Giveaway and Author Interview: The Fence My Father Built

Welcome to Writing for Christ Linda Clare! Thank you for being with us today.


Tell us a little about yourself!

I’m a reformed public school art teacher turned writing instructor and novelist. I teach for a community college and for George Fox Evangelical Seminary in Portland. Born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona, I graduated Arizona State University and moved to Oregon in the mid-1980s. I’m married to a cool Ex-Marine named Brad and we have 4 grown kids and 5 cats.

1: How long did you write before you were published?

I had to learn everything. While my friends all made the big time, I published articles, poems and booklets for years before Lost Boys and the Moms Who Love them (Waterbrook, 2001), released, and that was with Melody Carlson and Heather Harpham Kopp. Then I wrote two more nonfiction books with Kristen Johnson Ingram, including Making Peace with a Dangerous God (Revell, 2005). I wrote my debut novel The Fence My Father Built (Abingdon Press) fifteen years before it was published in 2009. I say that to encourage those who fear they’ll never be published. Not that I’m bitter, of course. But I longed to publish a book by myself.

2: When you held that first book in your hands, what was your first thought?

Oprah, here I come! The next day, practically, she announced her retirement. Do you think I scared her off? Seriously, I almost fainted. To see only my name on the cover—no offense, coauthors—was a thrill.

3: What are you working on now?

So glad you asked! I’m finishing up an historical novel, From Where the Sun Now Stands, about Dinah Clark, a Kansas girl in the 1880s whose parents send her to an Idaho mission outpost to break up a relationship they don’t approve of. There she meets real-life characters Sue and Kate McBeth, missionaries to the Nez Perce Indians. But when she falls for another dangerous suitor, Dinah must come to grips with her beliefs and her faith.

4: Where can readers find out more about your books?

On my blog, Linda Clare’s Writer’s Tips, (http://godsonggrace.blogspot.com/ ) I give writing tips and also update readers on my writing. Facebook, Shoutlife and Twitter are other ways readers can stay in touch. The Fence My Father Built is available from brick and mortar bookstores, on Amazon, ChristianBook Distributors and Abingdonpress.com and Cokesbury.com sites.

5: What message(s) do you want to be clear to your readers?

God loves you! In my stories, my characters usually discover or rediscover a part of God they couldn’t see before, so God’s grace is a big theme for me. Redemption is what happens when you see what was there all along: God’s love—there for you.

6: What are two things that people wouldn't normally know about you as a writer and or person?

The first thing I usually think of is that my left arm and hand are paralyzed from polio I contracted in infancy. I type one-handed and as long as I’m not transcribing someone else’s words, I type fairly fast. Another thing most people don’t know is that I had a brief career as a professional singer. Very brief, very long ago.

Thank you for being with us today. Any final words for readers?

Since I teach and blog about writing, I’d like to encourage all readers who’d like to write but wonder if they have the time, talent or other properties necessary. There is a big secret to being a writer: you must write. You must write when there isn’t time. You must write a lot of awful, bad, no-good stuff (yes, even those writers called by God) in order to practice that 10,000 hours necessary. You must be willing to write no matter how ungifted you feel, no matter how many editors reject or cruel folks say you stink. Writing is a craft. You can learn a craft. If you feel God’s call to write, get busy and write at Absolute Top Speed.

Readers here is your chance to enter to win Linda's novel: The Fence My Father Built. Leave a comment with your email address. IF I DRAW YOUR NAME AND THERE IS NO EMAIL ADDRESS YOU WILL NOT WIN!

For extra entries:
~be a follower
~be an email subscriber
And a NEW one:
~Follow Linda's blog HERE

Contest is only open in the U.S. and void where prohibited. Chances of winning are based on the number of entries and winner is draw from a non-biased third party- Random.org. I am not responsible for any lost or damaged items of said prize.
Thanks for coming by to enter!
Contest ends on August 27th.