Interview with Viewpoint with Seeta and Friends

by Viewpoint with Seeta and Friends

Melissa Wardwell: Coffee with Sarah Hanks author or New Creations

 

What inspired you to start writing?

I started writing as a young boy in middle school. I took a creative writing class and learned I love telling story. As a young man I continued writing poems and prayers. I tucked that hobby away when I finished college and concentrated on my career. read more

Christina Sinisi: Sarah Hanks and New Creations

 

My newest novel, New Creations, is a tribute to my grandfather. After a lifetime of listening to him tell his hilarious stories, I wanted to capture them, and the legacy he’s left, in fiction. It’s not a memoir and about half of it is the product of my imagination, but it does include many true family stories. Even in the fictional parts, I believe I captured my grandpa’s personality well. read more

DANIELLE GRANDINETTI: Braving Strange Waters by Sarah Hanks

 

Stella Lindy is supposed to be soaking up the sunshine with her bridesmaids on a bachelorette cruise to Hawaii. But when she hits the wrong button on the elevator, the glamorous luxury of the modern ship is replaced with the Missouri River steamboat Arabia filled with strangers—and a mysterious doctor informs her it is 1856. read more

Linda Matchett: Talkshow Thursday: A Guest Post by Sarah Hanks

 

Did you know hundreds of women disguised themselves as men and fought in the Civil War? My novel A Battle Worth Fighting is the first in the Sister in Arms collection featuring such women. Fall Back and Find Me, releasing this Fall, will be the second. These are all stand-alone split-time novels. The contemporary storylines differ vastly, but the historical storylines all have the thread of the secret female Civil War soldier. read more

 

Diamond Mine: Motherhood, Writing, and a Split-Time Story with Sarah Hanks

 

Suzie: Welcome to the Diamond Mine, Sarah. I’m so excited to introduce you and your books to our readers. I always like to start with a couple book- and writer-themed would you rather questions. Would you rather write in a rooftop garden surrounded by city noises — or in a quiet studio with cows as your neighbors? 
Sarah: I could probably write anywhere my children aren’t. Noise doesn’t bother me as long as it’s not coming from my dear ones screaming, fighting, crying, or saying “Mom! Mom! Mom!”. But I might get more words in with the cows. read more

 

Linda Rondeau: Braving Strange Waters by Sarah Hanks

 

STORY ABOUT THE STORY

There’s Just Something About Steamboats

I first visited the Arabia Steamboat Museum while researching for Mercy Will Follow Me. In the historical storyline of my split-time Mercy series, an escaped enslaved character travels on steamboats, passing as White. It’s brought back in the third book of the series, Mercy’s Legacy, when Mercy’s daughter Liberty also travels via steamboat. read more

Brave Authors: Braving Strange Waters by Sarah Hanks

 

Aubrey: I’m going to jump right in and ask how you define bravery. What is it and where does it come
from?

Sarah: You can tell a lot about my view of bravery from my books. I view bravery not as the absence of
fear. If you’re not afraid, you don’t need to be brave to move forward. Bethany tells Natassa “Do it
afraid” in Mercy Will Follow Me, and that might be my motto. I see bravery as coming from being
connected to Jesus. He is my source. As long as He is with me, I can overcome anything, endure
anything, “brave” anything. Sometimes I feel His presence. Sometimes I can’t feel Him, but I know He
will never leave me nor forsake me. Like Stella in Braving Strange Waters, I picture Him with me. I
picture holding His hand. On my own, I’m a wimp. I’m full of insecurities and plagued by fears. But with
Jesus by my side, His strength is perfected in my weakness. read more

Christina Sinisi: Braving Strange Waters by Sarah Hanks

 

Braving Strange Waters is a fun, inspirational timeslip.

