It's a doggone blessed time of the year! And Merry CHRISTmas to all! I have one last holiday book for you and it's not too late to grab a copy! I've leashed in author Emily Conrad and her new book Risking His Heart for your last minute stocking stuffer, plus her real-life story of the cutest surprise Christmas present ever.
May each of you be blessed by the Lord this Christmas Season as we take time to celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.
PT: Hello, Emily, and welcome during this special season. Could you tell us all how did you come to be a writer and write in
contemporary Christian fiction?
EC: I’ve been writing since childhood, but after a middle
school short story unit, fiction became a constant hobby for me and something I
dreamed of doing as an adult. Writing contemporary Christian fiction came
naturally to me, as it’s obviously the time period I live in and my faith is
integral to how I look at the world. Blend those elements with emotional depth
and romance, and you’ve got the building blocks of a story that captures my
interest.
PT: Do you write in any other genre (or secretly want to) or do any other type of writing?
EC: I’m very happy in the contemporary Christian romance
genre and don’t have any plans to switch. I’ve found my happy place, at least
for the foreseeable future.
PT: So share with us what genre you mostly read.
EC: I’ve narrowed down to reading mostly contemporary
Christian romance, but lately I’ve purposely dabbled in some historical romance
and some no-spice general market romances too. I occasionally read other genres
as well. For example, one of my critique partners writes contemporary fiction,
and I enjoy her stories as well. Reading inside my genre helps me understand
what readers like mine are looking for, but reading outside of it helps me look
at the bigger picture of what makes a compelling story. Either way, I also just
enjoy a good story as a reader myself!
PT: Regionally, are you East Coast, Midwest, West, or West
Coast?
EC: I live in the Midwest. The multi-author series Christmas
in Redemption Ridge was set in Colorado, so I had to learn more about an area
of the country I had only visited before for that, but I have happily set the
rest of my novels in the Midwest, where I’m most familiar with the setting and
way of life.
PT: Favorite Christmas memory?
EC: When I was 18, I wanted a dog. I was attending college,
but I lived at home, and my parents didn’t want a dog, so I knew I couldn’t get
one. For Christmas, my parents gave me an ornament that was a ceramic dog bowl.
They also gave me a dog treat jar, and at that point, I remember thinking it
was a little cruel to remind me of what I wanted but didn’t have. Little did I
know they’d rescued a nine-month-old black Lab. I wish I remembered the exact
moment of realization, but I think the picture where I’m reading in the collage
is when I read that they’d gotten me a dog. The guy in the photo was my then
boyfriend (now husband), who was there for the big reveal. He’s the one who
drove me to go pick her up. She was such a sweet, good dog. These were the days
before camera phones, so I don’t have a ton of good pictures. The one in the
lower right is her a few years later, dressed for a winter walk.
PT: Awww! That was a heart-melting story! Anything with paws makes the holiday even more special. So, do you have a favorite Christmas food?
EC: My family makes a certain cutout sugar cookie recipe
that, to me, says it’s Christmastime like nothing else. They’re time-consuming
to make, but they’re always a hit!
PT: Pro-snow or hate snow?
EC: I am pro-snow any time of year when it’s going to be
cold and dark. For example, in Wisconsin right now, the sun has been setting
shortly after 4pm. The snow we have on the ground brightens up the night
considerably! It’s also something I really like to have for Christmas. Years
when my part of the state doesn’t have snow as Christmas is approaching find me
checking online white Christmas predictor maps. Thankfully, more often than
not, we have at least a dusting of snow.
PT: Oh, me too. I am so pro-snow, but I always feel sorry for those who have to travel in it. Now, tell us about your new Christmas book, Risking His Heart.
EC: Risking His Heart is a best-friends-to-love romance set in a small Colorado town. It includes a little bit of mystery, some laughs (I hope!), and a whole lot of heart.
Falling for her best friend is not on her (forced,
way-too-early, medical) retirement bucket list.
Career-driven cop Neenah Casper is forced by an injury to turn in her badge at
age thirty-two. The same day she’s named guardian of an orphaned
fifteen-year-old girl. With all her plans in pieces, it’s no wonder she starts
feeling more than friendship for her supportive best friend Cody. But life’s
taught her nothing lasts forever, and surely these feelings will pass once she
finds a new life’s purpose.
Though Neenah friend-zoned him years ago, Officer Cody Adams has never stopped
watching her back and hoping for more. Helping with her new ward could be just
the opportunity to show her how much more he could be. Meanwhile, he’s also
fighting to earn a promotion and impress his unpleasable police chief father by
catching a home burglar and a Christmastime prankster. Neenah’s newly minted
neighborhood watch might help him save Christmas and earn the job, if only the
group didn’t bring complications of its own.
As Neenah and Cody wrangle octogenarian vigilantes, Christmas bandits, and
complicated families, the chemistry between them only grows. But if they act on
it, they won’t be able to go back. With their friendship and careers on the
line, is love worth the risk?
PT: Is this part of a series? How did the setting get
started?
EC: Risking His Heart
is the final book in the Christmas in Redemption Ridge series. Some readers
love a long series, in which case they’ll be happy to hear there are 18 books!
But readers who prefer shorter series or standalones will be happy to learn
each book can be read as a standalone. The series has been written by 6
different authors, who each contributed 3 books. It’s loosely connected to an earlier
series organized by Tara Grace Ericson called The Heroes of Freedom Ridge. When
they ended that series and started a new one, that group of authors had a slot
open up, and they invited me to join the fun. The series has been such a
blessing to me.
PT: Is there more books for this series?
EC: The Christmas in Redemption Ridge series is now
complete. I wrote three books for the series, however, so if readers are
looking for my other contributions, they are Bidding on a Second Chance, and Matchmaking the Cowboy.
PT: What’s next on your writing agenda?
EC: I’m hoping to release three Christian romances in 2026.
Two of them are shorter romances I’ve already drafted that I need to polish up
for their edits. Then, I’m working on A
Faithful Protector, which is book two in my main ongoing series, The Many
Oaks Romances. Stories in this series are longer and delve into grittier
topics, (alcoholism and recovery is one example from A Faithful Protector), but always through the lens of faith and
redemption. I find one way I experience God most powerfully is through fiction
that deep dives into realistic questions and conflict, and I’m so excited to
see what He does with this one.
PT: It's been great having you, Emily, at the Diamond Mine of Christian to tell us more about Risking His Heart. Readers, if you would like to be part of the book giveaway for Emily's book, leave a comment or use our contact form.
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