Restored Grace Spotlight, Author Interview and Giveaway!

Item: Restored Grace
Author: abakersp

Posted by abakersp in Reviews / Spotlights / 8 Comments

Welcome to the Celebrate Lit Blog Tour for Restored Grace by Kathleen J Robison! I’m delighted to have Kathleen here today chatting with me. Please help me in welcoming her to the blog!!

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Restored Grace
Author Kathleen J. Robison
Published by Amazon Digital Services LLC - Kdp
on June 16, 2022
Genres: Fiction / Christian / Romance / General
Pages: 296

They promised Jesus would be with her through everything, but is that enough?

Free-spirited vintage thrift shop owner, Carol Scape, wallowed in grief after her boyfriend's murder. However, with newfound faith, she's finding out what it means to die-to-self and put others first. Even if it could cost her life.

Carol is on a mission to save a runaway teen and an at-risk girl from Will Boudreaux, the man just released from jail for running a prostitution ring. The same man who previously terrorized Bay Town residents. Can't the town get a break? Can't she?

She's up for the challenge, but when sparks ignite between her and the town mayor, it muddles things. Having sworn off men, he's getting in the way of what she feels she must do. Or is he?

Restored Grace is the second book of the Bay Town Series, continuing one year after Shattered Guilt. It's a stand-alone, amped-up, romantic suspense. Buckle your seat belt. You're in for a ride.

Amazon

About the Author

Kathleen J. Robison is an Okinawan-American, born in Okinawa, and raised in California, Florida, Mississippi, and Singapore. Her travels and her family are the sources of her inspiration for her books. Kathleen and her Pastor husband have eight adult children. Seven are married, blessing them with eighteen grandchildren and counting. Her ethnically diverse background extends to her family of currently thirty-five personalities which provide many opportunities to share God’s amazing love amidst the challenges of real life.

Author Interview

Hello and welcome!! Can you describe your writing process?

I’d love to and thank you for asking. Story ideas come to me everywhere and anywhere. So I usually write the idea down as quickly as I can. Sometimes, I write the first chapter immediately. Depending on my deadlines, I try and hit two thousand to three thousand words a day until I’m finished with a novel. I’m a huge fan of Nanowrimo, National Novel Writing Month, and participate in it every April, July, and November. The online support of hundreds of thousands of other authors forces me to finish half a novel in one month. I hit 50,000 to 60,000 words, and if I don’t have an editing deadline for another book, I continue writing till it’s finished—about another 10,000 to 20,000 words. Then I must switch to editing two to four chapters a day. I edit the first draft, then send it off to my Alpha reader, who is worth her weight in gold! Within a two weeks, she sends it back. Then I edit five to six times more before sending it off to my editor. A month later, I’ll get it back from her and work on the final draft for another month, and finally, it goes to my publisher…for more edits.

The short version … I write a book in about four months, and editing takes about six months. When it finally goes to the publisher, it’s a year before release. I’ve Indie-published two books, and that’s a much quicker process!

The publishing process is so interesting to me! When you are not writing, what do you like to do?

I adore playing with my grandkids. I’m so blessed with lots of them, and I always take long breaks when they drop in during the day. I like gardening, so I try and take a short yard break in the mornings, and I read in the evenings, although my husband wants me to watch TV after dinner. But I love crocheting, knitting, sketching, papercrafts… I love creating. Right now, it’s macrame, but I have too many other unfinished projects, so I love seeing what others make, and I scroll Pinterest and YouTube to see the latest.

My daughter is almost 20 and I have to say, I am super excited about being a grandma in the future! What author has impacted your writing the most?

Lisa Wingate, The Prayer Box, Julie Klassen, The Lady of Milkweed Manor, and Colleen Coble, You Are Mine. They are such gifted writers. I’ve actually studied their books to see how these women craft such beautiful stories. I love the first two authors for their character development, which is my favorite part of writing, and the latter for her tension in the suspense genre. I love Cathy Gohlke’s books too, but they’re too lovely to stop and study. I lose myself in her books.

Those authors are amazing. Do you have any interesting research stories to share?

