Welcome Guest Author - Shawna K. Williams

STEPH: Welcome to Romance Under the Moonlight. Happy Holidays! Tell us a little about yourself.

Hi Steph, and thanks for hosting me. My name is Shawna Williams. I'm the author of three inspirational historical novels. I'm also a wife and mom, reader, editor, book reviewer and jewelry designer. My family lives on a ranch with lots of critters. When I'm not writing, I enjoy spending time with my family at our home, hiking, or exploring some new facet of our beautiful state.

STEPH: Tell us a little about Orphaned Hearts.

Sure! Orphaned Hearts is my third book. It's a wonderful little story set in Northwestern Arkansas, during 1932.

The main character, David, is a preacher who grew up in an orphanage. His family was killed during a fire and David was severely burned. However, since his scars are hidden beneath his clothing no one knows about it.

David believes that his scars make him unlovable, so when he encounters an orphaned boy, who lost him arm in the accident that killed his family, David is set on finding him a home. In a way, he feels that if he can find a home for Caleb there is also hope for himself.

Sadie is a spinster. After her fiancé died she devoted herself to caring for her father. After his passing she finds her loneliness exasperated by having no outlet for her care-giving nature. So when David asks her to take Caleb in she readily agrees, completely overlooking his handicap.

David begins to see hope for himself and Caleb in Sadie, but their entire future is threatened when a small deception committed by David is revealed.

STEPH: How did you find the inspiration for the story?

This story was inspired by my granddad. The story isn't based on his life. He wasn't a preacher, nor was he burned, but he was an orphan, brought up in an orphanage during the 1920s -30s. My grandmother's father ran the orphanage's dairy and that's how my grandparents met. Many of the small details in this story are directly from memories told to me by my grandmother.

As for the plot: One day I started to wonder about a family made of not just orphans, but also misfits finding a home with each other. Things evolved from there. The original draft was a 10,000 word short story, but the characters intrigued me. I realized there was much more to them so I wrote it into a 42,000 word novel

STEPH: Do you cast the characters? Who are the leads?

I don't initially cast my characters, but often as the story progresses I start to see someone. For some reason I see David as a younger, more handsome version of Ricky Gervais. I have no idea why. David isn't British, and he's not a comedian. I think it's the awkward factor. I very easily see Sadie as a plain version of Nicole Kidman. I have a clear picture of Caleb, but the boy I see isn't an actor. He's someone I know.

STEPH: Are you a plotter or a panster?

A bit of both. I have to have a general direction, and goals in mind to move the story forward, but I often start a scene without a clue as to how I’m going to achieve those goals. That part just happens.



STEPH: How long did it take you to write the story?

I've known this story for a while. Originally this story was a 10,000 word short story. After I wrote it I felt like there was a lot more potential with the plot, and much more to the characters than could be conveyed in just 10,000 words. I added another five thousand, but even then I knew there was more. When DB accepted it, it was on the proposal that I would lengthen it into a novella of around 35,000 words. I'd actually gotten a late start at working on this expansion because I'd been very consumed with completing In All Things. But the story was simmering in the back of my mind, so when I started writing it flowed out of me very easily. I probably kept about 7,500 words from the original, and worked them into the new story, which I completed at 42,000 words in about 4 weeks time.

STEPH: What is your favorite Christmas story? Favorite TV Special?

Love the movie A Christmas Story! As far as TV specials go, well, I'm a sucker for the claymation Rudolph and Frosty Christmas specials. They remind me of being a kid.

STEPH: Can you share a Holiday family tradition with us?

Each of my kids has a little tree in their room, and for a week before Christmas I sneak a small gifts each night under the tree. It's tiny, inexpensive stuff. When they were little they thought the elves did it, and it added to the anticipation of the big day. My kids are teens now, and they still like for me to do this out of Nostalgia. I'm happy to oblige.


STEPH: Do you bake for Christmas? If so, what?

Oh yes! I bake all the deserts the day before: pecan pie, pumpkin, chocolate pie, blackberry cobbler, cheese cake, and just a white cake with white icing and sugar crystals that we call a snow cake.

