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Monday, September 14, 2015

Special Birthday Guest ~ Deborah Raney!


by +AneMulligan  @AneMulligan
Happy birthday, Novel Rocket! 
Don't forget to leave a comment every day this week to be entered in the drawing for these books:

I'm delighted to have as our guest, our very first interviewee, Deborah Raney. 


Deborah Raney dreamed of writing a book since the summer she read Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House books and discovered that a Kansas farm girl could, indeed, grow up to be a writer. After a happy twenty-year detour as a stay-at-home mom, Deb penned her first novel, A Vow to Cherish, which won a Silver Angel Award and inspired the acclaimed World Wide Pictures film of the same title. Since then, her books have won the RITA Award, HOLT Medallion, ACFW Carol Award, National Readers' Choice Award, as well as twice being finalists for the Christy Award. She and her husband, Ken, have four children and four precious grandchildren who all live much too far away. Visit Deb at www.deborahraney.com

Deb, you were our very first Novel Rocket interview in Sept 2005. What’s happened in the past 10 years? 

Wow, Ane! I can’t believe it’s been 10 years already! Whoosh! What’s happened in the past 10 years. Well, I’ve become Mimi to 5 precious grandkids, with 2 more on the way. Oh, wait… You mean in the writing world? ;) Well, let’s see…

Ten years ago, I was just signing my contract with Howard. I wrote seven books for them, and am now writing a five-book series for Abingdon Press. I’m working on my 31st novel now and still enjoying my career as a novelist. I’m also doing some freelance editing now, and finding I really enjoy that! 

How has your writing changed in these years?
With my two series for Howard, and especially my standalone The Face of the Earth, I was able to incorporate more threads of suspense than in my earlier novels. That was a challenge and made me a better writer, I think, even with my new series, which is a bit more lighthearted than some of my books.

Overall, I definitely write shorter and more spare now than I did earlier in my career. I’m not sure what brought that change about, but I’ve learned to let dialogue carry a good part of the story, and maybe I’ve learned not to include the boring parts readers skip over. 

How have you seen the industry change over the past 10 years?
The whole e-book phenomenon has really shaken up the publishing industry. I see both challenges and advantages for authors in this. Challenges because the competition has never been stiffer, and the rules have never been so hard to pin down. What worked even two years ago doesn’t necessarily hold true today.

With traditional publishing, there seems to be fewer slots and shrinking advances. But the good news is that it has never been easier to self-publish. Many authors are having success publishing their own novels or publishing with small indie presses. And competition is always good for everyone in the long run.

I think the future looks bright for new writers, as long as they don’t skip the important steps—study the craft, get professional editing, professional cover design, etc., things that have always been hallmarks of good books.

I’m sure we have yet to see how things are going to ultimately shake out, but one thing is sure: storytellers will never go away. And that makes this reader happy.
  

I’m so honored to have been a part of Novel Rocket all these years, and I hope you’ll come back [to me] in another ten years and see what’s up with both of us then!

Two Roads Home
Minor-but-nagging setbacks continue to sour Grant and Audrey Whitman’s initiation into the world of innkeeping, but larger challenges brew when an innocent flirtation leads to big trouble for the Whitmans’ son-in-law, Jesse.

Jesse Pennington’s friendly, outgoing personality has always served him well, especially in a career that has earned him and his wife Corinne a very comfortable lifestyle. But Corinne and Jesse are both restless—and for similar reasons, if only they could share those with each other. Instead, too many business trips and trumped-up charges of harassment from a disgruntled coworker threaten their marriage and possibly put their three precious daughters at risk.


With their life in disarray, God is tugging at their hearts to pursue other dreams. Can Corinne and Jesse pick up the pieces of what was once a wonderful life before it all crumbles beneath them?

34 comments:

  1. Happy Birthday Novel Rocket! I just recently finished Deborah's Hanover Falls series which I loved and highly recommend. She is a wonderful writer.

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  2. Happy Birthday Novel Rocket! Deborah, I love your posts here and your super-positive outlook. Your perspective always brings a smile or well-needed fresh blush of hope. Thank you for your writing and encouragement of others in the trade too.

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  3. Awww! Thanks, Loraine! I'm so glad you enjoyed the Hanover Falls series! Those books were so fun (and hard!) to write! I'm so honored to help Novel Rocket celebrate this BIG birthday! I'd say "blog years" are a lot like "dog years" so Novel Rocket is more like 70! ;)

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  4. Thank you, Elizabeth! It's easy to encourage when I've received so much encouragement myself. MUCH of it right here on Novel Rocket!

