Marital status:
Married for 27 years to the love of my life.
What Is Your Favorite Beverage:
Tea, hot or iced. Straight up. No sugar, no cream. Earl Grey is a favorite. Even though I have a teapot and teacup collection, I seldom use either, instead opting for a mug. Hmm. I think that's more laziness than wanting to preserve the teapots.
What Is Your Favorite Food:
Pizza! I know it's bad for me, but... Next would have to be dark chocolate. If a dessert has dark chocolate in it, I can't resist.
What Is Your Favorite Thing to do During Free Time:
Relaxation takes so many different forms that I can't limit it to just one thing. A walk, driving to a pretty area, playing games with friends, curling up with a book or watching a favorite movie. I think I've watched the Colin Firth "Pride and Prejudice" miniseries a dozen times. I also like a little adventure in my life, whether hiking in the mountains, kayaking, parasailing or the helicopter ride I took with my husband last summer.
Who Has Been the Most Influential Person in Your Life:
The Lord. I would be a hot mess without Jesus. After that there are so many that I can't narrow it down. My parents, obviously. A host of English teachers who encouraged me to write. Friends, relatives. The list goes on and on.
First Book You Fell in Love With:
The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. I read the whole Narnia series over and over and over. I love the simplicity of the language coupled with the depth and layers of message.
A Book You Wish You’d Written:
Hm. The same as my favorite. I wish I could write such clean yet meaningful prose that can be read on multiple levels by both kids and adults.
First Book Published:
Soaring Home in 2010 (I was a late bloomer, or rather, God waited until I wrote for Him.)
Most Recent Book:
The Marriage Barter in 2013
Out Next:
Groom by Design in July 2014 and Suitor by Design in October 2014
How Many Have You Written:
With my 2014 books, that'll make 7 published, though I do have quite a few manuscripts under the bed.
What Do You Know Now That You Wish You’d Known Then:
That the writing struggles wouldn't stop after publication, and that the Lord's timing is perfect. I wasn't ready during those years that I thought I was. All those years of studying the craft of writing and enduring rejection ultimately tempered me in the furnace of experience. This business is all about perseverance.
What is Your Favorite Bible Story:
Joseph. Despite an enormous change of fortune, going from favored son to prisoner to position of authority, he clung to his faith. There's a lesson in perseverance!
What is Your Favorite Bible Verse:
This changes constantly as life places different stresses in my path. Right now it's Joshua 1:9 "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." Fear has been a constant companion throughout my writing life. Will the words come? Can I pull it together on time? Will there be another story once this one is finished? I'm learning to turn it over to God, but it's a slow learning process!
What is Your Favorite Hymn:
How Great Thou Art. I get chills every time I hear it. Second would be In the Garden because that's the song that called to me when I was lost and helped lead me back to God. Then there's Is It I, Lord? I get choked up and can't finish the verses. Okay, I have trouble picking just one favorite anything.
What is an Ongoing Prayer Request You Have:
For strength and courage and the defeat of fear. That those who are hurting will find peace through God during difficult times, knowing that Jesus has prepared the path for us.
Posts
Good to get to know you better Christine. And you Bible verse fits my life right now. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteLoved getting to know you. How Great Thou Art can bring me to my knees, too.
ReplyDeleteYou're right about the struggle after publication. The more you know, the harder you are on yourself. It's good to know you.
ReplyDeleteLoved the pics, Christine. I didn't know you were an adventurer!
ReplyDeleteI hear you about the fear. Something I struggled with for a number of books. It's eased a bit now. I try to live in God's perfect time, which helps. He always provides...of course, we still have to do the work, right?
Hi Jean! I think that Bible verse will stay right on my desk. Thanks for stopping by!
ReplyDeletePamela, there are some songs that always give me goosebumps. When you said how a song can bring you to your knees, I immediately thought of that line (fall on your knees) in "O Holy Night." One of these years I am literally going to my knees when that song is sung.
ReplyDeleteHi Leann, so true. I wonder why we're harder on ourselves? It should be the other way around.
ReplyDeleteHi Debby, my adventurous side is limited. I'll admit to being terrified when I've come upon a grizzly bear on the trail. Gulp. But I'm also a huge fan of God's beautiful creation. I feel His presence there in a way that makes the danger worth risking.
ReplyDeleteGod's timing is perfect, isn't it? He does always provide, but I have to fight my instinct to try to take control, which is pretty much the dumbest thing ever. He will do a better job every time. Still, there I go reaching for the reins again.
I so enjoyed getting to know you better, Christine, and honestly you should not feel guilty about eating pizza. It has the 4 basic food groups if you add those veggie and meat topics to go with the bread and cheese. Finish your meal off with a few squares of dark chocolate and you have all 5 basic food groups covered. :)
ReplyDeleteBwahahaha, Sandra. That's my kind of thinking!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your interview, Christine! Except now I'm hungry for pizza and some dark chocolate, LOL.
ReplyDeleteI was happy to meet you at RWA last year, and hope to see you at some future conferences (ACFW?).
Blessings from Georgia, Patti Jo
It was great getting to know a bit more about you, Christine. I've really enjoyed watching your career take off and soar. Who would have thought when we became Pixies back in 2008 that we'd both end up writing for Love Inspired. How cool is that?
ReplyDeleteHi Patti Jo! Yes, I'm planning to attend ACFW this year. If you're there I hope to see you.
ReplyDeleteHi Keli! Yes, it is cool that we both ended up writing for Love Inspired. I wouldn't have guessed that back in 2008. Love life's twists and turns!
ReplyDeleteAnother tea lover! Whoo-hoo! Yep, I love that Earl Gray.
ReplyDeleteSo good to know a little bit more about you Christine. And isn't the story of Joseph inspiring? That's one that'll teach us not to whine.
So true, Mindy! Joseph's story is a testimony to perseverance through tough times (though the human side of me likes to think he might have whined a bit sitting in prison). Thanks for stopping by!
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