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ICFS
Indie Christian Fiction Search

Each book has it's own page with description

WELCOME 
KD HARP
author of:
WHITE LIES

WELCOME
JOANN DURGIN
Author of
   MOONBEAMS

WELCOME 
TOMMIE LYN
Author of
HIGH ON A MOUNTAIN



 

Many writers say they started writing stories when they were children. Is that true of you?
No. While I wrote essays, speeches and the like when I was high school and college, I didn’t try to write fiction. However, from the time I was very young I told myself stories. And when I wasn’t telling myself stories, I was reading incessantly. 
  
When did you start writing fiction?  
I tried to write a story when I was in my 20s. The result was pathetic. I tried again when I was in my 30s. Same outcome. And I decided fiction writing required an inborn talent that I didn’t have. So I gave up.
 
          Until...
 
In the late 1990s, a friend told me his Scottish ancestor had been transported to the colonies and sold as a slave to a plantation near Savannah, Georgia. My response was: What?  No! That can’t be! While there were  indentured servants, there were never any white slaves.
 
But his story piqued my interest, and I delved into Scottish history from that era. And I found that my friend had told the truth. What I learned about the experience of the Scottish people built a fire in my heart, and I wanted people to know at least a little of what happened. Since many folks won’t read a dry history text but will read entertaining fiction, I thought the historical record should be fictionalized to make it more appealing. And, too, I wanted it to be accurate. There are tons of books on the market with bare-chested kilt-clad men on the covers, stories which bear no resemblance to the real Scottish life I’d learned about. 
  
Since I knew I couldn’t write fiction (I’d tried and failed several times, remember?), I tried to get others to write the story, but no one would. Finally, a history professor told me, “If you want it written, write it.”
 
         But…but…I can’t write fiction.
 
I took a deep breath, flexed my fingers and started typing. And that beginning was truly pitiful. But my husband has often said that anyone can learn to do anything, and he pointed out one weekend that 
our local junior college had an offering for beginning writers. He said I ought to sign up for the online class.
 
         So I did. And found out, joy, joy, that he was right. You can learn to do just about anything. Including writing. 
  
My experience in learning to write taught me that being a good writer does not require an inborn talent. What it does require is: 1 – a burning passion for telling a story; 2 – the willingness to study the craft of writing; 3 – a working knowledge of the English language, i.e., spelling, punctuation, grammar; and 4 – the perseverance to work at making your story the best it can be.
 
So, in the spring of 2006, the six years or so of research I’d done about Scottish history began to make its way onto the page, revealed in the life of a character who is now almost as real to me as any flesh 
and blood person I know….Ailean MacLachlainn. 
  
Ailean’s story is titled HIGH ON A MOUNTAIN and you can try it out for FREE.
  
But you know what? His story didn’t stop there, because I couldn’t quit writing. Two books followed the first, DEEP IN THE VALLEY and ACROSS THE WIDE RIVER. I’m currently beginning the fourth book in the  MacLachlainn saga, ON THE RED CLAY HILLS.

WELCOME
GEORGE H. MCVEY,
AUTHOR
OF THE
REDEMPTION TALES
SERIES

A gun toting pastor?  Sounds like an intriguing  combination in the Redemption Tales series.
Actually to call Nathan Ryder a gun toting pastor is a bit of an understatement. Most preachers in the west during the 1800’s carried guns and as a matter of fact there’s an old hymn titled “The Circuit Riding Preacher” that makes mention of it. The song was made famous by Roy Rogers and Dale Evans.  The difference is that Nathan gains a reputation as a gunslinger which was unusual. The idea actually came from some stories my Granny used to tell me. She had a great grandfather that had been both a circuit rider and a sheriff. I wondered how that would work if you were both a good gun and a preacher - which is where the idea of the Redemption Tales came from. 
 
