Several years ago, I attended the Blue Ridge Christian Writer’s Conference in North Carolina. One of the many inspiring teachers there was Deborah Raney. She is one of the reasons I blog and write today!
I had the opportunity to ask Deborah a few questions. It was such a joy. I hope you will purchase her newest release, Silver Bells… a perfect read for December.
What made you want to be a writer and when did this happen?
“From the time I was six and asthma kept me inside for weeks at a time, I learned to love books (thanks to my mom!) but when I was 11 or 12, I read all the Little House on the Prairie books, and for the first time, I realized that books had authors and that it was a job to which I could aspire. From that day on, I knew that someday I wanted to write a book that would give my readers as much joy as Laura Ingalls Wilder had given me through her stories.”
How did you know it was something you could pursue?
“I had so many wonderful teachers––starting with my parents––who encouraged me along the way and let me know that they saw some talent in me. They helped me understand that talent did not equal success in itself, but that hard work, learning and then honing my craft, plus being patient for the right time, were all ways I could make my dream of being a writer come true.”
What books or authors influenced you?
“There are so many, but besides Laura Ingalls Wilder, I was inspired by Catherine Marshall’s Christy and Julie, and by the books of Eugenia Price. I especially loved Ms. Price’s voluminous author letter and acknowledgements, which revealed what I now know to be true: no author writes by him/herself! So many people pour into a writers life, research, and craft. I always feel there should be a dozen names on the covers of my novels!”
What legacy as a writer and Christian do you want to leave behind?
“I think one of my mother’s legacies to me has been finding contentment with wherever I am in life. Of course, sometimes I tend to use my natural tendency toward contentment as an excuse to be lazy, but once I know my current situation is where God has placed me, it’s a good thing to be content in that as long as He asks me to. I hope my novels always point readers toward a similar contentment in the Lord’s timing and providence, and of course, I pray my writing always, always points the way to The Way.”
If readers gain one thing from your books, what would you want that to be?
“A closer walk with God as Lord and Savior.”
What was the most freeing experience of your life?
“Wow! That’s a big question. I suppose next to giving my life to Christ (when I was 17), which is the purest freedom anyone can know, the most freeing thing was marrying my husband and knowing that God had set us on a
journey together––of being parents together, of finding what he wanted us to do creatively in life, of growing spiritually together.”
journey together––of being parents together, of finding what he wanted us to do creatively in life, of growing spiritually together.”
Every book begins with a piece of reality. So whats the story behind the story?
Silver Bells
Sometimes love needs a Christmas miracle
(2013, Summerside Press/Guideposts)
“Silver Bells, just out with Summerside Press/Guideposts, was such a fun book to write! Why? because it is set in the 1970s––the era when I was falling in love with my husband. While, of course, my story is completely fictional, there are some things from my own life (and Ken’s) that inspired the story. Here are just a few:
• The Kansas setting and my heroine’s farmer’s daughter status. (I had the happiest childhood imaginable, growing up on a farm, the oldest of five kids.)
• K-State. My dad and I and all my siblings attended or graduated from Kansas State University in Manhattan.
• And like Michelle, I really wasn’t too torn up when I dropped out of college (for me, it was to follow my husband to New York!) because the real dream of my life was to have babies––lots and lots of babies.
• I worked as a typesetter and proofreader for several small-town newspapers. I started my first newspaper job just before computers revolutionized the process of printing a weekly newspaper, and back when page layout was done with a waxer and an X-Acto knife.
• The “newfangled microwave” incident was inspired by the fact that my hubby’s family had one of the first microwave ovens in town, which they won in their small town’s holiday lane drawing. It was quite the attraction, and Ken’s friends would come over to watch his demonstrations of “instant” boiling water or exploding marshmallows (and some other things I’m not sure his mother knows about yet, so I won’t publish those for the world. Ha!)
As Christmas draws near, I hope you’ll enjoy a trip down Memory Lane with Silver Bells. Can’t you just hear those bells now? Ring-a-ling… hear them sing… soon it will be Christmas Day! “
Thanks so much, Cindy!
Deb~
To order your copy, follow Deborah, or find out more about her work, you can go to her website @ www.deborahraney.com.
Thank you for stopping by today.
May God Bless you and your loved ones this upcoming year.
Merry Christmas!!!
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