How Kids in Fiction Can Be Effective by JoAnn Durgin

  

I love writing children into my books. They’re cute, they add to the dynamics of a story, and—let’s face it—they pull on our heartstrings. I think one of the primary reasons I enjoy writing (and reading) about children so much is because we, as adults, can learn so much from them! There’s nothing like the innocence, and yet the (sometimes blunt) honesty, of a child. They tell it like it is as they see people, life, and situations without the “filters” we’ve learned to adapt as we’ve grown older. Children can teach us patience, but they can also make us stop and think before we speak.

Case in point: When our oldest, Sarah, was a toddler, I used to call people “turkey” when they did something I didn’t like. I remember driving with her one day on the highway and someone cut me off. From the backseat, Sarah yelled, “You turkey!” In a way, it was cute. In another way, I’m thankful I hadn’t used a stronger word. When a child actor spews a profane word, others laugh, but oh how it riles me! Hearing Sarah repeat my words that taught me a valuable lesson as a new mother. I need to be very careful of the words that come from my mouth.

Ephesians 4:29: Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. (NIV)

Our son, Matthew, is high-functioning autistic (Asperger’s Syndrome), but—at age 19—he is very intelligent yet still has the sweetness of a boy much younger than his chronological age. People often don’t know how to respond to Matthew’s openness and complete ease in saying “I love you.” One of his teachers in high school told him that she wasn’t allowed to respond when he told her he loved her. But then she confided to me she would pull him aside each day and whisper, “I love you, too, Matthew.” His helpful spirit and genuine love for people shines in everything he does. He doesn’t care what others think about him, and there are times when I really envy that quality!

Our daughter, Chelsea, is very loving, but also quite headstrong and independent. She’s also blessed us with our first grandchild, Amelia Grace (see her photo; you can’t miss the huge headband!). My husband, Jim, and I are reminded all over again how quickly children grow. It’s amazing the changes Amelia has gone through each month. At six months old, she’s now rocking on her haunches and giving us that “Just you wait!” look. I have the feeling once she starts crawling, she’ll be pulling up and walking soon after. I can’t wait until she starts talking!

All in all, children are an incomparable blessing from the Lord.

Psalm 127:3: Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him. (NIV)

I can’t imagine my upcoming Christmas story, Starlight in Her Eyes, without my sweet little six-year-old, Lily, who challenges my cheeky Brit, Colin Young. He’s not used to little ones, but he’s a natural, and they take to one another quickly. Children are also now figuring quite prominently into my Lewis Legacy Series. In my estimation, my stories are richer for the addition of children.

What have your kids—or a child you know (or have known in the past) taught you? I’d love to hear, so please feel free to share!

I’ll leave you with an excerpt from my latest release, Enchantment, Book #6 in my Lewis Legacy Series, where little Joe Lewis has a man-to-man chat with his father, Sam, about Gracie, a little girl who keeps punching Joe in the arm.

Here’s that excerpt:

“Dad, I’ve got a problem.”

Joe only called him Dad when he wanted a heart-to-heart chat. His boy was almost four going on forty. He took things so seriously. His TeamWork reports could wait. “Sure, son. Want to go sit on the porch and talk?”

“Uh huh.” Joe walked beside Sam from the office and out onto the porch. The early evening had cooled a bit and a slight breeze rustled the leaves of the towering trees.

In a few minutes, he’d walk his children over to the dining hall for dinner. He’d put in an appearance earlier but Lexa had shooed him out, telling him everything was under control. The tantalizing aromas of food filled the air. The ladies of the One Nation Church had been cooking for hours, and they were all in for quite a feast tonight.

After Joe dropped into one of the rockers, Sam took the other. “Tell me what’s bothering you.”

“Gracie.”

“Ah.” Resting one elbow on the arm of the chair, Sam began to rock as he stared out over the expanse of the camp. Maybe it was no surprise that—as the son of two former financial planners—Joe already exhibited signs of an analytical, logical mind. Sam’s brother, Will, was Joe’s personal hero these days. When he’d first heard Will had been named a shuttle commander for an upcoming NASA mission, Joe had whooped and hollered and declared he wanted to be an astronaut. No doubt they’d be paying a lot of visits to Johnson Space Center.