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  5. Happy Birthday. I love Deborah Raney- follow her on FB and love her books. Thank you Deborah for introducing me to Novel Rocket.

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  6. Happy 10th anniversary, to both Novel Rocket and Deborah Raney!

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  7. Happy Blog birthday. Thanks for sharing authors with us!

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  8. Happy Anniversary Novel Rocket! I enjoyed the interview with the AMAZING Deborah Raney. May the next decade be filled with many wondrous adventures!

    psalm103and138[at]gmail[dot]com

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  9. Can't wait to see what the next 10 years will bring!

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  10. Happy Anniversary! How exciting! Thank You for sharing with us!

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  11. Happy 10th anniversary! Thanks for interviewing one of my favorite authors, Deborah Raney :)

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  12. Happy Birthday Novel Rocket. I have enjoyed Deborah Raney books for several years now and I very much enjoyed reading her interview. Can't wait to get my hands on some of her new books.

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  13. Happy Birthday/Anniversary Novel Rocket. What a good feeling milestone! Thank you for the interview and the opportunity to win a book. Always love a contest.
    Thanks again
    Anne
    anne at rightler dot com

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  14. HAPPY Birthday Novel Rocket and Anniversary. What a great time and years you have been having . Thank you for the interview of course she is great and also for the contest. ptclayton2@aol.com

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  15. Deborah, thank you for saying yes to the interview all those years ago. Wow, I can't believe it's been that long. And of course thank you for your encouragement when I was so green.

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  16. Happy Anniversary Novel Rocket! I've just discovered you! Thank you for these contests!

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  17. So glad to hear that some of you commenting here are discovering Novel Rocket for the first time! Yay! Thanks, everyone, for your wonderful comments and encouragement. Novel Rocket ROCKS! :)

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  18. 10 years! Congratulations! And Deborah, you're one of my favorite authors. Thank you for sharing your talents with us. God is good!

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  19. Happy Birthday Novel Rocket! And what a fun post with Deborah Raney and a giveaway. Thanks so much!

    sydneyjames68[at]gmail[dot]com

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  20. It was fun to read this interview with Deb Raney. I always enjoy reading her books, partly because they are so good, and partly because I've met her and know she is a really nice woman.
    I think that shows in her writing.
    Happy birthday, Novel Rocket. Thanks for letting us help you celebrate.

    pmkellogg56[at]gmail[dot]com

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  21. Love Deb Raney. I feel like I know her although we've never met!
    jarning67(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  22. Happy birthday, Novel Rocket! You picked a winner to interview when you decided to interview Deb Raney. I am really enjoying her Chicory Inn series.

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  23. Happy Birthday Novel Rocket. I can't believe I am just now finding you. Great interview Deborah Raney. You were right to mention the grandkids first. They are a very important part of our lives. I need to read two roads home.

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  24. Happy Birthday, Novel Rocket. Say where did that name come from? sm wileygreen1(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  25. Happy Birthday! Thanks to Deborah's link I'm finding out for the first time about Novel Rocket.

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  26. Happy Birthday, Novel Rocket. What a great little interview. I always love learning fun facts about my favourite authors. I must echo a comment from above. You DID pick a winner when you interviewed Deborah. She's one fine writer and I look forward to reading the next Chicory novel.

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  27. SM: the name was originally Novel Journey. When we wanted to move to a dot com, that name was taken. We offered to purchase it, but the owner wouldn't sell. So we had to choose another name. Since this site is what launched many careers, we chose the Rocket to replace journey.

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  28. Happy Birthday Novel Rocket. Great blogging place to meet authors. I've read all of Deb's books and I've known her a long time. What a great gal she is and a terrific writer. I've read the first in the Chicory Lane series and am anxious to get started on the next one. I've never been disappointed in one of Deb's novels. As one Gramma to another...I wish I looked as good as you do. :) Keep up the great work.

    Ane, love the way you all chose the new name.

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  29. Love the interview and congrats on the milestone hope for many more!

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  30. Happy Birthday, Novel Rocket! Love Deborah Raney. Enjoyed the interview.

    happygrammaof3@comcast.net

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  31. So great to see so many friends' names in the comments here! Fun to celebrate Novel Rocket with you all!

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  32. I loved Home to Chickory Lane (and my sisters did, too!) Deb. I know they will want to read this one after me, too! Keep writing and we'll keep reading!

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