All My Belongings by Cynthia Ruchti

I hope you will enjoy this blog post about this marvelous story and am happy to share an interview with Cynthia. She is so insightful and shares her heart with us so willingly. ENJOY!

All My Belongings by: Cynthia Ruchti

How eagerly I have been awaiting this newest offering by Ms. Ruchti! All My Belongings did not disappoint! The author weaves a story that centers around pain and suffering that blossoms, through hope, into a story of healing and restoration.

The heroine of this story, Becca, has left her home, that was destroyed through her father’s crimes and mental instability and his belief that he was to aid the death of Becca’s mother. Becca, changes her name and creates a new persona to carry her into an uncertain future for she knows she can’t live under the infamous shadow of her father. She hopes the past will not haunt her but alas that is not to be.

Becca becomes a caregiver to a woman suffering from Alzheimer/dementia. She cares deeply for the woman and provides comfort and sunshine to her patient. Becca also finds herself enjoying the relationship that transpires with her patient’s son. Can she ever be free of her past enough to create any hope of love, a family and security for her future?

Then the unthinkable happens. Becca’s greatest fear has resurfaced despite her carefully laid plans to keep her past at bay.  The author weaves a beautiful tale of hope as Becca learns that God holds her fragile heart in His hand. He brings her through the dark valleys of her life. God shows her that He can mend her heart and break the hold of her past through relationship with Him. She is challenged to dare to open up to the love she is shown by others.

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 All My Belongings (Abingdon Fiction) May 2014  PW Starred Review!, CAN Golden Scrolls Fiction Book of the Year finalist

When the Morning Glory Blooms (Abingdon Fiction) RT Reviews 4.5 Stars and a TOP PICK, 2014 Christian Retailing's Best finalist, ForeWord Reviews 2013 Book of the Year Finalist, 2014 Selah Award

Ragged Hope: Surviving the Fallout of Other People's Choices(Abingdon Christian Living) 2014 Christian Retailing's Best finalist, AWSA Golden Scrolls Book of the Year finalist, 2014 Selah Award 

and more...

www.cynthiaruchti.com

Stories of Hope-that-glows-in-the-dark

AN INTERVIEW WITH CYNTHIA RUCHTI

What led you to choose this story line?

All My Belongings started out as a different story almost a decade ago. But it had at its heart a young woman devastated by the choices her parents made and the love they failed to show. When I landed on this particular story line, plot, and plot twists, it felt unique enough to be compelling but a story with which all too many can identify. Who of us hasn’t wondered where we belong? For some of us, the questioning didn’t last any longer than junior high. For others, it’s a lifelong debate.

As in a previous novel, When the Morning Glory Blooms, you are unafraid to challenge man’s philosophies and delve to the soul wounds and their fallout in others that is inflicted by “freedom of choice”. What is your ultimate hope that your readers will discover?

Every action or inaction bears consequences. Every word spoken. Every word left unspoken. Every truth. Every deception. The same stones that pummel some will be caught and used as stepping stones by others. Becca’s and Isaac’s hearts were restless, unsure where they truly belonged, pummeled by life’s circumstances, until they learned how to take the very stones thrown at them and by God’s grace build a pathway into a future they could not only live with but find rewarding. My hope is that readers will gravitate toward their stories, see themselves in the pages, and take heart in the truth that belonging is less about an address or a heritage and more about discovering the wonder of belonging to the One who never fails us.

Who was your favorite secondary character in All My Belongings and why?

I love Geneva for the sacrifices she made. I love Aurelia for the quirky character she was and the grace that marked her life even in its end days. And Isaac’s friends made an impression on me. Who wouldn’t long for a bunch of friends like them? If forced to choose one favorite secondary character though, I’d have to say Aurelia. She has stayed with me long after the writing was done.

As Becca learns to face the wounds of her past we sense her vulnerability. What do you hope your readers learn through her journey?

It’s not uncommon to have a friend or acquaintance perpetually stuck in the mire of their past. It continues to re-injure them daily because it occupies center stage in their present. An abuser, for instance, even long dead, continues to attack and devastate in the thoughts of the injured one. Becca had a fierce determination not to let her father’s past choices dictate her future. Even though his reputation followed her and brought new torments, each time she picked up the challenge to rewrite her future—to love in a way she’d never known; to serve selflessly, which she’d never seen, and to find joy wherever she could snatch it. That speaks to my heart. I hope it will to readers, too.

In an unusual way, you brought Becca’s father back into her life at the end of the story. What prompted you to take this direction in the story?

I remember someone telling me, “I thought the ‘last straw’ was three straws ago!” describing what it feels like to finally believe we’re getting a handle on things only to have them fall apart, or to be trapped in a whirlwind of crises that won’t let up…and here comes another one. Without giving too much of the story away, I wanted to press Becca to show the true mettle of her newfound faith and understanding of where she ultimately belonged. I wanted to see how she’d react when confronted with what for many of us would seem to be the ultimate in impossible sacrifices. Tears flowed as I wrote those scenes.

What kind of research went into All My Belongings?

