Hi, guys! V. Joy Palmer here! Since we are all friends here, you guys can call me Joy. ;-) And since we are all friends, one of my favorite things to do is talk with my friends, family, the teens I mentor, and everyone else at coffee shops/bookstores. Books and yummy drinks are the perfect combination, after all. So, consider this our virtual coffee shop. I'll wait a second for you to get your warm drink and a fuzzy blanket before we chat with today's guest. :-)
Today we are prying into the private life chatting with Hannah Currie, author of the beautiful YA princess story, Heart of a Royal! Hannah is a fellow WhiteFire Publishing author!
Aussie author, Hannah Currie, loves God, family, people (in small numbers, let’s not go crazy here!) and writing. A book nerd from birth, she knows firsthand the difference a good book can make in a person’s life. Even, and especially, fiction. Her dream as a writer is to make people laugh, cry and maybe even swoon a little but mostly to remind them that no matter how dark life may get at times, because of God, there is always hope. She and her husband live with their three adorable kids in sunny Queensland, where it really is beautiful one day and perfect the next. Except, maybe, during heatwaves. They’re not so fun.
Interview ~
First things first, would you order coffee, tea, or hot chocolate in our virtual coffee house? Something else altogether? This is possibly the most important question... No pressure or anything, LOL! ;-)
Hot chocolate or chai latte. Can't stand coffee. Tea is still being decided.
I might have initially gasped, but I approve of your choices. ;-) I love hot chocolate and chai lattes! On to our second most important question: if you could order
anything in the world to eat, what would it be?
Spit-roasted meats with roast vegetables and hot-buttered bread rolls.
Yummy!! Where is your favorite place to write, and why is that your favorite place?
On my couch at home in the lounge, because I can keep an eye on the rest of the
house (ie kids…) but still get work done. It’s also right beside my bookshelves
which inspire me not to give up. When I get discouraged or the words just aren’t
flowing, I can look up at those books I love and be encouraged that those
authors didn’t give up and neither will I.
I love that your bookshelves inspire you! Other books tend to distract me from writing, LOL! Do you have an odd
habit that is only explained by your bookish, writer tendencies?
Hmmm… I occasionally forget book characters/situations aren’t real and bring
them up in real conversations only to realize later that it was from a book not
something that actually happened. Haha. Oops. I also forget how to talk
sometimes when I’ve been writing for too long. Kind of like I used up all my
words on the story and now my brain has shut down :p
Hahaha! I've been there! What inspired
you to write Heart of a Royal?
It was a mix of a couple of things. I’d just finished reading another royal series which I’d been sharing with my teenaged sister and we were both going into withdrawals from it. I remembered this dream I’d had (a full decade before) about this girl who’d grown up in a palace alongside the prince and princess but wasn’t a royal herself, and thought it would be fun to turn into a full novel. Asked my sister what she thought, she sent back a rather emphatic ‘yes’ so I got started. I sent her a chapter a week for the next three months. It was so much fun to write and I really loved sharing it with her.
LOVE!! It's so cool that you got to share the experience with your sister! What led you to write
in this genre?
I write Young Adult Contemporary Christian Romance novels (aka YA princess books, which is way easier to say!).
As to why…short answer, because it’s what I love to read. Longer answer, because the YA age is such an incredible time of personal growth for people – they’re coming out from under their parents’ umbrellas and discovering who they really are and their own purpose in life. Add in the rules and expectations of royalty, a few tiaras, a bit (lot) of romance and I can’t think of anything I’d rather write more. Christian fiction – especially Robin Jones Gunn’s Christy Miller (and co) series – had a huge impact on my faith as a teen and if God could use my books to encourage and grow someone like Robin did me, I’d be absolutely stoked!
Yes! That's the dream! Robin Jones Gunn inspired so many of us! <3 What message do you
hope to convey to your readers?
I’d love for them to realize both that they have a purpose and that there is always hope. I doubt too many people are growing up in a palace like Kenna (although, hey, if you’re a princess, let me know! I’d love to meet you!) but so many of us – myself included – are dealing everyday with overwhelming expectations, the pain of watching people we know live away from God and life circumstances spiraling way beyond our control. And yet, through it all, God is still good. He hasn’t walked away. So there’s still hope. Still a reason and a purpose.
Yes, yes, and yes!!! <3 Can you tell us a
little about your next project?
Not announcing anything
officially yet but…well … Heart of a Royal is book one of my Daughters of
Peverell series… so I’ll let you make some assumptions about what might be next
J Sign up for my newsletter at www.hannahcurrie.com to find out more about that!
Readers, run! Go! You don't want to miss this! *ahem* ;-) Do you have a
favorite Bible verse or story that inspires you on a soul level?
Oh sooooo many!!! But
one I really love is Psalm 46 (especially The Message version).
“God is a safe place to hide, ready to help when we need hi. We
stand fearless at the cliff-edge of
doom, courageous in seastorm and earthquake….. Jacob-wrestling God fights for
us, God-of-Angel-Armies protects us.”
I love this! The idea
that even in the craziest, most terrifying and overwhelming circumstances, we
can be fearless because God is standing by our side, fighting for us. No matter
what happens, we’ve already won.
Yes! It's so incredibly uplifting and empowering! What are you
currently reading? Inquiring minds -- mine -- want to know! LOL! ;-)
I’ve just finished Liz
Johnson’s A Glitter of Gold and Melissa Tagg’s Now and Then and Always, both of
which were incredible. About to start either Wooing Cadie McCaffrey (Bethany
Turner) or A Girl’s Guide to the Outback (Jessica Kate). Haven’t quite decided
yet. Might end up reading Heart of a Royal again J I really love that
story!
I loved Wooing Cadie McCaffrey, and I can't wait to get my hands on A Girl's Guide to the Outback! I'm might be green with envy right now, LOL! ;-)
Thank you so much for hanging with us and answering all my prying questions, Hannah!
Be sure to check out Hannah's debut, Heart of a Royal! You can read the first two chapters HERE!
Brought to the palace as a newborn, the royal life bestowed upon Mackenna Sparrow was never meant to last forever. With Princess Alina engaged to be married, Mackenna’s presence as companion is no longer required and, like it or not, she must return to the birthright which should have been hers – that of a commoner.
But not everyone at the palace wants her gone. When the truths she’s based her life on start crumbling as fast as her future, will she find the courage to trust, both herself and the prince she’s fallen in love with?
Read the first two chapters HERE!
Read the first two chapters HERE!
Thanks for stopping by, my writerly, bookish friends! <3 See you next time!
Hugs,
V. Joy Palmer
V. Joy Palmer is the author of Love, Lace, and Minor Alterations and a member of American Christian Fiction Writers. She is also an avid blogger and co-founder of Snack Time Devotions. In her spare time, Joy is an unprofessional chocolate connoisseur/binger, and she loves acting crazy and drinking coffee with the teens she mentors. When Joy isn’t urging the elves that live in her computer to write, she’s hanging out with her husband, their adorable baby girl, and their socially awkward pets.
Connect with Joy on her website, personal blog, devotional blog, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
No comments:
Post a Comment