EXPECT AN ADVENTURE WITH DIANN MILLS!

CONGRATULATIONS TO BEV FOR WINNING A COPY OF BREACH OF TRUST!!

This month, I’m delighted to feature a great writer and awesome lady, DiAnn Mills, whose latest release is an exciting suspense novel entitled Breach of Trust from Tyndale House. I’ve read this book and highly recommend it to suspense lovers and anyone who loves action, adventure, and, um, dare I say? Romance.

DiAnn is an exceptional writer who has sold over 1.5 million books in her eleven year writing career. Her books have won numerous awards, and she is a popular speaker at writers’ conferences around the US. Not only does DiAnn challenge her readers to “Expect an Adventure,” but she also gives back to the writing community by mentoring new and wannabe writers through Jerry Jenkins’ Christian Writer’s Guild. A member of several prestigious writers’ organizations such as American Christian Fiction Writers (a founding member) and Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, DiAnn lives in sunny Houston, Texas. She and her husband have four adult sons and are active members of Metropolitan Baptist Church.

Q. DiAnn, tell us about your latest book, Breach of Trust.
A. Paige Rogers is a former CIA agent who lost all she treasured seven years ago when her entire team was killed in a covert mission. She blames their leader—Daniel Keary—whom Paige believes betrayed them. Disillusioned and afraid for her life, she disappeared and started a new life as a small-town librarian. But when Keary announces his candidacy for governor of her state, he comes after Paige to ensure that she won’t ruin his bid for office. He threatens everything she holds dear, and Paige must choose between the life of hiding that has become her refuge . . . or risking everything in one last, desperate attempt to right old wrongs.

Q. What gave you the inspiration for this story?
A. While driving through rural Oklahoma, my "what-if" writer's mode kicked in. What if a CIA agent was forced to change identities and hide out in rural Oklahoma? What would she do? How would she change her looks? And more importantly, what would bring her out of hiding? I wanted my heroine to have found God among good people who showed her what following Jesus was all about. And I wanted her commitment to her new-found faith to guide her in all of the decisions she faced in bringing a corrupt politician to justice.

Q. What themes exist in Breach of Trust that you hope the reader sees? Are there any themes that weren't overt but developed as the story progressed?
A. All Christians are called to a purpose, a divine calling that others may not understand. The issue of trust is difficult topic for anyone who has ever been betrayed.

Q. What advice or tips do you have for writers who are just getting started?
A. Read the books in the genre you want to write. Read the how-to books.
Attend conferences and get to know other writers, editors, and agents. You are a professional. Write every day. Pray for wisdom and guidance. Give God the glory.

Q. When is your next book coming out and what is the story?
A. Breach of Security is my next book in the Call of Duty series. Danika Morales is a Border Patrol Agent in McAllen, Texas. For two years she's looked for the murderer of her husband. What she discovers is a plot to destroy everything she believes in.

Thank you, DiAnn!

If you want to know more about DiAnn’s books and ministries, visit her Web site at www.DiAnnMills.com . Look for Breach of Trust in your local bookstore. Tyndale House, ISBN: 1-4143-2047-2.

Enter our drawing for a free, autographed copy of Breach of Trust by leaving a comment AND your email address. (I have no way to contact you if you don’t!)

A Beautiful Lady Pirate Meets Her Match!

CONGRATULATIONS TO CHERYL FOR WINNING AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF THE RED SIREN!


As a college English instructor, I present my students with a book list from which they must choose a novel to read and then give an oral report. One of my students chose The Falcon and the Sparrow by M. L. Tyndall. In her report, my student said that she was like Chase Randal, the hero of the story, in that she had turned away from God. Through reading Tyndall’s book, this young lady returned to her childhood faith and was filled with joy. This is the value of Christian fiction, and this is why I am delighted to present Ms. Tyndall’s next book. The Red Siren is truly a delightful tale, but it is also about the spiritual odyssey of two people who are drawn together despite their differences. Even more than that, the hero and heroine are drawn to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior of their souls. Read on. Louise M. Gouge

Faith Westcott abandoned her shallow faith when a series of tragedies struck her family. To save herself and her sisters from forced marriages, this fiery, born-to-the-manor redhead is a lady by day and a pirate by night. How long can she maintain this dual identity before she’s caught red-handed?

God-fearing Dajon Waite, who scours the Carolina coast, expunging it of pirates, is a more-than-capable captain in the British Royal Navy. But when he is asked to take on the guardianship of Faith and her sisters, he’s headed for deep water. Having vowed to avoid women, what will he do when he finds himself falling for Faith?
Will Faith regain her trust in God only to find herself headed for the gallows? Will Dajon scuttle his good name—and neck—to save her?


Meet MaryLu, aka, M. L. Tyndall
Q: Pirates and adventures on the high seas are topics you love to write about. What draws you to craft stories about these topics?
A: Tall ships in the Age of Sail have always been a passion of mine—one that I gained early on as I grew up on the beaches of South Florida. I used to lie on the sand, listen to the waves lapping onshore, and dream of grand adventures on the sea. There is something romantic, yet dangerous, about the sea, and I admire the men and women who ventured upon it seeking new lands, fortune, and adventure. No matter what story I formulate in my mind, it always tends to include at least one of those magnificent ships sailing the ocean blue.


