Hello reader friends. Today, I get to host an interview that Jody Hedlund sent her influencers for Hearts Made Whole.
Interview Questions for Hearts Made Whole
1. How
did you come up with the idea for Hearts
Made Whole?
Historical textbooks are full of stories about men like George
Washington, Thomas Edison, Andrew Carnegie, and so many more. And while such men are truly
remarkable, all too often their stories overshadow equally courageous and
remarkable women. One of my goals as an author is to help bring forgotten women
of the past to life.
In the Beacons of Hope
series, I'm focusing on historical women light keepers who have often been kept
in the dark by the more prominent stories of their male counterparts.
As
I researched for writing a lighthouse series, I came across a fantastic book
called, Ladies of the Lights: Michigan
Women in the U.S. Lighthouse Service. The book is a tribute to the
approximately 50 or so women who served either as primary or assistant keepers
in Michigan Lighthouses.
I
based the heroine in Hearts Made Whole
on one of those women light keepers. It's my hope to bring her and the other
women keepers
out of the historical shadows and into the spotlight.
2. What is the story about and
who are the main characters?
This story is set at a lighthouse in southern Michigan on Lake St.
Clair where the heroine, Caroline Taylor, is the acting light keeper. However,
in the time directly following the Civil War, women weren't allowed to be light
keepers if a man was available instead. Men were almost always given
precedence.
Along comes the wounded war hero, Ryan Chambers, who having a little
bit of lighthouse experience is looking for a place where he can be isolated
and nurse his physical and emotional wounds.
Of course, when the two meet, they're both competing for the same job.
Caroline needs to stay in the position in order to provide for her four younger
siblings. And Ryan needs the job so that he can save to repay his war debts.
As is always true for my books, when the hero and heroine meet both
danger and romance abound!
3. Each of your
lighthouse books is set at a real lighthouse that once existed in Michigan or
still does exist. Tell us a little about the lighthouse in this second book.
In my first lighthouse book (Love
Unexpected), the lighthouse was set at Presque Isle which is on Lake Huron
on the north eastern side of the state. For the second book, I picked a
lighthouse in a completely new location with the intention of giving readers a
different flavor of climate, geography, and the population.
Windmill
Point Lighthouse once existed on Lake St. Clair near Detroit, a much
more urban and highly trafficked area than the remote wilderness of Presque
Isle. Windmill Point Lighthouse was a strategic beacon that helped ships cross from Lake
Huron over into Lake Erie as those ships transported raw goods from the
Northwest states to eastern cities and seaports.
The
lighthouse is named after the old ruins of a windmill where early frontiersmen
brought their grain for grinding. Also, legends attribute the area to being an old
battle field of a savage encounter between the early French settlers and
Indians. As many as 1000 Fox Indians were slaughtered on the banks of Lake St. Clair.
Later settlers to the area uncovered bones, arrowheads, tomahawks, and other
gruesome mementos of the battle.
Today,
all traces of the original windmill, lighthouse, and burial grounds are long
gone. If you visit Grosse Pointe in the Detroit area, all that remains is a
small conical structure with a white flashing light.
4. Is there anything about this second
lighthouse book that ties it to the first one? Or are they both stand alone
novels that can be read in any order?
All of the
books in the Beacon of Hope series can stand alone. Readers don't need to read
one book to understand the next. However, I do recommend starting with the
novella, Out of the Storm (free in
ebook format) which lays the foundation for a common theme that stretches
through each book in the series.
The hero of Hearts Made Whole, Ryan Chambers, is the
brother of the heroine from the first book (Love
Unexpected). Readers will enjoy meeting the younger, more carefree Ryan in Love Unexpected. But they'll fall in
love with him in Hearts Made Whole
even if they haven't yet met him in book 1.
5. Many of the heroines in your books are
inspired by real women. Is that true of the heroine in Hearts Made Whole? If so, what women provided inspiration?
The woman light
keeper in Hearts Made Whole is
inspired by Caroline
Antaya. Caroline lived at the Mamajuda Lighthouse on the Detroit River a
short distance away from Windmill Point Lighthouse.
Caroline's husband served with honor in the Union army during the Civil
War, losing several fingers on his hand at Gettysburg. Eventually after
returning from the war, her husband was named as keeper of the Mamajuda
Lighthouse, but he passed away of tuberculosis.
