Today, I am very excited for you guys to meet my friend, Elaine Stock! I met her at the 2016 American Christian Fiction Writer's Conference. She is such a kind woman who is dedicated to helping other authors.
Elaine Stock is the author of Always With You, which released in January 2016 and has won the 2017 Christian Small Publishers Association Book of the Year Award in fiction. Her novels fuse romance, family drama and faith in a clean fiction style. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Romance Writers of America, and Women’s Fiction Writers Association, and contributes to the international “Happy Sis Magazine” and “InD’tale Magazine.” In addition to Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads, she hangs out on her active six-year-old blog, Everyone’s Story, dedicated to uplifting and encouraging all readers through the power of story and hope.
Born in Brooklyn, NY, Elaine has now been living in upstate, rural New York with her husband for more years than her stint as a NYC gal. She enjoys long walks down country roads, visiting New England towns, and of course, a good book.
Connect with Elaine ~ Website, Everyone's Story Blog, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads,
and Amazon Author Page.
Interview ~
First things first, would you order coffee, tea, or hot chocolate in our virtual coffee shop? Something else altogether? This is possibly the most important question…
I’ve been an unapologetic coffee lover since the age of eight, so if it’s morning, I
Yes, yes! All of the
above! On to our second most important question: if you could order anything in
the world to eat, what would it be?
Probably an assortment
of things. Ha—you didn’t want to hear that, right? Actually, I love “healthy”
foods, so I’ll choose a scrumptious salad, the freshest of fish and stir-fried
veggies like carrots and Brussels sprouts served over a bed of barley and
quinoa. As a snack leading up to this feast I’d have dried non- sulfured figs.
But, I’m not totally weird. For dessert I’d love either a heavenly huge slice
of chocolate cake with mocha cream filling or the gooiest chocolate chunk
chocolate chip cookies. You know, let’s just make it both desserts.
Haha! I love salad,
and you speak my language when it comes to dessert! Where is your favorite
place to write? And why is that your favorite place?
I don’t have an office.
Yet. So, right now it’s “my” corner on the living room sofa, about four feet
away from the woodstove (cozy nice in the winter!!) and with a view out of
three 6’x3’ windows. We have a new/antique-old glass topped table on our back
deck, which is lovely to work at in the warmer months when the sun is angled
right and not beating down. Have laptop will travel.
Those sound like
nice, cozy spots, and that antique table sounds lovely! Do you have an odd
habit that is only explained by your bookish, writer tendencies? Safe space.
;-)
Not really. However, I
do begin my writing-days with the classical music radio station playing as I
warm up my brain cells and fingers by sorting through any urgent emails and
promotion. I love Bach and Beethoven. Once I open my writing files I must have
quiet so I can slip into my character’s world and totally tune out my world, my
thoughts, my angst. It’s all about the character and what she or he feels,
experiences, and fears.
Classical music can
be so soothing! What inspired you to write Always
With You?
I attended a local RWA workshop many moons ago in Saratoga, NY, the home of the Saratoga Race Course for all horse racing fans (which I’m not part of). In keeping with the summer racing theme, the workshop leader that day distributed copies of the local newspaper racing-thingies (see, I warned you I’m not into horse racing—LOL) that listed the horses’ names. We were instructed to choose a name and develop a story based from the name. Thoroughbreds often have long, elaborate names. The one I chose, Don’t-Tell-Isabelle, eventually became my working title before my editor suggested Always With You. I had to know what Isabelle didn’t know and why, who kept things from her, and if she ever found out. The story incubated for many years.
The horrid sad day of
9-11 happened (interestingly enough, I was heading up to Saratoga that morning
to be the presenter of a workshop, but ended up turning around to go home).
This tragic day changed me as a writer, as a person, as it did for many, if not
all of us. That’s when Always With You
became alive enough for me to write about, focusing on why people hate, what
hatred can do to families and individuals, and what or Who can intervene to set
things straight.
That is an intense
story! I love how you built a story around the horse, Don’t-Tell-Isabelle –
it’s so unique! What message do you hope to convey to your readers with your
stories?
That with faith in God,
we can have hope in a tomorrow and bless each other with love and respect. This
is essentially my author theme.
Love! What a wonderful theme! Can you tell us a little about your next project?
I have 3 I’d like to
share about. First is my Christmas romance novella, And You Came Along, which
will release independently December 2nd. However, it’s releasing in
its original format as part of a novella collection, Winter’s Kiss, with a
handful of other awesome Christian-fiction authors. It’s up for pre-sale for
only $.99 on Amazon with a release date of November 7th.
The story centers on the theme of whether true love is ever mistaken.
A Mother's Christmas Wish
All single mom Jacey
Tucker wants for Christmas is for her young son to have a home and a smile.
What she never expected was an eviction notice from her apartment, or the loss
of her job. Now she can’t leave Kindred Lake, Pennsylvania fast enough.
A
Wounded Detective’s Second Chance
Zander Paxton,
wounded on duty while trying to save the life of his partner, needs a new
residence for the second half of his recovery. His hometown of Kindred Lake
offers promises, but it may be too late to make up for his past.
She heads south. He
heads north. In the middle of a blizzard, five days before Christmas, they
collide and wreck their vehicles, and nearly each other, on an ice-covered
road. The kindness of two strangers provides a cabin for shelter, a place where
pain is soothed and hope is renewed . . . until their pasts catch up to their
present and threatens a forever separation. Is true love ever mistaken?
I’m
also excited to share that I have another single-title releasing in January. Her
Good Girl is a coming of age story of a whole family. I’ll be revealing
more about this family-drama, psychological suspense in the next few months.
Excuse me a moment.
*frantically adds books to Amazon Cart* And I’m back. What is your favorite
Bible verse or story that inspires you on a soul level?
Both the story of Noah
and Joseph have inspired me since I was a child. Noah grabbed my heart since I
was very young because what’s not more wonderful than the Father of the whole
universe loving His creation so much that He wanted to give us a new beginning
to follow Him and be with Him . . . talk about an Author’s Theme! And then,
because I come from a very fragmented family, the story of Joseph and the huge
troubles he faced within and by the hands of his own family and how he not only
survived but also prospered because he followed God, definitely speaks to my
heart, still to this day.
The story of Joseph
is a favorite of mine, too! What are you currently reading? Inquiring minds –
mine – want to know. :-)
I just finished an
excellent compelling fast-read creepy suspense novel, The Marsh King’s Daughter, by Karen Dionne. Now I’m reading A Fragile Hope by Cynthia Ruchti who I
had the pleasure of her autographing the book at the Christian Fiction Readers
Retreat 2017 back in August.
Thank you so much for answering all of my prying questions, Elaine! I had a lot of fun talking with you!
Giveaway ~
Elaine has generously offered to giveaway 1 Kindle copy of Always With You!
In the heart of the Adirondacks, Isabelle lives in the shadow of a dark family secret whose silent burden strips her family of emotional warmth and faith in God. Tyler belongs to the religious sect called The Faithful. When families and values collide, they marry and believe they're on the right track for happiness. But, when the truth comes out, Isabelle faces two choices: Staying could endanger her child. Leaving could cost her life.
Available on Amazon!
Available on Amazon!
Rules, Info, and Such ~
The author is giving away 1 Kindle copy of Always With You. It closes on November 1st, 2017, at 12:00 A.M. for all the night owls out there. If the winner does not respond to our e-mails within one week (by November 8th), a new winner will be drawn.
May the odds be ever in your favor.
Enter using the handy Rafflecopter here ~
Thanks for stopping by my writerly, bookish friends! <3 See you next time!
Hugs,
V. Joy Palmer
