Laura, so happy to have you here for the first monthly “Cold Called Friday” post! For those new to this feature, YOU as the reader get the chance to “cold call interview” your favorite author! Watch my blog at the beginning of each month for a poll on which author you want to “cold call”. Now please help me welcome, Laura Frantz!!
And now Laura, you’re first “cold call interview” question…
I know your son Paul plays the violin, but have you ever picked it up and played (or attempted to play) it yourself?
Once - and only onceJ. I did manage to get through the first three measures of Mozart’s rendition of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star but Paul was rolling around on the floor laughing so hard I finally gave up. Sadly, the violin is supposed to be the hardest instrument to master. But it is oh so beautiful when played well!
I know you live in Washington and that your heart's in Kentucky, but if you could choose a location for an all expense-paid, three-week visit to anyplace in the world, where would you go, and why would you choose that place?
Scotland – the Highlands or Hielands as the Scots say. I’ve always been sad that while I once attended school in England I never made it to Scotland nor Ireland for that matter which is where my family is from. I’m absolutely addicted to Scottish heroes. My editor might be, too, as she asked me to make my next hero in my upcoming series a Scotsman. I might just put him in a kilt, something I didn’t do with Ian Justus in The Frontiersman’s DaughterJ. Why Scotland, you may ask? It’s so rich in history and the culture is fascinating. Even the food! Not to mention the landscape and those old crumbling castles. And I find the Scots dialect (and the Gaelic) quite charming.
What kind of music do you like to listen to?
While I write, I usually play Joshua Bell or David Garrett or a movie soundtrack like North & South/BBC version. I walk/exercise with the Black Eyed Peas and crazy musicians like Flo Rida (Club Can’t Handle Me), thanks to my teenage son. Nothing profane – at least I don’t hear any bad lyrics! As far as Christian music, I love Third Day and MercyMe.
Do you have any future books in the works?
Four in a family saga titled The Ballanytyne Legacy with Revell. It spans one hundred years or 4 generations. Quite an endeavor. The first in the series will be on shelves September 1, 2012, and then every September thereafter. Think feuding sisters, rival heroes, a blend of the city and the frontier, besetting sins and redemptive choices in each generation.What toppings do you like on your pizza?
Once upon a time I ordered pizza with artichokes and cottage cheese on top nearly once a week (it’s actually quite good). Now it’s simply a very palatable pineapple and Canadian bacon.
I see by your profile that you enjoy cooking. Can you give us your favorite dish you make?
Halibut Lasagna. Whenever my southern relatives roll around, I buy fresh halibut and make this rich dish and they beg for the recipe, then go home and make for family/friends. It’s not your traditional lasagna but is made with lots of butter, cheese, oodles of noodles and a cream sauce. It may sound revolting but it’s next to divine, IMHO.
Thanks for connecting, Laura!! It has been great fun. J Care to share the places readers can connect with you?
My pleasure, Casey. I love visiting with readers at my website/blog http://www.laurafrantz.net or over at my Facebook page under Laura Feagan Frantz. If you contact me there I’ll be sure to respond. I answer all mail, email or snail mail. Love hearing from fellow book loving friends!
Thanks to you, Casey, and your blog buddies for such creative questions! I enjoyed each and every one! God bless you all.
Oh, how fun. I'm so glad Laura was the first "cold call." I liked finding out more about you. I didn't know they sold soundtracks for the BBC movies, that sounds like my kind of music :).
ReplyDeleteAs for the Halibut Lasagna it sounds interesting. If its not top secret, I would love to see it on your blog sometime :) (When deadlines are easier of course). Praying for you today.
BTW, forgot to mention I like your new picture. Its so bright and sunny and the setting is beautiful.
ReplyDeleteMorning Laura! Loved the interview, but you can keep the halibut lasagne. :) I can't wait to read the Colonel's Lady. I know it's going to be wonderful.
ReplyDeleteOh, I love waking up to 3 of my favorite people:) Thanks so much for reading and commenting, Lorna and Julia. And then there's Casey behind the scenes coordinating these interesting interviews! I must admit when I heard about "Cold Called" I was a little afraid that meant a phone call out of the blue and I'm much more at ease on paper/online:)
ReplyDeleteI'd love to post my halibut lasagna recipe, Julia, on the blog. I promise to do that soon. The recipe can be made with chicken instead of halibut. We are always aghast at the price of halibut:( But another whitefish would be a fine substitute, too.
Working on the galleys for The Colonel's Lady now. It's fun though my eyes keep crossing:) Bless you all today!
Oh Julia, I forgot to thank you for the thumbs up for the new picture. It was taken in historic Monterey last October and those flowers - bougainvvillea - were really blooming! Just ask Lorna:) Happy, happy day...
