Hey There my Friends, today I have a very special friend to introduce to you. Many of you already know Julie Lessman and her fantastic "on the edge" writings." Whether or not you are familiar with Julie, I'm sure you'll want to know more about her and her books after reading this posting. Her personality glows with her love of Christ, and is present throughout each of her novels.
I borrowed this post from Charity at her AUSTENITIS BLOG, so you'll need to click over to her blog at http://austenitis.blogspot.com/2011/12/christmas-giveaway-week-julie-lessman.html if you care to leave a comment and enter the contest. I earnestly hope you'll drop by AUSTENITIS and leave a comment or two and pick up a chance to win. You'll feel honored by a personal comment back to you by Julie herself. Ah, go on.....take a chance!
Jesus Loves You,
Barb
Christmas Giveaway Week: Julie Lessman!
Julie Lessman is an
award-winning author whose tagline of “Passion With a Purpose” underscores her
intense passion for both God and romance. Winner of the 2009 ACFW Debut Author
of the Year and Holt Medallion Awards of Merit for Best First Book and Long
Inspirational, Julie is also the recipient of 13 Romance Writers of America
awards and was voted by readers as “Borders Best of 2009 So Far: Your Favorite
Fiction.” Chosen as #1 Romance Fiction Author of the Year in the Family
Fiction magazine 2011 Readers Choice Awards, Julie was also awarded #1 Series of
the Year in that same poll and #3 Author of the Year, #5 Novel of the Year and
#4 Historical Fiction Author of the year. She resides in Missouri with her
husband, daughter, son and daughter-in-law and is the author of “The Daughters
of Boston” series, which includes A Passion Most Pure, A Passion Redeemed, and A
Passion Denied. Her “Winds of Change” series has recently released with A Hope
Undaunted, which ranked #5 on Booklist’s Top 10 Inspirational Fiction for 2010.
You can contact Julie through her website at www.julielessman.com. Charity
talking here...Julie does have a more recent book, the one I've been talking
about, A Heart Revealed.
Julie, I'm so glad to
have you here today! As you know, I've greatly enjoyed your books. :) So what
sparked your interest in romance, and how has that impacted your
writing?
Four life-altering words: Gone With the Wind. You see, when I read
that novel at the age of twelve, I was swept away into the world of romance for
the very first time. It captured me like no other book had done, and I immediately set out to write
(along with thousands of other love-struck young girls, I’m sure), what I hoped
would be “the great American novel.” Obviously my dreams of grandeur didn’t go
anywhere, but I did write 150 single-spaced pages of a story that became the
basis (some forty years later!) for my debut novel, A Passion Most Pure.
Today, I like to think that not only are Margaret Mitchell’s fingerprints are
all over me in my religious devotion to passion, but God’s as well—merging my
passion for romance with my passion for Him.
Wow, 150 single-spaced
pages is a lot of writing! I'm impressed. :) Now, you've joked about being the
"Queen of Rejections." Can you tell us a little about that?
Uh, yeah … anyone who attended
the 2005 ACFW Conference will remember me as the poor slob who waved her hands
wildly in the back of the room when Brandilyn Collins asked who had the most
rejections in a year. I won hands-down with 19 (at that time) and went on to
garner in excess of 45 (both agent and publisher rejections, including three
received AFTER I signed a 3-book contract with Revell Publishing!). Even my
agent, Natasha Kern, blanched a bit when she first signed me, realizing after
the ink was dry just how many times I’d been rejected. I believe the word she
used was “daunting.” But apparently not too daunting for her amazing skills as
an agent because she landed a contract for me within six months. Imagine my
shock and awe when a few years later I stood on the same stage on which I’d
received that booby prize for the most rejections, to receive ACFW’s Debut Book
of the Year. Go ahead— pinch me!
What a story! What
would you like your readers to take away from your books?
The MOST important thing I pray readers take
away from my books is the reality of how natural and fulfilling an intimate
relationship with God can and SHOULD be. Like breathing. These books may be
fiction, but this is NOT a fairy tale here. It IS possible to have a living,
breathing relationship with the God of the Universe. He’s crazy about us, and if
most people really understood that, their lives would turn on a dime and
blessings would overtake them. Believe me, I KNOW this firsthand—I used to be a
hard, cynical, coarse human being before God pulled me up by the scruff of the
neck and said, “Yo, Julie! Get a clue. You’re the apple of my eye!” J He’s been the love of my life ever since.
