Interview and Giveaway with author Miriam Thor

 

Today we welcome Miriam Thor to The Diamond Mine! She is offering an e-copy of her book, Listening to the Rain. 

To be entered in the drawing for the free copy, just leave a comment with your email and you will be entered!  Now, here's a little preview of her book. 

Even the worst storms can be beautiful if you learn how to listen.

During her freshman year of high school, Ally Griffin is determined to find her thing, a talent that will let her gain praise and recognition. Her cousins, Billy and James, have found theirs in sports and music, but Ally has yet to discover something that will make people cheer just for her.

At her best friend's suggestion, Ally tries ballet. When that doesn't turn out the way she hopes, she signs up to sing in the school talent show. Thanks to support from James, Ally's performance goes well, and she thinks she has found her thing at last.

But when James gets into an accident, Ally's whole world is turned upside down. As she tries to be there for her cousin, Ally wrestles with why God allows bad things to happen and whether she should keep doing her thing at all.

Sounds like a great read! Now let's get to the interview!

Hi Miriam! Can you tell us a little about your book?

Listening to the Rain is a contemporary young adult Christian fiction novel about faith and family with a splash of romance. It focuses on high school freshman, Ally Griffin, and her relationship with her two cousins, Billy and James.

At the beginning of the story, Ally is committed to finding her thing, something she’s good at that will help her stand out. She’s been searching for it for years, and when she finally finds it, she’s ecstatic. Then, James gets in an accident that has life-changing implications for her entire family. Ally has to figure out how to navigate her family’s new normal and how her newfound thing fits into that, if it does at all.

Sounds very engaging. How did you get your idea for this story?

I got the idea to write about three cousins living with their -grandfather from watching the TV show, The Dukes of Hazzard, while I was in high school. From there, I developed the three cousins’ characters in my head and got to know them, so to speak. As for the plot, I wanted the main problem the characters face to be something near and dear to my heart. I don’t want to give too much away, but the life-changing event the Griffin family faces relates closely to something I am passionate about.

Now you've got me mighty curious!

What made you decide to be a writer?

When I was in second grade, my teacher, Mrs. Chambliss, noticed how much I enjoyed my writing assignments, and she encouraged me to write as much as I wanted. That was when I really fell in love with writing. At that time (and still today), I loved to read. As I read book after book, I started dreaming about writing a book of my own that others would read and enjoy.

And what was your first story?

I first attempted to write a novel in middle school, although I only completed a few hand-written chapters. My first published short story was called “Simon Says,” a Biblical fiction story focusing on the apostle Peter’s wife. Listening to the Rain is the first complete book I ever wrote, although I had two novellas published before it was accepted for publication, and it’s gone through major changes since I finished the first draft almost a decade ago.

It must feel good to see it in print! 

Do you write from an outline, or just from inspiration, or both?

These days, I always write from an outline. I’m working on two different novels right now, and I have fairly detailed outlines for both of them. My process for writing Listening to the Rain was a little different. I wrote the first couple of chapters while I was in college and had the plot more or less planned in my head. I suppose you could call that an outline, but I never wrote it down.

I think that fits as an outline!

Do you have any underlying themes that you want your readers to come away with?

Listening to the Rain has two main themes. The first is that we need to trust God, even when life is hard and we don’t understand what He is doing. The second is that our God-given gifts and talents are meant to be used for His glory, not our own.

Great Themes!!

Do your characters share any traits with you or someone you know?

Ally definitely shares my independent nature, although she is more outspoken about it than I am, most of the time. Billy, Ally’s oldest cousin, shares my brother’s sense of humor. I didn’t set out to model his sense of humor after my brother’s, but when I reread some of the scenes where Billy is joking, I can picture my brother saying similar things when we were younger.

Do your characters ever surprise you?

Yes, they do, and it’s one of my favorite parts about writing. I remember writing a scene in Listening to the Rain that I thought would be entirely focused on Ally and Billy. The two of them were in the barn by themselves. Billy was so upset about James’s accident that he was punching a wall, and Ally was trying to get him to stop. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Grandpa showed up with first-aid supplies.

As I was writing the scene, I was surprised when I realized I was about to type that Grandpa was in the doorway behind them. I hadn’t planned for him to be there, but it just fit so well with his character that I ran with it. Of course, Grandpa knew Billy well enough to know how he’d react to the situation. It felt like I should have known he would do that all along.

That cracks me up! I love it when characters do that. Do you have a favorite character in your books?

