Tag Archives: Canadian authors

Review: Sweetened with Honey, by Valerie Comer

2 Replies

Sweetened with Honey, by Valerie ComerSweetened With Honey, by Valerie Comer (GreenWords Media, 2014)

Of the three friends who set out to demonstrate sustainable living on Green Acres farm, Sierra Riehl is the only one who’s still single. She’s glad Jo and Claire found such loving husbands, and she appreciates the skills the men have brought to the farm, but sometimes she feels like the odd woman out. And she’s pushing thirty.

Sierra wants to be in love, wants to get married and have children, but if she’s not careful she’ll settle for the only guy in town who’s taken an interest – even though her friends all think he’s selfish and arrogant. Then Gabe Rubachuk (from Raspberries and Vinegar) returns to town. Despite the past, Gabe is the one Sierra has been wishing for. Except he’s still grieving and doesn’t know how to move forward.

Gabe and Sierra do a lot of angsting over one another, especially at first. I confess to a bit of trouble relating to Sierra, likely because she keeps thinking of Tyrell as a viable option for a life partner. (As an action reader, I kind of hoped someone would deck him before the novel ended, but author Valerie Comer demonstrates a more mature Christian attitude toward him. I suspect he may grow up and be someone’s love interest in a later story.)

It’s always fun to take another virtual visit to the farm, and to see how the project is growing. Sweetened With Honey takes place three years after Raspberries and Vinegar, and although the farm hasn’t become the event destination its founders had hoped, they’ve added beekeeping and guided hiking. I learned a bit about bees!

I enjoy the rural and environmentally-conscious atmosphere of this series, and watching how the characters’ ideals are affected by the realities of life – and by their Christian values. It’s good to spend time with realistic characters (flaws and all) as they work through their issues. Sierra’s dealing with the biological clock and her health, and Gabe with grief. If we haven’t been there, we will – or our friends will. Fiction lets us explore common struggles so we’re better prepared to face them in reality.

Sweetened With Honey is book 3 in the Farm Fresh Romance series, with three more to follow. Book 1, Raspberries and Vinegar, won a 2014 Word Award in the Romance category. Author Valerie Comer is a Canadian local-food advocate. Visit her website for tips and recipes: valeriecomer.com.

[Review copy from my personal library.]

Character interview: Daisy Turner

Leave a reply

Susan Fish is a Canadian author and editor as well as the principal of Storywell, an online resource for writers. Her new novel, Ithaca, releases October 1, 2014.

Susan Fish

Susan Fish

Today I’m chatting with Daisy Turner, the main character of Ithaca.

Janet: Welcome, Daisy, and thanks for taking time to join us. First, let me offer my sympathy for your loss. Would you care to tell us a little about yourself, and about Arthur, too? You were married a long time, and you’re bound to have shaped each other along the way.

Daisy: Thank you, Janet. I appreciate your sympathy. My husband, who died in May, was a geology professor at Cornell University. I was his right-hand man. Right-hand woman, I should say. I typed his papers for him and, as much as it isn’t fashionable to say this, I was very happy being Arthur’s wife and Nick’s mother, and running our household.

Janet: What do you miss most about him?

Daisy: Oh goodness, my answer to that would probably be different every day. What surprised me was that it’s the little things more than the big things, the things only I would know about him.

Janet: Shh… is there anything that’s easier about living alone again?

Daisy: This is actually the first time I’ve ever lived alone. I was very young when I married. I’m not sure easier is the word I would use, generally. Arthur had a heart condition and we had to adopt a low-sodium diet. It is nice to be able to season my food again.

Janet: Your son is working overseas, correct? Do you think you might visit him at some point?

Daisy: My son works in Singapore. We visited him a couple of years ago. I always keep a small rock in my pocket, a rock I picked up on a beach in Singapore. It helps me feel that he isn’t so far away. I imagine I will visit him again at some time, but he’s been good about coming home too.

Janet: I love that idea of the pocket-rock for connection! So much of your life revolved around Arthur’s schedule. I see you’ve kept the weekly Wednesday soup nights. How did those start? And do you find comfort in keeping up the tradition?

Daisy: I don’t think the people who come to Wednesday nights would let me stop even if I wanted to! But I don’t want to stop. It’s been part of my life almost since we moved to Ithaca. Initially it was just Arthur’s grad students who came to dinner, and soup was the easiest thing to make—because it stretches to accommodate an extra person or two. After a few years, it became a standing date.

Janet: Do you create your own recipes? And are you a local food cook, or does that matter to you?

Daisy: I cook for a large crowd so I have to adapt but I usually start with a recipe. Over time, it becomes my own. We have a vibrant farmer’s market in Ithaca and that’s where I get most of the food for my soups. All the vendors there come from a small radius around the town, so I suppose yes, I do cook local foods.