Then on Christmas morning I cook a giant pot of buttery, maple syrup oatmeal. After presents we snack on cheese dip and taquitos, little smokies, deviled eggs, and other finger food. I fix the big meal at night, and we have baked cornish hens, mashed potatoes, dressing, cranberry sauce, asparagus casserole, sweet potato casserole, fruit salad, and homemade bread. I think that's all; seems like I'm leaving something out.

STEPH: What do you put on the top of your tree? An angel or a star?

A giant bow.

STEPH: Can you share an excerpt?

There was a child sleeping in her home. His home. Sadie tiptoed down the hallway and peered through the open door again. Caleb's small form seemed lost in the double bed with its towering oak headboard. He formed a lump hardly larger than a pillow.

She could hear his breathing, slow and steady. It sounded like he was finally asleep. At last check, she'd padded over to the bed expecting to find the child lost in a dreamland, but instead was greeted by two large dark orbs glistening in the shadows. Wide awake.

Brother Langley had warned her that Caleb had some apprehension about sleeping in a room by himself. David described the setup at the orphanage, with one large room for the boys, narrow, spring mattress beds lined in rows. It wasn't that Caleb preferred that setting, David had explained. He'd merely grown accustomed to it.

The poor little boy. To be so young and have endured so much. It wasn't right.

He'd shown little reaction when Brother Langley told him that he wouldn't be living with the Sheldons. Brother Langley delivered the news as best he could, trying to make it sound good.

"Mrs. Sheldon will be having a baby, and since she will have a child, she wants someone else, like Miss Miller, to experience that joy, too. And she wants you to have plenty of attention. She doesn't feel that it's fair to you that her health and a new baby would keep her from giving you that."

Sadie wondered if Caleb believed a word of it, or if he was just so used to being shuffled about -- at everyone else's mercy -- that he'd placed walls around his helpless, young heart to protect himself. The only response he'd given was, "Is my last name still Sheldon?" It broke her heart to hear Brother Langley say, "No." She could see that it broke Brother Langley's heart, too.

When he'd asked if Caleb wanted to stay with her, the boy turned and looked at her, with deep dark eyes void of emotion and nodded. Sadie anticipated him asking if his last name was now Miller, but he hadn't. She was thankful, for she wouldn't have known what to say. This was only temporary.

STEPH: Where can we find Orphaned Hearts at?

Orphaned Hearts is available at Amazon Kindle, B&N Nookbooks, Christianbooks.com, Sony Reader Store, Kobo, iBookstore for iPad, Books on Board, Allromance Ebooks, and through the publisher, Desert Breeze Publishing.
STEPH: Where can we find you on the web?

You can find me here:
http://shawnakwilliams.com/
Blog
http://shawnawilliams-oldsmobile.blogspot.com/
Follow me on twitter and facebook:
http://twitter.com/shawnakwilliams
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Shawna-K-Williams/236629884245

STEPH: Thanks for being here today, Shawna.

Shawna's offering a giveaway of a bracelet and sample pdfs (first three chapters) of all three of my books. Please, post a comment for Shawna if you pop in today. Her jewelry is awesome.

Welcome Guest Author - Shawna Williams

Today, I want to welcome fellow Desert Breeze Author, Shawna Williams. Shawna's book, "No Other," an inspirational romance that takes place after World War II released on 1 May. Welcome Shawna!

Can you tell us a little about "No Other?" What's the plot?


SHAWNA: Sure Steph! "No Other" is set in the aftermath of WWII when the nation was trying to heal. That's what Jakob Wilheimer wants too. He wants to get past the pain of his family's internment, get on with his life, and if possible, forgive those who've wronged his family -- including himself.

Having quit school three years earlier to look after the family business and care for his younger siblings, Jakob knows his first step back into normalcy must be to return and get his diploma. And after enduring the stigma and isolation associated with the internment camp, the awkwardness of being a twenty year old amidst a bunch of teen aged high school students shouldn't have been a bother. What Jakob hadn't counted on was his former schoolmate, Meri Parker, being one of his teachers.