Is any of your real life reflected in your Redemption Series of books?
To be honest there is a small amount of my real life in all my books. Don’t get me wrong I’ve never outdrawn or outshot an outlaw. However I’m a fairly good shot and can ride a horse. The struggles internally that Nathan goes through as a pastor are very much some of the same struggles I’ve had to deal with. But for the most part Nathan is a complete fabrication. 

Thanks for spending some time with us, before we go tell us where we can buy your books?

The links show to your left on screen.



I hear you and Redeeming Grace are up for a couple of awards?
Yes that’s true. I’m nominated for the Indie Romance Convention’s - Author of the Year. Redeeming Grace is nominated for Best Western Romance of 2014. Although I don’t consider myself a Romance Writer nor do I consider The Redemption Tales series as romance novels, there is  romance in them. But then again there are more gunfights, fist fights and deaths than there is romance. However since the nominations come from fans who went out of their way to nominate me, I won’t struggle against the honor too much. But I do want to say don’t pick up those books and think you’re getting a typical romance book because you aren’t. The awards will be given out in September and I’m holding my breath in anticipation and feel honored to have been nominated, regardless of the outcome.   

How did you get started as a writer?
I started writing after I was diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis. It compromised my immune system and limited my social interactions. I discovered the internet and realized one way to continue the message of Christ was to write. I wrote Prayer Walking For Spiritual Breakthrough. God opened my mind and I became a writer.   

How did you start writing Westerns?
I have to blame my Dad for that - if you don’t like my Westerns it’s all his fault. Saturdays were western day and my Dad would make us watch old western movies and TV shows all day long. I grew up on everything from Gunsmoke, to Gene Autry. So when I decided to write a novel it only seemed right to embrace my past and write a western. Thanks Dad! 

Welcome to 
Lisa Grace, Author of
The Angel Series
and
How Real Science Proves
the Bible

1) Hi Lisa, I'm sure everyone wants to know—your favorite type of dolphins: deep water or coastal?
Coastal, hands down. My daughter and I, she's ten, have just gotten into paddle boarding and try to get as close as we can. We live right on a canal on the Gulf Coast of Florida, and I'm a nut for wildlife.
 
2) What sets you apart from all the other coffee swilling authors out there and more importantly, do any of your books include coffee drinkers?
Dunkin' Donuts is my favorite  commercial brand. Arabica beans if I can't get organic small farm Costa Rican ones. I have this fascination with Costa Rica ever since I saw those islands from the plane view in Jurassic Park. Luckily, my 
history mystery romance novel True Treasure, about a naval officer who is falsely accused of being a pirate, is set there.

3) So are you a Christian writer? And rumor has it the first thing you grabbed after being born, was a pencil.
Well,  yes, I am, and that's true, it's a rumor. I'm sure now a days I would have reached for a smart phone and started typing out my own baby alphabet, after I drooled on it for a while first. Yes, I'm a Christian writer and to prove it, I wrote this fun little book, How Real Science Proves The Bible. I get really sick of "theories" which just means "Hey, other scientists, I have an idea I can't prove!"  I call them quicksand theories. It's only $3.49 as an ebook, and contains years of my research.  http://www.amazon.com/Real-Science-Proves-Bible-Grace-ebook/dp/B00LYP81CE/
 
4)  What about this movie deal you have for a hymn writing parrot, how's that going?
Actually, it's my angel series that's been optioned for a major movie. You can get the first book free here:  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0052AI5W8 or from any major ebook retailer.
But  does it have a parrot in it? No, but it does have an opossum in the second book,  Angel in the Storm, 
maybe that's what your thinking of. I had a pet opossum for 4 years. He was a great pet.  
 
5)  I've heard you live right next to the Twilight Zone. Have you ever had a snake dropped on your head or a gator swimming in your pool?
No, but a snake did fall on my sister-in-law's head from the door overhang when she opened her front door, and she had a gator that would skinny dip in her pool. I think she lives closer to the twilight zone than I do. Of course, no one has it as wild and crazy as Cam does in my YA series FEUDAL LAND. It's about her life during the end times as everything falls apart here, in America. I release a new section every two weeks and they're for sale for 99 cents each on Amazon.

