Welcome Patti Lacy and Reclaiming Lily

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

PATTI LACY, at the age of 50, traded her grade books for a writer’s pen after the Still, Small Voice encouraged her to novelize the story of her best friend. Patti’s first three novels, An Irishwoman’s Tale, What the Bayou Saw, and The Rhythm of Secrets, explore the secrets women keep and why they keep them.

Patti’s fourth book, Reclaiming Lily, a Bethany House title, transports readers to the steps of a Chinese orphanage, where two cultures and two women collide. Claiming writers as diverse as Francine Rivers and Jodi Piccoult as influences for this novel, Patti weaves a story of grace and God’s mercy with an insidious hereditary disease and a rebellious teenager. Reclaiming Lily transports the reader from Fort Worth to China to Boston in a quest journey of faith, of love…of Joy.

Patti soothes her itch to teach by leading seminars, facilitating writing classes, and speaking at women’s events. Patti and her husband, Alan, a college administrator, live in Normal. They have two grown children and a dog named Laura.

RECLAIMING LILY
by Patti Lacy
Published by Bethany House

ABOUT THE BOOK

Two women. Two cultures. One child.

Can Kai, a determined Chinese doctor, and Gloria, a worried pastor's wife, shatter the prejudices and pride that enslave them and partner to save Joy, a rebellious teenager who just happens to be Kai's sister...Gloria's daughter?

Span seas and secrets and the depths of God's grace in Reclaiming Lily!

Readers, buy your copy of Reclaiming Lily today!

AND NOW A WORD FROM OUR FEATURE AUTHOR

Writing and Noshing—Do the Two Mix?

Gather round. Perk up your ears. It’s time for a secret from Patti Lacy, the author who spans seas and secrets and has a new Bethany House release, Reclaiming Lily.

We’re not handling the usual heavy topics of a women’s fiction writer. Not on a Wednesday!!

Ready for the revelation?

I nosh.

When words clog in the cerebral journey from gray matter to fingertips, I turn to the system taught by a dear college friend...

“Kathleen, I’m sick of this.” The dorm bunk sags as I shift my weight, rearrange Baylor Bear pillows. “We’ll never get through.”

Kathleen smooths straight hair into a ponytail. “Oh, yes, we will. We have to.”

I’m tired. Bored. Sure I’ll never pull off a decent grade point this semester…or any other. “No, we won’t.”

Like the lawyer she’s studying to be, Kathleen folds her arms across her chest and fixes droopy blue eyes on my face. “Okay.” She taps her pencil against our handouts. “We’ll do one page, then get a Coke. Do another, get some candy.”

My stomach growls, as well it should. We skipped dinner…to study. I close my eyes. Hear the Snickers—no, the Almond Joy, with its creamy dark chocolate, chewy coconut, nut-crunch, calling to me from the vending machine down the hall. “How about the candy first?” I blurt out.

She eyes me, wondering if more argument will exhaust her waning store of energy. “Okay. Candy first.” More tapping. “But it’ll cost you two pages.”

Noshing—whether to relieve the daily page requirement of a writer, the mundane job of scrubbing toilets, the twenty items on a Mom’s to-do list—has been officially classified as a coping technique for difficult, mediocre, hey, sometimes IMPOSSIBLE days.

Peanut butter slathered on crunchy crackers and topped with dried cranberries. Dove dark chocolate. Chilled carrot sticks. Hummus. Yogurt. Roasted peanuts. Hersheys almond bars.

Since domestic veganism has claimed us Lacys as “victims,” cheese has been slashed from the menu. But never chocolate!!

Hey, wait! You’ve got to write 500 words before you head to the fridge!

As my age and waistline have expanded, I’ve implemented other rewards for meeting page or word count or domestic goals:

Check Facebook comments. Dance to a Pandora hit (Ashley Cleveland’s on right now.) Look out the window. Pet Laura the dog, who as house publisher rules from the lumpy ottoman in my office. File nails. Make a phone call. (No, not THAT phone call. A fast one!)

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Thank you, Patti, for sharing with us today.

Guest Question:  Do you implement a finish-and-feed system to persevere? Does it involve chocolate? Share your favorite nosh to be eligible for a random drawing giveaway of Reclaiming Lily.


ENTRY RULES Readers, leave your email address (name at domainname dot com/net) along with your answer to the question for your chance to win a FREE autographed copy of the book featured above. If you do not answer the question, and your email address isn't provided, you will not be entered.

This week, the contest is open to US/Canada residents only.