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness, Laura. Hi! We've really never connected through the blogging world, and probably part of that is because I still regretfully haven't read any of your books, but this was so fun!
ReplyDeleteLove the violin information : ) My sister used to play, as I did cello. Then we lost our teacher and the bouncing game from teacher to teacher was no good, so we both stopped. Well Alicia was bitten by the bug again and has been itching to take it back up. So over Christmas break, Alicia traded up to the full size she needed and is now slowing teaching it back to herself lol. We'll see how that goes after a while ; )
Ah Scotland, I want to go there myself! Especially after doing my project with a friend on it for the Cultural Fair in 7th grade! LOL! My aunt and grandparents love it there. I mean I'm well travelled, not going to lie, but I don't want to brag either! But Scotland and Italy are on my lists. We're just now trying to figure out our travel plans for this summer, we'll definitely be going for AJCAC in Wisconsin. As far as international I believe we might be heading back to Wales, London, and Jersey - the Isle of Jersey, not New Jersey ; )
Just have to say, my sister and I saw Flo Rida in concert this summer along with Bruno Mars, David Archuleta (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), Auburn, and Boys Like Girls ; ) Immediately thought of that whne you said that! LOL! Very cool!
Oh. My. Goodness! Your new series sounds soooooo good. I'm going to start saving my money now so that when it comes out, I'll be able to buy it! LOL! Can't wait!
Halibut Lasagna *face scrunched up in contemplation* I'm not so....sure about that one.
Okay, now that I've talked your ear off, sorry about that, I'll take my leave lol! I told Casey, I'd try and head over now, which I did, Casey :P I'll be back later to check in! Thanks so, so much for coming, Laura! It was great to get to know you some : )
Hannah
Hannah, It's wonderful to meet you here, there, or anywhere! And so glad you're a fan of Flo Rida:) Nothing like that to get your day jumpstarted! I personally love the Youtube vid of that song as well!
ReplyDeleteIt's so neat to hear you and your sis are musical. Cello is my favorite instrument after the violin. In fact, one of my favorite movie soundtracks is Master and Commander which contains some pretty stellar cello music:) It doesn't hurt that my favorite actor of all time, Richard Crispin Armitage, also plays cello. But I digress...
Don't worry about the halibut lasagna:) You and Lorna aren't so sure but if you make it with chicken I think you'd smile. I'm such a foodie, can't you tell?
I'd love to have you as a reader in future. Sounds like you are quite busy though! And if you make it to Scotland, I'd sure love to hear about it. Wales sounds wonderful to me. I had a Welsh hero in one of my books but had to remake him into a Scot. Sigh.
Bless you bunches:)
Putting this book on my reserve list at the library, great interview and info.
ReplyDeleteHi Laura and Casey! I really enjoy the interview! Lots of fun! SO looking forward to that new series coming out in 2012, Laura! But in the meantime, I still have two of your books to read. In fact, The Frontiersman's Daughter is on its way to me right now from amazon.com! :D
ReplyDeleteHave a blessed day, ladies!
This was SO fun!!! I laughed out loud about you playing the violin although I'm sure you did MILES better than I would have done.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure I'd love to go to Scotland someday too. I wish I could have went a few years back when my BFF got married in a castle over there. You should see how gorgeous it was!!! The pics were awesome so I can imagine how terrific it is in person.
I've only heard Joshua Bell a few times but he can do some amazing things with that violin can't he? I love the Black Eyed Peas and can't wait to hear them during the Super Bowl half time show!! ;-)
I can't wait for The Colonel's Lady and those other books too! I don't know how I'll wait that long!!! LOL
This was so fun Casey and Laura!
XOXO~ Renee
p.s. I'm with Lorna...you can keep the halibut lasagna. :-P
Joy, So good to see you here! When your name pops up in cyberspace I smile as you share one of my favorite aunt's name:) And thanks so much for taking time to check your library for one of my books. If I had my way, every library in the US would have them in regular and large print. This is a good time to say readers can request that the libaries order books, not only mine, but other CBA authors. They usually are obliging despite budget crunches as they have a budget for those type things. Anyway, Joy, wishing you JOY today!
ReplyDeleteWow, so many great comments!
ReplyDelete@Julia, I would be interested in that recipe too! :)
@Lorna, watch out, you'll be up here one of these days. :)
@Hannah, I don't think you'll have to miss her latest series, you don't want to miss her first two!!
