cabot Enterprises building.
“You’re late.” Alex Cabot fell in step beside him when David
exited the stairwell door. The unspoken again hung in the air.
“I got a late start, and traffic was heavier than I
anticipated.” He walked into the office he’d shared with Shirley and swung his
briefcase onto the reproduction desk he hated before he met Alex’s gaze.
“And you stopped at Old Gray again, didn’t you?”
“There was that.”
David braced for the oft-repeated lecture about his lengthy
stops at the Knoxville Vietnam
Alex slid into the chair in front of David’s desk. “I want
you to join Lily and me for dinner tonight.”
The muscles in David’s neck went stiff. He rolled his
shoulders. “Alex, I—”
“That wasn’t a request.” Alex’s words snapped with military
authority.
David’s shoulders drooped. The dinner discussion would
undoubtedly be about selling the contents of Shirley’s condo. How was he going
to let go of the last physical things they’d shared while her toothbrush was
still on his bathroom counter?
How can readers find
you on the Internet?
Visit Judythe’s
website to learn more about her.
Read her award-winning blog View from the Front Porch
Follow her on Twitter
Thank you, Judythe,
for sharing this novel with me and my blog readers. I’m eager to read it.
Readers, here are links to the book.
Promises to Keep
- PaperbackPromises to Keep - Kindle
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