Sam glanced over at Joe. “How’s that arm?” Since they’d arrived at the camp, Joe had complained that Gracie punched him at every available opportunity. He knew Natalie and Marc were working with their daughter to try and control her inclination to sock Joe, apparently Gracie’s sole target.

Joe rubbed his fingers over his upper right arm. At least no bruises were visible. “Sore. Like always when Gracie’s around. It’s good she lives in Massa….”

“Massachusetts. Why do you think she hits you?”

Scrunching his features into a frown, Joe appeared to consider the question. “’Cause she’s mean.”

“Is she mean all the time?”

“No. She’s nice to Hannah and Leah. And Luke. She wants to carry Emily around like she’s her baby. Chloe thinks Gracie’s okay when she’s not bossy.”

The corners of Sam’s mouth quirked. “And what do you think?”

“I think Gracie hates boys.”

“That could be it, although I doubt it’s as strong as hate. Do you like Gracie? Even though she’s a girl?”

“Sort of. If she’d stop hitting me all the time, I might like her better. I don’t hate her.” Joe’s feet didn’t reach the porch floor, so he scooted to the edge of the chair. Pushing off with both feet, he began to rock.

“You know, Joe, sometimes girls hit boys for the opposite reason. Maybe Gracie punches you in the arm because—deep down inside—she secretly likes you.”

“She sure has a funny way of showing it.”

Sam laughed. “You know, your mother wasn’t sure she liked me all that much when she first met me, either. It was at our first TeamWork mission together outside San Antonio.”

“Did Mommy hit you?”

“She did, but it was an accident. We had a flat tire on the old Volvo station wagon—the one in the garage out back at home in Houston—and I was trying to fix it. When Mommy tried to hand me a wrench, it slipped out of her hand and hit my leg.”

“So she didn’t mean to do it.” The implication from Joe being the situation was different since Gracie intended to hit him. Smart boy.

“No, no. It was heavy and slippery. But she sure made a big impression on me. And I think Gracie’s made an impression on you.”

Joe tilted his head. “What’s that mean?”

Sam chuckled and ran one hand over his chin. “It means I started liking your mother.”

“Because she hit you?”

He wasn’t doing the best job of explaining. “Mommy got my attention, but then she kept my attention because she was different from all the other girls. In a good way.”

“Yeah. Gracie’s different, too, but does that mean I have to like her?”

Joe asked insightful questions that helped to keep Sam sharp. He learned from his children on a daily basis, and that was one of his favorite parts of being a father. “As a Christian, we’re told in the Bible to love one another. I always try to do that even when people do things I don’t like.”

“Like what?” Joe rocked away in his chair and looked at him with wide-eyed innocence.

“They lie or they cheat. Or they do something they know could hurt someone else and they do it, anyway.”

“Yep.” Joe shook his head with a sad expression. The compassion in his boy—even for Gracie—warmed his heart. They wouldn’t be having this discussion now if he didn’t care.

“Sometimes it’s hard to like people, Joe. All God asks is that we try. Be patient with Gracie. God’s working in her heart just like He’s working on you and me.”

Joe nodded. “Makes sense. My tummy growled. Is it time to eat?”

“So did mine.” Sam lifted from the chair. “Let’s go get your sisters and head on over to the dining hall. Thanks for the talk, son.”

“Anytime, Dad.”

Blessings, friends.

 ~JoAnn

 

Hoosier Inspiration...Love So Amazing by JoAnn Durgin

For my short novel, Love So Amazing, the first book in my new Wondrous Love Series which released in early March, the “germ” of the idea was planted when I attended my first American Christian Fiction Writers conference in Indianapolis in September 2010. My roommates and I were staying at the Hilton, a few blocks from the Hyatt Regency, the location of the conference. Both the Hyatt and the Hilton are mentioned in the book. However, it was the experience of taking a pedicab ride from the Hyatt back to the Hilton after the banquet (heels, evening gown, late at night) that gave me the idea of one day writing about a hero who owned and operated a pedicab business. That’s certainly an occupation I’d never seen before in a Christian romance! The pedicab operator that night (who happened to also be the owner was fascinating, relayed some interesting facts, and gave me his card). Little could he know he’d inspired a book four-and-a-half years later!