Janet: I confess I hadn’t heard of Ithaca before. It sounds like a charming university town, and I’d love to see the waterfalls. Please tell us about your home. What do you like best about where you live?

Daisy: I’m from the South originally but Ithaca has been my home since the early ’70s. I think I’d have to say—and I’ve never really thought about this before exactly—that there are two things I like most about Ithaca, and they aren’t that different from each other. One is the waterfalls and the other is the students. In both cases, what I love is the liveliness, the sense of movement. We have dozens of waterfalls in our area and I’m fond of all of them. You really should visit, and this time of year is a beautiful one with all the leaves in color. We aren’t a big city but Ithaca is home to Cornell, where my husband taught, and Ithaca College. Having the students around brings a freshness to our town; I always look forward to the end of summer when the students come back.

Janet: One of your friends keeps bees. Are you learning a few things about helping with them?

Daisy: I used to think bees were just a menace—other than the honey. Our friend Henry invited me to help him harvest honey recently, and it was fascinating to watch the process. I think we could learn a lot from bees. I’ll tell you one thing: bees eat honey but they don’t live long enough to eat the honey made from the nectar they collect. They have to depend on those who came before them, and they leave food for those who come behind them,

Janet: There’s a life lesson for humans in the bees’ pattern, I think! And there’s a new word in your vocabulary these days: fracking. I’m hearing more about that here in Nova Scotia, too. Do you think you’ll be able to figure out what it’s all about? It’s hard to know whose information to trust.

Daisy: I decided to take a course at the university to understand more about fracking. And yes, there are a wide variety of opinions on fracking—all of them quite strong too.  There’s a lot of excitement about being able to retrieve little pockets of gas from the shale, but I do worry that they are acting first and thinking afterward. That’s not the way to mess with things, if you ask me.

Janet: Your story isn’t particularly about faith, but you’ve recently returned to church. You’re even a Sunday School teacher now. Is there anything you’d like to share about what brought you back, or what difference faith makes in your life?

Daisy: I did come back to church. My son had moved to Singapore not long before the tsunami hit in south-east Asia. Singapore was not directly affected and my son was safe, but it unsettled me and it made me aware of how small I was and I needed something, Someone, who was bigger than a tsunami. I do teach Sunday School, and Father Jim comes to Wednesday nights, and I have a good friend who also came back to church with me. I feel like there’s solid rock under my feet now.

Janet: I find comfort in knowing there’s Someone bigger than me, too. Coffee or tea? And what’s your favourite season?

Daisy: Coffee in the morning, tea in the afternoon. Goodness, my favorite season… how can I choose? I don’t think I can pick one.

Janet: If you could do anything at all—travel, try something new, whatever—what might it be?

Daisy: I feel that that is exactly the question I am asking of myself these days. I don’t know the answer. There’s a lot that is new in my life, my new life without Arthur. I’ve had a nice, settled life until the last few months—and now I need to figure out what comes next.

Janet: Susan Fish is a fine person to write your story. Is there anything you’d like to say to her?

Daisy: She keeps asking me for my soup recipes. I was a bit surprised when she wanted to tell my story but she says she’s interested in grief and food and the power of community and sharing food, and I suppose my story really is about all these things, isn’t it? I would like to thank her for writing my story.

Janet: Daisy, I’m glad you joined us today, and I’m looking forward to getting to know you better as I read your story. I trust there are good surprises in store for you.

===

Ithaca, by Susan FishFor 39 years, Daisy Turner has been a professor’s wife, typing his notes and helping out. The centerpiece of her life is a weekly community dinner she hosts—one that always features soup. When her husband drops dead, Daisy has nothing to hold onto except, perhaps, the soup. Then, suddenly, Daisy finds herself entangled with a man whose wife is disabled, mothering a young activist-farmer, and swept into the controversy about fracking that has begun to concern their small Ivy League town.

Ithaca explores what happens when a quiet, almost sedimentary life meets the high-pressure forces of a small town. How do you rebuild after life as you know it is suddenly turned upside down—or is fracked?

Want to win a copy of Ithaca on Goodreads? Enter the giveaway before October 1, 2014.

Ithaca can be pre-ordered on Amazon or through your local bookstore. Book club members, this would be a great story for you to read together.

Susan Fish is a writer and editor (storywell.ca) in Waterloo, ON Canada. She loves to cook, walk her dog, and spend time with her husband and three kids. You can find Susan at her blog, Susan Fish Writes, and at Storywell.

Review: Other Side of the River, by Janice L. Dick

2 Replies

Other Side of the River, by Janice L. DickOther Side of the River, by Janice L. Dick (Helping Hands Press, 2014)

It’s been too long since we had new historical fiction from Janice L. Dick. Once again she immerses readers in the world of Russian Mennonites, a persecuted people wherever they try to settle in the Soviet regime of 1926.