Q: How did you get your start in writing?
A: I’ve written my entire life. It’s always been something I’ve enjoyed, but it was more of a hobby for many years than anything else. The very first time I sat down to write a novel that I intended to submit to a publishing house was four years ago after I had watched the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie with my daughter. I felt the Lord tugging on me to write a story about a Christian pirate—a man who had once been wicked and done vile things but who had given his life over to God. I had so much fun writing that book, but I still knew the odds were slim that I would ever see it in print. God had a different idea. Three months after I finished The Redemption, I was offered a 3-book contract from Barbour publishing.


Q: In The Red Siren, the story of Faith Westcott is taken from the parable of Matthew 13 in which the farmer sowed a seed on rocky soil. When the plant came up, it was withered and scorched because it had no root. What are the foundations that are so important in order for us to develop a faith with roots?
A: Great question! I believe the biggest and most important foundation for a victorious Christian life is to know God. By knowing God, I mean to really know Who He is. To know His character, His desires, His sorrows, and most of all His love. And like any relationship, you cannot get to know someone unless you spend time with him. To know God should be our greatest desire. And we do this by reading His Word often, by praying without ceasing and by abiding in His presence. When we do these things, despite our enemies’ continual attempts to stop us, we will come to see how wonderful, how faithful, how glorious and how powerful our God is. But most of all, we will get a glimpse into how much He truly loves each one of us. Then when bad things happen as they did to Faith in The Red Siren, we won’t fall away or become scorched by our trials. Why? Because we know that God loves us, and no matter how bleak things appear, He is working all things out for our good.


Q: How do you think God uses tragedies for good in our lives?
A: In answer to this question, allow me to give an example most of us can relate to—a parent. Suppose there were two little boys. One was raised by loving parents but in a family where there was no discipline. He was allowed every freedom possible and received everything he wanted. When he grew to manhood and left home, he had not learned to work hard and thus couldn’t hold down a job. He had not learned to get along with others, so he had no friends. He had not learned to live without the things he coveted so he stole them and ended up spending his life in prison. The other boy grew up with loving parents who disciplined him. He was not given every freedom. In fact, he had to earn each freedom he received by proving that he could be trusted. Though it pained them, his parents allowed difficulties to come into his life to teach him the value of integrity, patience, honor and courage. When he grew to manhood and left home, he worked hard at his chosen profession, got married, had children and lived a happy, successful life. The moral of the story? God uses bad things in our lives to teach us to be more like Him and to become more effective for His Kingdom and, in essence, to have successful lives and be filled with joy!


Q: In the book, Dajon struggles between doing good works for God and simply accepting God’s grace. How has this been a struggle for you?
A: When I became a Christian, I had spent years doing many bad things. Consequently, it was hard for me to accept God’s complete forgiveness. I wanted to pay Him back by doing as many good deeds as I could: volunteering at church, visiting the sick in hospitals and tithing great amounts of money. None of those things made me feel any better about myself. In fact, they made me feel much worse as I looked around and saw others doing even more. The truth of the matter is, God’s gift of forgiveness and salvation is free and undeserved and can never be paid back, no matter what we do. Getting that through my thick skull has been a challenge, but once I began to really understand, it changed my whole perspective on God. I no longer viewed Him as a gift giver I needed to repay, but as a gift giver I needed to worship. God has done it all, and I can do nothing except bow before His throne with eternal love and gratefulness and completely surrender my life to Him,not because I’m trying to pay Him back but because of who He is!


Q: A character in the novel struggles to believe in the existence of God. What would you say to someone like him?
A: I would say that God has made Himself evident in His creation and in our hearts and that He promises that if we seek Him with all our heart, we will find Him. My husband was a non-believer for many years and though I tried every Christian apologetic tactic on him to convince him of God’s existence, nothing worked. One day, frustrated, I told him to find a spot where he could be alone and ask God to reveal Himself. So my husband went for a walk on the hill behind our house and did just that. And guess what? God showed up. In a big way, and my non-believing, scientist husband came down from that hill a changed man. The key I believe was that my husband was really seeking. He really wanted to know God, and he was open to finding Him. God’s Word is true. If we truly seek Him and keep seeking Him, He will make Himself known.


Q: Of the three sisters in The Red Siren, who do you relate to most and why?
A: I’d like to say that I relate to Faith the most. She’s independent, strong, confident, and courageous: everything I’ve wanted to be most of my life! Plus, who wouldn’t want to try their hand at being a pirate? But, in all honesty, Hope is the sister I relate to the most. She’s had a rough go of things. She’s insecure, wounded and she’s seeking more than anything to be valued and loved. She longs to be strong like Faith and to be pious like Grace, but she finds she can be neither. Though she knows about God, she doesn’t value herself enough to think that God would give her a passing glance. So, she is easily drawn away from Him by the things of this world. This was my life before I came back to the Lord, so Hope’s story (The Blue Enchantress, summer 2009) is very dear to my heart.

Thank you, MaryLu.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO WIN AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF THE RED SIREN, LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW and YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS.