Interview with Gina Holmes  & GIVEAWAY  | The Engrafted Word

Mary Ellis grew up close to the eastern Ohio Amish community of Geauga County, where her parents often took her to farmer’s markets and woodworking fairs. She loved their peaceful, agrarian lifestyle, their respect for the land, and their strong sense of Christian community. She met her husband in college and they married six days after graduation. She, her husband, dog and cat now live in Medina County, close to the largest population of Amish in the country—a four-county area in central Ohio. They often take weekend trips to purchase produce, research for her best-selling books, and enjoy a simpler way of life. Mary enjoys reading, traveling, gardening, bicycling and swimming. Before retiring to write full-time, Mary taught Middle School in Sheffield Lake, Ohio and worked as a sales rep for Hershey Chocolate for twenty years a job with amazingly sweet fringe benefits. – See more at: http://www.fictionfinder.com/author_interview/read/interview_with_mary_ellis#sthash.8UloesBt.dpuf

Gina Holmes is the founder of  Novel Rocket, regularly named as one of Writers Digest’s best websites for writers. Her debut, Crossing Oceans, was a Christy and Gold Medallion finalist and winner of the Carol Award, INSPY, and RWA’s Inspirational Reader’s Choice, as well as being a CBA, ECPA, Amazon and PW  bestseller. Her sophomore novel,  Dry as Rain was a Christy Award finalist. Her latest novel, Wings of Glass has been named as one of the best books of the year by Library Journal and was a SIBA Okra pick and a finalist for Romantic Times’ Reviewers Choice Award. She holds degrees in science and nursing and currently resides with her family in southern Virginia. She works too hard, laughs too loud, and longs to see others heal from their past and discover their God-given purpose.

To learn more about her, visit www.ginaholmes.com.

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Savanna:  Welcome to The Engrafted Word, Gina! Congratulations on your recent release, Driftwood Tides. What a beautiful cover, by the way. 🙂 What lesson do you hope your readers will take away from this story?

Interview with Gina Holmes  & GIVEAWAY  | The Engrafted WordGina:  Thank you, the Tyndale team does an amazing job with my covers. I’m really blessed! The lesson I want readers to take away is always a difficult question for me because I don’t set out with an agenda. I just want to tell a story or raise questions that I’m grappling with myself. But it’s a fair question and one I’ll have to answer again so let me do my best. One of the questions I raise in this book is what makes family, family. Is it blood or dedication, love or something else. Another question I raise is why is it we are so forgiving of others but not of ourselves?

Savanna: Which character from your latest book do you most relate to?

Gina:  Good question. I believe every character I write is a facet of my personality, for good or bad. I guess I can really relate to Libby most closely though. I’ve had to do some personal searching myself regarding family. I wasn’t raised by my mother for most of my life so I learned to expand my definition of parents.

Interview with Gina Holmes  & GIVEAWAY  | The Engrafted WordSavanna:  What has been one of the greatest lessons you’ve learned through entering in writing contests?

Gina:  How subjective everything is. I entered Crossing Oceans (my debut) into a well known contest before it was contracted. It didn’t place, but went on to earn a contract, many awards and was a bestseller. That doesn’t mean the contest didn’t know what they were doing, just, again, it’s all very subjective.

Savanna: When did you first start speaking? Do you have a particular favorite subject among the many topics you offer?

Gina:  I learned back in high-school that although I was painfully shy, put me on a stage and I do great. I’ve given lectures and talks ever since. My favorite subject … that’s a tough one. I love teaching about the business of writing, but my heart is to the hurting. I love telling people about Jesus and the restoration and victory that is in Him.

Interview with Gina Holmes  & GIVEAWAY  | The Engrafted WordSavanna: There’s no better subject than that. 😉

If you were to give a tour to some visiting friends of your home state of Virgina, what would be your first stop and why?

Gina: Love this question. We have a hiking destination nearby called The Cascades. Hiking to a waterfall sounds nice, but having been to some of the most beautiful places in the world, I can tell you that this waterfall is right up there with them. And when you get to the fall, there’s a natural pool it feeds into. Sure the water is Antarctic cold, but that’s part of the charm!

Savanna:  Oh wow! I’d love to see that. 😉 Thank you so much, Gina, for sharing with us today. Many blessings on your writing!

Readers, be sure to visit Gina’s website to learn more about her and her books.

There are downloads, sign-ups, and freebies—valuable resources that I hope stir your passion for God and His Word. So take your time. Look around. Visit often. – See more at: http://www.mesuandrews.com/#sthash.h5gue3da.dpuf

GIVEAWAY!!

Gina has graciously offered one copy of Driftwood Tides to one lucky winner!

Interview with Gina Holmes  & GIVEAWAY  | The Engrafted WordHOW TO ENTER:

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Thanks for entering! Contest is open only in the U.S. and ends September 23, 2014.
Winner will be notified by email.

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