Seeing her every day, with her life on track, uninterrupted by the war, only serves as a reminder of Jakob's hardship. However, a school assignment brings these two in closer contact, and soon Jakob begins to see little hints of a not-so-perfect life behind the facade that is Meri Parker.

As a friendship deepens into feelings of something more, these two are faced with the dilemma of their situation. To be together, means they'd have to lie to everyone around them in order to keep their relationship a secret. But Jakob also fears for Meri, and the pressure from her family who wants her to marry someone else. He's aware of their cruelty and how they use Meri's yearning for their affection as a means of control. Jakob is afraid that without him at her side, she'll succumb and be lost to him forever.

Choices made out of desperation take them down a treacherous path.


STEPH: What was the inspiration behind the plot?

SHAWNA: The inspiration for "No Other" actually came from a dream I had eight years ago. It was bizarre, like watching a movie almost. And for the next six months I kept thinking about it, trying to fill in all the gaps between scenes. It eventually grew to be so complicated that I had to write it down. After playing with it off and on for six years, I finally decided to try and turn it into something publishable, and began studying the craft of writing, joining critique groups, and submitting short stories to rack up a few publishing credits. "No Other" was inspired from the first part of that dream, when the characters were young. All the details came later as I researched and got to know them better.


STEPH: Why did you set the story just after World War II?

SHAWNA: I just knew that's when this story took place. From the very beginning this made sense to me. I didn't realize how interesting I'd find this time period though, or all the complexities it would bring to mind in consideration of the events during the war.

STEPH: Did you do any research for the novel, if so, what?

SHAWNA: Oh yes! Researched and researched some more. I actually researched Jakob's family history all the way back to the early 1900's and the seeds that eventually led his family to immigrate from Germany to America. I have on a file somewhere the name of the boat they came over on, and the city the left from. I chose a real boat that docked at Pelican Island in Galveston, TX because this is where I wanted them to arrive at. None of this made it into the book, but it helped me to understand his family. I like to try and make as much of a story plausible as possible, so any place I can incorporate a real event or place I do.

The most fascinating thing I researched for this story was the internment of German American citizens during WWII. In the initial story Jakob's family had faced discrimination at the hands of the community, but I wasn't satisfied with that explanation for his anger. I always felt there was more to it. One night my husband and I were watching a documentary on Japanese American internment, and I suddenly wondered if anything similar had happened to German American citizens. I'd never heard of it, but it seemed likely. When I started researching I was shocked at what I found. The camp, Crystal City, was a real place. The censored mail and seizing of property was all something that really happened to people. Some of the stories I read were absolutely heartbreaking.

STEPH: What's your muse like? A girl or a boy? When do they annoy you the most?

SHAWNA: Can't say. It's just another facet of me, so I guess it's a girl. But my characters come to life so that they end up telling me the stories. For some reason though, I always seem to identify with the male characters perspective slightly more. My husband once said that I'm a girly girl who thinks like a guy, so maybe that explains it.

STEPH What was the road to publication like?

SHAWNA: I played with this story off and on for nearly six years before I decided to try and get it published. Once I decided to get past my fear of rejection and start working toward publication it took me about a year and a half. I knew I had a lot to learn, so I started studying the craft through books, and critique groups. I also began submitting short stories to journals for writing credits. I received both rejections and acceptances on those. When I started submitting to agents I received mostly rejections, but several came with some pleasant words of encouragement. I did have two ask to see partials. One of them rejected "No Other" after reviewing it, the other took six months to ask for a partial. At that time I had already signed with DBP so I told her "thank you," but the story was sold. I wasn't upset by that because I honestly feel that DBP was the best place for this story. It was actually the first publisher I submitted to.

STEPH: Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?


SHAWNA: Sure. Be true to yourself. You need to learn the craft, but don't lose your voice in the process. There's a balance between what you can take away from a critique group in order to hone your skills, and trying to heed so much advice that you end up losing what makes you unique. Rules are good, but in the words of Captain Jack Sparrow, "They're more like guidelines anyway."

