Thanks for joining me today for my interview Leanne Ellis!
Once in a Blue Moon:
The day Armstrong stepped on the moon has special memories for most Americans, but not for Bryn Seymour. It’s the day her mother died. Despite death defying feats, guilt has always pulled Bryn down time and again. But a perfect love shows her taking a leap of faith is the first step to soaring. But it only happens … once in a blue moon.
Share your writing journey and encouragement for others.
I’ve been writing since 1991 and have been published since 1995. I took a break after publishing 12 books with Harlequin/Silhouette because I had two young children and I was really wanting to write more women’s fiction than straight romance. During those years God was really teaching me a lot and eventually led me to the inspirational market.
How did you come up with the idea for this novel?
I was reading about an obituary writer and thought, “What if…” which is where a lot of my stories come from. About the same time, I was also thinking about those events in our history where you say, “Where were you when…” The two ideas merged and developed from there.
Tell us about your hero’s journey.
Sam has been all over. He’s a preacher but has just moved closer to his father, Howard, to try to restore their relationship. He’s wounded but trying to do the right thing. He turned out to be a wonderful hero!
The heroine’s journey? This is actually Bryn’s story. Since I write women’s fiction, it’s usually a woman’s story or journey that I’m telling. Bryn is an obituary writer and meets a man, Howard, who once knew her mother. Her mother died when Bryn was 9 years old. She longs to know more about her mother but she is also afraid to learn more, afraid to think back to those days. She was a very intriguing character. I really loved writing her story.
Who is your favorite hero from books or movies?
Ooh, that’s a tough question. I like the tough, wounded heroes like Rhett Butler or Rick from Casablanca. I loved Jamie in Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series.
Who is the biggest hero in your personal life and why? Anyone else?
My husband. He is wonderful and does so much. He’s simply the best person I have ever known.
What do you hope the reader learns from your hero and heroine?
For both Bryn and Sam, taking a leap of faith isn’t easy. It’s not easy in our lives either. And I hope that readers see that it’s really the first step to soaring.
If there was something in your life you could change, what would it be and why?
That’s a tough question. I’m very blessed but I guess the one thing I would change is having more time. More time with my husband. More time with my kids. More time to interact with readers. Notice, I’m not putting more time to clean my house.
Closing thoughts to your readers.
I’m always so appreciative of readers and love hearing from them. Letters, emails, facebook posts mean so much and remind me why I write every day. Thank you!
Thank you LeAnna. Please don’t forget to comment in order to enter the drawing for Leanna’s book.