I love nostalgia, so researching anything takes me on delightful rabbit trails to the past. Researching for Restored Grace was no different. I love having my characters drive classic cars, and my main character, Carol, drives a 1972 Neon orange El Camino truck. A friend drives classic cars, and her husband once drove an El Camino. So she helped me with that. I’m not a car person, but my husband and I perused a classic car show, and now he’s always pointing them out while on the road. It makes him miss his restored 1955 Ford-Pick Up. It had a candy-apple red with a metal flakes paint job, but we sold it when we first married for a more “sensible” vehicle…sigh. My first car was a 1964 Blue Mustang, which Art drives in my Christmas release, Let Them Eat Fruitcake…but that’s another story! Did I say, rabbit trail?

My friend from high school’s father had a classic car. We had so much fun riding in it – but there was one rule. NO FOOD lol. What’s your go-to bible verse during times of difficulty?

“Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will help you. I will strengthen you. I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.” Is 41:10. God’s victory for me may not be what I envision on this earth, but the triumph of His glory in heaven is my glorious hope in everything!

Oh that’s a good one! If you could have dinner with any fictional character, who would it be and why?

Oh my. I had never thought of that. Although Alexandre Dumas’ Count of Monte Cristo has always haunted me. Edmond Dantes’ led quite a life! But recently, Rosemary from Roseanna M. White’s, A Name Unknown intrigued me. She was such a simple personality yet carried herself with the perfection of false sophistication. I love characters with a past that rise above, but I had no idea how she’d accomplish that in this story. I’d love to hear more of her former life experiences.

I love Rosemary!! If we were to peek at your nightstand/coffee table/counter/kitchen table, what interesting things would we find?

Books, everywhere! Candles, house plants, pens, journals, and fake passports. I have a game I played with my kids and now my grandkids. I make them counterfeit passports, and when they come over and ask to travel to Jamaica, Japan, or Hawaii (our standard destinations), we pull out the passports, rubber stamps, and stickers hidden in end tables…and off we go!

What a cool game! It’s time for a fun girls weekend, and you can only invite authors to attend. Who would you pick and why?

For fun? Definitely Roseanna M. White. Her books are just that. Fun and delightful, and I can’t imagine that she’s not the same as her characters. Jamie Jo Wright, for sure. Her books are nothing like her Instagram videos which are hilarious. And for a wind-down in the evenings, I’d love to spend time with Cathy Gohlke and just listen to her share.

Um….can I come on this trip!? What are you working on next?

Oh, so many pokers in the fire! I’m currently editing Book Three, Shadowed Doubt (June 2023 release), and writing Book Four, Renewed Peace (June 2024 release) of my Bay Town Series. Book Two, Restored Grace, releases June 21, so we’re in the final editing stages. I have two Christmas releases for this year, which I’m so excited about. I just love Christmas books. Let Them Eat Fruitcake, is a sweet, slightly suspenseful, and faith-filled Bay Town Romance novel that I’ve been waiting for two years to release. It’s dear to my heart and inspired in part by my mother-in-law. Then I was so honored to be invited to write a novella in conjunction with a group of writers in a Christmas Castles collection. The Cross in Morioka Castle (working title) is my contribution and also dear to me…my Asian roots. There’s more, but I’ll stop there!

You, my friend, are a busy lady! What do you want your readers to get from reading Restored Grace?

I would like them to embrace God’s grace. To experience how very much He loves them and extend that grace to others. In Restored Grace, the main character is a new believer, ready to make changes, but they don’t come easy. Still, as inadequate as she often feels because of her self-centered past, she presses on to help others, learning to die to self. I think that’s the most heartfelt message I hope comes across. I often tell my kids (all adults with kids of their own now) that dying to themselves and putting others first is key to facing difficulties in relationships. I’m always quoting Philippians 2:3-4 .. Do nothing out of selfish ambition…, both to myself and them. God’s Word is such a fantastic gift. I hope my books inspire everyone to follow Him and seek His ways. His grace is joy everlasting, in trials and blessings.

Thank you for visiting today and chatting with me. It was a lot of fun!

Thank you so much for taking an interest in Restored Grace and my books. My characters often humble me, and I’m always learning as I write. It’s a joy and pleasure to write for the Lord and an added plus when others are inspired to seek and serve Him more fully.