6) So any special quirks you have while writing?
I like to watch Life Below Zero free on Hulu while I write. All that snow is the perfect background noise. I can pay attention or not, and I just can't believe people enjoy, and thrive living that way. Visiting Sue at Kavik River Camp is 
now on my bucket list. 

Lisa Grace Angel In The Shadows, Book 1 - Free

The difference between vampires and angels? Angels are real. 

          
Welcome
Samantha Fury,
Author of
Street Justice Series

Who is your favorite character in the Street Justice Series 
It would have to be Angelo Morganson. He's a hardcore undercover cop, that finds himself falling for the pretty redhead Charlie Anderson. He really loves being single, but also enjoys having someone around that cares for him. He's a tough guy, his step brother Joe, is a great help, and though they don't see eye to eye on everything they both are learning to depend on each other when the times get rough.  

What is your favorite book so far
This is really a tough call. I have four books out, and it would be a tie between Book one where we first meet Charlie and Angel, and book one of the California Trilogy, Maid for Martin. They both have great male Mc's and it's so easy to fall in love with both men, Martin Taylor and Angelo Morganson. 

How many books do you plan on having in the Street Justice Series 
I really hope to have ten. It could go higher if the fans and the stories keep coming. I know not everyone enjoys a series, but its so much fun to have the time to delve into each character in depth. I also like to have a few new characters now and then that just appear in one book.

Where did the idea for the Street Justice Series come from?
This idea came from a dream, it's where a lot of my novels come from. I believe that God shares a scene from a book with me, and then he allows me to work out the rest of the story within a few months. Now and then I'll dream a whole story but that doesn't happen a lot.

What genre does your Series fall under?
Christian, Mystery/detective, with some romance. I like to call it Life Fiction, because there is so many things in my novels that deals with every day life problems. It's a bit of Women's Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Suspense, all wrapped up into one series. 
   
How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
It took me about fifteen days to get down the first 50 thousand words, after that I'd say it took me about another two months to finish the first draft.  Then came the hard part the editing and trying to keep one eye on the laptop and one eye on my two babies. I always share Jack & Maxx when I can. 

What other works would compare to your story?
I've been told by some readers that my Series is like Law and Order with kissing, though I must say there are no court rooms scenes, at least not yet. I've had a car chase, a plane crash, drug dealers, and a  kidnapping. There are a lot 
of real life issues, from abortion, to attempted murder, from dealing with dating to living with a non-christian, and in the next few books the saga continues. We see what it's like to live on the streets, we learn about forgiveness, and patience, to name a few.  My characters have many issues, to deal with. I try to lead by example, I like having situations that show Christians in bad circumstances, but in the end I always try to show a way of escape.  

Who or What inspired you to write this Series?
God first because he keeps giving me more dreams and more story lines. Second, I would have to say, the people in the Series inspired me. I just couldn't delve into everything I needed too for one novel, so I thought why not make it a Series.  It's a good way to look into the lives of everyone that live and work around Charlie and Angel, my two main 
characters.  I hope to have at least ten books in this series, and after that who knows, maybe more.  
  
Do you tend to base your characters on real people or are they totally from your imagination?                
My characters may have a trait here or there from someone I admire, but I try to not copy them; they are as original as I can get them.

What was the most interesting research you had to do for any of your books?    
I learned how to make wine, from start to finish.  I did a lot of research on the railroad, and found it all fascinating.  I actually called The Cactus Hotel in Texas and got minute details about its history.  Writing can be a great learning experience. 

What would you like your readers to take away from your stories?
I hope they learn that no matter what life throws at us, that we can handle it.When we get in dark and depressing situations, God may have placed us there for a reason. We are to stay the course and follow the path that he leads us on. It’s not always easy but with his help we can make it and help others along the way. 

www.samanthafury.com 
www.samanthalovern.com 
www.furycoverdesign.com