Despite the growing turmoil in their village, Luise Letkemann is eager to marry her beloved Daniel Martens. Her family wants to move somewhere safer: to Canada, or at least farther east towards China. But will anywhere be safe from vindictive officials out to break her people’s hope?

As the story opens, Luise is determined to remain optimistic and to see the bright side in everything, but sorrow brings change. Elderly Tante Manya has some of the best lines, wisdom-wise in the story. Here’s my favourite:

Manya: The purpose of prayer is not to get what we want, Luise, but to lay hold of God Himself. He seeks always to reveal Himself to us. Once we begin to see Him as He is, we can relinquish our tight hold on our will and trust Him for His. Do you understand?

Luise: Sometimes I don’t understand anything, Tante. [Kindle Location 3725]

In some ways this was a heavy book because of the people’s struggles, but the way they dig deeper into faith and find the resources they need to carry on in the face of oppression is an example and an encouragement to readers today in whatever stresses we find ourselves.

It’s not a traumatic read. These are resilient people and although some break, the community bond is strong and supportive. Luise, her gentle father Abram, her acidic stepmother Anna, Luise’s step-brother and step-sister, Tante Manya and Daniel are all real characters with individual struggles, weaknesses and strengths.

Other Side of the River originally released as a ebook series. This review is of the complete series in one volume. If you’re looking online, be sure to get the full novel and not just a piece that leaves you wanting more. Sadly, Amazon.ca does not yet offer the print version although the US and UK Amazons do.

Janice L. Dick is a Canadian author of Mennonite heritage. Her Storm series (Calm Before the Storm, Eye of the Storm and Out of the Storm) also traces the lives of Russian Mennonites. I hope we’ll see another novel to follow Other Side of the River. You can find Janice, and more about her books, at her website: janicedick.com.

[Review copy from my personal library.]

Review: My Brother’s Keeper, by N. J. Lindquist

Leave a reply

My Brother's Keeper, by NJ LindquistMy Brother’s Keeper, by N. J. Lindquist (That’s Life! Communications, revised edition, 2014 — formerly titled In Time of Trouble)

Shane Donahue is 18 years old and he hates his life. And his super-perfect twin brother, Scott. They’re identical twins, but they’ve turned into polar opposites. Scott excels at everything, while Shane… well he’s ordinary at best.

He’s been dumped from the basketball team, fired from his job, he’s failing at school, and even in the party crowd he can’t rise to the top. Oh, and his dad took his car away after the latest speeding ticket.

The characters are real, complex, and Shane will capture your heart in the opening pages even while you’ll be shaking your head at his attitude. His frustration, his sense of hopelessness to be good at anything, are feelings we know too well. He doesn’t really know who he is—just who he’s trying to project himself to be.

Favourite quote: Shane describes one of his friends, Ethan, as “kind of comfortable to be around. Like an old pair of sweat pants. He’s maybe the only person who’s never tried to change me.” [Kindle location 495]

As Shane’s world falls apart and his family life gets more turbulent, he figures he’s far enough gone that he might as well check out this God stuff Ethan’s been spouting. It’s either that or kill himself and get it over with.

Shane doesn’t expect what he hears to make so much sense, or to realize he wants God in his life. He also doesn’t expect life to then get harder! His father is more angry about God-talk than he was about Shane’s plummeting grades, and the party crowd is downright hostile about the change in him.

You don’t have to be an 18-year-old boy to appreciate My Brother’s Keeper. It’s for everyone who’s ever felt like a loser, ever felt too far gone to change, or ever felt too ordinary to be any use to God.

N.J. Lindquist is a Canadian author and speaker who has played key roles in The Word Guild and in the Hot Apple Cider anthologies. As well as writing YA fiction under her own name, she writes cozy mysteries as J.A. Menzies. For more about the author and her writing, visit her website: njlindquist.com.

[Review copy from my personal library.]

Review: Strange Faces, by Linda Hall

Leave a reply

Strange Faces, by Linda HallStrange Faces, by Linda Hall (Linda Hall, 2014)

It’s been too long since we’ve had fresh fiction from Linda Hall. Strange Faces is a collection of six short stories and a novella. Most are new, with a few reprints from other anthologies. I had read one story before, but happily read it again.

Linda Hall has a gift for evoking memorable characters and situations. Most of these stories are suspense or mystery, with the occasional strand of magic or the unexplained. Because the author weaves a form of magic of her own in these tales, pulling us into the fictional world, it’s a believable experience. Sometimes too believable, in the stories with narrators we discover to be less than trustworthy—I was reading in a public place and found myself studying the strangers around me and wondering…

In these stories we meet young and old, damaged and whole, down-and-out and starting over. Linda Hall never shies away from social issues in her mysteries, and readers will met lonely souls, caregivers, victims of bullying and of dementia. Many stories deal with family ties and loyalty.

