I enjoyed Julie’s Q&A a few weeks ago so much that I asked if she minded if I played copycat and did the same. So here are my answers to Julie’s ten questions.
1. Who are you? I’m a believer in Jesus Christ, blessed wife of Ken, mother to four awesome married kids (with four awesome spouses), and “Mimi” to thirteen precious grandchildren. After being privileged to stay home with our children, God gave me the next best job: writing novels. I’ve now written over 40 books and hope to have two more out next year.
2. Where are you from and where do you live? I was born in Texas while my dad was in the Air Force. But my roots are in Kansas, and that’s where my husband and I grew up and where we raised our kids near our parents and grandparents. Four and a half years ago, after our own two daughters had the audacity to attend college out of state, marry local guys, and give birth to seven of our grandbabies in Southeast Missouri, we made the move to live near them. (We also have two sons and six grandkids in Texas!)
3. What do you like to do in your spare time? My passions are home decor, nurturing and propagating houseplants, all things coffee, and of course, reading! I also love garage sales, flea markets, and antique shops. Every Friday that we can, my husband and I have a garage sale date. We’ve been doing this for over ten years now and it never gets old. (Not to mention, we’ve saved quite a bit of money finding things we need second-hand, including most of the furniture and even a few of the plants on our screened porch pictured below.)
4. Can you tell us a little bit about your faith journey? I grew up in a little country, Bible-believing church in Kansas, which recently celebrated its 150th anniversary! There, I memorized Scripture, learned all the wonderful Bible stories, and truly believed in God from a young age. But at 17, longing to be popular, I made a conscious decision to walk away from the Lord and live the beer-party lifestyle my high school friends were living. The entire year that I was “prone to wander,” I knew that ultimately, I wanted to return to the faith of my parents. I wanted the joyful kind of life they had! And one Friday night, I lay in bed, still a little woozie from a beer party, and repented of my sins, and gave my life completely over to Christ. When I woke up the next morning, I knew I was changed. I’ve never looked back, and despite life’s trials and sorrows, I can’t imagine living without Jesus as my Lord and Savior.
5. If you had to describe yourself in three words, what would they be? Believer, Wordsmith, Joy-finder.
6. What inspires you? I’m inspired by the beauty of God’s creation and I’m especially inspired by the creativity God gave us. So many talented people with such a wide variety of gifts and skills! It’s amazing and I love filling our home with evidence of all that creativity—art and music and woodworking and games and delicious recipes!
7. How did you get into writing? Ever since the summer I read all of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books, I wanted to grow up and write books that would give readers the same pleasure and awe I felt when reading Ms. Wilder’s books. But even more than that, I wanted to be a mom. (At 12, I thought I wanted 12 children!) Despite doctors telling me I probably wouldn’t conceive, God blessed us with four children, including an “oops baby” born when our older three were 14, 10, and 8. I desperately wanted to stay home with our youngest, but also needed to find work to earn some money to help our oldest with college. At that point, I felt God was tapping me on the shoulder saying, “Remember that book you’ve always wanted to write? Start writing!” So on New Year’s Day 1994, I did! My first two-book contract with Bethany House Publishers paid an advance on royalties that was to-the-penny what we’d just been told our son’s four years of college—room, board, and tuition—would cost. (Keep in mind college was considerably cheaper 30 years ago!) My first novel, A Vow to Cherish, inspired the World Wide Pictures film of the same title, and now, 40+ books later, we have four college graduates and I’m finally able to spend my royalties on something other than college!
8. What inspired your latest book and what is the story behind it? My new series is called The God Who series and it explores the attributes of God. During a recent sermon series in our church, I noticed how many of the Scriptures our pastor referenced described God as “The God who…touches the mountains, who stirs up the sea, who names the stars, who measures the oceans, and on and on. Those inspired my titles for this next series and Who Touches the Mountains will release next year. I can’t wait to show you the beautiful covers my husband has designed for this series!
9. What are you working on now? I’ve taken a short break from The God Who series in order to write a sequel to my novella originally titled Playing by Heart (later published as A January Bride, part of the Winter Brides collection from HarperCollins). Playing by Heart was my first Christy Award finalist, and I’m delighted to now have the rights back to it. It’s been a joy writing this sequel, Playing for Keeps, that’s been percolating in my imagination for almost twenty years now! I’ll be revealing the cover for that book soon too!
