~ FRIDAY FICTION FEATURE ~
-- BLOG TOUR STOP FOR:
'A WELCOME AT OUR DOOR' --
AUTHOR AMY CLIPSTON
~Post Includes: Book Spotlight, Author
Bio, Unique Author Interview & Giveaway~
-- BLOG TOUR STOP FOR:
'A WELCOME AT OUR DOOR' --
AUTHOR AMY CLIPSTON
~Post Includes: Book Spotlight, Author
Bio, Unique Author Interview & Giveaway~
Welcome to the Blog Tour & Giveaway for A Welcome At Our Door by Amy Clipston with JustRead Publicity Tours!
ABOUT THE BOOK
Title: A Welcome At Our Door
Series: Amish Homestead, Book 4
Author: Amy Clipston
Publisher: Zondervan
Release Date: May 7, 2018
Genre: Amish Fiction
After a devastating loss, Cindy Riehl is still searching for peace. Will she find it in the community she calls home—or will love send her down a new path?
Over the last few years, Cindy Riehl—the youngest of the Riehl children—has watched her siblings find love and happiness in Lancaster County. But as her family has settled down and grown, Cindy has continued to grieve her mother, whose death left an enormous hole in her heart. Since that haunting day, Cindy has struggled to find peace and wonders if the community is the place for her—and if her faith in God will ever feel the same as it once did.
When a handsome and kind Englisher named Drew crosses Cindy’s path one surprising day, the two of them become fast and easy friends. Drew dreams of starting a family after some losses of his own, and before long, he and Cindy discover that their feelings for each other are romantic. As they spend more time together—often in secret—Cindy is drawn further and further away from the Amish community and the family she loves. In time, she is faced with a difficult choice that threatens to upend her world.
Will Cindy find contentment and love, and will she ever find restored comfort in God and her beloved community? In this final installment of the Amish Homestead series, we return to the charming town of Bird-in-Hand for a story of healing, family, and God’s perfect provision.
AUTHOR INTERVIEW:
JUNE: Welcome to Reading, Writing &
Stitch-Metic, Amy. As a fan of many of your Amish books and several story
collections with other inspirational authors, I'm delighted to have you as my
special guest for this blog tour stop. Congratulations on this new release, 'A
Welcome at Our Door'.
JUNE: This book is the fourth and final book
in your 'Amish Homestead' series. The setting for the story, Bird-in-Hand, is a
real Amish community in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Please tell us how you
created and developed the characters for this series. Are any of the characters
or their personality traits or physical descriptions based on people you've
come across in your own life? If yes, what prompted you to include them
in 'A Welcome at Our Back Door' or in the 'Amish Homestead' series?
Laura and Mark are twins, and I decided to include twins in this series since I have a coworker who has two sets of fraternal, brother-sister, twins in her family. She helped me with the twins' details by sharing stories about her relationship with her twin brother and also information about her other set of sibling twins. Mark is also a jokester, which I think I based on Two-Bit, a character from my all-time favorite book, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. The book has been an inspiration to me since I was a child.
As far as basing characters' descriptions on people I know, I actually base my characters on actors and actresses I admire. I based Jamie on one of my favorite actors—Sebastian Stan. He's quite handsome.
A Welcome at Our Door is a special story to me because it is based on a true story that my Amish friend told me about her husband’s grandparents. I had so much fun fictionalizing the story and spending more time with my Riehl family.
JUNE: Who is your favorite character in this
story {or series}? Why is this person your favorite? Without spoiling the story
{or series}, is there anyone in the story {or series} whom you do not like? Why
not?
AMY: Mark
Riehl is my favorite character. He’s funny and he’s a flirt. But he also is a
loving and giving person. Many of the women in the community long to date him,
but he tends to string them along, never making a commitment to anymore. When
he meets Priscilla in A Seat by the Hearth, he finds himself actually
developing feelings for a woman. He’s bewildered when Priscilla doesn’t fall
for his usual charms. I enjoyed making Mark work hard to get Priscilla’s
attention.
The character I didn’t like in the series was
Priscilla’s father, Yonnie. He’s verbally and emotionally abusive to Priscilla.
JUNE: When you write a book, do you outline
the entire story, or do you have a different way of organizing your plot,
characters, etc.? Do you always know the ending of your story before you begin
putting things down on paper, or into your computer? Do you have any
particular organizational tips that you'd like to pass along to other authors
and aspiring authors?
AMY: Since I
work full-time and write several books per year (including full-length novels
and novellas), I’m forced to be very organized. I start out with a synopsis,
and after my editor approves it, I write a very detailed outline, going chapter
by chapter, scene by scene. I use this as my roadmap when I’m writing. The
story grows and changes, but I always know where I’m headed, which helps prevent
the dreaded writer’s block. I plan out all of my characters ahead of time. I
figure out what they look like, what their personalities are, and what their
family members’ names’ are.
