Author - Lisa Bergren ~ Interviewed.

Lisa Tawn Bergren is the author of 28 books, with over 1.3 million sold. She is a publishing consultant, writer, Bible study leader, mother and wife. Her hobbies include travel (mostly from an armchair), reading, watching movies, cooking and exploring with her family. Lisa's most recent books include The Begotten, The Betrayed, God Gave Us Heaven, What Women Want and The Busy Mom's Devotional. She resides in Colorado Springs, Colorado. To sign up for her monthly email (which includes a new, unpublished devotional) go here and join her newsletter list.

Click here, if you'd like to read a review of The Betrayed.

What book or project is coming out or has come out that you’d like to tell us about?

The Begotten and The Betrayed, books 1 and 2 in The Gifted Series, are out in early September. This is a supernatural suspense series set in medieval times, pre-Reformation, pre-Renaissance.

It’s about a group of people who have profound spiritual gifting (healing, prophecy, wisdom, faith) who are in search of the lost letter of St. Paul, another letter he supposedly wrote to the Corinthians (an actual biblical mystery), but this letter has a non-Pauline prophetic bent. And in the margins, over the centuries, this secret letter has been passed along and protected by monks, some of whom added their own prophetic illuminations—drawings of the characters that appear centuries later. There’s the beautiful healer, a handsome knight, the wise priest, the child who can discern good from evil—characters that we both empathize with (when they fail) and wish to emulate (when they succeed).

It is an epic story of good vs. evil and the desire to do what God calls us to do.

Tell us about your journey to publication. How long had you been writing before you got the call you had a contract, how you heard and what went through your head.

Oh, I hate to tell this story because it's so much more competitive these days. When I was starting out 15 years ago, I noticed there were only historical Christian romances on the market. I simply filled the hole by writing a contemporary Christian romance (Refuge) and a publisher (Multnomah) jumped on it. They called me and said, “We’d like to publish your book.” It was one of the best days of my life…so thrilling! And amazing…that someone else thought my book was WORTHY of publication. It was a “shake your head at the wonder of it” moment. And then it did so well, we ended up building a whole contemporary romance line (Palisades) together, because by the time my first novel came out, I was working for the company. I've seen others break through by being the first to write mystery or Chick Lit or something else unique. But Christian fiction has come so far, there are fewer holes to spot! A lot of it is in who you know….and walking through the doors God opens for you.

Do you still experience self-doubts regarding your work?

Every time I start a new book and especially after I took my four-year writing hiatus (I had a third child and was trying to launch a company). I wondered if my time of creativity had ended, thinking, “It was fun while it lasted…” But then I got rolling again and it’s been a blast! The hardest part is that first blank page of a new book, or even a new chapter. The devil hopes we say, “I’m a fake. I can’t do it any more. I may as well give up.” I put my published books on the shelf above my computer, and tape a little sign that shows my total number of books sold, to remind myself that I just may be the real deal…an actual writer. But I had to publish three or four books before I could even comfortably call myself an “author.”

What’s the best advice you’ve heard on writing/publication?

The true writer writes because she can do nothing else. Publication can be a goal, but it can’t be everything. Look for all the ways that God might be able to use your skills as a writer, and if you are blessed with a publishing contract, praise him! But don’t get defeated if it doesn’t happen right away. I just had lunch with a terrific writer and friend, Tricia Goyer, who when I met her 12 years ago, was dying to be a novelist. She set out to learn all she could about writing, really training herself at the craft, and in the meantime, wrote a zillion magazine articles. The articles helped make her more attractive to a publisher, and gave her time to develop. Now she’s doing extremely well as a novelist. It takes passion and determination to write. Follow where God leads!

Do you have a scripture or quote that has been speaking to you lately?

John Eldredge wrote, “The story of your life is a long and brutal assault by the one who knows what you could be, and fears it.” I love that—on the level that it reminds me that we live in a world at war (whether we recognize it or not) and that we have the power to make Satan afraid. God is on our side, always and forever. Let’s do something good for the world and Him!

What are a few of your favorite books? (Not written by you.)

The Hidden by Kathryn Mackel, Madman by Tracy Groot, Kite Runner by Afghan-expatriate-hard name, Grace in Thine Eyes by Liz Higgs, A Voice in the Wind by Francine Rivers.

What is your favorite and least favorite part of being a writer?

Favorites: Getting in “the zone” when a scene almost writes itself; the new baby, fresh off the press that I carry around with me and pet as if it’s an animate object; good reviews; fan mail

Least Favorites: Trying to get my rear-end in the chair to work; trying to concentrate in the middle of family chaos; bad reviews; un-fan mail

How much marketing do you do? Any advice in this area?

Well, I’m trying this blog tour…I’ll let you know how it goes! And I do a monthly newsletter for about 2 people that I’d like to grow to 2000. We’ll see… : )

Parting words?

If you’re not already tired of knowing about me, you can click here. If you become the 3rd person (okay, it’s not quite that bad) on my email list to receive my free eNewsletter, you might win a free book!

And my books will be at Target stores on September 4 and following—look for them there to get a screamin’ deal!