What better setting for this story than the very city where the inspiration struck? What’s interesting is that this story idea remained firmly in the back of my mind since that time. At one point, I was working on an anthology proposal with two other authors and wanted to use this idea, but it didn’t work out (Lord’s plan, I believe). It wasn’t until my husband and I traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico, this past January that I began to write Love So Amazing. I was determined not to write and didn’t take my laptop. All I had was a small composition book, but in that book, I began to scribble down all my ideas—while sitting at the beach and around the pool. I suppose it’s true that authors never stop writing, eh? By the time I left Puerto Rico, the story was taking shape nicely. And even though I was on a deadline for another book, when I returned home, this story and its characters would not let go! They “demanded” that I write their story first! And so, the book was written, edited, and released on Amazon on March 5, 2015, and it’s proven to be one of my all-time top-selling books, I’m blessed to say.

Here’s the back cover copy blurb for Love So Amazing, and then I’ll share an excerpt:

Dance instructor Ava Carlisle lost her fiancé in a tragic car accident.

Pedicab owner/operator Sawyer Mancini understands her pain all too well.

Ava and Sawyer aren’t looking for love when they meet outside an Indianapolis hotel. Drawn to one another, these two lonely souls discover they share much in common during a six-block trip when Sawyer pedals Ava home to her downtown apartment building. When they unexpectedly meet a second time, both interpret it as freedom from the chains of past heartache and the Lord’s blessing to pursue a relationship. Although they intend to go slow, Ava and Sawyer tumble headfirst into the kind of love that only happens once in a lifetime.

A few months later, Sawyer uncovers a shocking revelation. He and Ava share an unfathomable bond they never could have imagined, and one that threatens their love. Is it a cruel twist of fate or could it somehow be God’s perfect plan for their lives?

Next, the following is an excerpt from when Sawyer addresses a group of young teenage boys (his best friend is a youth pastor and the hero in the next book in the series, Love So Divine):

“In Galatians 5:13, it says, ‘For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.’ I guess that’s what I’d like most to tell you all tonight. You can win the ballgame, you can score the prettiest girl in school, you can pump yourself up with awards and compliments telling you how great you are, you can drink or smoke something that you think will make you feel good.

“I’ve been there, and I’ll admit that for a while, it felt good to stand on the mountaintop. But that high only lasts a short time. I can stand here and tell you how it’s a mistake, I can try to beat it into your heads that it’s not the way to find success or happiness or love. But will you listen? No, you’re going to live your own lives and make your own mistakes.

“If nothing else, please remember this: God’s love is amazing. That word is bandied about so much these days to the point where it’s been cheapened. A friend once told me that the word she heard the most on one of those sleazy reality TV shows was that very word—amazing. For the most part, it was used to describe the physical beauty of a woman. I’m sure you know the show I’m talking about here. A handsome young guy meets a parade of beautiful women, one woman more gorgeous than the next. They gallivant around on a beautiful island, in a gorgeous mansion by the ocean, and the alcohol flows freely. The guy sleeps with most of the women and then makes the choice for his so-called ‘perfect’ mate.

“I’m here to tell you it doesn’t work that way in the real world. That life is a fantasy, and nothing more than a lie. Sure, you can do those things, but in the end, you’ll feel empty inside if you don’t trust the Lord to guide you. No one else—not your parents, not your pastor, with all due respect to my best friend over here”—he winked and nodded at Chase—“your girlfriend, or anyone else, is going to love you more than God does. But God’s given these people to you as a gift. Treasure them not for what they can give you, but what you can give to them. It’s my prayer for each one of you”—Sawyer paused to make eye contact with some of the kids—“that you’ll see how amazing God really is by allowing Him to work in your life.”

Love So Amazing is available on Amazon and is still available at the low introductory price of only 99 cents, and it is also free for Kindle Unlimited readers!

Blessings, friends,

~JoAnn

Matthew 5:16

In addition to Love So Amazing, JoAnn Durgin is the author of the beloved contemporary Christian romance series, The Lewis Legacy Series: Awakening, Second Time Around, Twin Hearts, Daydreams, and Moonbeams, as well as Prelude, Prequel to The Lewis Legacy Series. JoAnn is also the author of the bestselling Catching Serenity as well as novellas and short novels including Echoes of Edinburgh and the popular Starlight Christmas Series: Meet Me Under the Mistletoe, Starlight, Star Bright and Sleigh Ride Together with You.

