Food, Faith, and Forever Love with Alexis Goring (+ Giveaway)

Today's guest here at the Diamond Mine is someone I've had the privilege to meet in person. We were both attending our first ACFW conference. Even though we'd corresponded a few times online and done some critiquing for each other, meeting new people is always a bit intimidating to me. But Alexis's infectious grin and warm, welcoming personality can put anyone at ease. 

Without further ado, let me introduce you to Alexis Goring

About the author

Alexis A. Goring is a passionate writer with a degree in Print Journalism and an MFA in Creative Writing. She loves the art of storytelling and hopes that her stories will connect readers with the enduring, forever love of Jesus Christ.






Connect:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorAlexisAGoring/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PennedbyAlex
Website: https://alexisagoring.jimdo.com
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/capturingidea/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7260528.Alexis_A_Goring

“God is Love” blog: http://capturingtheidea.blogspot.com

 

Welcome, Alexis! I’m thrilled you’re able to join us this week at the Mine. Let’s start with some lightning round questions. 

Thanks for having me!

I'll start you off easy with a few warm up questions. :) Ballpoint, Uniball, or Fountain Pen? 

Ballpoint

Are you an early bird or a night owl? 

Such a night owl!

Ugh, I was a night owl in college but now need my full eight hours of sleep! What are three things you’ve used as a bookmark? 

Paperclips, postcards and folded printer paper


Oddly, no one ever answers that questions with "bookmark," LOL! What one book would you recommend to someone who is new to Christian fiction?

The Isaac Project by Sarah Monzon








I have read Sarah Monzon's books but have not yet read this one.. 

Name one thing that drives you crazy.

The crunching sound of Ginger Snaps (cookies) in people’s mouths.

That's very specific! Fill in the blank: Someday I want __________

to experience my own happily-ever-after in real life. 

Yes! Us single gals are in agreement on that! 

Are ready to dive deeper? Food plays a part in most of your stories. The characters are at restaurants or cooking dinners (all of which tend to make me hungry, thankyouverymuch). Do you consider yourself a foodie?

I am a total foodie! Sometimes I dream of owning my own restaurant with attractive locations in Maryland, Virginia, D.C., New York, Montana, Texas, and California.

Wow, writing and restaurants! If you were a superhero, what would your name be? 


Wonder Woman. I’ve wanted to BE her since age 4. Most recently, Gal Gadot played a modern version of Wonder Woman and she slayed in that movie! She’s my new inspiration. 

I was behind the times and watched the new Wonder Woman a couple weeks ago. I agree, Gal Gadot made a fabulous modern day Wonder Woman. But Lynda Carter will always be my favorite. 


Do you have any secret talents? 

I found out that journalism was a secret talent when a Journalism Professor (Stacy) believed in me as a college student and opened up a whole new world of career possibilities. Before then, I’d only thought about being an English Major and writing books that hopefully would turn into movies. But when I started studying how to be a journalist, it was like the sun rising and felt like the perfect fit.

And how long have you been writing? Or another variation of this question: When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

I’ve been writing stories since age 9. But not “real” books until about age 25. But since age 9 I always “knew” that I wanted to be a writer and I pursued it whole heartedly by joining the Journalism & Yearbook class in high school, getting my B.A in Print Journalism, and earning my MFA in Creative Writing. 

There is no such thing as a typical day for an author, but tell us a bit about some of your habits (where you write, what inspires you, what do you like to have with you, etc.).

I write in my house but want to start writing in coffee shops. God inspires me because He gave me the gift of writing. Other places I receive inspiration are when people watching in every day life in various locations like the mall, the bookstore, the park, etc. Movies and books also provide great inspiration. Music is my favorite muse!


Coffee shops tend to be too busy and packed for me (plus I don't drink coffee), but I can sit at a table at Panera and write for hours. 

What is the first book or story that made an impact on you?

The Holy Bible was the first book that made an impact on me. But other than that, I’d say The Guardian by Dee Henderson as a fictional book made the most impact on me as a reader and writer. It introduced me to her O’Malley Series!

I absolutely loved the O'Malley series. I think it's one every reader of Christian fiction will agree on! Tell our visitors a bit about your latest book. What do you hope readers come away with after reading A Second Chance?

My book, A Second Chance, was published in Jan. 2017. It’s about two entry-level journalists who need a second chance in love. 

