INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR CAROLE BROWN!

Besides being a member and active participant of many writing groups, Carole Brown enjoys mentoring beginning writers. She loves to weave suspense and tough topics into her books, along with a touch of romance and whimsy, and is always on the lookout for outstanding titles and catchy ideas. She and her husband reside in SE Ohio but have ministered and counseled nationally and internationally. Together, they enjoy their grandsons, traveling, gardening, good food, the simple life, and did she mention their grandsons?

Connect with her here:

Personal blog: http://sunnebnkwrtr.blogspot.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CaroleBrown.author

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/browncarole212

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/sunnywrtr/boards/

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5237997-carole-brown

 

 Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? 

I’m a “normal” person who loves the city lights at night but country life. Does that make sense? Here’s the way I look at it. I love the excitement of a big town, the musical shows and museums and fancy restaurants, but a little of that goes a long way, and I’m ready to go back to my country home, fields and woods, gardens and pets. Seeing the stars at night and the lone-ness of a quiet place mean a lot to me and keeps me “sane.” 

We’ve traveled over almost all of America and some foreign countries too, but Dorothy got it right when she declared, “There’s no place like home.”

What do you do when you’re not writing?

I’ve just recently picked up the hobby of scrap booking, mostly

because of my grand boys. I never cease to have interest in

recording with pictures and fun writing records in journals of our

antics together.

Hubby and I still love to travel; we have our favorite spots and try

to visit them now and again, but also love discovering new areas

we’ve not explored yet. 

I also still have an active part in my hubby’s ministry which

expands from speaking to counseling to volunteering in missions.

This work has giving me many ideas for my writing.

Tell us something about yourself that might surprise your readers. 

I love: superb cooking, real cheesecake and excellent brownies, rocks and skies and trees and plants, my home and quiet time, family and my grandsons, good friends, and peace. Does it get any better than that?

Did you choose the genre you write in, or did it choose you?

I guess I was “chosen.”  Grew up reading mystery and suspenseful books and loved them, so I was geared from the start toward writing the same. I remember as a teenager writing short stories of protagonists solving mysterious happenings in their lives. How could I not do the same once I moved on, as an adult, into serious writing?

What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?

Probably in a contest where an unpublished judge advised me to

totally change the plot of a novel.

Fortunately, my instincts and God’s leading led me to deepen my

plot and continue. Eventually, that work became my debut novel

and went on to gather multiple awards.

 
Comparison to successful and famous authors. No, I don’t consider myself as good of an author, but I do prize the tidbits of encouragement when a reader compares a portion, a style, or a technique I have/use to another author. It’s a great honor. 
 

If you could go back in time and do something differently in your writing career, what would it be?

For sure, start earlier. I know I was busy with a multitude of things, but I could have learned sooner and been published much earlier. Still, I also believe all things are in God’s timing, and am satisfied with that.

Angry at being rejected for military service, Minister Tyrell Walker accepts the call to serve as a civilian spy within his own country. Across the river from Cincinnati, Ohio, a spy working for a

foreign country is stealing secret plans for newly developed ammunition to be used in the war. According to his FBI cousin, this spy favors pink stationery giving strong indications that a woman is involved.

He’s instructed to obtain a room in the Rayner Boarding House run by the lovely, spunky red-haired Emma Jaine Rayner. Sparks of jealousy and love fly between them immediately even as they battle suspicions that one or the other is not on the up and up.

While Tyrell searches for the murdering spy who reaches even into the boarding home, Emma Jaine struggles with an annoying renter, a worried father (who could be involved in this spy thing), and two younger sisters who are very different but just as strong willed as she is.

As Tyrell works to keep his double life a secret and locate the traitor, he refuses to believe that Emma Jaine could be involved even when he sees a red-haired woman in the arms of another man. Could the handsome and svelte banker who’s also determined to win Emma Jaine’s hand for marriage, be the dangerous man he’s looking for? Is the trouble-making renter who hassles Emma Jaine serving as a flunky? Worse, is Papa Rayner so worried about his finances and keeping his girls in the style they’re used to, that he’ll stoop to espionage?

Will their love survive the danger and personal issues that arise to hinder the path of true love?

 

If you'd like to win a copy of With Music in Their Hearts, leave a comment, along with your contact information. We'll pick a winner next week! (Print copy or Ebook. Print copy in U.S. only.)

More information about Carole:

Brown not only has her award winning (Winner of the 2015 Christian Small Publisher Award in General Fiction, nominated for an Epic Award, RWA International Digital Awards finalist in Inspiration, Laurel Award finalist, Selah finalist; Genesis semi-finalist) debut novel, The Redemption of Caralynne Hayman, available for purchase now, but a companion book called West Virginia Scrapbook: From the Life of Caralynne Hayman, filled with tidbits of information about West Virginia, quotes, recipes from West Virginia and from Caralynne’s life, pictures and discussion questions for the novel.

November, 2013, the first book in her mystery series, Hog Insane, released. It’s a fun, lighthearted novel introducing the characters, Denton and Alex Davies. Look for the second book, Bat Crazy, late 2014 winter.

Released November 1, 2014, is the first book in a new WWII romantic suspense series: With Music In Their Hearts. Three red-headed sisters. Three spies. Three stories.

Besides being a member and active participant of many writing groups, Carole Brown enjoys mentoring beginning writers. She loves to weave suspense and tough topics into her books, along with a touch of romance and whimsy, and is always on the lookout for outstanding titles and catchy ideas. She and her husband reside in SE Ohio but have ministered and counseled nationally and internationally. Together, they enjoy their grandsons, traveling, gardening, good food, the simple life, and did she mention their grandsons?