As well as strongly-drawn characters, the author gives us vivid descriptions. Here are two of my favourites:

From “Pickers and Choosers” the narrator describes a television “muted but with the captioning picking its way across the bottom of the screen like little white crabs.” [Kindle location 30]

From “A Small Season of Magic” the narrator describes an old man: “his white head looked like a patch of dandelions gone to seed.” [Kindle location 1309]

The characters and their situations feel real. Each story contains a depth and richness, as if we’re joining fully-developed individuals in a slice of their lives. Back story is always introduced in an organic way in just the right amount to let readers discover what we need to know.

Well worth a read!

Award-winning author Linda Hall’s novels include the Terri Blake-Addison series, Canadian Mountie series, Coast of Maine series and others. For a full list, see her website: writerhall.com. [Note that her previous novels have been Christian fiction. The stories in Strange Faces are clean mainstream.]

[Review copy from my personal library.]

Adam’s Animals with VBS

2 Replies

Adam’s Animals – Fun Facts About God’s Creation by Kimberley Payne

Adam's Animals

Adam’s Animals – Fun Facts About God’s Creation just released this spring!

Is your church running a Vacation Bible School (VBS) program this summer based on the Weird Animals curriculum?

Consider using  Adam’s Animals along with the accompanying craft book, Super Simple Animal Crafts in your Sunday School program leading up VBS. It’s a great resource for your church to generate interest in your summer programs.

Adam’s Animals is an entertaining and educational book that offers children loads of fun while they learn about the Bible.

Inside you’ll find:

  • Bible stories about the animal
  • Fascinating facts about each animal
  • Whimsical illustrations for creative colouring fun
  • Word search puzzles to learn new words and improve spelling

Watch a video of author Kimberley Payne reading from Adam’s Animals (click here)

View sample pages from Adam’s Animals (click here)

What others are saying about Adam’s Animals

“Kimberley looks at the creatures found in the Bible and gives children some incredible scientific facts about them. She then follows those facts up with Scripture references from the Bible on what God has to say about the many animals she has listed in this book. If your child is one who likes “Did you know…?” books, they’ll love this one. Included in the book are word search activities and pictures to colour. ” – Laura Davis

“Author Kimberly Payne has done a thorough job of researching the animal kingdom and combining it with scripture and biblical stories. This book has many fascinating facts about animals and is laid our in a very organized manner with pictures to color and word puzzles.” – Carol Stratton

“From ants to worms, children will not only find the facts interesting, some will even make them giggle. At the same time, they are learning how creative God is that he would make so many animals with distinct characteristics.”– Carol Round

“I plan to use this book in our home school program as it integrates faith, science, language and art. My kids love it – there is much information in it, our 12 year old couldn’t get through it in one sitting.” – Michelle Evans

“This is a delightful book filled with (as promised) fun facts about God’s creatures. I appreciated the focus on scripture and how Kimberley aligns God’s word with God’s creatures. The word challenges are a wonderful way to hone other skills such as spelling and reading, too, so this is a great activity to go along with the information.”– Glynis Belec

“This children’s activity book cleverly ties in scripture, so not only does it teach the inquisitive child about God’s creations, but also about God’s word.”—Melanie Fischer

Buy the Book

On Amazon.com or at Amazon.ca.

Kimberley Payne authorAbout the Author

Kimberley Payne is an award-winning author who combines her teaching experience and love of writing to create educational materials for children about family, fitness, science and faith. You can visit her website at www.kimberleypayne.com.

Review: Majai’s Fury, by Valerie Comer

4 Replies

Majai's Fury, by Valerie ComerMajai’s Fury, by Valerie Comer (GreenWords Media, 2014)

In a culture where the water goddess Majai requires every woman’s firstborn as a sacrifice, Taifa has used forbidden herbs to prevent conception. If she’s discovered—or if she’s labelled barren—her own life could be forfeit. Taifa’s one chance to survive comes in the form of a stranger from another land.

The foreigner Shanh brings a message of doom to Taifa’s people—unless they will renounce Majai and follow the true god, Azhvah. Azhvah’s power proves stronger than Majai’s and stronger than the king’s soldiers assigned to kill Shanh. But Azhvah stops intervening when Shanh encounters Taifa.

Could this god mean for them to meet? More troubling still for Shanh, is it possible that Azhvah could really have spoken to Taifa and to her grandmother? Despite the prophetic writings that reject the idea, and without these women undergoing the painful repentance ritual? Especially after Shanh himself has sinned and lost the closeness with his god?

Taifa is out of choices and flees with Shanh, despite their many differences. Majai’s Fury is a novel filled with the danger of pursuit, the clash of religions, values and beliefs, and the forbidden attraction between Taifa and Shanh.

Rich descriptions bring this world to life and draw the reader into the scenes. I found it especially interesting that Taifa’s people, ruled by the water goddess, use water to measure time. The water clock marks time in cylinders, and the citizens use expressions like “a trickle more time” and “mere drops of time.”