Traci, the heroine, is a jilted bride who’s knee-deep in wedding expenses after her fiancé ran off with her Maid of Honor on their Wedding Day. Needless to say, Traci is bitter and even doubtful that God has good plans for her life after that experience. Marc, the hero, is known as a “Mr. Nice Guy” and that bores his girlfriends so they always break up with him. He feels forever in the friend zone and when readers meet him, he’s pretty much written off finding love and resorted to throwing himself into his work. But his niceness is of invaluable help to his sister Gina who is struggling to raise her two children in the wake of her firefighter husband’s death. Marc helps out by babysitting her kids whenever Gina needs a break or needs to meet a book deadline because she is a bestselling romance author. 

I hope that my readers takeaway a lesson on life after they read A Second Chance and that lesson is that no matter how dark and dismal things may seem, God still loves you and has good plans for your life just like He promises us in Jeremiah 29:11.

Who would play Mark and Traci (and even Gina) in movie?

I’d love it if movie producers cast Zac Efron to play Mark, Amanda Detmer to play Traci, and Alexis Bledel to play Gina in the big screen version of my book, A Second Chance!


Check out the A Second Chance Pinterest board to see some of the inspirations behind the story. https://www.pinterest.com/capturingidea/a-second-chance-book/

And of course, because I am a fan of a good story, I always like to know…what are you working on now/next?

Recently, I finished writing my third book. It’s about a wedding photographer who’s never been in love…until she meets the one man she cannot forget.

Sounds like another great read! Thank you so much for taking time out of your schedule to spend some time with us, Alexis. As always, it’s been a delight to chat with you!

You’re welcome! Thanks for hosting me on your blog and allowing me to talk about my life and my stories. God bless you! 

More about A Second Chance

Newly single food critic and newspaper reporter Traci Hightower is done with dating. After the man of her dreams left her at the altar on their wedding day and ran off with the woman she thought was her best friend, Traci resolves to focus on work and resigns herself to being a bachelorette for life. 

Marc Roberts is a political reporter who is known as Mr. Nice Guy, the one who always finishes last. However, Marc’s compassion and kindness is of invaluable help to his newly widowed sister Gina Braxton who is trying to raise her two kids in the wake of her firefighter husband’s death. 

Traci and Marc may be the perfect match, but they don’t know it yet. With God’s guidance and the help of Gina’s matchmaking skills honed by her career as a bestselling romance novelist, there is hope for a happily ever after for these two broken hearts. 

Available for purchase on Amazon




Alexis is giving one lucky reader an e-Book copy of A Second Chance. To enter, simply leave a comment below telling us how you met your true love (or if you haven't met him yet). Be sure and leave your email address so we know how to contact you if you are chosen as the random winner.  Earn an extra entry by connecting with Alexis on social media and letting us know you did so. 

*Must have five entries in order for contest to be valid.

Second Chances with Ada Brownell

Second Chances: Ada Brownell on the Diamond Mine

Please join me and welcome Ada Brownell to the Diamond Mine! She's giving away a copy of her latest release, The Lady Fugitive. See details following the interview. Well, come on, everyone...gather round. I have coffee and cookies...somewhere. Oh, well, let's get started!

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Welcome to the Mine, Ada. I’m so glad you’re here. I hear you have a new book? Can you tell us a little about it?

The book is The Lady Fugitive. Jenny Parks, my main character materialized from memories of my maternal grandmother, whom some relatives say had to run from an abusive uncle, a judge.

Grandma, as is Jenny, was a talented orphan who graduated from high school at 16 in about 1896 with a teaching certificate.  She was an elocutionist and performed her poems and songs on stage in Pueblo, Colo.

The leading man, William O’Casey, has similarities to Grandpa. Grandpa died before I was born, but I heard how he used to travel around the country showing one of the first Passion of the Christ picture shows. My brother has the reel. Grandpa’s father was murdered, as William’s was.

That’s so amazing. What a cool story! Well, not the murdered part…although it makes for great drama. In the plot, Ada! I’ll take my foot out of my mouth now.

Back to the book, what inspired you to write it?

I’ve wanted to write this novel for decades. I spent a big chunk of my life as a newspaper reporter, and wrote for Christian publications since my teens. After I retired from The Pueblo Chieftian I joined American Christian Fiction Writers. I took the courses that come with membership. I joined critique groups. I was active on the loop where seasoned writers share vital information and tricks of the trade. I wrote a teen novel, The Castle and the Catapult.

Then I joined ACFW’s Novel Track where you write as fast as you can without stopping to change anything or edit.  You keep going until you reach the end. I had about 7,000 words to begin with, and in five weeks I had 80,000 words and The End. It took another year or more to edit it.

