Author
Spotlight
In this weeks Author Spotlight, I interview Alexandra Swann, co-author of, The Twelfth Juror, a contemporary Christian fiction.
What is your book about?
The Twelfth Juror is a Christian fiction
suspense mystery. Megan Cleary is a
successful attorney who seems to have everything. But her perfect world is shattered when one
night, while working late, she is brutally attacked by a stranger. After the attack, Megan’s world unravels and
the more she tries to regain control the worse things get for her.
What inspired you to write
this book?
My mother, Joyce, and I co-author a lot of books. Her book, The
Warrior, has been downloaded 80,000 times on Kindle since its publication. She actually had the idea for the ending to
this book before we wrote the story, and the story grew out of that. Basically the inspiration for this book is our
experience with loss. When you go
through a devastating loss it changes you, it changes your life, and how you
look at life. Nothing is ever the same
again.
Who is your favourite, and
least favourite, character in the book?
I
love Megan—she is so self-centered and self-confident at the beginning of the
story, and we get to see how she grows as a person through what happens to her. I also love Mother Harriet. She is very grounded and sensible, although
Megan overlooks her initially. My least
favorite is definitely Jeff—I dated a guy like Jeff when I was younger, and he
gives special meaning to the term “fair weather friend.”
What draws you to this
genre? Do you write in any other genre?
We
only write Christian fiction and inspirational fiction. I love having the opportunity to share faith
and hope through stories. But the story
has to be good—the faith element can never be a supplement for a good story.
Is this a standalone book,
or can we expect more?
This
is a standalone. We thought about
writing a sequel, but the story does not really lend itself to a sequel, so I
don’t think that will ever happen.
Tell me about you and what
drew you to writing? Are there any authors who inspired you to become a writer
yourself?
Mother
was constantly writing when I was a child.
I think her love for it drew me to it.
She loved to tell us stories and to write all kinds of short stories and
poems. We got started writing together
because when I finished school, I had more time on my hands than she did. We would talk through story ideas and I would
write them. These days, she has more time
than I do so she writes a lot more than me.
Other than your own book,
what is your favourite novel?
I
can’t limit it to just one. I have read A Tale of Two Cities about three
times. To me that book is great
inspirational fiction. We don’t think of
it that way because it is a classic, but it is this beautiful story of laying
down your life for a friend with a little scripture worked in against this
wonderful backdrop of Revolution and love and loyalty and loss.
I
feel the same way about Les Miserables. It is an amazing story that is so moving and
yet timeless.
Have you written other books
we should know about?
Joyce
and I have co-written The Fourth Kingdom
which was a top four finalist in the 2011 Christianity
Today fiction of the year contest. (Christian
author Erin Healy, who has co-authored with Ted Dekker, was also a finalist for
that awarded and we both lost to Anne Rice). That book was written in 1989 and published in 2010.
We wrote the sequel The Force, in 2013.
Both are
available as a box set called The KingdomChronicles.
In
2012, I wrote a novel called The Planner
which came out of my experiences working with real estate for 15 years. Joyce and I co-authored the sequel, The Chosen. Both of those are also available as a box set
called W.
I
am working on a new novel called The Invitation,
which is more inspirational than Christian fiction, but I am excited about the
project and the message of the story.
If you could advise aspiring
writers on only one aspect of authordom, what would your advice be?
Don’t
give up. You have days when you want to
because being an author is so difficult, but don’t give up. Keep going. If you have the stories, keep writing, working and building your
audience. A dream is work sacrificing
for.
Where can we find your book?
How can we find out more about you?
I love discovering new authors and reading new books. This is great for christians.
ReplyDeleteI agree about Les Mis it is one of the most significant classics of our time and I like the idea of a mother-daughter co-authorship. How lovely is that?
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this. I love finding out about new authors I haven't heard before. Its a great way to have a feel of what their book or story will be like.
ReplyDeleteHer book sounds interesting. Ditto with Claire. I like discovering new authors.
ReplyDeleteWhat a dream to write a book as a mother/daughter team. I think that is something I would love to do with my own daughter when she gets older. She loves to write stories, and I love to help her with it!
ReplyDeleteI am in need of some new books to read. I will have to check this one out and see if I can get for my kobo - Jeanine
ReplyDeleteIt sound interesting, especially as the author said her mother had the idea of the ending of story even before they wrote the story. I found it, unique.
ReplyDeleteI love stories that are inspirational. One reason we read is to experience "life" through a character. If we can walk away with something - it is all a bonus!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a wonderful book. I'll have some down time over the holidays to look into reading more. can't wait to see what other titles she has.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds an interesting book. Great interview with the author too! I love books that just make you want to read them and leave you feeling inspired!
ReplyDelete"Don’t give up" - words to live by. Great interview.
ReplyDeleteThat is so cool to have a writing relationship with your mother – that must be A LOT of fun. I would love it if I could co-author a book with my Mom. Also, 80,000 downloads is a great accomplishment!
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