Chirp and Chatter Pages

Tuesday, January 31, 2017

Author Interview: Lena Nelson Dooley

Great news, friends! Lena will give away an electronic copy of A HEART'S GIFT. Be sure to leave a comment below to be entered in the drawing.




Lena, it's a pleasure to welcome you to Chirp 'N Chatter. Congratulations on your new release! What inspired you to write A Heart’s Gift?

I’ve always loved second-chance-at-love stories, because they take what has been hurt or broken and make something new out of the situation. I really didn’t realize what I was getting into with this one. It had been percolating in my mind and heart for several years. Then while I was writing it, God kept giving me new inspiration that took the story directions I never planned for it. But all these things only made the story better. He even turned the story into a suspense during the last part of the book.

I love second-chance romance stories too. Aside from the romance, what spiritual theme does this book include? How did it come to be a part of this story line?

For some reason many of my books have the theme of truly trusting God, and this one is no exception. And often my books are about forgiveness, often unmerited forgiveness. Another spiritual theme. But there is a totally unexpected spiritual truth woven into this one. I don’t want to give it away, but God revealed a truth to the hero that was very important.

That's exciting! Something to watch for... :) Let's talk about you just a little. I wonder...what makes you laugh out loud?

The antics of my great grandsons. They are 9, 3, and almost 2. And they are a hoot, especially the 3 year old. The 9 year old is becoming very sensitive to the needs of his great grandparents. All three are joys of my heart.

God certainly provides a blessing in our grands, doesn't He? What book are you currently reading?

I have a 3-book series by Sandra D. Bricker that I hadn’t read because of my busy writing year in 2016. I finished reading On a Ring and a Prayer yesterday and started Be My Valentino. Sandra had a unique voice in her writing that made us laugh and then took us deep into the characters. She went home to be with the Lord late last year. I’ll miss her a lot.

I haven't read any of Sandra's work, but now I'll want to look into that. It sounds like she left quite a legacy.

Do you usually insert a spiritual theme into your books? If so, do you have a favorite?

I don’t as much insert a spiritual theme in my books as they grow out of the story. I won’t write a story that doesn’t point the way to the Lord, so as the stories progress, the spiritual theme of the book evolves. I am usually several chapters into the book before I begin to discern that theme.

Your process sounds much like my own. Please share your conversion experience, if you’re comfortable doing so.

My mother died when I was 7 years old. I’d been raised in the church, so God and Jesus were often spoken about in our home. During the summer soon a few months after my mother’s death, our little country church had a revival. My older brother walked the aisle on Wednesday night and gave his heart to the Lord. On Saturday night, I told my daddy that I wanted to as well. In those days, people often thought that young children couldn’t understand what that meant. My father remarried the next year. Once again, I asked if I could walk the aisle and accept Jesus. My stepmother, who was a wonderful woman, told me I was too young to understand. I promised myself then and there that I would never tell a child that. Soon after, they realized that I really did understand. Of course, not everything. But I was allowed to give all that I knew of myself to all I know of Jesus and ask Him to live in my heart.

Well, I'm so glad you were finally allowed to walk that aisle! I also received the gift of the Holy Ghost at the age of 7, and have always considered it a scary thing to keep a child from making that decision when he or she wants to do so. I understand the parents' concern, but Jesus did say, "Suffer the little children to come unto Me." Your decision to live for God has blessed a lot of people through the years.

About A HEART'S GIFT:

Because of an earlier betrayal, Franklin vows never to open his heart to another woman. But he desires an heir. When Lorinda is finally out from under the control of men who made all the decisions in her life, she promises herself she will never allow a man to control her again. But how can she provide for her infant son? Marriage seems like the perfect arrangement until two people from Franklin's past endanger Lorinda. How can he save her? And how will this affect the way they feel about each other?


About the author:

Award-winning author Lena Nelson Dooley has had more than 875,000 copies of her books sold. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and the local chapter, ACFW - DFW. She’s a member of Christian Authors’ Network and Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas.

She has been on the ECPA and CBA Bestseller lists, Publisher’s Weekly bestseller list, and several Amazon Bestseller lists as well as a reviewers Top Ten Books of 2011.

Her awards include: Will Rogers Medallion Awards, the Selah Award, Reader’s Choice book award, a Reader’s Choice blog award. She has finaled in the Can Golden Scroll Award, and finaled three times in for the Carol Award.

In addition to her writing, Lena is a frequent speaker at women’s groups, writers groups, and at both regional and national conferences. She has spoken in six states and internationally. She hosts “The Lena Nelson Dooley Show” on the Along Came a Writer blog radio network.

Lena has an active web presence on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Linkedin and with her internationally connected blog where she interviews other authors and promotes their books.

Website               Blog
Pinterest             Facebook
Twitter                Official Fan Page
LinkedIn             Instagram
Pinterest            Amazon Author Page

2 comments:

  1. Lena, it's an honor to have you on Chirp 'N Chatter! I so enjoyed your interview, and your book sounds wonderful.

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  2. Thank you for hosting me today. I've been out of pocket this morning, but I'm going to announce the interview on my social media sites right now.

    ReplyDelete