The book now has more than 30 reviews, a majority 5-star.

Now that’s quite the accomplishment. Do you have a favorite scene or part of the book? If so, can we get a glimpse?

After peeking in a dirty window and seeing an empty room, Jenny opened the rickety door. Her footsteps echoed on the crude wood floors. Emptiness, dust, and cobwebs filled the place. She took a stick and tore webs away as she walked.

A rumpled blanket wiggled on the bed. “Perhaps we have a kitty here.” She lifted the corner. A soft rattling noise erupted and a snake shot toward her. It grazed her sleeve as she jumped back, the blanket still in her hand. The reptile flopped on the dirty floor where it coiled. She threw the blanket on it.

Jumping on top of the bed, screams came from Jenny’s mouth like blasts of dynamite from a mine. Over and over she screamed. Then the snake’s head emerged at the edge of the blanket.

"Oh, God, help me!” The prayer pulsed through her as her thumping heart made her head ache.

The reptile slithered out from under the cloth. The head hovered first this way and that, its tail jiggling the rattles. She gasped for breath and shrieked again. She’d seen snakes climb poles. He might be up the bedpost any minute.

Loud footsteps shook the old house. Jenny’s scream died in her mouth. An explosion and flash of fire caused Jenny to almost jump out of her boots. Pain pierced her ears. For a moment, everything went black. She leaned against the wall, and then her vision returned.

The rattlesnake was dead—shot through the head.

The man hovered beside her. Curly reddish-brown hair stuck out beneath his cowboy hat.

Still dizzy and shaking so much she could barely stand, she started to fall.

He grabbed her, pulled her off the bed into his arms, and stepped away from the rattler. “Are you all right, ma’am? I heard you screaming clear up on the road.”

Ohhh…wow. Can you tell me more? No, wait…let’s get back to the interview first. What made you want to write books?

The Lord set my soul on fire. I was the youth leader and started writing youth ideas for a leaders’ magazine at age 15, and soon sold articles to Christian publications. I went into the news business about five years later.  My first book, Confessions of a Pentecostal, was published in 1978 by the Assemblies of God. My first journalist work was in the 1960s, I took out nearly 20 years to stay home with children and then earned my journalism degree and was hired again. All the while I freelanced for Christian publications.

That’s amazing. I don’t know if I could write for a newspaper. It has to be hard. I’m glad you’re in the novel writing business now, though. Do you have a pearl of wisdom for those just starting out? What about those struggling along the way?

My advice to a Christian writer is to draw close to God, study the Word, and pray for wisdom and guidance. Then learn writing techniques and THINK. Look at everything from a different angle. Write down your ideas, study people, make a plan and write.

If one word could describe you, what would it be? Why?

Worker. I take seriously the scripture, “Whatever you hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no work or device, or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10)

Jesus said, “As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.” (John 9:4) Scripture repeatedly warns sluggards.

Writers or any Christian should work to support himself and family, but also do the work that doesn’t pay in money, such as at home. Go the second mile for others, and be a witness through words and actions.

Whoa, that hit home for me. It seems as if there’s not enough time in a day. Not so much laziness as poor time management. I definitely need to work on that. My husband would appreciate it, I’m sure. Thanks for the reminder, Ada. We need it.

Back to writing and reading…if you could pick three authors from the crowd, who would they be and why?

There are so many authors that I’ve reviewed books for that are superb writers that I love, but if I must share here are a few.

Josh McDowell

Non-fiction: Josh McDowell author of Evidence that Demands a Verdict; Ralph Riggs, theologian; Dr. Donald F. Johns, author of the Sunday school youth teachers quarterly, “The Bible and Science,” that I taught in 1963. He was way ahead of his time, and I’ve used what I learned from him many times. I love the truths and solid doctrine presented by all these authors.

Frank Peretti

Fiction: Frank Peretti and the The Nightmare Academy (an unusual YA book on truth); Catherine Palmer and her Prairie Rose Trilogy, Melanie Dickerson, author of The Merchant’s Daughter; and there are many other fiction authors I love. My favorite genre is inspirational historical romance in a story with substance.

Rebecca McClanahan

On Writing: Word Painting by Rebecca McClanahan. I should also mention Terri Main, an ACFW member, who has wonderful writing courses for $5.

For many, writing’s a lonely trek…for a short time. Soon, you realize the path’s far easier with a little bit of help. Who do you give the most credit in your writing journey and why?