Incorporating Travel Can Make Your Book Fun! by JoAnn Durgin

Most contemporary Christian romance publishers stay as far away as possible from a book set in a foreign locale. I love to travel; it’s one of my favorite things in life! I was blessed to have done quite a bit B.C. (in this case, “before children”). When I learned the publisher for my Christmas novellas, Pelican Book Group/White Rose Publishing, was launching a new line called Passport to Romance (romances set in foreign locations), I jumped on-board immediately. Echoes of Edinburgh released in late September (while I was attending the ACFW in St. Louis, as it so happens!).

I’ve always said the best part of my college experience at Ball State was the quarter I spent studying abroad in London instead of on the main campus. Earning a 4.0 for studying art at The Tate Gallery, attending productions at the Royal Globe (Shakespeare) Theatre, the opera, the ballet and listening to the London Symphony Orchestra—I ask you, what could be a better learning experience for a relatively sheltered 19-year-old girl from southern Indiana? What a blessing! My time in London opened my eyes to other cultures, customs, languages and proved one of the most fabulous times of my life. I also credit my London Centre semester for helping me become more independent and adventurous.

During my ten weeks in London (followed by a three-week tour of the Continent), I embarked on a fun weekend jaunt with two roommates on the high-speed train from London to Glasgow, Scotland, and then traveled from there to Edinburgh. Although my time in Scotland was short, I fell in love with the beautiful countryside, in particular, and with the city’s rich history. The book is dedicated in part to my cousins, Terry and Lyntha Eiler, who have gone to Edinburgh for 30 years with photojournalism students from Ohio University. Terry and Lyntha were invaluable resources of viewing Edinburgh through the eyes of Americans abroad. They provided the type of “insider” tips only observed by those who’ve been to Auld Reekie and Athens of the North multiple times. While many aspects of the city have not changed, others have transitioned through the years, as represented by the recent vote by Scotland as to whether to secede from the UK (voted down).

Without wanting to sound like a travelogue of Edinburgh, I tried to incorporate a number of notable tourist sights in the capital city of Scotland as seen from the perspective of Americans—my heroine, Shelby Harmon, and her hero, Harrison (“Harry”) Reed—with a sense of humor, adventure and romance. Many of my readers may never personally experience Edinburgh, so I wanted to give them an idea of how fabulous it is! I’ll confess the one thing I didn’t love about Edinburgh was the food, which I incorporate with well-intentioned humor in Echoes of Edinburgh. As Harrison tells Shelby, the Scots have two favorite meals: breakfast and tea. I will confess that Shelby is more adventurous than I am when it comes to tasting the dishes indigenous to Scotland!

I also needed a place for my characters to attend a worship service. Imagine my delight in my research when I discovered Carrubbers Christian Centre, a non-denominational, evangelical church located on Edinburgh’s famous Royal Mile. Perfect! Carrubbers started as a mission in an alley in 1858 with the purpose of introducing children to Christ’s teachings. D.L. Moody helped raise money to build the church, and he preached at the laying of the foundation stone. It’s one of the original buildings on Edinburgh’s famous Royal Mile still used for its original purpose. Whenever I make it back to Edinburgh, I’m definitely going to pay Carfubbers a visit!

 

Let me tell you a bit more about Echoes of Edinburgh. Here’s the back copy blurb:

 

To honor her dying father’s wish, Chicago stockbroker Shelby Harmon promises to hand deliver an envelope addressed to “Robert Nichols, Personal & Confidential.” Her quest to find Robert leads her to a most unlikely place—the Castlehill Gardens outside Scotland’s Edinburgh Castle. Who is this fiercely private man and what is his connection to Harmony Lane, her family’s horse farm in Lexington, Kentucky? 

Harrison Reed cautions Shelby against dredging up hurtful memories for his close friend, Robert. As they explore the city together, Shelby and Harrison find themselves increasingly drawn to one another. When the contents of the mysterious envelope are revealed, the answer gives her hope for the future of Harmony Lane. Is the time spent in Edinburgh with Harrison destined to be nothing more than a beautiful memory? Did Shelby lose her heart in Edinburgh...or find her way home again? 

One of the predominant themes in all my books is finding our true purpose, finding “home in our heart,” and seeking God’s will for our life. Echoes of Edinburgh addresses this issue from both the perspective of my hero and heroine and told with (what I hope is) a good dose of humor and heart. I hope you might take the opportunity to read it sometime!

Blessings,

~JoAnn

Matthew 5:16