Stella Lindy is supposed to be soaking up the sunshine with her bridesmaids on a bachelorette cruise to Hawaii. But when she hits the wrong button on the elevator, the glamorous luxury of the modern ship is replaced with the Missouri River steamboat Arabia filled with strangers—and a mysterious doctor informs her it is 1856. read more

Julie Arduini: Awakened to Life by Sarah Hanks

  When I first wrote Awakened to Life, then titled Drifting In and Out of Sleep, I didn’t have a clue what I was talking about. It was 2007, I was pregnant with our third child, and we’d never gone through the adoption process. I had the seed of this idea about a woman who encounters a woman outside of an abortion clinic and offers to adopt her child while also pregnant herself. Intriguing, yes? I’d prayed outside of abortion clinics. I’d watched women go in pregnant and come out not. I’d mourned the loss of life. But I hadn’t yet adopted. read more

Mercy's Legacy

Julie Arduini: Fall Back and Find Me by Sarah Hanks

My latest split-time novel, Fall Back and Find Me releases today, September 19th. This stand-alone novel is the second in the Sister in Arms collection, which features a secret female Civil War soldier in the historical storyline. (A Battle Worth Fighting was the first book in this collection.) While Willow’s story as a guerilla hunter in war-torn Missouri is fascinating in its own right, today I’m going to give you a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the modern-day protagonist’s story. read more

Mercy's Legacy

Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Sarah Hanks!

What was your inspiration for the story?

Fall Back and Find Me is a split-time novel that deals with chronic illness, namely POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome). I personally suffered from POTS for about seven years before the Lord healed me.  read more

Mercy's Legacy

Julie Arduini: Mercy’s Legacy by Sarah Hanks

Today I’m interviewing a character from my new book Mercy’s Legacy which releases on January 31st and is now available for pre-order. Mercy’s Legacy is the third and last book of this series (tears!) and features a new POV character. Readers have been growing attached to this girl since book one, but she’s only now matured enough to be able to tell us her story...read more

Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Sarah Hanks!

Linda: Welcome and thanks for joining me today. Congratulations the recent release of the second book in your Mercy Series, Mercy’s Song. What was the inspiration for the plot for this book, and did you set out to write a series?

Sarah: The story fell into me when Ferguson erupted in flames. I lived 10 minutes away from the epicenter. What the news didn’t show was that a community of people from various……read more

Christine L. Henderson  ~ Doing the Research for Timeslip and Dual Timeline Novels: Author Interview with Sarah Hanks

 

You have now published multiple titles, but what inspired you to write that first book? How long did it take you to write it and finally be ready to publish?
Great question. I consider my official debut into professional writing to be Mercy Will Follow Me, the first book of the Mercy series.…..read more

Our Story BEFORE The Story ~ Natassa and DeAndre ~ Mercy Will Follow Me ~ by ~ Sarah Hanks

 

Hi, I’m Natassa. Do you remember me from high school? Probably not. I’m Maureen’s sister. Olivia’s sister. Ring a bell now? Yeah, my sisters always seemed to outshine me. But now—now I’ve finally made my mark on the world. Kind of. I mean, a small but significant mark. Four beautiful children—Aren’t they amazing?—And Brandon, did I marry up or what? Maureen couldn’t believe little old me managed to snag such a handsome and successful man. And look at my house. Sometimes it’s hard for me to believe this is my life. I have every reason to be ecstatic with it.

Is there something wrong with me that I’m not? There’s just this niggling feeling that something’s missing…..read more

Our Story BEFORE the Story ~ DeAndre and Janell ~ in ~ Mercy’s Song ~ by ~ Sarah Hanks

 

DeAndre

I’m on my way back…home? Where is home anyway? I thought I could find a home with Mama in Chicago, but nothing turned out the way I’d imagined. When I got a scholarship to art school in the same city my mother fled to after Pa died, how could I not call that fate? But Mama held me at a distance. So secretive at times I can’t help wonder if she’s hiding something. I never did fit in with that school crowd. Couldn’t relate.

So when the scholarship and the money ran out, where was I to go? Definitely not back to Reg. I’ve cut those ties for good. So I’m bound for Crawford County, for Java Joe’s. The last place that felt like home. I don’t even know what I’ll find there. I haven’t kept in touch. Do Rob, Patrick, and Eddie even work there still? Do they even remember me? Canvases of painted dreams shift around in my trunk. I know what’s behind me. What’s ahead?…..read more

Behind the Book

I was privileged to sit down with Michele Pyatt of Dance Again Ministries and talk about her experience with prison ministry, her heart for the hurting, and

Mercy’s Song.

 

Michele was the first person I talked to when I needed an inside scoop on prison. Mercy’s Song would dive deep into this world and I needed to know more. Not only did she share her vast experience working with prison ministry, but she also invited me to come along. The men I met- brothers in Christ, though behind bars- impacted me greatly. In this interview, Michele shares from her wealth of knowledge and asks me a few questions as well. I hope you enjoy.