Dick Champion who edited youth magazines and Robert C. Cunningham who edited The Pentecostal Evangel for years. They showed me respect, even when I was in my teens, and if I had an article or story that almost fit, they’d write and tell me to shorten it, add another illustration, or that sort of thing. I did the work the same day and sent it back and they bought it. Editors don’t have time for that now.

They sound like a couple of great men. In some ways, your writing life's been a story of second chances and hard work. Although times have changed, writing's stayed the same. Maybe not styles, or even form, but the words get on the page the same way. From a writer.

I can't help it. I need to know more about your story. Do you have a funny part of The Lady Fugitive to share with the readers before you leave? (Stop it, everyone. I can hear the giggling. I can always unplug the coffee pot. Better yet, no more chocolate chip cookies for you.)

Maude stood on the edge of the pasture, bellowing so loud her belly convulsed with the exertion. Jenny grabbed a bucket. After three years singing, reciting poetry, and performing on stage along with her studies, she hadn’t done much milking. But surely she didn’t forget how.

She rinsed the milk bucket by the windmill. She was ready.

Jenny herded Maude into the homemade stanchion that kept the cow’s head immobile, but allowed her to eat. After forking more hay into the feeding trough, Jenny found a little stool and placed it beside the black-and-white spotted cow.

To relax the animal, she rubbed the bristly hair on her neck and along the backbone. Then she positioned the stool. In response, the cow lifted her tail and splat! A big cow pie landed behind Maude, splattering up her legs.

Jenny nearly gagged. Her dizziness and nausea didn’t need that smell! She held her nose and considered holding her breath

Adjusting the three-legged stool a little, she sat and promptly toppled backward. How could a man sit on a seat so dinky? Certainly, her backside wasn’t that big.

She replaced the stool and milk bucket and tried again. With the seat finally firm and settled, she reached for two of the four teats. Maude raised her hind foot and kicked. There went the milk bucket. The thing, banging into posts along the way, rolled and rattled halfway across the barn floor.

Hold your temper, Maude. Just for that, you can be uncomfortable a little longer. I’m not going to drink dirty milk. Jenny stomped to the windmill to rewash the bucket.

How adorable! I’ve never milked a cow before, but I can see it now. I can’t stop laughing. Thanks for another glance into your book. That was great. Now that you’ve blessed us, can you tell how the Lord blessed you with this book?

I have a good publisher (Elk Lake, a division of Book Club Network). I’ve had super reviews, amazing feedback from readers, and satisfaction that I finally wrote it. The greatest contentment is that it’s squeaky clean and spiritually uplifting.

Thank you for being a part of the Diamond Mine, Ada. You are a true blessing. Oh, one last question! Do you have anything in the works?

I have over 10,000 words on a sequel that has interesting characters, too, and I’m working on a non-fiction book, Common Sense, Propaganda (Spin) and Faith, almost ready to be published.

Well then, I can’t wait for what comes next! Come and get the rest of the cookies!

GIVEAWAY ON THE DIAMOND MINE!

LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN

DRAWING ON 3/11/2015

(one winner by random draw selected from commenters)

(Rough Diamond Writers are ineligible to participate in giveaway)

About the Book:

How does a respected elocutionist become a face on a wanted poster?

Jenny Louise Parks escapes from the coal bin, and her abusive uncle offers a handsome reward for her return. Because he is a judge, he will find her or he won’t inherit her parents’ ranch.

Determination to remain free grips Jenny, especially after she meets William and there’s a hint of romance. But while peddling household goods and showing a Passion of the Christ moving picture, he discovers his father’s brutal murder.

Will Jenny avoid the bounty hunters? Can she forgive the person who turns her in? Will she find peace, joy and love?

Get it on Ada Brownell’s author page https://www.amazon.com/author/adabrownell or at buff.ly/L8up6E

About the Author:

Ada Brownell

Ada Brownell, a devoted Bible student, has written for Christian publications since age 15 and spent much of her life as a reporter for The Pueblo Chieftain in Colo. She also is a veteran youth Christian education teacher. After moving to Missouri in her retirement, she continues to write books, free lance for Sunday school papers, Christian magazines, write op-ed pieces for newspapers, and blogs with stick-to-your-soul encouragement. She is a member of Ozarks Chapter of American Christian Writers and American Christian Fiction Writers. She and her husband have five children, one in heaven, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Blog: http://inkfromanearthenvessel.blogspot.com Stick-to-Your-Soul Encouragement

Ada Brownell Amazon Author page http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B001KJ2C06