Welcome to Readers Write to Know! I asked you, my readers, what questions they would ask their favorite authors if given the chance, and the authors visiting my blog answered them! This week, I am thrilled to have Sara Beth Williams as my guest. I am in the middle of reading Sara Beth’s latest release A Worthy Heart (and can tell you it’s very good!). More than that, I love helping promote a friend’s book. I’ve known Sara Beth online for several years now, and am thankful she’s giving me the opportunity to spread the word about her new release. Read on to see how you can enter to win a copy of her recent release When Hearts Collide for yourself!
Tell us a little bit about yourself. I live in Northern California. I just celebrated 12 years of marriage. We have 2 spunky little girls. I love to read and write (of course) play guitar, and engage in anything else that involves creativity. I will try anything that involves creating!
Tell us about your current release? When Joel Bennett discovers his sister’s best friend is stuck in an abusive relationship, he’ll do everything in his power to protect her—but it might cost him more than he bargained for. A Worthy Heart follows Joel and Serena’s romantic journey as they both learn to lean on the One who holds all things in His hands.
What do you think is lacking in Christian Fiction? I think Christian Fiction has come a long way, and there are plenty of new authors and even established authors making headway on this – but I have always felt that some Christian Fiction lacks in authenticity. Authentic characters and authentic situations. Characters from various backgrounds, both racial and economical. I read so many books with rich white characters and while I usually read romance, this is a trend I’d like to see change direction. I have also noticed that more readers are looking for books with a setting or origin of story other than the United States, and I would agree with that.
How do you push past the fear of your writing being average and be bold enough to sell it to a publisher (or agent or audience if you self publish)? It is difficult to not become discouraged because there really are SO many amazing, wonderful and talented authors out there, especially in the romance genre. I think what helps me push past the fears of inadequacy in my writing is to determine to do my very best. And to remember that there will always be someone better than me. But those people who are better – and who really can determine the definition of ‘better’ anyway – I can learn and grow from them. Every book I read, every author I encounter, I learn from them.
What’s the first major news headline that you can remember and what do you remember? I am sure there were others, but I distinctly remember September 11th, 2001. When I began attending high school, I developed a habit of turning on the news in the mornings before going to school. My sophomore year, September 11th, 01, I took a shower, which I don’t normally do before school – because #sleep – and then came out to hear this awful news story unfolding on TV. My entire family sat and watched for half an hour and we actually saw the 2nd plane hit the 2nd tower. I rode my bike to school under cloud cover, which was also weird for the time of year, and spent the rest of the day watching coverage throughout all my classes, except drama class. Even in Spanish class, we watched Spanish world news. It was just incredibly surreal.
[Tweet “Interview and #giveaway with @WilliamsSaraB on @halleeb blog!”]
What inspired you to start writing, or did you always want to write? I cannot pinpoint any one thing that inspired me to begin writing. I’ve always loved writing stories. I used to write copycat stories of Little Women. I wrote poetry for many years. It came easily to me, where many other things did not – ahem, math – so I took hold of writing and held on tight.
Do you have your plotline and character development already laid out before you begin writing a book, or do they develop as you write? I love to free-write. It’s my favorite part of writing. I’ve got a ton of story ideas. Some of them pan out, some of them do not. It does help significantly to do character sketches and whatnot, but I don’t like to plot in the very beginning. I only plot once I’ve free-written a sufficient amount of my story – usually 20 or more thousand words of rubbish. Then, once I think the story has potential to become a full length novel, I sit down and plot out an outline to fill in the gaps of time, organize events, flesh out the theme/overall message. I use it to keep myself from straying so far off the map that I can’t find my way back again.
Here is where you can find Sara Beth online:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sara.b.williams.3
Twitter @WilliamsSaraB
Instagram: @sarabethauthor2018/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18403465.Sara_Beth_Williams
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/sara-beth-williams
Blog: www.authorswilliams.wordpress.com
Sara Beth is giving away a signed print copy of When Hearts Collide to a reader! See below how you can enter to win!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
8 comments
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I totally agree that Christian fiction needs to have more diverse characters, and I love new settings, I armchair travel with my reading!
Thank you for sharing!
I remember the outfit I was wearing on 9/11. It is a day I will never forget.
Christian Fiction definitely need to be more diverse. I need to see characters struggling with sin and overcoming it with God. No more rich heroes stories because it is not realistic and it creates false expectations.
Thanks for the great interview, Sara Beth and Hallee. This is the first time I’ve seen Sara Beth’s books so I appreciate the introduction. I’m always up for trying a new author.
I was a sophomore on 9-11-01 and saw the events at school as well. What I find lacking in some Christian books is depth of character. I sometimes think “people don’t really talk like that”!
Author
I know exactly what you mean!
I loved this book!! I love that you showed that we’re still growing, still working things out, even after we receive Christ. I also think you showed domestic violence with compassion.
interesting interview
Simply beautiful cover.