STEPH: Do you cast your characters? If so, who is Meri? Jakob?

STEPH: Kind of, but really I'd say they cast themselves. The story for "No Other" and its sequel "In All Things" came to me so long ago that the cast has changed a bit. In the early day, the movie Pearl Harbor was only a few yrs old, and Josh Harnett had that shy farm-boy thing going on, so I kept seeing him as Jakob. Amy Smart reminded me of Meri.

Now this is kind of funny. When last year's season of American Idol started I was working on "No Other" and critiquing back and forth with a friend. She'd look my stuff over, and I'd do the same for her. Well, this one night after one of the early episodes of AI, I get this email from her, and she says "OMG, Kris Allen is Jakob!" The funny thing was, that night as I had watched, I'd been thinking the very same thing. He fit the physical description fairly well, and his mannerisms were spot on. Then in a later episode I saw Kris Allen's wife, Katy, and she fit Meri's description perfectly! So ever since last year's AI, that is who I see Jakob and Meri as, except taller.




STEPH: How did the cover come to be? What does the locket represent?

SHAWNA: Jenifer Raneiri, Desert Breeze's cover artist did such a beautiful job. I can't even begin to explain how much I love the cover. The locket is something that actually endured from the original story long, long ago. It's a family heirloom, having belonged to Jakob's grandmother. He gives it to Meri, but he doesn't have pictures of them, so he writes their names in it instead. The farmhouse is Jakob's childhood home that was taken from them when his parents were interned. It ends up being abandoned, and my favorite scene in the whole story takes place there.

STEPH: Is there a sequel?

SHAWNA: Yep! It's called "In All Things." It picks up with Jakob and Meri ten years later, in 1950s Hollywood. It's an inspirational romance, like "No Other" and the theme is similar, but with a different perspective from a different phase in life. It gets to tackle some unresolved issues that have festered for a decade. "No Other" is very much about just Jakob and Meri, but "In All Things" includes a lot of Jakob's family. So many surprising things have crept up while writing it. It makes me think of how life is like a mosaic, and many good things wouldn't be if not for the bad that proceeded them.


STEPH: Can you share a book trailer and buy links with us?

SHAWNA: Certainly!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVxeR7yeztw


You can purchase "No Other" here http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-86/No-Other/Detail.bok
Or the Kindle download http://www.amazon.com/No-Other-ebook/dp/B003K15MY0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1273031737&sr=1-1


Stephanie, I'd like to give away a pair of freshwater pearl earring and a signed postcard. There's a contest I'm running throughout the month of May where you can enter as many times as you want in accordance with the rules, which are posted on my blog, http://shawnawilliams-oldsmobile.blogspot.com/p/no-other-prize-drawing-details.html.

There are three prizes; Good, Great and Grand, and they include things like Amazon gift certificates, a sterling silver-gold overlay locket, more freshwater pearl jewelry, "No Other" coverart posters and notebooks, goatsmilk soap and lotion (we live on a ranch, remember) honey soap, and postcards, not just of the book's cover, but of my daughter's beautiful photography work. You'll also receive a copy of the short story, "What Happened Next" which was derived from a funny childhood experience of my character, Jakob, one afternoon as his family spiffed up for a photo on their front porch. This story has been published in two journals, and I delight in being able to share it.

Everyone who comments today gets an entry, and if you can answer this question, you get another.

"What's Jakob's sister's name?"

Email me at shawnawilliams@allegiance.tv. The answer can be found in the first chapter of my book, viewable at http://noother-shawnawilliams.blogspot.com/,
or http://www.freado.com/read/6928/no-other-by-shawna-k-williams or in the free sample download from Kindle .

More about Shawna K. Williams at
http://shawnakwilliams.com/
http://shawnawilliams-oldsmobile.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/shawnakwilliams
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Shawna-K-Williams/236629884245?ref=ts

Thanks for popping in, Shawna. Good luck with sales.
Smiles
Steph