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What kind of
research did you do for Claiming Mariah?
Generally, I
read over my history books for a certain area, or go online to the chamber of
commerce and view the tourist information if that’s an option. My research
about specific details crop up as the story develops. I might need to know if
the railroad is in an area at a certain point of history. Or when barbed wire
introduced to the area? What kind of pistol would my hero carry? What kind of
wagon or buggy would they have used? If something like that inserts itself into
the story, and I don’t know the answer, I find out.
How did you
come up with the plot for Claiming Mariah?
Several
years ago, I read a novel where a bank robber tosses a sack of stolen money in
the back seat of a hand-to-mouth college student’s car. She kept the money and
eventually started a very successful business. She justified her actions
because she anonymously created a charity to help destitute young women get
back on their fee. But, as the old saying goes, two wrongs don’t make a right,
and that wasn’t quite right from a Christian’s perspective, was it? I based Claiming Mariah on the following
question: “What would a Christian do if they found out their whole livelihood
had been based on a lie?” Mariah does the right thing by writing to Slade’s
father asking for forgiveness, but the consequences of her actions end up being
way more than she bargained for.
Share a brief
blurb about the book.
When Mariah
Malone’s dying father confesses that he cheated his partner out of the gold
used to buy the family ranch, she writes a letter, offering restitution. But
when the son of her father’s victim demands the entire ranch, she stands to
lose everything. As these two let go of the bitterness of the past, Slade
Donovan has to learn to forgive Mariah, her father, and God, while Mariah must
learn to overcome her pride.
What role have
your life experiences played in the characters and/or the situations you
develop in your books?
The account
of Yellow, the half-wild tomcat and his precarious beginnings after being born
in the woods, is an almost exact retelling of a cat that I befriended several
years ago. I had to work for that cat’s trust, just as Mariah earns the trust
of both Slade and Yellow in Claiming
Mariah.
Do you see
parallels or do you try to avoid using your own personal life as a source of
inspiration?
I was born
and raised on a farm, and from an early age I loved horses and all things
western. I was a bit of a tomboy and cut my teeth on Louis L’Amour westerns.
While I don’t necessarily use my personal life as inspiration, I write what I
know when it comes to country life, farming, ranching, and hard work.
What are your
own favorite authors? Genres?
My favorite
genre to read and to write is the historical romance genre, especially
westerns, harking back to my Louis L’Amour and John Wayne days, I guess. That’s
not to say that I don’t enjoy other genres and other time periods, because I
do.
How has your
passion for reading impacted your writing?
Probably the
biggest impact is that I know all kinds of details about the oddest things.
Just recently in a conversation over dinner, a woman couldn’t imagine writing
historicals and getting the facts right. Years of reading historical fiction
and non-fiction will cement details in an author’s head. The key is to listen
to that niggling voice that alerts you when you don’t know something and to take the time to find out the correct
date, or location, or term before your book goes to print.
Describe how
you write a book – with your other responsibilities, does it tend to be
something you work into your every day, or do you have to “set apart” time to
write with open, undesignated blocks of time?
Until very recently, I worked a day
job as a purchasing manager for an OEM company. But after holding down a
full-time job, a part-time job as conference treasurer for ACFW, writing, and
being a wife and mother, (I figure all of that together constitutes 3.5 jobs.
Wouldn’t you agree?) I now only have
2.5 jobs. My first books were written in fits and starts sandwiched in between
all my other jobs. Now that I’m working from home, I’m still trying to find my
most productive way of writing. It’s a combination of both: writing every day,
but I’m sure I’ll have to set aside large blocks of time when deadlines loom.
What provides
your inspirations during that time – i.e. do you go out in nature, do you seek
to be in a busy place with people or in a quiet library, etc.?
I work best
with complete quiet and no interruptions. My best time to work is mornings
while my brain is fresh, but I’ve been know to work into the wee hours of the
night as well. Once I’ve brainstormed the backbone of the story, and I become
immersed in their world, the characters and the situations they find themselves
in become my inspiration.
How have
social networking sites, even including email, etc. impacted your writing? Do
you find the internet to be a helpful or harmful resource in research,
advertising, reviewing, etc. your books?
I’m on my
computer almost 24/7 either checking/responding to email, interacting through
social media, writing, researching, taking care of business, the list is
endless. In addition, since my books are ebooks through Tyndale’s Digital First
Initiative, I can’t imagine not using the internet’s social media resources as
my primary outlet for promotion. In the end, writers, just like any
professional who uses electronics to get their job done, must weigh the time
they spend on all of these activities.
Do you use
these tools such as facebook as a means of observing the behavior of others
which could be the basis of a character, or are you of the ‘old school’ that
relies more on personal relationships and “human” touches?
I haven’t based any characters on
someone I’ve encountered on social media. It’s not that I’m against that, it’s
just that I just haven’t had one of those “aha” moments that triggered
something like that. Although I have run into some interesting characters on
facebook….
~
Pam is thrilled to announce the release of her second novel,
Claiming Mariah
Claiming Mariah
Links:
Claiming Mariah 1st Chapter: http://tinyurl.com/ageh54r
To celebrate, Pam is giving away two eReaders
(choice of Kindle Wi-Fi,
6" Display, or Nook Simple Touch)
Two Winners: One on facebook. One through
Pam’s Newsletter.
Registering both places is not required but
will double your chances of winning. Also keep in mind that you will receive
updates more often being connected on facebook than through the newsletter.
Just sayin’
Contest runs from January 1st until March 31st, 2013.
And....that’s
not all! There will be prizes offered randomly throughout the tour.
(3
Pewter Bookmarks from Deirdre’s Handmade Jewelry PLUS 40% off coupon at
Deirdre’s online store. Click link to register and for coupon code)
PREVIOUS STOP ON TOUR:
NEXT STOP ON TOUR:
Bio:
Pam Hillman was born and raised on a dairy farm in
Mississippi and spent
her teenage years perched on the seat of a tractor raking hay. In those days,
her daddy couldn’t afford two cab tractors with air conditioning and a radio,
so Pam drove the Allis Chalmers 110. Even when her daddy asked her if she
wanted to bale hay, she told him she didn’t mind raking. Raking hay doesn’t
take much thought so Pam spent her time working on her tan and making up
stories in her head. Now, that’s the kind of life every girl should dream of!
Claiming Mariah is her second novel.
www.pamhillman.com
Pam Hillman’s Social
Media:
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