ANDREA CARTER AND THE PRICE OF TRUTH - Susan Marlow - Free Book

Welcome back, Susan. It's been a while since we talked to you. Why do you write the kind of books you do?

I’m just a kid at heart, and I like reading kids’ books. As a homeschooling mom, I also loved reading great children’s literature aloud to my kids. So when it came to writing, I was naturally drawn to that genre. And having read countless of these kinds of books, I was able to get a feel for how the good ones are put together.

Besides when you came to know the Lord, what is the happiest day in your life?

I can’t pinpoint one “happiest” day. But the one continuing “happy” time is having grandchildren. Somebody once said, “Grandchildren are a reward for parents who did not kill their children.” This gives me a chuckle, but I never thought any “reward” could be better than being a mom. But all the other grandparents out there are right: being a grandparent is better.

I totally agree with you. Now I'm experiencing it again with our first great grandson, who turned 3 last week. How has being published changed your life?

Here’s a news flash: I never desired to be published. I was perfectly happy writing stories for myself and a few close friends. But publishing is the vehicle God used to prod me—kicking and screaming—into the wide world outside my own little homeschooling world. My little family, my little church, my little group of friends. My little homeschool co-op. Very comfortable. Very cozy. Very stagnant. “To whom much has been given, much shall be required.” I felt God had blessed me with a writing gift, but to keep it to myself started to remind me of the unfaithful servant who—out of fear—hid his one measly talent in the ground. I did not want to be that kind of servant. But being published required a willingness to do hard, scary things. Like book signings, radio interviews, talking to an editor at a conference, or marketing in general. But because I’m a person who tries to do what she says she’ll do, once I signed that contract I knew I had to follow through with my goal of making my publishing company successful—even if it meant doing things I never dreamed I could do! I’ve grown a lot spiritually because of being published. I have learned to depend on God to see me through things that really frighten me, but end up being so much fun!

What are you reading right now?

I’m reading (for probably the fifth time) The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Some classics are just better when you pick them up a second, third, or fourth time. The first time you read to find out what’s going to happen. The next few times you read to become part of the characters’ lives, to enjoy the journey into a new land, and to pick up the nuances you might have missed during previous readings. (Yes, and I always loved summer TV reruns, as well, for the same reasons.)

What is your current work in progress?

I’m writing a series of “chapter” books for beginning readers (ages 6-8), based on the characters from my Circle C Adventures. Andi is six years old, Taffy is a new foal, and Andi has a friend, Riley, with whom she shares adventures on the ranch. The first two titles, Andi’s Pony Trouble and Andi’s Indian Summer, will release just before Christmas and include black-and-white illustrations throughout. It seems that whenever I sell books at a homeschool conventions, parents ask, “Don’t you have anything for younger readers?” I’m happy to say that yes, now I do!

What would be your dream vacation?

I would like to visit the Holy Land. Walk where Jesus walked; see the places the Bible talks about. I think it would seem more real that way. I’d like to tour with somebody like Ray Vander Laan, who makes the people and settings in the Bible come alive in his That the World May Know DVDs.

Sounds wonderful. How do you choose your settings for each book?

For the series in general I looked at a map of California and said, “OK, which city is closest to the Sierras and was around in 1880?” Turned out it was Fresno, so that became the setting. I wanted the series set in California because not only was it the frontier, but San Francisco was a slice of sophistication and could provide a totally different setting for Andi’s adventures. Book 4, San Francisco Smugglers, did just that. I used the Internet to ask, “What was going on in San Francisco in the 1880s?” I discovered the Yellow (Chinese) slave trade and learned that even little children were smuggled in to be sold as domestics. Eureka! Send Andi to a young ladies’ academy in the City and see what happens! In Trouble with Treasure, it was time to get Andi out of the Valley and into the cooler mountains for some gold-panning and back-country horseback riding. And for some trouble, of course.

If you could spend an evening with one person who is currently alive, who would it be and why?

I thought and thought about this question, and I think the person I’d like to spend an evening with is one of my first long-distance, Internet “author” friends, Stephanie Reed. We met via e-mail when our books were featured in a brochure Kregel was creating for homeschoolers. We discovered we both love the old Trixie Belden mystery series. She became “Trixie,” and I’m “Honey Wheeler.” We’ve been good friends ever since, but I’d like to meet her in person so we could be real friends. Share a Starbucks. Give and receive a hug. Laugh. Just two children’s authors sharing an evening together.

What are your hobbies, besides writing and reading?

My husband and I have a 14-acre “homestead” in North-Central Washington, 3,000 feet up in the Okanogan Highlands. Pine trees, snow, hot summers, no close neighbors, the National Forest walking distance. So whatever one can do with a 14-acre homestead is my hobby. My personal favorite is gathering up deadwood and stumps and burning them for days in a huge bon fire. Just cleaning up the old downed trees and leftovers from logging years ago.

