THE SPARK THAT BRINGS A NOVEL TO LIFE
By Fay Lamb
Short summary for Fay's latest book, Libby:
Libby
Overstreet can’t see herself as anything but shy and socially awkward. She’s
nearing thirty, and she’s never even been on a date. Then she meets the man of
her dreams, but Libby knows he would never be interested in a wallflower like
her. All she wants to do is to buy that garden nursery on the outskirts of town
and settle down with the life she has always dreamed about. Evan Carter has been
watching the sweet woman in the coffee shop for weeks when his friend tells him
that the object of his affection plans to buy a garden nursery and needs Evan’s
expertise as an architect/contractor. When they meet, Libby is more enamored of
Evan and even more convinced that he would never look at her as anything but a
friend. However, that’s far from the truth. Evan would love to get to know the
innocent beauty God has placed in this path. Trouble is, he fears that a lovely
flower like Libby will wilt under the sins of his past, and he’ll do everything
in his power to keep that from happening.
HOW CHARACTERS BEGIN MOVING AND BREATHING
By Fay Lamb
By Fay Lamb
When a
writer gets serious about her career, she seeks advice. One of the first rules
she will learn is rather vague and open to interpretation.
“Write
what you know,” the experts say.
I
believe that the true meaning is must more complex than this expression.
Yes, we
should write what we know firsthand or have been able to research extensively,
but knowledge in fiction without passion produces dry words if they are not
accompanied by passion. Firsthand knowledge about something isn’t always
required to spark a passion for it.
I live
in a town that sits directly across from the Kennedy Space Center. This place
is rich with space exploration history. If someone asked me to write an
historical novel about this history, I could do it. I know quite a bit about
the history, but I lack a passion for the subject. There are authors out there
who are ardent about this area and its history. I’d rather leave the telling of
that story in their capable hands.
Yet,
even writing what we know and/or have passion for still doesn’t plumb the
depths of the meaning behind “write what you know.”
When I decided
to write contemporary novels set in this familiar area, I really didn’t have
the desire to put any of my characters to work at the space center. Why? As
noted, I lack the passion for that career. Instead, I took two gals and moved
them out of my hometown and into Orlando, Florida. One works in in a profession
that I know inside and out. The other? Well let’s just say it’s a good thing
dreams come true at the end of the story and not the beginning. While the girls
live in Orlando, their pasts are firmly set in my hometown. In my writer’s
mind, I pictured Orlando as a representation of the present and the future
while my hometown represented the past and what needed to be overcome.
All of
the heroines in The Ties That Bind series have issues that mirror my own
experiences. In Charisse and Libby, the stories are very different,
but we do discover that both girls were abandoned by their fathers. While
Charisse’s story centers on forgiveness and moving on from the past, Libby
Overstreet’s past has crippled her. She lacks self-esteem, and she has a
disabling fear of rejection that keeps her from experiencing the awesome gifts
that God wants to bestow upon her, including the love of the man she has asked
God to allow to cherish her and the business she dreams of owning.
Like
both heroines, I experienced firsthand the abandonment by my father. His
departure left me with several issues I needed to face, and you’ve guessed it,
Charisse and Libby face those same problems. Overcoming the negative emotions
and the impact that abandonment places upon a child, even when that child is an
adult, is something I’m very passionate about. But it is the emotions and not
necessarily the issues that will connect a reader to the story. Knowing and
conveying the emotions that are born of issues in our lives can touch an
individual reader in ways an author cannot begin to imagine. That touch might
possibly lead them to the One who can heal the pain. Having felt those emotions
deeply, I try to allow the reader to feel the trauma of a father’s abandonment.
Those feelings sent me to the Lord to seek relief. There, I discovered that
while my earthly father might not have been perfect, my heavenly Father is, and
His arms are all that I need. Not only am I able to convey the bad emotions,
but I am able to relay the good feelings that come with learning the truth of
the situation.
“Write
what you know …” A better translation is “Write where your passions take you.”
When our passions resonate with a reader, that is the spark that brings a novel
to life and might possibly bring new life to the reader.
MEET FAY LAMB
Fay Lamb’s
emotionally charged stories remind the reader that God is always in the
details. Fay has recently contracted with Write Integrity Press for three series.
Stalking Willow and Better than
Revenge, the first two
novels in the Amazing Grace romantic
suspense series is currently available for
Fay
is a past-secretary for American Christian Fiction Writers. She served for four
years as the moderator for ACFW’s critique group, Scribes. For her volunteer
efforts for ACFW, she received the Service Members Award in 2010. She was also
a semi-finalist that year in the ACFW Genesis Contest. Fay was influential in
the creation of the Central Florida ACFW Chapter known as Sonshine Scribes. She
is a past-president and will serve as secretary in 2014.
Fay
and her husband, Marc, reside in Titusville, Florida, where multi-generations
of their families have lived. The legacy continues with their two married sons
and six grandchildren.
Links for the book:
Links for Fay:
http://www.faylamb.com
(Fay’s website and blog: On the Ledge)
http://www.facebook.com/fay.lamb
(personal FB page)
http://www.facebook.com/AuthorFay
(Fay’s fan page)
http://www.facebook.com/TacticalEd
(Fay is the Tactical Editor, sharing self-editing tips)
http://www.twitter.com/FayLamb
(Fay’s Twitter address)
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