10. What are your goals and aspirations? Many years ago, I wrote a mission statement for myself to help me know what to say yes to and what to graciously decline. I’m not always successful in fulfilling my mission statement, but I think it answers this question about goals and aspirations well: In all my roles (wife, mother, “Mimi,” daughter, sister, aunt, friend, teacher, and writer) I want to reflect Christ—in the way I behave and in the way I think. I want to enjoy, without guilt, the fun parts of life as a child of God, to be faithful in the not-so-fun parts, to always be open to anything God might ask me to do, and to be a blessing to everyone whose life I touch for even a brief moment.
Oh, that I was always successful in living out that mission statement, but alas, I’m a work-in-progress, and to quote the Sunday School song, “He’s still working on me.”
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LOVED reading through this and seeing the overwhelming evidence of God’s faithfulness throughout your life. He. Is. So. Good. But where on earth is mention of the bread you make so wonderfully? I cannot wait to come see you and get lessons firsthand. 😉
Haha! I am getting ready to make a batch this morning! And yes, I should have mentioned it! It has become such a part of our lives that I take it for granted. But ooooh, it’s yummy. And I can’t WAIT till you are in my kitchen helping me grind flour, dear friend!
You are such a shining light in His kingdom. I am blessed to know you.
Aww, bless you, Lynn. I could say exactly the same about YOU on both counts!
Deb, I enjoyed reading about your family and your journey. I’m blessed to have met you and hope to get to know you better in the coming years. Your family is beautiful! Have a wonderful Christmas!
I’m blessed to have met you, Deena! It’s always a joy when I discover you are at a conference I’m attending! A blessed Christmas to you, too!
Love this, Deb. And while you have nurtured the same plant since 1980, my “black thumb” can kill an air fern (which isn’t actually alive to start with). When I see all your photos of your home and your decorating, I am very aware that I was hiding behind a door when some “genes” were handed out.
LOL! And you have techie skills I can only dream of, Robin. And historical research skills. It all evens out in the end. Haha!
thanks for sharing a bit about you. I am also a work in progress. And probably always will be. LOL I think that I am: Christ believer / Joyful / creative
Those are three great words to be described by, Lori. Blessings.
A January Bride was the first thing I read by you and loved it. Thanks for sharing these ten things and the as always beautiful pictures.
Oh, thanks so much, Betty. It was so fun to write and I’m having a blast with the sequel too. Hope you’re enjoying these holiday weeks.
Hi Deb, I loved reading this and learning more about you! You always bring such encouragement and joy whenever you share posts on social media or here on the blog. Thanks!
Carrie, I JUST finished watching your cheery Christmas tour and could say the same thing about you…so much joy and encouragement! Love you!
I really enjoyed reading your answers, Deb! You are talented and blessed in so many areas.
Thanks again for sharing those questions, Julie. It was a fun Q&A.
Dear Deborah,
First of all, I’ve read a number of your books, and have enjoyed every one of them.
As I read this post in which you’ve shared about yourself, I couldn’t help but smile wide. I am 76 years old,and our grandchildren are all grown, but we too have 4 married children, and 13 grandchildren. 7 of our grandchildren live near us in southwestern PA, while 3 are in Arizona, 1 lives in NYC, another lives in eastern PA, and one lives near Columbus, Ohio. My husband and I married young, and before I was 25, we had our 4 children.
We have been married for 57 years, and I thank God for bringing us together as kids until we were ready to fall in love.
I also wanted to be a writer when I was young, but it just never bloomed. When I was in my forties, God helped me see that He was calling me to be an emcourager, and I found much joy and peace by writing notes to people to lift their spirits. I asked Him to help me remember the people, but that He would take my words from my memory so that I wouldn’t be tempted to think the words I wrote were my own when I longed for them to be His.
Thank you for sharing your life and your beautiful writing with readers like me!
May you rejoice in the Savior’s birth once again, and have a joy-filled, healthy and happy holiday with your family!
Oh Lynn, what a gift your notes of encouragement must be to those who receive them. (And I feel like I received one in this comment!) I have a couple of friends who have that same gift of writing notes of encouragement and I doubt they will ever fully know (until Heaven) what a blessing their words are to the receiver! It is truly a gift from God!
Wonderful Q & A, terrific story (even though I don’t know how you keep track of all the grandchildren), inspiring writer and faithful Christian…what more could your readers ask for? As always, Deb…thank you!
LOL! It IS a full-time job keeping track of all those kids! But oh, they are each so precious in their own way. Thank YOU for your sweet comment.
I’ve known you for years, but it was so wonderful to look at your answers and learn even more about you. Love your idea for your next series, and will be praying for you as you write it. It’s a joy to know you, Deb! May the Lord bless you and Ken in this wonderful holiday season.
Your prayers are coveted, Angie. Thank you so much, and same right back to you and Gary and your family.