Author Interview-Patrick E. Craig

 I hope you enjoy this interview with Patrick E. Craig! After hearing from him, I'm looking forward to reading some of his exciting stories. 

How did you get your start writing fiction and what genre do you predominantly write in?

In 2007, I went to the Mt. Hermon Christian Writers Conference and met Nick Harrison, who was the senior editor for Harvest House. Later that year, he asked for a one-sheet, a story idea for an anthology he was putting together. He reminded me he liked Amish stories and quilting stories. So I sent him an idea for an Amish quilting story. He liked it and asked for sample chapters. Six months later, I had a three book deal with Harvest House writing Amish fiction. I knew nothing about the Amish or quilting, but I did my homework and ended up with the Apple Creek Dreams series, which still sells copies on Amazon everyday. I have written ten Amish books, but I have also written a World War II series with Murray Pura, two westerns (also with Murray), a memoir, a historical ghost story, and I'm working on several books for the general market. I actually don't want to be known as a genre writer, since I consider myself a storyteller first. 

What has being published taught you?

Being published has taught me that seeing your book in print is not the end of the road, but only the beginning, it is just the end of one cycle and the start of another. I have been writing professionally for only ten years, but I have published twenty books, and I have sixty more ideas on my computer. So, I just keep going. 

Pantser or Plotter?

I have to do a story outline and a chapter outline or I don't know where I am. The only exception to this is when Murray Pura and I write a western together and then we send each other chapters with an unexpected hook at the end that the other guy has to figure out in his chapter.

Would you tell us about your current book release The Quilt That Knew?

The main character, Jenny Hershberger, has been around through eight of my Amish Books. From a little orphan girl rescued from a storm in my first book, A Quilt for Jenna, to the mother of the heroine of another story, The Amish Heiress, at 65 Jenny has not found a new calling in life. If you can imagine Miss Marple as an Amish woman, that is Jenny's new role. Over the years, Jenny's character has taken on a life of its own, so when I decided to write some mysteries, it seemed very natural to bring her back.

What is the most valuable piece of advice you’d like to give to unpublished authors?

As Hemingway once said, “Write the best story you can and write it straight.”

What’s next from you?

The Honor Trail with Murray Pura (a western), The Boy in Blue Denim (the second book in this series), and When the Hummingbirds Danced in the Honeysuckle Sky (a redemptive love story.)

The Quilt That Knew back cover copy:

Just imagine if Miss Marple was Amish…

A young girl buried in the woods for forty years…

A desperate killer loose in the village…

A mysterious Amish quilt and a golden ring…

Jenny Hershberger returns to Apple Creek, Ohio, the village where she grew up. But this is not a happy homecoming. She's been called upon to solve a horrible crime, but will the killer find her first?

Police re-open the case of a woman found dead in a wooden box buried in the woods outside Apple Creek, Ohio, 40 years after the crime. There are only two clues: an Amish quilt found wrapped around the body and a golden ring. Elbert Wainwright, a local detective, remembers that Jenny Hershberger is a historian who knows all the Amish quilters in the area and asks Jenny to come help with the investigation. Jenny comes with her old friend, Bobby Halverson and discovers that she is much closer to the crime than anyone could guess. Jenny and Bobby put the clues together and follow the trail to solve the puzzling mystery and bring the murderer to justice.

Author Bio

Best-selling author Patrick E. Craig has published with Harvest House Publishers, Harlequin Books, and Elk Lake Publishers and his own imprints, P&J Publishing and Island Publishing. He has written fourteen novels, including the award-winning Island Series with Murray Pura and two best-selling Amish Series, Apple Creek Dreams and The Paradise Chronicles. He also has written two novellas and an award-winning book of contemporary fiction short stories and two Young Adult paranormal books. His work is included in two anthologies of Amish stories. His books have won many awards including The Chanticleer International Book Awards First Place and Finalist Awards in the Hemingway Division for 20th Century War Stories, a CIBA Semi-Finalist Award for Historical Fiction, a Finalist Award in the Word Guild of Canada Contemporary Short Stories Division, and the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Selah Award for Contemporary Anthology. 

Where can readers find Patrick online?

www.patrickecraig.com Webpage

https://www.facebook.com/PatrickECraig Facebook

https://twitter.com/PatrickECraig Twitter

https://www.instagram.com/patricke.craig/ Instagram

Where can readers purchase my books?

https://tinyurl.com/sez4vw3a Amazon Author page