Jodie Bailey Interview

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

A: It sounds cliché to say “my whole life,” but really, that’s how long it’s been. My grandmother saved stories I wrote in first grade. Thing is, I never thought it could be a career. In 2008, when my daughter started kindergarten, I started a novel. After that, it all went really, really fast. God’s been driving this bus, and He seems to treating this thing like we’re on the Autobahn. 😉

Q: What does your writing space look like?

A: I write in what used to be my grandmother’s sewing room.  My desk sits where her sewing machine sat.  There’s a big double window to my left and a big comfy chair behind me. The walls are dark purple on the bottom and light purple on the top. The closets are packed with books. I love it in there.  It’s so bright and gorgeous.

Q: In this busy world, how do you find time to connect with God and how does this impact your writing?

A: First thing in the morning, before anyone else gets up, it’s God time. Before I start a book, I get on my knees in front of him.  Have you ever read Allen Arnold’s prayer about consecrating your creativity? http://www.novelrocket.com/2014/05/consecrating-your-creativity.html  I have it printed on a poster in my office. I read it before every book and every “stuck” part of a book.  I’m working through praying every step of a book. Sometimes, I forget to pray when the writing’s going well.

Q: What part of a writing career do you find most difficult?

A: Time. Right now, I’m working part-time at my daughter’s school, and the schedule is split between two classes in the morning and one in the afternoon. Getting into the rhythm has been tough. Writing in a literal closet with a table has been a blessing, but I miss my desk too.

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

A:  When Kristin James is attacked running trails at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, her assailant wants information about her brother, who was killed in Iraq. Kristin is certain her background in personal training means she can take care of herself, but when the danger increases, she leans on Sergeant First Class Lucas Murphy, her brother’s platoon sergeant. Lucas knows Kristin’s brother was suspected of stealing Iraqi artifacts. Kristin believes her brother was innocent, but as they dig deeper and the killer draws closer, the pieces don’t add up to a pretty picture.  In order to survive, Kristin’s will have to rely on the man who is capturing her heart even as he tries to prove her brother’s guilt.

Q: Where did you get your inspiration for this story?

A:  I was actually working on Smokescreen a few years ago, trying to figure out why the “bad guys” would come after a woman. One of he ideas was that her brother overseas had shipped something to her that someone else was trying to steal. The story grew from there.  On a deeper level, I started wondering… What happens if someone close to you isn’t who they seem to be?  What if, in fact, they’re the bad guy? I started exploring what that would do emotionally to someone, and Kristin was born.

Q: Tell us a little about your main character and how you developed him/her.

A: Kristin is a personal trainer who had a very rough younger life.  Her father murdered her mother and left Kristin alive. Her brother left the family soon after.  She views herself as a strong woman, a survivor… but she has some major independence and trust issues.  Along comes Lucas, and he challenges everything she knows about her life, herself, and her family.

Q: What did you enjoy most about writing this book? Least?

A: In the beginning, these characters just talked and talked.  Writing the book was a joy every day, because it just seemed to flow.  It was awesome! And then, about halfway through… brick wall.  Every day became a slog, a fight for each word.  I’m not sure why, but it was like Lucas and Kristin got very, very quiet.  It might be because they were hiding from each other, so they started hiding from me too.  That’s a thing, right?

Q: What is the main theme or spiritual message of this book?

A: I had John 16:33 (NIV) in my mind, especially for Kristin: “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Her whole world was broken and fractured. It was all she knew.  She had to learn through Lucas to find Jesus and let Him help her overcome.

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

A: I’m wrapping up the second book in a three-book series for Love Inspired Suspense. It’s a continuity series with two other authors, about a team of Rangers from E Company in El Paso, Texas, who are trying to track down the sister of a notorious drug lord. My Ranger is battling his past failures in his family when he is tasked to protect a woman who is a dead ringer for their suspect… and whose own family issues mirror his. It’s been fun to work with other writers, putting these stories together.

Q: If you could have dinner with 2 people, who would they be?

A: My aunt died twenty years ago and she was a driving force in my younger years, a mom to me. I’d so love to sit down with her and talk about what’s happened since, let her meet my daughter, ask for her advice, pray with her… As for living people? That’s tough, because there are a lot of them, but let’s be fun and not serious. I think it would be wicked cool to sit down with Paul McCartney.  Come on.  The man was a Beatle.  He helped changed the face of music. And he’s still a force.  Can you imagine the stories he’d tell?

Q: Do you have a favorite hobby?

A: It used to be writing, but now that’s my job. I need to find a hobby because it would be nice to do something that wasn’t work. I think my hobby right now is probably wishing I had a hobby.

Q: What is the most rewarding thing you have ever done?

A:  Wow. Ask a hard question, why don’t you? J  Setting aside the things you’d expect me to say involving my family and my job… I think working as a Family Readiness Group leader when my husband was deployed in Iraq.  I spent hours every month on the phone with the parents of our single soldiers, getting to know them.  We laughed together, were lonely together, we cried together… I still love them all.  We bonded over our shared fears and pride.  I loved being able to help them when they had questions or to comfort them when they were worried.  Our guys were able to work because my friend Jill was helping their wives and I was helping their parents, who were really ministering right back to me. When I look back over the years, yes, that’s a big thing that still makes me smile.

Q: Where can readers find you on the internet?

A: Head over to www.jodiebailey.com and every link you could ever want is right there.

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

A: Hey, if you have any ideas for hobbies that don’t involve paper, pencil, or computer, I’d sure love to know. And sewing is out. I don’t have that kind of patience.  🙂  Thanks for having me here!