Welcome Sandy Ardoin!

 WRITE PATHWAY WELCOMES SANDY ARDOIN







Ann:  Hello Sandy, and welcome to Write Pathway where writers and editors meet. We are thrilled to have you with us today.

Let’s begin today with a little information about you; then we’ll merge into thoughts about your book. Are you a native Carolina girl?

Sandy:  Ah, Carolina Girls … love that song. No, I was born in Indiana and moved to Texas when I was sixteen. I’ve been in North Carolina for the past (almost) 19 years.

Ann:  What would you do with your life if you didn't write?

Sandy:  Clean house. J I’d probably also roam the streets looking for antique shops to prowl through. I’d do more gardening.

Ann:  If you were a style of music, what style would you be?

Sandy:  Country. More specifically, Country-Pop—a little bit country and a little bit rock ’n roll. Not too wild, but definitely not citified.

Ann:  Who inspired in you a love for books?

Sandy:  Dick and Jane. I still remember reading those and getting caught up in the stories of Spot and the pony (maybe because I wanted a pony so badly myself).

After that, it was Laura Ingalls Wilder and the Little House books (my historical side). Then I graduated to gothic mysteries—Jane Eyre, Rebecca—and then more contemporary romantic mysteries from people like Phyllis Whitney and Mary Higgins Clark.

I don’t come from a family of big readers, so I’m not sure where I picked up my love for reading.

Ann:  How many books have you published? Do you also write other things—articles? short stories? Etc.

Sandy:  The Yuletide Angel is my first published book—a Christmas novella. My first novel (a follow-up to the novella) releases in January of 2016. It’s working title is A Reluctant Melody.

I’ve been publishing since 1986—short pieces like cards, posters, devotions, short stories. In June, my short story “Ellie’s Escape” appeared in Splickety Prime. It was exciting to be in the same issue as Jerry Jenkins.

Ann:  Well, congratulations on getting in Splickety Prime with Jerry Jenkins.  

We all know that publishing is an arduous process and often takes many rejections before we get published. How many rejections did you get before you published a book?

Sandy:  Book rejections? More than I care to remember. Before The Yuletide Angel, my agent submitted three other books—two of them multiple times. Between those three, I’d say I’ve racked up at least twenty rejections.

Ann:  Which character in your present release, The Yuletide Angel, do you find most interesting?

Sandy:  That’s a tough one. I love my hero’s character. Hugh is really sweet and protective. He looks beneath the surface. My heroine, Violet, starts out shy and withdrawn, but she has an inner grit that I like in a female character.

Ann:  Tell us a little about your book.

Sandy: The Yuletide Angel is Christian historical romance set in 1890. Here’s the back cover blurb:

It's Christmastime in 1890s Meadowmead, and someone is venturing out at night to leave packages at the homes of the needy. Dubbed The Yuletide Angel, no one knows the identity of this mysterious benefactor. 

No one, except Hugh Barnes, a confirmed bachelor who finds himself drawn to the outwardly shy but inwardly bold Violet Madison, a young woman who risks her safety to help others. 

When Violet confesses her fear of eviction from her childhood home, Hugh longs to rescue her. His good intentions are thwarted, however, when Hugh's estranged brother shows up in town ... and in Violet's company. 

But Violet faces an even bigger threat. A phantom figure lurks in the shadows, prepared to clip the wings of The Yuletide Angel.

Ann:  The Yuletide Angel sounds like my kind of book. I look forward to reading it. Got it on my Christmas list.

Would you share a favorite Scripture verse or passage of Scripture that means a lot to you?

Sandy:  I have several, including Jeremiah 29:11, but I really like Isaiah 55:8-9.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Those words remind me of the awesomeness of God and that He is in control. I can’t do anything, think anything, plan anything that equals what He can do or who He is.

Ann:  Is there anything else you’d like to say?

Sandy:  Thanks so much for having me here, Ann. I’ve enjoyed answering your questions and introducing your readers to Hugh Barnes and Violet Madison, the main characters of The Yuletide Angel. 

Ann:  Where can we find you online, Sandy?

Sandy:  Here are a few places:

http://sandraardoin.wordpress.com/ 

https://www.facebook.com/SandraArdoinAuthor  
The Yuletide Angel: Sandra Ardoin: 9781941103890: Amazon.com  

https://twitter.com/SandraArdoin1 

http://seriouslywrite.blogspot.com/2014/04/aha-now-youre-on-to-something-by-sandra.html 

Ann:  Thank you for sharing your debut novella with us, Sandy. We hope when the next book comes out, you'll revisit us here at Write Pathway. 

Interview with Susan Page Davis

Good morning Susan, and welcome to Write Pathway, a place for writers and editors to meet. We are so pleased to have you with us this morning. So let's get started with our interview.

What would you do with your life if you didn't write?

I would probably hold some 9 to 5 job, as I have two teenagers heading off to college in the fall. Before I wrote fiction, I was a news correspondent, so it’s hard to imagine not writing in some form.

How many rejections did you get before you published a book?