Author Valerie Comer is known for her Farm Fresh Romance series, which has a lighter, sweeter tone, but she delivers this intense fantasy novel with equal skill. Her farm lit fans need to know that Majai’s Fury includes more sexual tension (Taifa’s people thrive on promiscuity), but this is still a clean read. We know what’s happening “off-stage” without “seeing” all the details.

For a good idea of the content, preview chapter 1 or use Amazon.com’s Look Inside feature. To learn more about Valerie Comer’s other writing, visit her website.

[Review copy from my personal library.]

Review: Uncle Bob’s Red Flannel Bible Camp: from Eden to the Ark, by Steve Vernon

Leave a reply

Cover art: Uncle Bob's Red Flannel Bible CampUncle Bob’s Red Flannel Bible Camp: from Eden to the Ark, by Steve Vernon (Stark Raven Press, 2014)

Author Steve Vernon is a storyteller, and what richer source of tales than the Bible? With biblical literacy ebbing, a fresh delivery of the classic stories may be just what people need to spark an interest.

Uncle Bob is the flannel-shirt-wearing narrator, telling his nephew about the action running through what the youngster thinks of as a dry book. (Bob nabs him escaping from Sunday School.) Uncle Bob promises:

The Bible is full of battles and death-defying escapes and lions and even a dragon or two. There is war and there are heroes and there is more special effects than you could shake a star cruiser at. [Introduction]

I picture Uncle Bob as a cross between Red Green and Bill Cosby’s Noah routine, but a bit more off-the-wall. Bob’s interpretation of the classic Bible stories from creation to Noah plays a bit loosely with the facts, and he throws in plenty of nods to current culture. In his own crusty way, he tries to disprove the folks who claim the Bible is down on women (although he’s perturbed that many Old Testament ladies aren’t named.)

Here’s how the author describes Uncle Bob:

Uncle Bob is just a little teapot of a man with the sort of question mark slump in his shoulders, a breath that smells a little of tobacco and Listerine, and a belly-bulge… [Introduction]

Can’t you see—and smell—him? Steve Vernon has a definite talent for painting 3-D word pictures.

If you don’t like offbeat humour, this is not the book for you. It’s not for children, but teens and adults will find some chuckles and the occasional insight.

Two of my favourites:

Chapter 1: [as God created light] I prefer to think of the light as shining right out of God like it was part of him that he was allowing us to share in.

Chapter 3: Once a body gets to wondering, sooner or later they are bound to wander.

Some readers will find the book irreverent. If that’s you, give it a miss. I’m sure the author—and rustic Uncle Bob—means no offense.

Personally, I chalk those moments up to Uncle Bob’s hyperbole and his figures of speech. What he’s trying to do is personalize God to the nameless nephew in the context of men the boy would know from his community. Much like the Huron Carol casts the Nativity in a North American winter setting with the Great Spirit.

The two spots most likely to cause contention are when Uncle Bob refers to God having a cigarette (stopping to rest after the work of creation) and cussing (Bob’s clumsy attempt to set up a joke). The Bible reveals God as holy and majestic, and we know He wouldn’t literally do either of these things, but I think He’s also big enough that He’d see the intended humour and not see contempt or disrespect. I mention this in detail, though, because different readers have different sensitivities to this sort of thing, and life’s too short to waste reading something that makes a person angry.

The book gave me a few smiles, and that quote I shared about the light blessed my spirit. I hope Uncle Bob can encourage readers to check into the Bible for themselves.

I really enjoyed Steve Vernon’s young adult book, Sinking Deeper Or My Questionable (Possibly Heroic) Decision to Invent a Sea Monster. Most of his fiction is in the horror genre, which is out of my range. For more about the author, visit his blog, Yours in Storytelling.

Steve Vernon’s intent is to produce a string of Uncle Bob books to touch on the remaining highlights of the biblical narrative, and book two, Uncle Bob’s Red Flannel Bible Camp: from Babel to Bulrushes, is now available. There’s also Uncle Bob’s Red Flannel Bible Camp: Genesis for Kindle, which combines Eden to the Ark and Babel to Bulrushes.

[Kobo review copy from my personal library.]

Interview: Co-authors Deb Willows & Steph Beth Nickel

13 Replies

Living Beyond My Circumstances is a story “of hope and inspiration for everyone who has a dream they want to achieve and obstacles to overcome.” I’m excited to have former Paralympian Deb Willows and her co-writer, Steph Beth Nickel, visiting today.

Deb Willows and Steph Beth Nickel

Steph, Deb and Sugar

A little bit about our two guests:

Deb Willows has represented Canada numerous times on the world stage in swimming, slalom, wheelchair soccer and boccia, winning medals and setting world records. She has written several articles and spoken in many venues. Deb’s work has appeared in the books Heal Our Land and Everyday Grace, Everyday Miracles.

