Check Out the Reason this Story was Written

Hey Readers! I've got my author-friend, Pamela, back with us today, sharing about the reason she wrote one of her books. I love knowing the backstory to the story!

Award-winning author, Pamela S. Thibodeaux is the Co-Founder and a lifetime member of Bayou Writers Group in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Multi-published in romantic fiction as well as creative non-fiction, her writing has been tagged as, “Inspirational with an Edge!” ™ and reviewed as “steamier and grittier than the typical Christian novel without decreasing the message.”

Links:

Website address: http://www.pamelathibodeaux.com  

Blog: http://pamswildroseblog.blogspot.com

Newsletter: http://bit.ly/psthibnewsletter

Face Book: http://facebook.com/pamelasthibodeaux

Twitter: http://twitter.com/psthib @psthib

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/pamelasthibodea/

Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/1jUVcdU

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/pamela-s-thibodeaux

 NOW FOR THAT "INSIDE SCOOP"

I first penned the story now titled In His Sight, as an entry for a contest Pelican Book Group was hosting in 2008. The working title at that time was The Gift. The hero, Carson Alexander as the gift of ‘sight’ or ‘prophecy’ or perhaps he’s just really tuned in, tapped in, and turned on to his intuition. Whatever you call it, he is able to predict with gut feelings or premonitions some event in the near future. Anyway, I began the story in 2008 then my husband became ill and passed away in 2009. Needless to say this story sat unfinished for quite sometime. In early 2010 I thought….If I don’t finish this story I may never write again. So, I contacted my editor at Pelican Book Group and asked what changes I’d need to make in order to finish and submit the story since the contest had long since been over. We discussed the options and I told her I’d send it as soon as humanly possible. I did, the story was accepted, I signed the contract and then…..

I received my first round of edits. The editor had taken 30 pages out of a 70 page story!!!

That would shock me on a normal day but considering my emotional state at the time I FREAKED. I emailed her and the Sr. Editor and basically had a melt down.

My editor, bless her heart, emailed me back in a hurry…. “Wait! We’re not deleting that information, we’re rearranging it. You have a great suspense story here but you’re giving away too many details along the way.”

Suspense? Me? Surprise!

I don’t write romantic suspense, I write romance. The suspense element just showed up and took over without my even being aware of it LOL!

We talked some more until I understood what she meant and agreed to give it a try. In the course of editing, The Gift just didn’t seem to work anymore – not a very suspenseful title–right? In His Sight kept coming to mind so I finished the edits and sent them in with a proposed title change. The editor was thrilled and agreed whole-heartedly on the title change and In His Sight was published July 30^th 2010.

Grade school teacher Carson Alexander has a gift—a gift that has driven a wedge between him and his family. Worse, it’s put him at odds with God. Feeling alone and misunderstood, Carson views God’s gift of prophecy as the worst kind of curse…that is until he meets Lorelei Conner, landscape artist extraordinaire, and perhaps the one person who may need Carson and his gift more than anyone ever has.  

Lorelei Connor is a mother on the run. Her abusive ex-husband has followed her all over the country trying to steal their daughter. Distrusting of men and needing to keep on the move, she’s surprised by her desire to remain close to Carson Alexander. Through her fear and hesitation, she must learn to rely on God to guide her—not an easy task when He’s prompting her to trust a man.

 Can their relationship withstand the tragedy lurking on the horizon?

Excerpt: Carson Alexander walked through his classroom and tugged desks into a semi circle around the dry eraser board. One thing he loved about teaching sixth-grade English at Stars Crossing Middle School was that the classes were so small. With no more than fifteen students at a time he could work closely with each one and give them the attention they needed and deserved. Another thing he appreciated was the lack of standard or strict curriculum. As long as the children passed the exams set forth by the Department of Education, he could teach as he pleased.

So far, his kids excelled, maintaining some of the highest scores in the entire school. Pride filled his soul and caused his heart to swell, chest to puff out.

Pride cometh before the fall.

The Voice echoed in his mind, ricocheted through his soul. He shrugged off the warning, walked to his desk and picked up the name tags for each incoming student. He thumbed through the stack, pondered each one and wondered about the child attached to the name….Jenny & Jerry Smith – twins or un-related? One name struck him hard, sent unnamed emotion curling through his system – Laurel Connor.

He hadn’t heard the name Laurel in years and then, used only as a surname or when referring to the small town in Mississippi from whence he came. He moved to Stars Crossing, Tennessee five years ago for two reasons. One, the teaching position and two, the town though smaller, reminded him of home.

Memories crashed through the floodgates he’d built around his heart…..the huge two-story house and two-hundred acre farm where he grew up. His seven siblings, parents who adored him – their eldest son, and the pain of losing everything he held near and dear to his heart.

Tears threatened. His vision blurred, hands began to shake. Carson swallowed the lump in his throat, put the stack down, and shoved his hands into the front pockets of his slacks. Adrenaline pumped through him, caused his pulse to skitter and jump. Saliva pooled in his mouth. By sheer force he willed his emotions under control. The bell rang and he turned to greet the children who rushed into the room. He watched as one-by-one they filed in and took a seat.

Purchase Links:

Kindle http://amzn.to/1vJFzHM

Pelican Book Group http://pelink.us/18aucLC

 Are you intrigued? Might oughta get that reading list out and scrawl a new book on it. 

Thanks for sharing with us, Pamela!