What is your most difficult writing obstacle, and how do you overcome it?

Writing the rough draft is my most difficult writing obstacle, getting that seed of an idea to sprout on paper so I can start the fun part—revisions. There are always so many distractions in the writing business, the foremost being the pesky marketing we authors are all called on to do these days. I overcome this problem by writing the rough draft on my laptop while traveling—far away from the Internet and e-mail. Since I travel a lot to homeschool conventions, I get quite a bit of first-draft writing done this way.

What advice would you give to a beginning author?

Go to a writers’ conference! Invest the time and money to learn the craft from those who have “been there; done that.” At my first writers’ conference I sat under the teaching of Lee Roddy. What a great experience! I will always remember those mornings of his intense, practical teaching of how to craft a novel.

 Tell us about the featured book.

Here is the back cover text. It does a nice job of talking about the book without giving too much away:

Thirteen-year-old Andi Carter wants to surprise her mother with the perfect birthday gift. But keeping her plans to earn money a secret from her family is easier said than done. When her peach harvesting job ends in disaster, she secures a position at the local general store after school.

At last, one of Andi’s ideas is working out . . . until the day she witnesses a back-alley crime that places a beloved citizen at the scene. A divided town and the suspect’s vengeful younger brother put pressure on Andi to admit she made a mistake.

When she learns that her horse, Taffy, has been stolen, Andi must re-examine her conscience and decide: Is the price of telling the truth worth losing Taffy forever?

Please give us the first page of the book.

CHAPTER ONE
Too Many Peaches

San Joaquin Valley, California, Summer, 1881

“Oh, no. Not again.” Andi Carter watched in dismay as her bushel basket of plump, golden peaches toppled over and spilled to the ground.

“I told you this was a loco idea,” her best friend, Rosa, grumbled in Spanish. “We should go back to the house before your brother catches you out here.” She glanced around warily, as if Chad might pop out from behind a peach tree at any moment.

“No,” Andi said. She squatted next to the overturned basket, righted it, and began piling the ripened fruit back in. This was not the first basket of peaches Andi had ruined during the past three weeks, nor did she expect it would be her last. The full baskets were heavy and awkward to handle—especially for a girl barely turned thirteen. Even together, she and Rosa had a hard time lifting the fruit into the wagons.

“Rodrigo threatened to fire us if we spoil any more fruit,” Rosa said crossly. She made no effort to help Andi pick up the fuzzy golden balls scattered at her feet.

Andi paused and gave Rosa a quick smile. “He won’t fire us.” She brushed aside her long, dark braid and reached for another peach. “He needs every pair of hands he can hire.”

“But he will scold us again. I do not wish to be yelled at by your brother’s foreman.” She gave Andi a pleading look. “Dressing up in my clothes and speaking Spanish might disguise you for a few weeks, but you cannot go unnoticed by the capataz forever. One of these days he will see who you are and then . . . how he will scold!” She cringed.

How can readers find you on the Internet?

You can visit me at my website: http://www.circlecadventures.com/  or on Facebook. I also blog at www.homesteadblogger.com/FarmLifeFarmWife/  In addition, Andi has her own blog, where she shares (even pictures!) of her family, friends, and life in the Old West: http://www.circlecadventures.blogspot.com/

Thank you, Susan, for another interesting interview.
 
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Susan Marlow

Most of our interviews are with authors of books for adults. However, we have featured a couple who write for children. Today, I want to introduce you to another one--Susan Marlow.

Welcome, Susan. Tell us how much of yourself you write into your characters.

Probably more than I should. My main character, Andi, is who I would like to be in another life. I share a lot of her traits: curiosity, righteous indignation, her love of freedom, and her spirit of adventure. I think living on a prosperous ranch as a kid with her own horse a hundred years ago would have been one of the most exciting things I could have done, even with the hard work involved.

The book already sounds interesting. What is the quirkiest thing you have ever done?

I guess it would be going after a coyote with a broom. My eight-year-old daughter came screaming into the house one morning after checking for eggs in the henhouse. A coyote had ravished the hens and had one in his mouth. I picked up the first thing I could find, a broom, and took off after him. I didn’t even think why a coyote was running around inside the city limits. Unable to chase him off, I returned to the house for a better weapon—a .22 pistol. I confronted the coyote in the front yard, where, with a hen hanging from his mouth, he just looked at me. At point blank range I shot at him—four times. I missed every time. Apparently disgusted at my lack of marksmanship, the coyote trotted off. We never saw him again, but the henhouse was a disaster.

Wow! Sounds scary. When did you first discover that you were a writer?