I can’t even remember. The first book I ever wrote was rejected about fourteen times. It’s never been published. But I wrote several more books before I was published. I’m guessing a total of at least thirty rejections.

How many books have you published? Are all of them published by Traditional publishers?

So far 32 novels and two novellas (not counting anthologies), and yes, all published traditionally. I have five more under contract and somewhere in the process between contract and publication, and one story collection I posted myself as an e-book that has never been a paper book, though the title story was published in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine. (Mailbox Mayhem).

Tell us a bit about Inside Story, the book we’re giving away next week.


Claudia Gillette is a high-powered magazine writer who wants to forget her small town roots as a Franco-American girl from Maine. She’ll take almost any risk to get a good story. Most people find her a bit overpowering, but Lt. Bill White is fascinated by her. Bill is part of a Navy special operations team supervised by Claudia’s brother-in-law. When she learns the unit includes a woman, Claudia knows she has to get that woman’s story for her magazine. She pulls some strings, and to Bill’s horror, she drops into his unit’s top secret mission at a critical moment.

What gave you the idea for the Frasier Island Series?

This is actually the third book in the Frasier Island series, but it can be read as a standalone. The series is about Navy personnel in unusual situations. Book 1 has three people guarding a secret on an island outpost (Frasier Island). Book 2 has Claudia’s sister, Marie Belanger, running for her life after witnessing a murder (Finding Marie). The idea for Frasier Island came first.
My son and I were discussing science fiction, and he said he wanted to write a SF book. One thing led to another, which was a challenge—who could complete a SF book first? Well, my book turned out to be romantic suspense, not SF. The only thing remotely Sci-Fi about it is the mysterious substance found in the water near Frasier Island. And my son’s book? He didn’t finish it, so I think I won.

What’s something you wish you’d known earlier that might have saved you some time/frustration in the publishing business?

I used to be a panster, but I reformed. Now I outline in detail before I ever begin writing.


Where do you find your story ideas?

The idea for Inside Story sprang from the earlier books in the series. Claudia appeared briefly in Finding Marie, when her sister Marie was missing. My readers loved Marie’s family (and her husband Pierre’s large French family too) and asked if I would write about the other siblings. So in this case, I had the character, Claudia, established as a journalist, the girl who left home and made good. She apparently “had it all,” but I knew she wasn’t happy with the life she’d made for herself. I wanted to tell her story and show her longing for the simple domesticity her sisters had. So I put Claudia in several intense situations and showed her unhappiness growing.Other starter ideas for books have come from lots of places. It could be something I’ve read or heard or seen on TV. It could be a nugget I discovered while researching something else, or an odd bit of trivia that caught my fancy.

Usually my story ideas start in one of two ways-—with a character I want to portray (like Claudia) or with a situation I populate with people who can best execute it (like the discovery of the mysterious “stuff” in Frasier Island).

What two or three things would you do differently if you were starting your publishing career today?

Go to conferences for fiction writers sooner (like ACFW). I would not assume some editor would read my book, love it, and publish it without changing a word.

Describe your favorite writing spot.

My desk, which is in a corner room. I can look out any time, but being in my familiar place with all my “tools” handy keeps me from being too easily distracted. I have lots of research books around me, along with files, printer, maps, and so on.

What is the first thing you do when you begin a new book?

Make a 3-ring binder containing sections for contract, timeline, synopsis, and research topics. Later I add reader mail, correspondence, and whatever pertains to that book. My Inside Story binder contains a lot of information about the Navy, mountain gorillas, Peru, and guerilla warfare, for instance. I also make cards for each character with a thumbnail sketch of their appearance, relationships, and other facts I might want to refer to again (make of car, for instance, or key dates in their lives).

Have you received a particularly memorable reader response or peer honor? Please share.

I’ve written 15 books for Heartsong Presents, and this year their readers chose me as their favorite author. That was a huge honor, and very humbling when I look at the list of authors who write for them.

Congratulations, Susan. That is quite an honor---to be chosen as your readers favorite author. What’s next?

My historical romance, Captive Trail, will release in September. It’s part of the new Texas Trails series, from Moody Publishers. I’m excited to be writing this series with authors Darlene Franklin and Vickie McDonough. You can read more about it on my Website: http://www.susanpagedavis.com/historicals.html

Tell us about your e-books.

I recently had the rights revert to me for Inside Story, and have posted it as a Kindle e-book with a new cover (made by my awesome youngest daughter, by the way). I have 12 e-books now, and I love having that many books available to people who want to read on their computer or a book reader. See Inside Story at: http://www.amazon.com/Inside-Story-Frasier-Island-ebook/dp/B004TMMZ26/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1301060930&sr=1-1

Why do you keep writing?

Because I have a lot more stories to tell. If the Lord quits giving me stories, I’ll stop.

Well, Susan, I've read your Frazier Island series and loved every one. I wish you much success as you continue the journey to accomplish what God has laid on your heart. I'm sure He has many more wonderful stories for you to share with us. Again, thank you so much for sharing with us today.

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