Welcome, Historical Romance Writer, Andrea Boeshaar

Make sure you leave a comment and your email address for a chance to win her book: Uncertain Heart! Doesn't the title sound fantastic? 

Welcome, Andrea! How long have you known that you were a writer? Did you receive a clear “call?” Or have you just loved writing all your life?

I loved to write all my life, but in 1992 I received a clear call to write for the Christian market. I had wanted to be the next Danielle Steel; however, God changed my heart and mind and called me to write for Him.

Wonderful! What is the genre you write in? Would you explain what it is?

I write historical Christian and Inspirational romance. My books are like the more conservative Hallmark movies and vary in the Christian message. Sometimes it’s blatant. Other times it is more subtle.

How do you spend your writing days? Do you set goals to reach a certain number of words per day? Can you give us a general idea of how long it takes you to write a novel?

This year I will have written 4 novels! (approximately 80K words each). This is the most I’ve ever written in a year’s time and it’s been quite a stretch for me – not to mention a tad stressful. Keep in mind, there are always revisions which can take up to a month. So I’ve had about 2 months to write a novel.

I will admit that my Seasons of Redemption titles were originally published as Heartsong Presents romances. However, I’ve rewritten each one, adding about 30K words to each and more secondary characters.
That's amazing. You recently had a book published. Would you take this time to describe it to us?

The title is “Uncertain Heart” and here’s a blurb from the back cover:

The year is 1866, and Sarah McCabe has wanderlust. In an effort to become independent of her family back in Missouri, she accepts a governess position in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, giving her a firsthand taste of the life she has always desired—a life of luxury, culture, and social privilege.

Richard Navis is a man determined to finish his indentureship to Captain Brian Sinclair and take over his family’s farm. But when he falls in love with Sarah, his homesteading goals blur. She doesn’t seem interested in settling down. What’s more, Richard fears she’s fallen victim to the captain’s charm and persuasion.

When Sarah’s reputation is questioned, Richard devises a bold plan in hopes of protecting her. But is he too late? Has Sarah already made her choice?

My books are available online at:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/
http://www.amazon.com/
They are also available at bookstores. If it’s not on the shelf, ask for it.

What is the spiritual message in your book? What can readers expect to get from reading it?

The message always varies, depending on what God lays on my heart. In “Uncertain Heart” the message pertains to submitting to the Lord’s plans for our lives as opposed to our own – and finding out life is fuller and worth living when we follow Him.

Do you ever feel like giving up? Most people don’t understand the stress, the work, and the joy of being a writer. How tenuous becoming a writer is. Do you care to share how it feels, what discouraging/encouraging times you’ve gone through?
I feel like giving up just about every other day. Okay, maybe not quite that often.

Being a writer, to some folks, means you’re too lazy to get a “real job.” Family and friends don’t always respect a writer’s time at the computer. I used to write at night, after my children were sleeping. Now that my sons are grown and have moved out on their own, I try to write in the morning – before the phone begins ringing and people want a piece of my time.
If that’s not bad enough, there’s the marketing stress. Publishers now expect authors to promote their books. It’s not just up to the publishers anymore. If an author doesn’t make the expected sales quota, publishers can either cancel the book contract or (in the case of a series) refuse to publish the author again.
I’ve had the later happen to me. One of my books wasn’t a good seller for the company. The publisher wouldn’t look at future proposals from me. For many months afterwards, I felt like a failure. Depression set in and I wanted to quit writing altogether.

Finally, I began to pray about the situation and the Lord showed me that I needed to make some very radical changes in my career if I wanted to succeed. I obeyed. About six months later, the senior editor for Realms Fiction (a division of Strang Communications) asked my agent if she could buy 2 series of historical romances from me because Realms was moving into the Christian market. Before then, Realms had been publishing only speculative fiction.

At first I was nervous and stressed, wondering if I could ever write a good book again. But the fiction team over at Realms has been so encouraging and supportive that I began regaining my confidence at the keyboard. I feel freer to trust God with my creativity. The Lord has really used those folks at Realms in my life in a very positive way. I’m grateful!

Wow, Andrea, that's an encouragement to me. Tell us, who’s inspired you the most?

I think my grandmother, Amie Johnson, has inspired me the most. She was an art and reading teacher in Northern Wisconsin during the ‘70s. She’s with the Lord now, but she did some writing too and I have copies of it. I greatly admire the ability she had, although, sadly, I never did while she was alive.

Do you mind telling us some of your likes and dislikes? Hobbies, interests? Where would you like to travel if you could?

• I enjoy reading.
• I love getting together with my girlfriends and shopping.
• I love playing with my four grandchildren.
• And I love my yellow lab puppy, Miley.
• I greatly enjoy family get-togethers at my brother’s gorgeous home near Lake Michigan.
• I doodle with scrap-booking and . . .
• as for traveling, I enjoy attending various writers’ conferences. There are so many good ones all over the country. The best ,of course, is the ACFW annual conference. If you have never gone to one, and you’re serious about being a writer, you must go!

Would you give us your blog or webpage so everyone can check it out? Anything else you’d like to share? Promotional information?

You can visit me on the web at: http://www.andreaboeshaar.com/

Glimpse the cover of my new release “Uncertain Heart.”

I also blog about all aspects of the writing life on: http://everythingwriterly.blogspot.com/


Thank you, Andrea, for sharing a bit of your life with us! We've enjoyed it.

Blessings, readers.