Giveaway and Interviewing one of my best writing buds--Jennifer Johnson!

So happy to highlight Jennifer's newest book Bluegrass Bachelors--a great read, and one of the heroes has the same last name as my hubby! I have read all three stories, and love them all, but Mike McCauley holds a special place in my heart. Must be something about his name! LOL Just leave a comment below to be entered in the drawing for a free copy of this book.

ABOUT JENNIFER JOHNSON


 

Jennifer Johnson and the world’s most supportive husband have been married for over two decades. They’ve been blessed to raise three amazing daughters and recently added a terrific son-in-law to the crew. Jennifer teaches 6th grade writing at her local middle school. She has seventeen published novels and one novella. When she isn’t writing or teaching, she enjoys shopping and watching movies with her family, going to dinner with her best friend, and brainstorming slumber parties with her writing buddies. She loves to hear from readers. You can reach her at jenwrites4god@bellsouth.net or www.jenniferjohnsonbooks.com.

Question: What distracts you from writing the easiest?

Hmm…life! I have a husband, who tends to lose things...he’s a terrific guy, though. I love you, Al. I have three daughters. The oldest is newly-married and student teaching. She’s in meltdown mode at least three times a week. My second daughter is just walking drama of disaster. God loves that child and so do I, but whew that girl can wear a momma out. My youngest is a freshman who enjoys being chauffeured from one thing to the other, and who also shares her heart with her mommy quite often. Note: I’m very thankful my girls will talk to me. J

Outside of family, I teach 150 6th graders a day. Now that’s a distraction. J I also tend to like to play Ruzzle, Family Feud, SongPop, and Pics & Words. And I’m a Walking Dead, Criminal Minds, Duck Dynasty, and American Idol junkie. I suppose I’ve been known to get caught up in Good Luck, Charlie- love that mom, Reba, and a few of the other shows my girls suck me into watching. I’m telling you, it’s all their faults. J

Question: What kind of books do you enjoy reading? (Book recommendations very welcome!)

I love reading Christian romance. I will read anything written by Denise Hunter or Deanne Gist. Probably my favorite story by Denise is A Convenient Groom, a story in which the hero depicts Jesus, a man who loves his bride even when she doesn’t love him, and the heroine depicts us, the bride who continually denies him. And I love Deanne’s book Courting Trouble, which tells the story of a woman who discovers the true Love of her life.

As a middle school teacher, I also read a lot of young adult fiction. I admit I love the Twilight and Hunger Games series by Stephenie Meyer and Suzanne Collins respectively. I also fell in love with the book Legend by a new author, Marie Lu. Like the Hunger Games series, the setting is a dystopian society in which the people are ruled by a cruel government.

Question: What makes you smile and/or laugh out loud?

Just about everything makes me smile or laugh.

I love babies…as long as they’re not mine, I’m too old for any surprises…grandbabies are welcome in a few years.

I love a sunshiny day.

I love to laugh at myself when I do something silly at school…it allows my students to see that it’s okay to do something a bit embarrassing and then laugh.

I love to hang out with my husband, my girls, and my friends.

Oh…I know! I can’t help but smile when I see my three big girls (21, 19, and 15) sitting side-by-side on the couch or the pew at church or anywhere- my oldest is married and finishing college two hours away and the middle lives at a dorm thirty minutes away, so it’s usually just my husband and I and the youngest girl hanging out together.

I love when God does something and then shows me. For example, one time I sent a card to a church friend. I just kept feeling the Spirit’s pressure to send her a note about how much I loved her. Well, I mailed that letter and come to find out she received it on her deceased husband’s birthday…the very first birthday she spent without him. I didn’t know it was his birthday. I was just obeying the spirit to uplift a friend. It was very cool, and just made me smile again. J

I love when my girls tell me I’m a total creeper because I smile at everyone. In fact, if you meet me on the street and I’m not smiling, please ask me how I’m doing, because something is definitely wrong!

Question: Are there things you put off doing because you dread them?

Things I do because I dread them:

1) Write proposals- This makes me laugh, but the truth is writing a synopsis is like pulling teeth. Just let me write the story already. J

2) Grade on demand papers- In Kentucky, students write on demand papers. They are exactly as they sound. The students are given a prompt, then they have forty minutes to write a two-to-four page response to the prompt. Okay, maybe I should love digging into their papers, and maybe I would if there weren’t 150 of them to grade each time I assign an on demand. J

3) I hate cleaning. I mean, I do it, because somebody’s got to, but I don’t like it. I’ve been known to start cleaning my house at eight o’clock or later because I’ve put it off the whole day.

4) I’m not a fan of going to the grocery store. This morning my husband was whining because we didn’t have milk. But the grocery always puts a big dent in my pocketbook, so I avoid it at all costs. J

I could probably continue this list, but I’m not sure I want you to know all the things I put off. Unless it’s something I want to do, I’m a habitual procrastinator. Not a very disciplined girl.

Question: Are there spiritual themes you like to write about?

YES! I love to write about God’s faithfulness and mercy, and that He can use us no matter how we’ve sinned and no matter what sins have been done to us. We live in a world that for the most part bows to the wrong master. As a result, we mess up, even after accepting Christ as our Savior, we mess up. And sometimes evil affects us, even when we’re doing nothing wrong.

God-fearing men and women have affairs, get hooked on drugs, steal, lie, cheat…they do things we can’t believe…and we talk about them. Children are abused. People are killed in accidents. Evil abounds. None of us are immune.

Can I give you an answer WHY some of these things are allowed, how a sovereign God would be willing to see those things happen? I can’t. What I can say is that we serve a good God. One who has a plan for our lives, who offers rest and comfort for the weary, who will save us from ourselves and this world, who will use everything that’s happened for GOOD to those who love and trust Him.


ABOUT BLUEGRASS BACHELORS

Friends Nick Martin, Drew Wilson, and Mike McCauley are betting on love—and the last man left single wins.

With Nick’s competitive, determined nature, winning should be easy. After all, he managed to pay off his land debts before her turned thirty—ahead of schedule. But Nick didn’t count on Addy Wilson returning to town. Now, with the risk of losing love, are the stakes too high?

While his friends may succumb to wedding vows, Drew is sure he won’t. And Melody Markwell only confirms his resolve. She’s hard-headed, competitive…too much like himself. So why does Drew suddenly feel that winning her heart is worth losing the bet?

Mike has waited for this moment for years. But now that he finally gets a chance to take the girl he’s been pining over on a date, he’s let down. Then to his annoyance, clumsy Johanna Smith keeps running into him—literally. Is this God’s way of getting his attention?

All bets are off, but will these bluegrass bachelors give in to love?