If you check your clock, you'll find a amazing discovery. Julie B. Cosgrove is back on the Mine! Her final installment of her series has arrived. First, she started the pendulum moving with Hush in the Storm, followed by Legitimate Lies, a real roller-coaster ride. Now, Freed to Forgive just hit the shelves on Oct. 23rd. How exciting! Time's a wasting and I cant wait to get a copy. And Julie's got a $5.00 Amazon gift certificate to giveaway to one blessed commenter. So don't miss it!
PT: Welcome Julie! I'm so excited for the third book in this series! What makes this one unique?
PT: Welcome Julie! I'm so excited for the third book in this series! What makes this one unique?
JC: Thanks.
I am as well. It is unique in that it written in the third person, whereas the
other two were in first person. This one follows three lives which intertwine
and all come together in the end as God orchestrates it for the benefit and
healing of all involved. The others simply followed one character as she told
her story. To be honest, this one is, as one reviewer stated, more gritty, but
is told in as tasteful a manner with veiled descriptions of what human
trafficking victims go through. I felt I had to lead the reader through her ten-year
journey from trafficked to triumph so they could rejoice when they see how God
moves in the background to heal and redeem her. That is the third unique thing—the
plot extends into the near future of 2023. I spent a good amount of time
teleconferencing with legislators, immigration attorneys and social workers to
brainstorm what is coming down the pike in the next few years to provide assistance
for these victims who have flooded our society.
PT: That sounds like quite a challenge. What turned you toward writing a series about the sex slavery rings?
JC: That was a God thing. I began to write a suspense novel and slammed into a wall after the third chapter. I wasn’t sure where it was to lead, but I knew I wanted to go deeper in the plot to teach a lesson about God’s redemptive power. So I put it aside and prayed about it. Long story edited…within three weeks I met three different missionaries with three different anti human trafficking organizations. The light bulb clicked on. I should have that as a sub-theme. However, each novel has another theme as well. Hush in the Storm dealt with widowhood grief and betrayal, Legitimate Lies dealt with post abortion guilt and Freed to Forgive deals with how an unforgiving heart can shackle us to the past hurts in our lives and prevents us from moving forward. All three also have a touch of clean romance. So, each one is a stand-alone novel even though they involve the same characters.
Now that the trilogy is completed, I will continue to advocate for these victims. However, I must admit I am glad to move on and write about fun stuff…like murder!
PT: Lol. I'm intrigued. What do you have up your sleeve???
JC: I
am excited to announce I have signed a three-book contract with Prism Book
group to write a cozy mystery series called the Bunco Biddies. Twelve ladies
live in a retirement community of about six hundred residents who range from
condo living to nursing home facilities. They play Bunco every Thursday
evening. The ring leader, Janie, is a widow of a homicide detective. Her
daughter is now married to a police detective and Janie worries he doesn’t
spend enough time with his family. So of course, she recruits her friends to
help him solve the crimes in their area so he can make his kid’s concerts and
intermural competitions. Yes, it is a humorous series. I hope this turns into
six or more books. Having written one and into the second, I already love
spending time with my Bunco Biddies. I hope readers will as well. A hint: there
is a touch of romance in them as well.
PT: I know you attended a writer's conference here recently in Dallas. What
did you learn/accomplish while there? What was it like to meet people you’d
only known online?
JC: Yes, readers, Peggy
and I got to finally meet and hug in real life at the American Christian
Fiction Writers Conference in September. This time, I came as a published
author with a three-book contract, which made the event a lot more enjoyable because I
wasn’t nervous about pitching to agents and editors.
I learned a great deal in
a brainstorming session on marketing led be the head marketer for Bethany
House. But most of all I reveled in the camaraderie of 500 other Christian
writers. Since we all write for the same Person, Jesus Christ, there are no
jealousies or competition. I was sorry we had to leave the belly of the whale
(the basement of the hotel where we gathered and lived for three days) to go to
Nineveh - back to reality and the real world.
PT: Well, while we're stopping in Dallas, let's talk about your great state, Texas. Give us some unusual tidbits about it.
JC: Got a while?? There have been books written on that subject. Briefly,
1. Texans are exceptionally proud of their state and because we were briefly our own country, we can fly our flag equally with the US flag…and do so - often!