Steph Beth Nickel is a freelance writer and editor. She is a member of The Word Guild and part of the InScribe Christian Writers’ Fellowship and Christian Editing Services team. She blogs about her various interests at Steph Nickel’s Eclectic Interests and guest posts on several other blogs.

Janet: Welcome, Deb and Steph, and thanks for taking time to join us. Congratulations on the release of your new book! All releases are special to the authors, but what’s it like, Deb, when it’s your personal story?

Deb: Thank you. It has been very surreal. I still get up in the morning and check for the boxes of books in case it was a dream. I’ve wanted to write my story since I was 10.

Janet: Such an exciting dream come true! Not your first, either, Deb… your book shares many accomplishments. And Steph, what’s it like bringing a true story to life when you first had to learn the story?

Steph: Deb made the learning part easy: from recording events she wanted included in the book to inviting me to the Cerebral Palsy Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony (wow! were my eyes opened to the world of Paralympic athletes; and make no mistake, they are athletes in every sense of the word). We also spent a significant amount of time together at her home in Huntsville. It was wonderful getting to know Deb and her family in that environment. Believe me; my life is much richer because of this whole experience. I am humbled and honoured to have been allowed to help Deb fulfill yet another of her dreams.

Janet: Tell us a bit about Living Beyond My Circumstances—just a teaser, because readers will see the full summary after we chat.

Deb: It’s about life and living it despite what the world said. It’s about hopes, dreams, challenges, going for gold, and learning to depend on a faithful God.

Steph: Runaway wheelchairs. A mischievous poodle. World travel. Trails blazed. A woman who saw every obstacle as something to be conquered. The family and friends who encouraged her. And so very much more.

Janet: Deb, it sounds like your whole life has been marked by courageous choices. Did sharing your experiences in book form call on a different type of courage?

Deb: Yes, many of these stories were hard to write because I had to re-live the pain and the excitement. But if this book gives courage and hope to others, it was worth it.

Signing copies of the book.

Signing copies of the book.

Janet: What do you hope readers take away from this book?

Deb:  That God is faithful and trusting in Him is the only way to have joy. I also hope people will learn that people with a disability are people first and start seeing the person not the disability.

Janet: Steph, what are your thoughts?

Steph: By God’s grace and in His strength, we can face whatever challenges life presents. Deb refers to CP as “a slight setback.” I believe we can learn to view the challenges we face in the same way.

Janet: How did the two of you connect for this project?

Deb: A family friend introduced us over email. I’ve known Ruth Waring most of my life.

Steph: Through our mutual friend and fellow author, Ruth Waring.

Janet: I know Ruth too! Small world! Probably every team has a different approach, but what worked best for you in terms of collaborating?

Deb: I started by putting info on tapes. Steph took those tapes and typed it on the computer; then we worked on stories one at a time. Steph knows a lot about me. I’m glad we’ve become good friends! I type with a pen in my mouth, so I’m slow. It was so cool to see the pages unfold as we worked over email and some days, by phone. Steph stayed with me a few times and we accomplished much during her visits. It was good for Steph to see how I live because it helped her write more authentically.

Steph: Deb’s incredible patience and hospitality. Plus her enthusiasm when we got a scene “just right.” That fired me up and inspired me to keep writing. Deb is so much more than my co-author; she has become my friend. And that is one of the greatest treasures I’ve gained from our partnership.

Janet: What’s something that you look back and laugh over?

Deb: Steph suggested we have raspberries on the orange sherbet and I thought it was strange, but let me tell you, it is good!

Steph: It’s just a little thing, but I remember visiting Deb – and her wide supply of hot drinks for the Keurig. When I was ready to leave, she asked if I’d miss Tate, her service dog, or the coffeemaker more. Um . . .

Janet: Memoirs are often difficult to market. What are some of your plans to help readers discover this book?

Deb: I believe God is the greatest choreographer and His timing is perfect. Yes, it’s been a long process and at times, I was tired of waiting, but He has a reason for this time. Being an Olympic year, I believe will be a benefit. I hope to get some books into the hands of some of the Paralympians.

Steph: Deb has connections all over the world. That will help. (grin) Also, Deb’s willingness to organize book launches and attend speaking engagements; our social media presence; and the diligent support of the online community and our publishers, Larry and Marina Willard of Castle Quay Books, will help a lot.

Janet: What would you say to someone considering writing their memoir?

Deb: Just do it. Keep Kleenex® close.

Steph: Never underestimate the value of your story. Instead of (or as well as) writing a book, you may want to start a blog and build an online following (if you don’t already have friends all around the globe like someone I know). If you are not a writer, you may want to partner with someone who is. And if you are a writer but don’t know much about creative non-fiction, I would encourage you to do some research . . . and read Living Beyond My Circumstances. (another grin)

Janet: Is there a particular song or Scripture verse that’s made a big difference for you?