Spotlight on Patti Lacy and An Irishwoman's Tale

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

PATTI LACY, a displaced Southerner, has lived in the Midwest for thirteen years. In 2005, she resigned her community college teaching position and started writing full-time. An Irishwoman's Tale, her first novel, released in August 2008 and is selling in the United States and overseas, including Hong Kong, Japan, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, Sweden, and Norway. Her second novel, which digs deep into a murky Louisiana bayou to uncover long-buried secrets, will release in spring or summer of 2009. Patti is married and has two wonderful adult children and a dog named Laura.

Her book is sold at many fine retail outlets, including Barnes & Noble and Parable Christian stores, and most online bookstores.

AN IRISHWOMAN'S TALE
by Patti Lacy
Published by Kregel Publications

ABOUT THE BOOK

A shattered cup. Cheap tea. Bitter voices asking what’s to be done with the little eejit. Mary, an impetuous Irishwoman, won't face the haunting memories—until her daughter's crisis propels her back to County Clare. As Mary unearths horrible secrets, God reveals a way for her to bury a dysfunctional past

Buy Your Copy of An Irishwoman's Tale Today!

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

1. What gave you the inspiration for this story?

In 1995, God yanked our family from our warm Southern porch and dumped us in the cold Midwest. To fight loneliness, I started a book discussion group. After one of the meetings, "Mary," a striking red-haired woman, paced up and down while I picked at the hors d'oeuvres I'd spent days baking. She made me nervous, and when I get nervous, I talk.

In the midst of a monologue about my children, Mary turned to me, her eyes narrowed to slits. "What is your first memory?" she asked.

"I don't know." I shrugged. "I've never really had to think about it."

"How pretty, not to think about it." Her eyes glazed, as if she were far away. "My first memory's been burned into me. Moon-shaped faces, guzzling bitter tea, asking what's to be done with the little eejit."

"How awful!" I took her arm and guided her out the door to our comfortable front porch chairs.

"Yes," she said in a monotone. "But it's what happened next that's really awful."

Hours later, I'd been gifted with a wonderful story of redemption in spite of not one but two dysfunctional homes. In 2005, I wrote my first draft of An Irishwoman's Tale.

2. How much of your own experiences influenced your characters? What aspects became traits that are theirs and theirs alone?

Since this book follows the life of Mary, my brave best friend, I didn't have to add much to her personality to create an engaging character. Sally, the secondary protagonist, has my propensity to embellish the truth and my chatty nature. We both crave chocolate and can hit a halfway decent backhand. Old Sally quickly developed empathy for Mary, which I might be reticent to do, and she lavishes love a bit more generously than I do.

3. If one of your characters were an ice cream flavor, what he/she be and why?

Poor Mary doesn't eat sweets! Can you imagine? If she did, I'll bet she'd choose pistachio nut because she loves the color green AND loves nuts. But Sally would eat every flavour and slosh hot fudge sauce and then nuts on the top of her sundae.

4. What themes exist in An Irishwoman's Tale that you hope the reader sees? Are there any themes that weren't overt but developed as the story progressed?

Romans 8:28: God works for good in the lives of those who love Him, who calls on His name. In spite of Mary's shattered and dysfunctional life, God crafted all the broken pieces into a dazzling work of art.

As the novel moved toward the climax on Ireland's storied Croagh Patrick, Mary seized the opportunity to live out 2 Corinthians 1:4, to comfort others with the comfort she has received from God.

5. What were your most difficult parts to write? Your favorite?

Mary's rejection by her mothers. Since my family spread love as thick as wallpaper paste, it was hard to get the emotion right in those scenes.

I loved trying to capture mystical Ireland on paper! When everyone was awake, I cranked up my CD player and let Liam Lawton's and Eden's Bridge music wash over me.

6. When is your next book coming out and what is the story?

April of 2009. The great Kregel team's working now on the title! Probably something about a bayou and secrets!

In 1960s Louisiana, segregation and a chain link fence separated twelve-year-old Sally Flowers from her best friend, Ella Ward. Yet a brutal rape and a blood oath bound them together.

Forty years later, when a community college student is raped, Sally must decide whether to dredge up childhood secrets long buried beneath bayou waters in order to help the young black woman she's grown to love.

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Thank you, Patti, for being in the spotlight with us.

Readers, leave a comment for your chance to win a FREE autographed copy of An Irishwoman's Tale.

If you wish to comment but don't want to be entered, say so when you post. Make sure you also leave your email address (name at domainname dot.com/net). Wouldn't want you to miss out on winning a book. :)

And if you want to make certain you don't miss anything, check the box that says 'email follow-up comments to:' when you leave a comment and they'll be sent to the email address associated with your blogging account. That way you'll be notified of any comments and will know when I announce the winner.

This week, the contest is open to anyone worldwide.

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