BOY ON THE BEACH BLOG TOUR - 5 QUESTIONS FOR AUTHOR R.D.MADDUX + GIVEAWAY

R.D. Maddux has story telling in his blood. Since he was young he’s always loved a good tale. He’s been writing seriously since he was in high school and college. His novels range from Mystery and Intrigue to Sci-fi/fantasy. With Boy On The Beach he’s set the story in modern America, to be exact, on the West Coast of California. He’s a native of the golden state and has been a resident of San Diego since 1987. Before that he grew up in northern California and lived in the Sacramento Valley and Bay Area with sojourns in some of the beautiful parts of our state.

Living in California for over 60 years he couldn't help but watch the way things have changed in our culture and the impact this coast makes on the rest of America and the world. So even though Boy On The Beach is fiction, like most serious novels, it is not without a context and comment on issues we all face in our changing world. It takes place in real locations that are very familiar to him and its characters, which are fictional, no doubt have their counterparts in the real world. Boy On The Beach is a story of intrigue, suspense, revenge, love and redemption with flashbacks to the era when sex, drugs and rock and roll set our culture on it's inevitable journey to our present day. This idea has been rattling around in his heart and mind for a decade and it's finally coming to the page.

THE STAGGERING REALITY OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING: AN INTERVIEW WITH RACHEL LINDEN, AUTHOR OF BECOMING THE TALBOT SISTERS

In Becoming the Talbot Sisters (Thomas Nelson), author Rachel Linden hopes to bring a greater awareness to issues important to women around the world and encourage them to live what she describes as “every day brave.”

Becoming the Talbot Sisters tells the story of estranged twin sisters who live very different lives on opposite sides of the world but are drawn to rebuild their relationship in support of one another as they face challenges ranging from miscarriages to sexual assault to career woes. The sisters’ stories draw from many aspects of Linden’s own life as she shares in the interview below.

An author normally works some of herself into her novel. How much of Becoming the Talbot Sisters reflects your own life?

So much of the book reflects my own personal experience! The main themes – women having courage to face infertility and miscarriage as well as sexual exploitation and trafficking – are all very personal for me. I lost my first child to miscarriage, so I identify deeply with that thread of the book. I also worked with a faith-based organization in Europe for seven years, focusing significantly on women who experienced trauma and exploitation, so that theme is one I am very passionate about. The locations in the book are also dear to my heart. I set the book mainly in Budapest where I lived for five years. Parts also take place in Sarajevo and several other fascinating locations around central Europe, all places I enjoy and want to share with readers.

As for the sister-relationship aspect of Becoming the Talbot Sisters, much like Waverly and Charlotte, my sister and I are very different and live geographically far apart. However, we have a harmonious relationship and have grown in friendship more and more as we’ve gotten older unlike the sisters in the book.

BOOK UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT: THROUGH A BROKEN HEART BY COLLEEN MEISSNER

Five Questions to the Author

Hello and welcome to FLY HIGH, Colleen.  My first question for you is ... How did you do research for "Through a Broken Heart?

This book was written primarily from my own journey and education. My education which includes a Master’s in Clinical Counseling, has helped me to understand why people think and act the way they do, why they repeat patterns – like dating the same type of guy over and over again or why they avoid relationships all together.