@Joy, go, go, don't delay! *grin*
@Michelle, ooo, you are going to LOVE TFD. :D
@Renee, I know this was fun, wasn't it?? I LOVED the questions that came through. :D
@Laura, hey I'm always willing to try a new food...;)
Michelle, So glad you stopped here! I thought of you so much Monday:) SWEET words about TFD - what would we do without Amazon?! I hope you enjoy Lael's story. I know I say this a lot but I really do miss those characters. Trying to connect with my present cast which is quite large. The storyworld is never boring! Praying you have a blessed day today.
ReplyDeleteRenee, I always learn something from you and this comment of yours is no exception:) I didn't know the BEP were going to be at the Superbowl. My hubby's mom always has this big superbowl party with lots of yummy food (no halibut lasagna!) and my boys LOVE going every year.
ReplyDeleteYou've made me green with envy. My dream would have been a Scottish wedding! In fact, I'd have picked Blair Castle but any would do. I am sure the pics were phenomenal! And a memorable time was had by all! If the groom wore a kilt, well, swoon...
Looking forward to our Valentine interview:) I'm working on that now...!
I'm not a musician and can't imagine playing the violin. You were brave to try it, Laura, and your son must be very talented! The lasagna recipe really whet my appetite. Halibut in lasagna sounds as strange as putting pineapple on pizza. But Hawaiian pizza's wonderful! . . . I love how discussing personal likes and dislikes helps us all find common ground with each other. Fun questions, Casey!
ReplyDeleteHi Laura,
ReplyDeleteNice to see you! I'm with you on the Scottish heroes! Something about that accent!!
Can't wait to read your next book, as I THOROUGHLY enjoyed your first two.
Happy Friday!
Sue
Hi Renee Ann, I'm not a musician either and playing violin is MUCH harder than it looks! But I must admit my dream was to have been a concert violinist, strangely enough. If only we could have had a say when our gifts were being handed out:)
ReplyDeleteLike you, I'm always amazed, touched, and thrilled when our lives intersect here on the web. It's such an amazing place and I am so new to it all. Wow!
Good point about the pizza! When I first heard about fish tacos, I thought YUCK. But then I tried them and then I tried making them and love them:) I've even had some email this morning about posting that lasagna recipe so will do that on the blog next week. For all you halibut haters, I'll be sure to include the chicken version:)
Thanks so much for coming by, Renee Ann! You're always a blessing.
Sue, I sure smiled when your name popped up here! Thanks so much for coming by. I'm still glowing from your blog review of CML. When a reader said they finish and then are still thinking about the novel for days after, it sure means a lot to me. God is so good to bring us together through our love of writing and fiction.
ReplyDeleteI hope you like my new Scottish hero. He's been something of a challenge as he's very different than my Ian in TFD. Halfway through the book his character motivations became crystal clear to me (am sorry they were a bit misty before) and so now I'm tweaking.
Hope your writing is going well and the new year finds you blessed. If you like Scottish historicals, you may be familiar with Liz Curtis Higgs. She's so amazing and her books leave you with that "can't let it go" feeling for days after. I've just finished her latest, Here Burns My Candle, and am still processing it all. Anyway, bless you and hope to cross paths with you again soon!
I love reading your interviews, Laura. I always feel like I learn something new about you. I must say I never would have pictured you listening to the Black Eyed Peas or Flo Rida. I also enjoy listening to Third Day and Mercy Me.
ReplyDeleteThe halibut lasagna sounds interesting. Definitely something I would have never thought of. I will be very interested to see the recipe next week.
Michelle, YAY! I hope you're as glad it's Friday as I am:) Actually, I work on Saturdays but then Sunday is a blessed day off.
ReplyDeleteI never thought I'd be listening to such tunes either:) Wyatt has pretty good taste in music though we have to draw the line a few places. I think what I like most about Flo Rida is that it's great music to dance to and I love to dance. Think Jazzercize! I'm only walking right now but it sure helps pick up the pace.
Hope you like the recipe when I post. I'm thinking of trying it with chicken instead as that might be just as good. Bless you and happy weekend!
Wonderful interview! Those were some great and interesting questions :) I love the idea of Laura bopping along to the Black Eyed Peas. And how perfect that for the next few years I can look forward to a new book in my birthday month! Now that's handy :)
ReplyDeleteHey Heather, Happy early birthday
ReplyDeletex4 books!! That sure makes me smile:) I'm so glad you stopped by here. These questions have been fun since they encompassed so much more than writing! I hope you're feeling inspired and not tired this Friday and are in for a good weekend! I'm slowly working my way through email and will answer yours soon!
Halibut lasagna, artichokes and cottage cheese on pizza?!
ReplyDeleteLaura, you have adventurous taste buds! :)
Great interview ladies.
Casey, I notice the new font around here, very nice!