2. Our state has every terrain imaginable from swamps to desert, plains to mountains to coastlands, farmlands to wastelands. And no, we don’t all have oil wells in our backyards. We do more and more have natural gas wells dotting our neighborhoods, though.
3. In Texas, any soft drink is a Coke. So a perfectly normal conversation is:
“Do you want a Coke?”
“Sure, whatcha got?”
“Dr. Pepper, Big Red, Coke, Diet Coke, Orange, Sprite.”
“I’ll take a D.P.
PT: I know readers can't wait to hear more about you. Perhaps you could tell
us some of your favorite authors.
JC: Why,
Peggy Trotter of course! (wink, thanks, Julie!) Truly, I do love
your novels. Prism has so many amazing authors like Anna Kittrel, DiAne Gates,
Renee Blare, Vicki Pitts Caine, Brooke Williams, Gay N Lewis, Lindsey Paley,
Carlene Havel, Rachel James…I could go on!
My
favorite all time author was Mary Stewart. She wrote clean, British suspense
romance. I also like Mary Daheim who writes clean cozy mysteries, especially
her Bed and Breakfast series, Jan Caron, and Lillian Jackson Brown who wrote
all of the Cat Who books. As far as the classics, I am a true Charles Dickens
fan.
Wow. So much to look forward to from you, Julie! Thanks for stopping by. And don't forget folks, there's a $5.00 Amazon gift certificate in the offing! Leave a comment and your email address to be entered.
Freelance
writer, author and professional speaker Julie B Cosgrove leads retreats,
workshops, and Bible studies. She writes regularly for several Christian
websites and devotional publications. In February, 2013, she was commissioned
by an international relief and development fund to write a mission-based Bible
study.
Julie
has three Bible studies, a devotional, two inspirational books and four fiction
novels published, and is currently contracted for five more novels. She is a
member of North Texas Christian Writers, Advanced Writers and Speakers
Association, American Christian Fiction Writers, Toastmasters International,
Daughters of the King, Texas Association of Authors and the Christian Writers
Network. She's a spokesperson for Women at Risk, International, a Christian
missionary effort to rescue women from sex slavery in 30 countries. Julie is
widowed, has one grown son, and lives in Fort Worth, TX with two cats. She
loves mysteries—especially British ones—and playing word games. Visit her blog:
Where Did You Find God Today? And her website www.juliebcosgrove.com
Can't get enough??? Read on for an excerpt:
Can't get enough??? Read on for an excerpt:
The
social worker’s kind gesture chinked the dam Marisol had formed. The waters
flooded forth and she threw herself into Bonita’s shoulder, her own heaving
softly. She cried for herself, for the child she neither wanted nor would ever
know. Next, she wept for her stupid temper and her wasted life.
The
familiar fury began to merge, cementing the cracks to keep any more of her past
from seeping through into her present. Gasping the last sniffles, she wiped her
eyes with the back of her hand.
“I’m
okay now. No big deal. It’s over, right?”
Bonita
smoothed the girl’s hair from her face. “But it is a huge thing. Talk to me,
Marisol. Tell me your story.”
She
jutted her chin. “It is no longer my story. Help me make a new one.”
*Though
delicately worded with veiled descriptions, this faith-based novel does depict
some disturbing, yet unfortunately all too common, sex trafficking scenes
necessary for the plot.
7 comments:
Great interview! Blessings on the new release, Julie 😊
Enjoyed the interview. I have read and Freed to Forgive is a wonderful read. abilene_nana@yahoo.com
I know and love Julie and look forward to reading all of her works. She brings glory to God with her involvement with so many organizations and groups. Joyce G - Heart"wings" joyce1510(dot)jrg(at)gmail(dot)com
Amazing book! Bought it and read it!
Ember99 (@) Hotmail dot com
I enjoyed meeting Julie & I do have one of her books to read on my Kindle :)
I'd like to read this book too...
dkstevensneAToutlook(DOT) com
Yes, Julie is wonderful! And she knows her way around Dallas, too! LOL
Thanks everyone for your wonderful comments. Deana, I enjoyed meeting you as well. Rebekah and Joyce, I cherish your responses, and Peggy I loved meeting you and your author daughter in person over Tex Mex food last month.Thanks for having me on Diamond Mine!!
Post a Comment