Part
of what really impressed me about Caroline Antaya's situation was that she had
been doing a fantastic job as a light keeper. But the district lighthouse inspector
trumped up charges against her saying that she was in ill-health and
incompetent. He took away her position simply because she was a woman and gave
it to a man instead. Fortunately, her community rose to her defense and
enlisted the help of a Michigan Senator to help her get her position back and
she went on to serve as a light keeper for another three years.
In those days, when women were regularly discriminated against because
of gender, Caroline's story is inspirational and an encouragement to persevere
in the face of injustice. I admired Caroline's will to stand up for herself and to
pave the way for women coming after her to use their God-given talents and
abilities in roles and jobs that had previously been closed to women.
6. You also like to base your villains on real Michigan criminals. Who
inspired the villain in Hearts Made Whole?
The villain in Hearts Made Whole
is Stephen Simmons, a real rogue from the pages of Michigan history. While he
lived in the early 1800's in the decades before the Civil War, I used this
villain as the basis for Mr. Simmons in the book. He had a tavern outside of
Detroit and was a Goliath-of-a-man. At first he gave the impression of being
cultured and educated. But once people got to know him, they realized what a
brute he really was.
The community where Simmons lived grew to fear him because when he was
under the influence of alcohol, he searched out his enemies, picked fights, and
inflicted painful beatings. Eventually he killed his wife in a drunken rage.
7. Which
scene in Hearts Made Whole was the most fun to write? Which was the hardest?
My
favorite scene to write was the shaving scene, where Ryan is attempting to
shave himself one-handed (due to his war injury), and he ends up doing a terrible
job! Caroline offers to help him which leads to a very romantic scene of her
lathering him up and having to spend plenty of time in close proximity.
The
hardest part of the book to write was the scene where Caroline's sister Tessa
makes a BIG mistake (I can't mention it otherwise I will spoil the story). But
it was a heart-wrenching scene (and difficult to write tastefully and required
lots of editing to get it just right).
8. What
do you hope readers take away from Hearts
Made Whole?
Readers
familiar with my books will know that I'm not afraid to tackle really tough
issues. That's especially true in Hearts
Made Whole. Since the hero is coming home as a Civil War veteran, he's
facing some post-traumatic stress as well as debilitating war wounds that leave
him addicted to his pain medicine.
At
the same time the heroine is struggling to act as both father and mother to her
four siblings while holding down a job as light keeper. She has the
overwhelming job of trying to take care of everyone and everything while always
remaining strong.
Both
characters come to a point where they recognize they can't face all of their
overwhelming troubles on their own and cry out to God their desperate need for
Him. I hope that readers will take away a desire to turn to God in their most
desperate needs too and know that He is there waiting to comfort and help them.
9. Why lighthouses? What fascinates you about these shining beacons?
I'm
fascinated with lighthouses for a number of reasons. First, my state of
Michigan is home to the greatest concentration of lights in the United States.
In fact, Michigan is noted as the state where the most lighthouses were
erected. And now today, more than 120 remain compared to 500 total for the rest
of the nation.
Not only are lighthouse beautiful and picturesque, but they bring back
a sense of nostalgia, poignancy, and romance that few other historical markers
do. They're rich in historical details and stories. They're wrought with danger
and death. And they're just plain fun to explore. Climbing the winding
staircase, reaching the top, and peering out the tower windows (or in some
cases going out onto the gallery) is breathtaking.
10. What kind of rules
and regulations did lighthouses have?
The
rules and regulations for keepers were often very strict. Keepers were expected
to maintain spotlessly clean homes and towers, had to be ready for surprise
inspections at any time, and had to maintain rigorous log books with accurate
records that documented everything from ship wrecks to oil usage to weather
conditions.
One
rule that I found especially funny was that women were prohibited from painting
the lighthouse tower. Obviously their skirts put them at a disadvantage over
men, especially for painting jobs that required them to sit high above the
ground. Nevertheless, it was one more area where women were not allowed the
same privileges as men.
General Questions:
11. How do you manage to balance your life as a
full time author and mom to five busy children?
It’s
definitely not easy to manage my busy household of five children and squeeze in
time for writing. But fortunately my husband is very helpful and pitches in to
help wherever possible. We really work together as a team to support each other
in our pursuits and work.
For example,
when he's home he often takes over the household responsibilities, runs kids to
activities, and pitches in with homeschooling so that I can have concentrated
blocks of time to write.