Great interview, ladies! Laura, it was so nice getting to know some random things about you but I don’t think I’d be trying your choice of pizza anytime soon, LOL! I’m so boring, just plain cheese for me :D But I would love to visit Scotland for all the same reasons! If you haven’t read them yet I think you’d like Kathleen Morgan’s books as she writes some great Scottish heroes!
ReplyDeleteAnd I have to admit I almost choked when you said you listen to Black Eyed Peas and Flo Rida! Can’t say I’m a fan of either but I understand how hard it is to find Christian music that gives you the beat you need for exercising. I need something that can make me move when that elliptical stares at me mockingly. You might want to check out Beckah Shae’s “Life” CD so at least if you want to bump you can do it to Scripture, LOL! My mom calls it “sweating to the Scriptures” ;) I actually have Lecrae’s song “Rebel” stuck in my head this morning and that can definitely get you moving! A friend of mine introduced me to him recently and while I’m not into all his stuff the words in the ones I do like are powerful and straight from Scripture. Anyway, it was so great to see you here, my friend!! :D
Casey, I haven’t been over to your blog in so long, sorry about that, but everything looks so beautiful! This cold call interview was a very cool idea (no pun intended!) and I look forward to who you might have in the future!
Blessings to you both!
Amanda
Sigh, late to the party which seems to becoming a habit lately. :-) Loved this interview and love the new picture, Laura! Pretty in pink! I'm with everyone else on Scottish heroes, but I'd like more Irish ones to be thrown in as well. And the odd Welsh one...oh and how about a strapping Canadian now and again? LOL
ReplyDeleteTwo Joys! I can hardly believe it! Truly, it's a unique name not heard very often (or so I thought). YES, I am such a foodie and have always had adventurous taste buds which have passed to my oldest son. I draw the line at sushi though which he consumes with relish:(
ReplyDeleteBless you for commenting here!
@Renee Ann, they are all submitted by you, the readers! I'm excited for such a fun turnout!! :)
ReplyDelete@Susan, I know, isn't it exciting waiting for this new one?? (and hard! :)
@Michelle, I think there is a lot of interest in that lazanga! :) Something unique for sure. :)
@Heather, thanks for your visit to my blog! Laura's Courting Morrow Little came out in my birth month- it is so exciting to get a special package like that! :)
@Joy T., thanks! I've had fun playing around with them. Now as long as they aren't too hard to read... :)
@Amanda, you are NOT boring in any way shape or form. :) And no worries, I love your visits whenever! :) Glad you liked the interview. :) We'll have another one next month. :D
This has been SUCH fun and WHAT a turnout!! It has been a fantastic first "Cold Call" and I can't wait for more. :D
Amanda, Love that your mom calls it sweating to the Scriptures:) I need a little more exercise here lately in the winter rain. Would love a treadmill but they're so expensive and our house is small...
ReplyDeleteI thought I might raise an eyebrow or two about borrowing Wyatt's music! If it has any questionable content at all I hit the off button - problem is those lyrics are often muffled so you don't know what they're saying! We've had had erase some tunes on his ipod that we find questionable. I will look up the artist(s) you mentioned here - thanks! I think what I like best is that so many of these songs make great dance tunes. And I so love to dance...
You sound like you're anxiously awaiting K. Morgan's newest western romance like I am. The cover is beautiful. I'm glad she's back after a hiatus. I've heard she's a very good writer.
Praying you're cooking up a storm and dreaming of some green beneath all that snow!
Kav, Better late than never, I tell you! I'm always so thrilled when you pop in as you always bring something good to the table:) As for Irish heroes, stay tuned to my Colonel McLinn in TCL. He's pure Irish and a bit devilish at that. I think a Canadian hero would be grand! A mountie:)
ReplyDeleteSounds like you are kneedeep in books like me and anticipating more great reads. I can hardly wait to get my hands on Mine Is The Night. Bless you bunches!
@Kav, Sorry I do believe I missed your comment earlier! You are never too late to a fun event and so good to have you here, thanks for swinging by! :)
ReplyDeleteAww, thank you Casey :) So happy you're having a great turnout for this and I will definitely check back in for future ones!
ReplyDeleteLaura, I think if you like to dance you'll like these artists and you won't have to worry about lyrics at all ;) Lecrae's song "Fall Back" is pretty cool, and your son might actually like his stuff too :)
Yes, I am greatly looking forward to Kathleen's new one coming out this year! And, LOL, we are cooking up a storm and I have to go make lunch now, the natives are getting restless ;) And, sadly, we are expecting another snowstorm Tuesday and even a little snow tonight - thank God for the elliptical because going for a walk is out the question, LOL!
Happy dancing :)
Blessings,
Amanda