Such a variety! I researched the area around Oceanside, California and talked to many who had visited or grown up there to get the true “feel.” I researched euthanasia and mercy killing and the legal consequences in various states. I looked up the type of flowers and plants that might grow in a southern California garden. And I talked to a nurse hotline about undetectable ways of hastening a dying person’s end. Those are just a few of the many details an author researches.

You are a writer who crosses over from novels to non-fiction. What is your favorite genre?

It’s true. I write devotions, magazine articles, and nonfiction books (like Ragged Hope: Surviving the Fallout of Other People’s Choices) in addition to novels. Favorite? Whatever style of book I’m working on at the moment.  Both genres demand an outpouring of creativity, if done well. Both depend on storytelling. The challenge with nonfiction is needing to know where you’re going before you start. In novels, I begin writing without knowing what’s going to happen to my characters. I enjoy discovering what they encounter and how they’re changed as much as—I pray—my readers do!

Can you give us a glimpse into your current project? What do your readers have to look forward to?

In 2015, I’ll see the release of both a novel and a nonfiction project. The novel is As Waters Gone By, the story of a woman struggling to hold her marriage together when her husband is in prison. The nonfiction is tentatively titled Tattered and Mended: The Art of Healing the Soul. I’m excited about both of those projects and pray they resonate with readers.

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Dear Cynthia, How we appreciate your heartfelt answers and letting us glimpse into the process of making this moving story come to life. May God bless you, your ministry and your family! 

So Fair a Lady by Amber Perry

WIN a signed copy of this lovely story! Just leave a comment and your email address. I will do the drawing on Friday the 16th of May and announce the winner on that day.
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What a lovely story created around a tumultuous time in America’s history. People were divided over their political views even at the cost of their loyalties within their families and among their friends. Ms. Perry tells us a story of a young woman and her sister who, due to their father’s political allegiance and his recent death, find themselves on the run from all that is familiar and those they love. The heroine, Eliza is a woman who fiercely loves her sister and is strong in character. She feels herself drawn to the man who transports them away from their home, for their own safety. She struggles with the dawning awareness of her father’s secrets that have caused the upheaval in their lives. The love story develops between Eliza and Thomas, despite many obstacles. They find themselves drawn to each other and their chemistry ignites. Without giving away the story, let me say that if you love a romance, you will enjoy this story!

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And NOW for the interview with Amber Perry:

Tell us how/why you chose this time in history and this setting for your story? “I have always loved the colonial era! The political history and turmoil are so fascinating to me—not to mention the clothes!! I don’t know where my obsession came from, but I can trail it back to my early junior high school days. I visited Sandwich, MA when I was 15, and I never forgot it—it’s called to me from my memory, and I just knew I needed to set my story there, but I had no earthly idea how perfect it would be for the political time I was writing in.”

How do you develop a character? What goes into giving them “life”? “Oh goodness!! Great question. Well, for me, I think about what is motivating them. What do they want? All of us are motivated by something, and that drives us in everything we do. I wanted to make sure that my characters have strong motivations. Also, I acted on the stage for years and I loved it! I use my experience in theatrical training as I get into the characters heads to try and make them live and breathe.”

What was your favorite part of the story to write and why? “There were so many fun parts! But, I must say, the most fabulous part to write was what I have dubbed as the “Shakespeare” scene, where Eliza is asked to do a reading from Shakespeare for the evening’s entertainment. The romantic tension is killer! At least, I think it is. ;)”

The dilemma that people faced politically during that time in history must have been very traumatic. What went into your research? “You are absolutely right. The struggles and heartaches that people went through were horrible. People don’t often think of the Revolution as a civil war, but in a way—it kind of was! It tore many families a part and the animosity between sides was vicious. However, the colonist’s drive for freedom led them to persevere even through the wicked tribulation. I love that! And I love being able to share their passion for life and liberty through this story.”

Could you tell us one or more of the interesting facts that stood out to you from your research? “I guess I didn’t really realize how violent things were between the Whigs and the Tories even before the war began—in Boston especially. Nowadays, we would be horrified by some of the events that took place: people being tarred and feathered and paraded around the streets to be made examples of whether patriot or Tory, public hangings, people getting their ears chopped off, etc. The passion and drive for freedom was so strong—as was the desire for England to NOT let the colonies go, that the animosity and hatred ran very strong. I had always figured that was the case, but until I started really learning about it, I had no idea how deep those emotions went.”

Can you tell your readers about what you have in store for them next? "Absolutely! I’m so thrilled because, the next story in the series, SO TRUE A LOVE, will follow Doctor Nathaniel Smith and Kitty Campbell—two characters from book one. I simply cannot get enough of those two, and I hope that readers will enjoy the next story as much as I have enjoyed writing it.”

Amber Lynn Perry is a historical romance novelist, focusing on her favorite time in American history--the Revolutionary era. She received a Bachelor's degree from Portland State University and currently lives in Washington state with her husband and two daughters. She loves to hear from readers and you can contact her through her website, www.amberlynnperry.com or through her Facebook page, www.facebook.com/author
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Thank you, Amber, for sharing with us today! We readers love getting an inside perspective of what goes on behind the scenes as you develop your story.