We've also
simplified our home life and outside commitments as much as possible. We expect
our children to shoulder responsibilities around the home. And last, but
certainly not least, I rely upon my mom for lots of help too. She helps
homeschool, cook meals, and even runs my kids to activities.
12. Do you ever get writer's block?
How do you work your way past it?
No,
fortunately, I rarely get writer’s block. I give myself a daily word count of
how much I need to write, and I stick to it as best as I can. Whatever amount I
miss one day, I try to make up on another day of that week. Having the
daily/weekly goals helps keep me going even when I’m not in the mood. However,
if I ever get into a slump, I put in my earbuds and listen to music. The steady
rhythm helps me block out distractions, inspires me, and often evokes strong
emotions deep inside me.
13. Do you do a lot of research for your novels?
Do you do it before, in the middle, or after you write your novel.
Since I write
historicals, research is an integral part of my writing process. I usually
spend anywhere between 4-6 weeks on initial research, reading biographies,
getting a feel for the time period, and digging into the meat that will
comprise the plot of my book.
Once I start
writing the first draft, I have to stop from time to time to do a little more
research, particularly if I switch settings within the story. But usually, if I
don’t know something, I’ll highlight it and then do more research during my
editing phase.
14. How do you name each character?
The process of coming up with
names is quite complicated, and I generally take a lot of elements into
consideration. I keep a running list of all the heroes and heroines of my books
and try not to duplicate anything too closely to a name I've already used.
I also take into consideration
names used doing the time period and the ethnicity of my characters. For
example, in my first lighthouse book, Love
Unexpected, I chose Irish names that were commonly used during the 1800's
because both of the main characters had an Irish heritage.
Sometimes I consider symbolism for
names. Other times, particularly in my inspired-by stories, I try to pick a
name that is similar to the character from history that I'm portraying.
15. What essential ingredients
do you strive for in your novels to ensure an authentic love story emerges?
I always try to incorporate the elements that I like to see in the
romances I read. That includes deep emotions that are birthed out of a
character's past. I also like to have a relationship that evolves organically
throughout the book. I try not to have my characters being antagonistic to one
another the whole book and then finally falling in love in the last chapter at
the last minute. I want the couple to move from friendship to falling in love
gradually and to have a growing attraction (with the sparks flying!) throughout
the book.
At the same time, however, I don't like to have the love relationship
resolve too early in the book. Readers don't want the
"happily-ever-after" moment to come until the end. So while the
relationship is developing, it's important to find ways to keep the couple from
being fully together until the end.
16.
What stands out in your mind about what has made you grow the most as a writer?
If I had to narrow down one specific
thing that has helped the most in my quest for publication, I’d have to say
this: My careful, ongoing, and thorough study and practice of writing
techniques has been the single most beneficial aspect of my writing career.
In other words, I read writing craft books, studied fiction-writing basics, and
then put what I learned into practice. All the studying has been the
number one thing to help me in my writing career.
17. What Scripture verse has
inspired you in your writing?
Among many,
here’s one I aspire to live by: Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all
your might. (Ecc. 9:10) I believe in working responsibly and hard with the
gifts we’ve been given.
18. What do you do to get away from it all?
READ!! I
absolutely love reading! When I find a really good book, I have a hard time
tearing myself away from it to get to sleep.
19. Do you have any pets?
Yes, I have
four big (and I do mean BIG) cats by the names of Petunia, Patriot, Toby, and
Liberty. They are incredibly spoiled and well-loved by all members of the
house. And I have one dog, a Golden Retriever named Annabelle.
20. What is your family up to these
days?
My husband
and I are celebrating 24 years of marriage this summer! Yay! My oldest son is
graduating from high school and will be attending a private Christian college
in the fall, Cedarville University in Ohio. My twins will be turning 16 during
the summer and getting their driver's licenses. Since they are involved in SO
many activities, I'm looking forward to them driving themselves places! My
youngest two children have completed 4th and 6th grade and are in an Adventures In Odyssey phase. I think
they've listened to just about every episode that's ever been made!
Jody's Bio:
Jody
Hedlund is a best-selling and award-winning author who loves history and
happily-ever-afters. She makes her home in Midland, MI with her husband and
five children. When she's not writing another of her page-turning stories, you
can usually find her sipping coffee, eating chocolate, and reading.
Contact Jody:
Or you're welcome to email
me at: jodyhedlund@jodyhedlund.com