Haha, I love how He "said" Yo! :)
How do you keep your sanity in our run, run, run world?
I RUN … not walk … to the throne of God! He is
my high tower, my place of refuge in ANY storm, be it professional or personal.
For me, He has never been a last resort, but a first resort when life’s hurried
pace overwhelms me. A good example is a story on my Web site about when a doctor
told us he thought our college-age son had cancer. Now I am a wired individual
under the best of circumstances, so this had the potential to fell me like a
tree. But I sprinted to God faster than Jackie Joyner Kersee going for the gold,
and the prize was God’s peace. You can read the steps I took in maintaining my
sanity at http://julielessman.com/from-the-heart/.
We know your husband
and children are the light of your life. Do they enjoy your
stories?
Well, yes, most of them … You
see, my husband Keith wouldn’t read A
Passion Most Pure until he could hold a published book in his hand because
he hated the gargantuan binders I’d use. But once he did, I was shocked at his
response. He admitted he was nervous because what if he didn’t like it??? I
still remember the first day I caught him reading it—it was so weird seeing this
big, hulking guy holding a romance novel. But the moment he looked up, his eyes
locked on mine and he mouthed the words, “It is soooo good!” Needless to say, my
heart swooned! I mean, the man’s only read two or three books in 30 years, and
my book actually kept him up till the wee hours of the morning AND made him cry!
Now, I’m not saying the ability to make your husband cry is necessarily a good
thing, but in this case, it was pretty special!
Now my daughter? Another story
altogether! Although she was an A student in college, she despises reading, so I
actually had to bribe her with $20 to read the first chapter of A Passion Most Pure. But I am happy to
report that it hooked her, and the rest of the book and the other two didn’t
cost me a dime! J But … my son the financial advisor? He’ll
probably read one of my books when I include baseball statistics or financial
advice!
Oh, how sweet! I love
those stories. :) Can you tell us a bit about your newest release, A Heart
Revealed?
A Heart Revealed is book 2 in “The Winds
of Change” series, and it’s the forbidden love story of the oldest O’Connor
brother, Sean O’Connor, a confirmed bachelor, and his sister’s best friend, Emma
Malloy, a battered married woman. Here’s my blurb:
The ring on her hand
belongs to one man …
But her heart belongs to
another.
As a battered woman, Emma
Malloy fled Dublin for Boston ten years ago, seeking shelter for a heart badly
bruised by both her husband and guilt. But when she falls in love with Sean
O’Connor, a confirmed bachelor who wrestles with demons of his own, fear and
shame almost destroy her … until she is finally set free by a heart
revealed.
*sigh* I enjoyed that
story. :) Readers, my review is already up! It also has a bit more about the
book, so make sure you check it out! Julie, what makes Emma and Sean's romance
unique?
Emma and Sean’s romance in A Heart Revealed is not my typical
romance where boy meets girl and sparks fly. Instead, it is a ten-year
friendship that grows spiritually and emotionally, ripening into unconditional
love where two people sacrifice themselves for the other. In many ways, A Heart Revealed is a departure for me—a
heroine who is scarred, both inside and out, and a forbidden love with minimal
romantic interaction. You see, Emma Malloy is married, a battered woman who fled
Dublin to seek shelter for a heart badly bruised by an abusive husband. But when
she falls in love with Sean O’Connor, a confirmed bachelor with demons of his
own, fear and shame wreaks havoc in her life until God finally sets her free
with “a heart revealed.”
What are you hoping
readers will take away from A Heart Revealed?
One of the basic themes of A Heart Revealed is “honesty is the best
policy.” Every character in this story is struggling with some form of honesty
with people they love, whether it’s guilt, delusion, deception, secrecy,
manipulation or outright stubbornness. It is my hope that Sean and Emma’s story
will not only “reveal” the grace and mercy of a loving God, but the healing
power of His truth … which truly does set us free.
Please tell us about
Emma, the gentle and scarred heroine of A Heart Revealed. How is it
that you wrote a whole story about her?
Believe it or not, I never planned to write Sean and Emma’s
story until three-quarters of the way
through A Passion Redeemed, when
Charity brought Emma home for dinner. The moment I wrote the following very
innocent lines in that book, I felt a spark of something that I KNEW would grow
into an amazing love story someday.