Deb: Philippians 4:13, which says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” and the song “Because He Lives.”

Steph: When NJ Lindquist introduced the attendees at the Write Canada conference to Johnny Reid’s “Today I’m Gonna Try and Change the World,” it made me cry. I have claimed it as my theme song.

Janet: And my random questions of the day: Cake or Pie? What’s your favourite season?

Deb: Pie, blueberry or raspberry. Autumn: the colours, the smells, no bugs, no snow!

Steph: Just about any flavour of cream pie. Coconut. Raspberry. Chocolate. I love the autumn – always have. The colours. The smells. The crunch of leaves underfoot. And now I want to go for a walk in the leaves and come home to a big slice of pie.

Janet: See how well the two of you match! And I’d love to join you for pie and an autumn outing. Ladies, thank you both for taking time to chat with me today, and congratulations again. I hope your book inspires many. I’ll be posting my (positive) review next week.

===

Living Beyond My Circumstances, by Deb Willows and Steph Beth Nickel

Living Beyond My Circumstances, by Deborah L. Willows with Steph Beth Nickel, foreword by Joni Eareckson Tada

When Deb Willows was diagnosed with cerebral palsy 50 years ago, her parents were advised to “put her in an institution and get on with your lives.” Experts believed parents were incapable of raising disabled children. But God had other plans.

Deb’s parents challenged her to see her severe limitations as opportunities, to dream big dreams and to work hard to accomplish them. Overcoming many challenges, Deb has blazed the trail for other disabled people, representing Canada around the world as a Paralympian and the first disabled boccia ball referee.

Her story is one of hope and inspiration for everyone who has a dream they want to achieve and obstacles to overcome.

Deb Willows has truly lived beyond her circumstances and demonstrates that with God’s help we can all accomplish great things!

Living Beyond My Circumstances is available through your local bookstore or at www.castlequay.com or other online retailers. To learn more about the writers, please visit Deb Willows and Steph Beth Nickel.

Interview: Valerie Comer, Farm Lit author

2 Replies

Valerie ComerValerie Comer is a Canadian author with a passion for local food, faith, and fiction. We’re talking today about her new novel, Wild Mint Tea, and also about healthy eating.

Janet: Welcome back, Valerie, and congratulations on the release of your new novel. The Farm Fresh Romance series features three friends: Jo, Claire and Sierra. This is Claire’s story, right? What do we need to know about her?

Valerie: Thanks for having me back, Janet! Yes, this is Claire’s story. She’s a chef who specializes in local foods and who’s grounded in Green Acres, the farm she bought with her two friends. All her life she’s moved from one place to the next, and she’s so done with it. If she never leaves her new community of Galena Landing, Idaho, again, it will be too soon.

Janet: And Noel, the hero, has an entirely different plan for his life, right?

Valerie: So true. Noel believes the whole world is there for him to explore. It’s why he loves owning a reforestation company. He gets to move around the Pacific Northwest all summer and play hard in the tropics all winter.

Janet: Sounds like they’ll have some obstacles to overcome, but the journey will be worth it. Thinking of Claire’s work as a local-foods chef, I suspect she’s good at adapting recipes. Is that something you do, yourself?

Valerie: I hate to admit it, but I rarely prepare a recipe (at least a savoury one) exactly how I found it. There’s usually some ingredient I don’t have but can substitute for, etc. I think it comes from living on the farm and growing a garden, as there’s always an abundance of some foods and a dearth of others. For one thing, did you know that green beans and asparagus are interchangeable in most recipes? Try it!

Janet: Ooh. I like asparagus! Do you share recipes on your website, or in your author newsletter?

Valerie: I do share recipes on my blog from time to time. Here’s the recipe for Honey-Mustard Potato Salad that I attribute to Noel in Wild Mint Tea. This is entirely my own concoction, and a sweetly pleasing upgrade to the typical potato salad. One day soon it will be summer and I can justify making it again!

Janet: I’ll have to give that one a try myself. Love a good potato salad. We’re tea drinkers in my house, and the word “tea” in Wild Mint Tea caught my eye. Is there a specific connection with the story?

Valerie: There definitely is a connection, one I was able to bring into the story on several levels, including the drink of choice for the characters throughout the tale. Also, mint is a persistent plant. When the conditions are right, it flourishes and is difficult to uproot. Sort of like love.

Janet: That’s a great illustration for love, and I liked how you threaded it through the story. One of the nice things for readers about a series is that we can reconnect with the friends we made in the previous book. I’m looking forward to an update on Jo, Zach and Domino, the Border collie. Has much time passed since the events in Raspberries and Vinegar?

Valerie: There’s 6-7 months between the end of Raspberries and Vinegar and the beginning of Wild Mint Tea. I hadn’t planned for each story to be a March-July tale but, when I figured out the storyline for the second book heralded the beginning of tree-planting season, my hands were tied. When writing stories set in farming and forestry, the season is pre-set and part of the plot.