I wrote a poem at age nine called “The Reflection” that so impressed my third grade teacher that she posted it in the teachers’ lounge for all to see. The next year I had a teacher who introduced me to the fascinating worlds of outer space. I wrote a story called “Up to Mars” (sadly it’s lost), but I was forever hooked on story writing. After reading a good book, I’d imagine my own ending or different characters, or different plots, and I’d write them down. I shared them only with my younger sister Julie, who liked to write stories, too.

Tell us the range of the kinds of books you enjoy reading.

I like everything from science fiction to kids books; from action/adventure to suspense. If there are endearing, “real” characters and a meaningful adventure in the book, I’ll read it.

What other books have you written, whether published or not?

I have a number of hand-written, lovingly saved creations from my youth. A story about kids surviving the Tribulation (yeah, I should have thought of submitting it before Left Behind Kids came out. Sigh). I have stories about kids cast away on a deserted island and kids accidentally headed for the star Sirius on an experimental spaceship. I confess I have even written Star Trek stories from the time I was a teenager (when the show first premiered) until now. I know writers should write every day, but sometimes my current book project is just not flowing, or the ideas are not coming. Pulling out a write-just-for-fun Star Trek story really helps get the creative juices flowing for other, more significant book projects.

How do you keep your sanity in our run, run, run world?

By keeping focused on the Big Picture—the eternal picture. It helps me to slow down and consider why I’m running. I take time to “be still and know…God.” Being still for me usually includes reading a good book that stretches my imagination (like Heaven by Randy Alcorn) or watching a DVD that allows me to explore strange new worlds (sci-fi) or go back to a favorite time in history (Anne of Green Gables).

How do you choose your characters’ names?

For my main character, Andrea, I wanted a name that sounded sort of high-class, since her family is rich, but because she’s a tomboy, I wanted her to have a boy’s name, hence “Andi.” I heard the name on an old western show once and said, “That’s it!” For my other characters, I use names from kids in my classes or from church or from young relatives. No one is safe from my name-gathering expeditions. Sometimes I break down and consult a baby name book. I have, however had one slight problem with naming a character. The antagonist in Dangerous Decision had five different names before I settled on the current one—Virginia. None of the others seemed to fit her. When I stumbled across “Virginia” it was another “That’s it!”

What is the accomplishment that you are most proud of?

In writing: Hanging in there through several publishers who held my first book for a long time before rejecting it.

In life: Having a hand in influencing all four of my children to come to know Jesus Christ.

If you were an animal, which one would you be, and why?

I’d be a kitten. They’re soft, cuddly, frisky, and climb trees very well! And they are easily contented with a warm fire to curl up in front of.

What is your favorite food?

Chocolate in any form—hands down.

I got some interesting new chocolate bars at the American Christian Fiction Writers conference in Dallas. I'm enjoying them right now. What is the problem with writing that was your greatest roadblock, and how did you overcome it?

Lack of self-confidence, and I still haven’t completely overcome it. However, my mentor, Colleen L. Reece, keeps encouraging (pushing is actually a better word for what she makes me do) me into doing all kinds of things—whether I want to do them or not. Everyone needs a cheerleader like that, and she certainly knows what she’s doing. Anyone with over 140 books sold has so much experience that I take a deep breath and say, “OK, I’ll try it.” I credit her with my success in getting my first book published in 2005.

What would you like to tell us about the featured book?

Andrea Carter and the Dangerous Decision is the second book in the Circle C Adventures series. It continues the escapades of my well-meaning but impetuous 12-year-old heroine introduced in Book One, Andrea Carter and the Long Ride Home. The story opens with Andi nearly trampling her new teacher in a reckless, impromptu horse race down the main street of Fresno, California—not a good way to begin the fall, 1880 school term! The teacher has a long memory for “undisciplined hooligans” and expects Andi to quickly conform to his high standards of behavior for young ladies. Easier said than done. In addition, the teacher’s frail daughter, Virginia, gives Andi nothing but trouble. Every time Andi tries to do something right, it turns sour. Her troubles really start to multiply when an escaped convict bursts into the classroom. Now Andi must decide if she should deliberately walk into a dangerous situation to rescue the teacher’s mean-spirited, trouble-making daughter, who has been taken hostage.

Trivia fact: Dangerous Decision is actually the first book I wrote in the series. However, when I wrote Long Ride Home, it seemed to fit better coming before Dangerous Decision, so I switched them around.

Susan, thank you for taking this time with us.

Readers, you can find Susan on the Internet at:

www.susankmarlow.com

. . .where you can read all about the other books in this series.

If you want to win a free copy of Dangerous Decision, leave a comment on this post. There are two other interviews you can still leave comments on for a chance to win a free book:

DiAnn Mills - A Texas Legacy Christmas
Sharlene Maclaren - Sarah, My Beloved

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