Author Interview ~ Molly Noble Bull

Molly Noble Bull was born in Kingsville, Texas and spent part of her growing up years on a nearby cattle ranch where her grandfather and later her father worked as real cowboys. She and her husband, Charlie Bull, have three grown sons and four grandchildren, and they lived for many years in the Texas Hill Country west of San Antonio. Kingsville is forty-five miles south of Corpus Christi, Texas, and Molly and Charlie live there again now.

She has a BS in elementary and early childhood education with a minor in art from Texas A&I University, now called Texas A&M at Kingsville, and she taught in public and private schools for a total of eleven years. She writes for the Christian market only and has published with Zondervan and Harlequin’s Steeple Hill. Two of Molly’s Zondervan novels were later reprinted and came out from Guideposts, the Book Division.

Molly is descended from French Huguenots, and her newest novel, Sanctuary, is the first of three long historical novels in the Faith of Our Fathers series about the Huguenots. Tsaba House published Sanctuary on September 15, 2007 in trade paperback. And she is contracted to write three more novels and two non-fiction books for Tsaba House.

To read a review of Sanctuary click here (11-09-07)

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.

In 1986, I had been writing to sell for a couple of years when Zondervan published my first two inspirational romance novels. For Always and The Rogue’s Daughter. I signed a contract to write a third novel for Zondervan, but before the book came out, Zondervan stopped buying romance novels. I got to keep my advance.

Do you still experience self-doubts regarding your work?

Absolutely. I constantly wonder if others will like each and every book I write.

What mistakes have you made while seeking publication?

Timing. Like movies and TV shows, novel trends come in waves. I often wait until the wave has covered the bank before stepping into the water.

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

So many new writers think they know how to writer fiction because they did well in English composition in high school and college. But there are things you must learn before writing fiction to sell. I suggest reading and studying Techniques of the Selling Writer by Dwight Swain. In my opinion, his is the best book on fiction writing out there.

What's the worst piece of writing advice you've heard?

Wow! That will take some thought.

The worst advice I ever got was while I was taking a college English course in creative writing. The instructor never gave specialized information on fiction writing like Dwight Swain does in Techniques of the Selling Writer. He said to just write.
But I have found that there is a lot more to writing a novel that sells than just writing. You must first discover how to do it.

What's something you wish you'd known earlier that might have saved you some time/frustration in the publishing business?

When I first started writing, I was so excited with what I had written that I sent editors more or less my first draft. They would reject it, and I would think. What can I do to improve this story? After a while I realized that what I needed to do was wait before sending out anything to make sure it was as good as I could get it.

Is there a particularly difficult set back that you've gone through in your writing career you are willing to share?

The inspirational fiction market is “hot” right now. But there have been many “cold spells” where nothing sold. Markets dried up, and publishers looked elsewhere for reader interest. There are a lot of published Christian fiction authors out there now, and the market could dry up again. Authors should be aware of that fact.

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

Little Women. Tom Sawyer. I am a former elementary school teacher, and I like good books for kids. But for my personal pleasure, I read mostly non-fiction.

What piece of writing have you done that you're particularly proud of and why?

My current novel is always my favorite. I guess because it is new and exciting. Today, that’s Sanctuary, my long historical that was published in trade paperback on September 15, 2007.

Do you have a pet peeve having to do with this biz?

Maybe. But I’m not saying what.

Do you have a dream for the future of your writing, something you would love to accomplish?

I would like to be able to write faster so I could produce more than one book a year. I am a slow writer.

Was there ever a time in your writing career you thought of quitting?

Daily. But only for a few minutes each time.

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

Promoting takes time away from my writing. But I know it must be done.

Have you received a particularly memorable reader response?

Yes. A reader wrote to say that her church had a prison ministry, and they wanted to use my Steeple Hill novel, The Winter Pearl, in prison ministry. That was very memorable and a blessing to me.

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

I do a lot of marketing. It’s necessary and a lot of fun. But it also takes time away from my writing.

Parting words?

Tsaba House published my newest novel, Sanctuary, on September 15th, and it is the first of three long historical novels in the Faith of Our Fathers series. Set in France in 1740, Sanctuary is about the Huguenots and forgiving the unforgivable.
If you don’t know what a Huguenot is, visit my website. Just scroll down the main page and click Molly’s Books. From Molly’s Books, you can see all my covers and click to read excerpts from Sanctuary and The Winter Pearl.

Hope to see you there.