Janet: You’re also working on another project… something to do with snowflakes, while the rest of us look forward to warmer days?

Valerie: Yes! Snowflake Tiara contains a fun pair of Christmas novellas that will release in one volume this September. My good friend Angela Breidenbach has written a historical tale while mine is contemporary, and both center around the (fictional) Miss Snowflake Pageant in Helena, Montana. Some readers have told me that a story about pageantry seems far removed from my typical farm lit tales, but I found a way to connect them strongly together.

Janet: Sounds fun! This isn’t your first collaboration, either. Are you finding it different from working on Rainbow’s End?

Valerie: Yes and no. Four authors worked together on Rainbow’s End, so there was more input on how things worked—both a positive and a negative. In Snowflake Tiara, Angie and I have only each other to consult, and we’ve made one visit to Helena together, which was a big help. Also, this novella is twice as long at 40,000 words than the one in Rainbow’s End. However, in both cases, I’ve loved the sense of a bigger story and world than I’d imagined myself.

Janet: Let’s get back to Wild Mint Tea. It’s light romance, like Raspberries and Vinegar, but is there an idea or bit of information you’d like readers to take away?

Valerie: There are several themes in the story that are best uncovered in context, but one take away I can mention today is my desire for people to think about where their food comes from. In the context of Wild Mint Tea, some discussions involve using all the parts of an animal and not simply living off chicken breasts… and should it matter to the average person?

Janet: Your covers for the Farm Fresh Romance series are a different style—one might say fresh if you’ll forgive the pun—and I’ve seen a few like them but not many. For me, they work really well to set the books apart as one of the “lit” genres (in this case Farm Lit) as opposed to traditional romance. What prompted you to go for a visible difference?

Valerie: My daughter was my biggest prompter, as she’s the illustrator who created both covers. I think her style suits the genre of the stories, like you said. I’m thankful that my publisher was willing to take a chance on a slightly different cover style because they catch a lot of attention, almost all of it positive.

Janet: There’s another Farm Fresh Romance in the works, right?

Valerie: There is! I’m currently working on the final story of the three young women who bought a farm together. This one is called Sweetened with Honey and is set about two years after the end of Wild Mint Tea. Readers will get to see Green Acres Farm as a more established event destination and enjoy seeing Sierra, the resident naturopath, take on beekeeping as well as romance.

Janet: Sounds good! Do you have any advice for beginning writers?

Valerie: I have so much advice, I don’t even know where to begin! I’ve written for 12 years now and discovered I do things differently than most other writers (surprise…). I’ve created a free course providing an overview of the fiction-writing process over at towriteastory.com. I want to help newer writers understand what writing fiction entails and what some of the paths are that they might take. I invite your readers to check it out!

Janet: I second that suggestion. I signed up for those emails, myself. Now, we’ve met Valerie the writer, but there’s plenty more that fills your days. Tell us a bit about Valerie the private citizen.

Valerie: Busy. I stopped working an outside job over a year ago, but so much has flooded in to take that empty time. I’m doing some freelance work online as well as writing fulltime. In the summer, I add gardening and food preservation to the mix. No matter what, I always find time to enjoy my three little granddaughters! I love hanging out with them, reading, doing puzzles, or jumping on the trampoline.

Janet: I’ll bet they love to come to visit! Tell us something you appreciate about where you live.

Valerie: My husband and I own a small farm in south-eastern BC, Canada. I love rural living and I love having the mountains around me. I truly believe I live in one of the most beautiful spots on the planet. So blessed.

Janet: I have to ask, since I know local food is important to you: is there something special food-wise that you’ll buy even though it has to be shipped in?

Valerie: Definitely. Like many Canadians and Americans, we like our coffee and chocolate, to name two biggies. However, we try to eat (and drink!) organic not only for the sake of our bodies but also for the sake of the environment and the workers who labor in the fields. Buying organic and fair trade helps protect those workers and our planet.

Janet: I confess to buying Mexican raspberries in the winter. Because of shipping, they’re not as good as locally-sourced ones, but those are strictly a summer treat. Thanks for visiting today, and all the best in the year ahead!

===

Wild Mint Tea by Valerie Comer

She’s rooted deep. He flies free.

Local-foods chef Claire Halford envisions turning Green Acres Farm into an event destination. Weddings prove trickier than she imagined when the first one comes with a ruggedly handsome brother-of-the-bride, who has everything but a fixed address. Oh, and faith in God.

Noel Kenzie loves the freedom his reforestation company affords him. Why worry about deep stuff like God and commitment when he’s in his prime? Except there’s a woman who might make it worth giving up his wings…and digging in some roots. If he dares.

Click the cover to visit Valerie’s site and read a sample chapter of Wild Mint Tea.