Welcome back to the blog, Cara! I am SO thrilled to welcome you here and celebrate your debut release, The Rock!

So first off, when did you first know you were a writer?

Mother’s Day weekend 2012 at a women’s retreat on the Oregon coast. I felt the Lord validate my writing as not just a hobby or a waste of time like underwater basket weaving (Sorry to any underwater weavers out there.) Nine years ago this Mother’s Day. Feeling sentimental about that.

Love that! Nine years… and the journey isn’t over yet! 😉

What do you love most about your hero and your heroine in this story?

I like that both of them are underdogs learning to overcome by putting one foot in front of the other. But I think my favorite part of the story is when the heroine is faced with a really hard thing and she “shores up.” If you read it, you’ll have to reach out and tell me if you like that part. I’m being all mysterious by accident. Duh, duh, duuuuuuhhhh!

What inspired the series? Was it a real-life person, a historical event, a setting, or something else?

A mix of two actually. There is a group of four girlfriends I know. Shout out to Vanessa, Kali, Eli, and Cole. They’ve lived decades alongside each other. All are in different seasons of life and from different backgrounds. It’s beautiful to see. I had a picture from one of their weddings that had them all four dancing in a train arms linked, some of their kids, some pregnant, some not married yet.

That was my inspiration for the sister pact that’s in The Rock. They witness each other’s lives and that is significant and enough.

The second part of the inspiration happened when a group of Boyscouts cleaning off the gravestones of my town’s founding family. They made it so I could actually get to the headstones and read about them. Soooo Muchhhh History right across the road from my house.

I LOVE hearing what inspires a story. It’s so special to see how the relationships and history connect.

What’s something your readers would be surprised to know about you?

I spent a long time thinking about this and had a lot of ideas, but I’m kind of an open book. What you see is what you get. So the one that seemed relevant that I could think of is that I didn’t read books unless forced until after I was married and had a couple little kiddos. I have since made up for all that lost time, usually with five books going at once. My TBR pile is seriously endless. (Do you read one book all the way through before moving on or do you have many at a time? Do you finish a book if it isn’t to your liking? I have to. If I start it I finish it, probably because I know how much work went into getting it here.

I’m with you on the endless TBR pile! And like you, I rarely don’t finish a book. I have to know how it ends! 😉

How will you be celebrating your first official book release this week?

I’m a month out from my first release date when I write this. After nine years of work and waiting, I have spent the last couple weeks saying a lot of thank yous. It’s amazing how the Lord sends people alongside of you at just the right time to keep the dream alive. Reaching out has helped it feel a little more real. It’s still hard to believe it’s actually happening. Week of…their will definitely be a family cone run. (Ice cream for the win.) And I will have a book signing a few weeks after to look forward to.

FUN! Take lots of pictures and be sure to share them on your author page. (For those of us who live across the country and can’t be there in person.) 😉

Before you go, is there anything else you’d like to add? Any upcoming projects you can share with us?

The Rock is the first of four books. Each book covers a different sister-friend of the Porcelain Doll Sisters. The second one, The Ribbon, will be out in November, if all works the way it should. And then The Rose and The Ruby will follow in 2022. I can’t wait to show you the covers. (The covers are my favorite part of a book…and the sweetheart feels and kisses.)

If you want to follow my journey here is a link to my email subscriber list. http://www.caragrandle.com/subscribe/

What an exciting time! So happy for you, Cara. Thanks for joining us today and sharing about your story.

GIVEAWAY!!

Cara has graciously offered to give away a copy of The Rock to one lucky winner. Enter below and it could be YOU! 😉

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks for entering! Contest ends May 18, 2021 . The winner will be notified by email. Happy Reading, everybody!