Thursday, January 17, 2013

Nona Mae King Interview (with Mary Nichelson)

 
  
Picture
Author Nona Mae King admits that writing is her passion.  At the age of 16, she began penning her young adult fiction series Changing Scenes as “the only safe way for a shy girl like me to experiment with the choices and actions that came with life.”  In college, she began writing skits, songs and full-length plays for her church which enabled King the opportunity to direct, act and sing in front of an audience. Today, she is celebrating the release of her novel Searching For Sara and looking ahead to the release of two sequels in the series. King shows no sign of slowing down and concedes that retiring her pen is not in the plan. “I adore the spinning of the unwritten tale – that lesson waiting to be divulged to others. What tale will this day reveal? I have but to open my heart and mind and listen.”

MN- You've written five books now including historical/medieval romance. Is it safe to say you are a romanticist at heart?

NK- Oh, definitely! Even my paranormal fantasy books have a smattering of a love story woven into them. In fact, one of the best aspects of writing a new story is how to weave a hint of the romantic, whether that is a main ingredient or not.

MN- Your latest novel, Searching For Sara, is the first in the Heart of the Blessed series. Tell me a little about the series.

NK- There are two more books in the series, Releasing Yesterday (Dec. ‘13) and Broken Angel (Dec. ‘14). I have a vague idea for two others, but I’m not certain, yet, if they’re going to make it to the list. My goal is to be able to cover each of the Beatitudes with a novel (Matt. 5:3-12). Searching for Sara covered v4 ‘blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted’, and v5 ‘blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.’ Releasing Yesterday will focus on v7 ‘blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy’ and v9 ‘blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called sons of God.’ Finally, Broken Angel will target v3 ‘blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven’ and v6 ‘blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.’ 



It’s a daunting prospect, and I find I have more success when I don’t TRY to make the novel fit the mold but, rather, let my heart and spirit DO. Prayer and patience are key, of course. To be honest, I had no idea the series would be based on the Beatitudes until the project was well underway. That is one of the things I love about writing, the revelations that blossom throughout the path of a project.

MN- An interesting tidbit regarding Searching for Sara is that you created it during NaNoWriMo. Tell our readers what that is and how the novel came into existence during this month.

NK- Actually, I utilized NaNoWriMo to write a possible alternate beginning when I was entertaining the idea of another complete rewrite. This idea was later discarded, although I might use pieces of the NaNoWriMo portion in the sequel, Releasing YesterdaySearching for Sara was written in its entirety, and finished, well before I even knew about this addicting contest.

MN- II Corinthians 5:17 is important to you as an author. What is it about the concept of the old passing away and all things becoming new that has sparked such passion?

NK- One of the greatest challenges for me as a Christian is to overcome the Enemy’s daily reminder of my past failures. From relationships to story lines, if there is an aspect that did not fall in line with my idea of a Christian theme, it is used against me. 2 Corinthians reminds me that we are a new creature in Christ. He allows us these precious moments to begin anew. To grow in our faith and in our witness for others, so we can attest to His great mercies. His patience. His unending devotion to us, His children. In that promise there is hope, each new day, for me to once again craft my heart to fulfill His desire for my future.

MN- Happy New Year! What is on your writing agenda for 2013?

NK- May of next year I hope to release Silver & Iron, the sequel to my paranormal fantasy To Save A Soul. December of 2013 and 2014 I will release book 2 and book 3 of the Heart of the Blessed series. Once those are released, I will weigh the responses and see if I should write more for the series, or if I will move onto my suspense romance, Myth of Reality.

MN- Do you have any New Year's resolutions?

NK- Not really, no. I make goals each year, yes, because that helps keep me motivated and moving forward. I find that goals are easier to hold to than resolutions. :) Perhaps that’s semantics, but it works for me.

MN- Complete this sentence. When no one is looking, I love to........

NK- I’m not that mischievous. If anything, I would pull out a little notebook and start writing.

Author Bio-  Nona King was born in Oregon City, Oregon, and grew up on a 30-acre homestead in historic Aurora, population 540. She has been writing songs, plays, and romance & adventure novels since the age of sixteen. Her first paranormal fantasy series, The Soul Cycle, is a winner of the National Novel Writing Month and based on adventure modules written by her husband, Michael King. Her inspirational romance, Searching for Sara, won Honorable Mention in the 2011 Deep River Books Writing Contest.
Nona started her own publishing company, Angel Breath Books, in 2008. ABB publishes novels focusing on faith, honor, justice, and the importance of communication in our relationships with others.

You can learn more about the book and author Nona King through Angel Breath Books website, the book's website, Nona's personal website and her Amazon Author Page. Be sure to friend and follow her on Twitter  and facebook!
 
Other interviews featured in this issue: Kathy Brace, Darrell Huckaby, & Peggy Flowers Taylor.
 
About Mary Nichelson: http://www.marysworld411.com/
 
This interview is courtesy of The Wordsmith Journal Magazine .
 

1 comment:

  1. Was the sequel to SEARCHING FOR SARA ever released. I have been searching for RELEASING YESTERDAY and can't find it on Amazon.
    Thank You,
    sdhalladay@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete