Amy Wallace Interview

Q: Let me start with asking you to tell us a little bit about yourself.

A. I’m a homeschool mom of three, a blue belt martial artist, a martial arts teacher, a writing teacher for teens, speaker, and happy chocoholic. 😉

Q: When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

A. When my husband told me he’d made an appointment for me to talk to a Secret Service Agent about a book I was writing. He actually lied. I wasn’t writing a book. I’d had a dream and a nudge from God. But having a SS Agent expecting to talk over book ideas made me come up with some. Fast.

After that meeting, I wrote Ransomed Dreams and loved every minute of writing my first novel.

Q: Could you give us the highlights of your professional writing career including how you got your first writing break?

A. My first writing break came from meeting with an amazing bestselling author at the first ACFW (then ACRW) conference. She read my first chapter and talked to me about my first ever novel idea. She liked it so much, she gave me her editor’s direct phone number and said I should call. I learned fast from the editor’s assistant that wasn’t how things were done, but eighteen months after that awful phone call, the same editor emailed me and said she was interested in my novel. I still believe God put an angel with a flaming sword at the foot of my editor’s bed and told her to buy my book. 😉

As for highlights, I’d say being nominated for a Christy, being a RITA finalist with good friend Cindy Woodsmall, and seeing Healing Promises place first in the IRCC were all very cool moments. My favorite highlights are the reader letters though. Hearing how God worked through the pages of my books are true highlights that remind me God is the one directing my steps and working through these stories.

Q: Would you tell us about your current book release?

A: Since I worked hard on the back cover copy, (along with some great writing pals who jumped in to help when I couldn’t find the right words) I hope it’s okay to use that here.

Secrets of the Heart Never Stay Hidden

World weary and down to a threadbare faith, Police Officer Ashley Walters seeks refuge in Montezuma, Georgia, a quiet town with a thriving Mennonite community. Even in the peaceful surroundings, she can’t escape the haunting memories of crime-ridden Atlanta.

Then handsome Marriage and Family Counselor Patrick James partners with a teenaged Mennonite runaway to offer Ashley a second chance at redemption…and romance. But when violence erupts over revitalization plans that pit the Montezuma and Mennonite communities against each other, Ashley is forced to stop the person responsible—even if he is someone she’s come to love.

As God unlocks the secrets darkening Ashley’s heart, she must answer two crucial questions: Who is in control? And can she trust Him?

Q: Where did you get your inspiration for HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT?

A: The inspiration for this Mennonite romantic suspense story started with lots and lots of prayer and a challenge from my agent to try something new. So rather than start with tons of reading research and a suspense plot, I visited a setting I hoped was right, and God led me to the exact people and places and impressions that mixed together to create a story. Some of the story themes came straight from my life: answering the questions of who is in control and can I trust Him, as well as healing from the past.

The revitalization project and the ensuing trouble detailed in Hiding in Plain Sight came from visiting many small towns, including Montezuma, Georgia, and grieving because so many of these pieces of our American heritage are dying out. Stores are closing, people are without jobs. I wanted to do something to show these towns aren’t beyond hope. So I asked some “what if” questions and a whole host of other crazy questions and a story came to life.

Q: What is the main thing you hope readers remember from this storyA: I’d love for readers to experience a closeness with God that eluded Ashley for a very long time and for them to remember the truth that we can rest in God’s perfect ability to carry the ?

Q: What is your favorite scene/chapter from the book?

A: The first and last chapters. The first because of the fun meeting between Ashley and Patrick involving chocolate and a surprise party. The last because I loved how Patrick treated Ashley and her parents on a trip to one of my favorite places: The High Museum of Art.

Q: What inspires you to write?

A. God usually nudges me in a specific direction which leads to questions that I need answered. Some answers I find through research, something I love to do, and others come through wrestling with God over the big questions of life and how my characters need to heal through the course of the story.

Q: How has being a published novelist differed from your expectations of the profession?

A: I believed the writing life was going to be a nice solitary life full of writing fun stories. I’ve been surprised at how much besides writing I have to do and how much not fun work has to be done. It seems God has much to teach me through each story I write. Some of it is fun, but most of it hurts on the way toward healing.

I also had no idea how rich the friendships in the writing world are. I’ve been really blessed by getting to know some of my favorite authors and developing deep friendships with them.

Q: What advice or tips do you have for writers who are just getting started?

A: Hold onto God’s hand and follow His heart for you. Don’t look around to see what He’s doing with or for others, but focus on Him and His journey with you on this writing path.

Q: Would you share with us what you are working on now?

A. Right now, I’m recovering from a stress fracture to my right femur and catching up on some fiction reading. Soon I’ll be working on edits for book two in the Place of Refuge series: Nowhere to Run.

Q: What is something your readers might be surprised to learn about you?

A. That I’m an advanced belt martial artist. After my last martial arts test, (a 2.5 hour tough test where I tested with a stress fracture) I found out many of the women in our martial arts system were VERY surprised at how intense (okay, they said vicious) I can be. But when I huge ox of a guy has you in a headlock and you can’t breathe, nice doesn’t equal breath.

Q: When you’re not writing what do you like to do?

A. I love to hike, especially the Appalachian Trail, and to teach martial arts classes for our youngest students, the Little Tigers, as well as teaching teens and adults in the open classes offered at our school. I also love teaching and mentoring teen authors once a month through a Young Writer’s Club.

Q: Anything else you’d like to tell or share with us?

A. I love connecting with readers and hearing how God has used something I’ve written to encourage their hearts. You can find me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/amywallaceauthor or the Dark Chocolate Suspense site: www.amywallace.com