Marcy
smiled and passed the rolls. “Sean, Charity brought her good friend home to
stay. Emma, this is Sean, my oldest.”
Sean
stood and extended his hand across the table, his smile as broad as his reach.
“Welcome. Anyone who can put up with this sister of mine has to be the genuine
article.”
Charity smacked him.
Emma
blushed. “Nice to meet you, Sean.”
“Emma, Charity tells me you and she met at Shaw’s and that
you’ve worked there forever.” Faith dolloped potatoes on her plate, then handed
them off to Collin.
Emma
gave her a crooked smile. “Yes, I was actually Mrs. Shaw’s top sales clerk
before Charity came on the scene. Dublin’s gentry took one look at her and
pushed me aside.”
“Oh,
pshaw. Don’t believe her. It took me a solid six months to catch up.” Charity
removed a roll from the basket, eyed the lighter one on Brady’s plate and
switched it with hers. He stared her down, but she ignored him.
“What
happened to your face?” Katie asked.
“Katie Rose!” Marcy, Faith and Charity’s voices rang in shock.
Emma
smiled. “No, it’s a natural question and one I don’t mind answering. I got in
the way of a pan of hot grease, I’m afraid.”
Katie’s eyes bugged. “How did you do that?”
“Katie, zip it,” Charity warned.
“Someone accidentally threw it in my face.”
Forks, knives and spoons stilled as all eyes focused on Emma.
Charity cleared her throat and elbowed Sean, who stared as if
Emma had just announced she was from the moon. “So, Sean, Mother tells me you
finally wrangled a promotion.”
He
chewed slowly, his eyes still fixed on Emma. He swallowed and turned to his
sister. “Yeah, I did. Don’t look now, sis, but you’re rubbing shoulders with the
Assistant Manager of the largest hardware mercantile in south Boston. Not to
mention future manager of a new store.”
One
of her brows slanted up. “Well, well. Must be those dangerous good looks drawing
all the ladies in to buy nuts and bolts.”
He
grinned and chomped on a roll. “Must be.”
Oh, and by the way, Emma’s name was originally Myrna. I know, I
know, not as appropriate as “Emma,” but keep in mind that originally, Emma was
to be just a comical bit character in the beginning of A Passion Redeemed. However, just like
Cluny McGee was only meant to be a bit character in A Passion Denied (but charmed me into
making him a huge subordinate character), “Myrna” charmed me as well when she
came to Charity’s defense over and over again. I fell in love with her gentle
loyalty so much, that I made her a critical part of the story in A Passion Redeemed.
I'm so glad you changed
it to Emma! And I. Love. Cluny McGee. Just sayin'. :) Loved that excerpt from
the book...definitely have to read it! The part about Charity switching
rolls...oh my word. Lol! How can readers find you on the internet and/or get in
touch with you?
I
LOVE to hear from reader friends, so they can contact me through my Web
site at www.julielessman.com, either by sending an
e-mail via my site or by signing up for my newsletter at http://www.julielessman.com/sign-up-for-newsletter/.
My newsletter is chock-full of fun info on my books and there’s always a contest
featuring signed book giveaways including one right now to have a character
named after you or a loved one in my next book. Also, I have a cool feature on
my website called “Journal Jots” (http://www.julielessman.com/journal-jots/),
which is a very laid-back, Friday journal to my reader friends that would give
your readers an idea as to my relaxed style of writing. Then finally, I can be
found daily at The Seekers blog (http://seekerville.blogspot.com/), a
group blog devoted to encouraging and helping aspiring writers on the road to
publication.
Awesome, thanks so
much, Julie! It's been a real pleasure to have you here!
Back to Charity from here
on. :) Julie has kindly offered a giveaway! All you have to do is leave
a comment here for Julie! The winner will be announced in January, right here on
my blog. And the winner will be contacted by Julie, so please leave an email
address! Otherwise, you can't be entered. ((side note: make sure you leave it in
this form to avoid spammers: charityu.austenite[at]gmail[dot]com ))
You could win your own copy of
A Heart Revealed!
So just
leave a comment, with your email, for Julie! http://austenitis.blogspot.com/2011/12/christmas-giveaway-week-julie-lessman.html She will be coming by to reply to
you, so make sure you subscribe to comments. :)