I recommend that writers plot out their novels ahead of time. It truly helps me stay on track and not lose faith in my stories. I have taught classes on how I outline, and the writers who attended told me that it helped. In my opinion, it definitely saves me time and frustration if I know where my story is headed.
JUNE: While visiting your website I learned
you wrote a memoir in 2014 entitled, 'A Gift of Love: One Woman's Journey
to Save a Life'. It chronicles your inspiring journey as a kidney donor in
order to save your husband's life. Have you ever considered writing more non-fiction
or writing in any other genres in fiction such as middle-grade, picture books,
mystery, historical, or a fictional genre other than Amish romance? How about
poetry? If yes, what projects would you like to work on in the future?
AMY: A Gift
of Love, the non-fiction book that details my journey as a kidney donor, was
the most difficult book I have ever written. It was so personal, honest, and
raw that it was painful to write. I honestly don’t see myself writing any other
non-fiction books anytime soon. I enjoyed writing my young adult books and I
hope to someday write more. However, HarperCollins Christian Publishing is
keeping me busy with Amish projects for the next couple of years. To be honest,
I would have to research out to write middle-grade, picture books, mystery,
historical, or poetry. Since I work full-time, I can’t fit anything else in my
schedule right now. I’m happy to continue writing my Amish books and finding
new ways to tell an Amish story.
JUNE: I have enjoyed reading many of your
novellas/short stories published in collections with works by other
inspirational authors. Some of my favorite stories written by you and Amish
authors such as Kathleen Fuller and Beth Wiseman are Amish Christmas stories.
Do you have plans to release a holiday collection later in 2019 or maybe 2020?
If yes, please tell us a little about the collection.
AMY: I’m
excited to share that there is a new Amish Christmas collection coming this
fall, and it will include stories by Beth Wiseman, Kathleen Fuller, and Kelly
Irvin. The book is called An Amish Christmas Bakery and will feature stories centered
around bakeries. My story, 'Cookies and Cheer,' will include new characters
that are not connected to any of my series books. Readers will find the book in
stores on October 1.
💗 💗 💗 💗 BONUS CONTENT 💗 💗 💗 💗
~ Here’s the blurb for 'Cookies and Cheer':
As Christmas draws near, Alyssa Byler dreams of a
window display for the bakery where she works. When she decides to design and
build a sugar cookie nativity scene, all she needs is the right cookie
cutters—and handsome blacksmith Kyle Smoker is the one she asks for help. Using
Kyle’s handmade cutters, Alyssa creates a striking display that brings more
tourists to the bakery than she can handle. And when shoppers request handmade
cookie cutters of their own, Kyle finds himself overwhelmed by the demand. As
Christmas approaches, Alyssa realizes she’s been too caught up in work to focus
on the true meaning of Christmas—and too distracted to explore the feelings she
has for Kyle. Together, they put aside the holiday rush and spend their time
celebrating the season that has brought them together. ~
💗 💗 💗 💗 💗 💗 💗 💗
JUNE: Are there any hobbies or interests you
would like to pursue in the future? Where would you like to travel if and when
your busy schedule allows?
AMY: My free
time is limited, so my favorite hobby is watching movies when I’m between book
projects. I enjoy going to the movies and watching them at home. My family and
I are huge Marvel fans, and we enjoy super-hero movies. I also love a good
romance! We are season pass holders at our local amusement park, Carowinds, and
I enjoy riding the rollercoasters with my friend DeeDee. We love Fury 325 the
best! As far as hobbies to pursue in the
future—sleeping in is at the top of my list!
As far as travel, and my family and I enjoy going to
Disney World. We try to go every couple of years. My dream trip is to see
Hawaii. I’m hoping my husband will take me there someday. Maybe we can go to
celebrate a special anniversary!
JUNE: Thank
you for graciously sharing some time with us today, Amy. I appreciate your
chatting with us about your writing journey and other interesting topics! It was so nice of you to share the book blurb for your upcoming 'Cookies and Cheer' Christmas story with us here. Best
wishes for your continued success in your writing endeavors.
PURCHASE LINKS*: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Book Depository | ChristianBook
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Amy Clipston is the award-winning and bestselling author of the Kauffman Amish Bakery, Hearts of Lancaster Grand Hotel, Amish Heirloom, and Amish Homestead series. Her novels have hit multiple bestseller lists including CBD, CBA, and ECPA. Amy holds a degree in communication from Virginia Wesleyan University and works full-time for the City of Charlotte, NC. Amy lives in North Carolina with her husband, two sons, and four spoiled rotten cats.
CONNECT WITH AMY: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
TOUR GIVEAWAY
(1) winner will receive a print copy of A Welcome At Our Door.
Enter via the Rafflecopter giveaway below. Giveaway will begin at midnight May 13, 2019 and last through 11:59 pm May 20, 2019. US only. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen.
Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.
Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!
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I love Amy’s books and this one looks so good! I would love to read this one!
ReplyDeletefaithdcreech at gmail dot com