I have a lot of trouble choosing a favorite character as an author because I get to know them all so well. I think I like different characters more at different times, depending on which scene I’m working on. While I was writing Listening to the Rain, Ally, Billy, and James were each my favorite character at one point or another. Now, I guess I’d say all three of them are my favorites.

It's definitely not easy to pick a favorite. We get so attached to our characters! 

So, what are you working on now?

I am working on a contemporary Christian Christmas novella. I’ve written eleven chapters so far, and I have either three or four more to go. I started working on it in October, and I’ve really enjoyed writing it. I’m hoping it will be ready to submit to a publisher in a few months.

I’m also in the middle of writing a young adult Christian fantasy series. I’ve completed the first book and have written a few chapters of the second one. I put that on hold to focus on the Christmas novella, but I plan to go back to it soon.

Sounds like you're a busy lady! Thanks so much for the interview, Miriam! 

Well, readers, I'm including an excerpt from Listening to the Rain here for your enjoyment: 

Unfortunately, it started raining a few minutes before the bus reached our stop. By unspoken consent, the two of us walked home as quickly as we could so that we could get warm and dry as soon as possible.

I wanted to talk to James as soon as I’d changed into dry clothes, but I knew better than to try. 

Grandpa insisted that we start on our homework as soon as we got home, and while I was willing to bend that rule from time to time, James definitely was not. Resigned to wait, I solved a page of equations and read the short story Mrs. Chamberlain had assigned.

When I was finished, I went in search of my cousin to see if he had completed his homework, too. I found him sitting in a rocking chair on the porch with his eyes closed.

“What are you doing?” I asked, puzzled.

He opened his eyes and looked at me. “Listening to the rain. God plays beautiful music, don’t you think?”

I wasn’t sure how to respond. James said stuff like that sometimes. Random, weird stuff. And I was never sure what to make of it.

“It’s not music, James,” I said. “It’s just water hitting the roof.”

He shrugged, unperturbed, and studied my face. “What’s wrong, Ally?”

“What makes you think something’s wrong?” I demanded.

“You’ve got that ‘I really want to ask you something, but I don’t know how you’ll take it’ look on your face.”

I smiled. He always could read me like an open book.

“Well…” I said slowly. “You heard about the talent show at school today, right?”

He nodded. “Yeah, Mr. Jenkins announced it in homeroom.”

I bit my lip and stared at my lap. I wanted to sing in the talent show so badly. What if James did, too?

“What about it?” James prompted when I didn’t continue.

“Do you want to enter?” I asked and held my breath.

“No,” he said. “Performing in front of all the kids at school and a panel of judges doesn’t sound like much fun to me.”

I heaved a sigh of relief and grinned at him.

“Good.”

“Does that smile mean you plan on entering?” he asked.

“Yep,” I said. “I didn’t want to compete against you, though.”

He smiled. “So, what will you sing?”

I didn’t even ask how he knew I planned to sing. We both knew my talents. Unless I wanted to bring our hens to roost on the stage and gather their eggs, singing was my only real option.

“I don’t know yet,” I said, “but I’ll figure it out.” I started to turn around. “You can go back to your…rain listening now.”

He rolled his eyes as I headed back inside.

There you go, readers! And now here's a short bio and some social and purchase links from Miriam. And don't forget to leave a comment and be entered into the drawing for the free copy of her book!

Bio:

Miriam Thor grew up in Louisiana. After high school, she attended Gardner-Webb University, where she earned a degree in American Sign Language and elementary education. Currently, she lives in Alabama with her husband and six cats. She is employed as a sign language interpreter at an elementary school.

Miriam discovered her love of writing in second grade and has been doing it ever since. Her first novel, Listening to the Rain, was published in September 2022. She has also had two novellas published: Her First Noel, a contemporary Christian romance, and Wish Granted, a young adult fantasy story.

To learn more about Miriam, visit her website: https://miriamthor17.wixsite.com/author.

Purchase Links:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Listening-Rain-Miriam-Thor-ebook/dp/B09VS27PHW

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/listening-to-the-rain-miriam-thor/1141235963

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=cupkEAAAQBAJ&gl=us

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/listening-to-the-rain-1

Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/us/book/listening-to-the-rain/id1615814817

Social Media Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063738865282

X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/Miriam_Thor17

Instagram: @miriamthor17

TikTok: @miriamthor17_author

Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Miriam-Thor/author/B0BB47Z88N

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18283324.Miriam_Thor

Blog: https://threecs.org/