Now to get to know Susan May Warren a little more (contest information at the end of the post):

AMS: How did the idea for this book come about?

SMW: Oh, being pregnant in Russia, of course. (Twice, actually). The first time I sat in a doctor’s office and they pulled out a wooden stethoscope and asked me to take off all my clothes, I said, this is going into a book! Being pregnant in Russia is an adventure worthy of any great epic!

AMS: I imagine that was quite the experience, and now wonderful book material.

About how long did the first draft take to write? Would you say there were more days where the words flowed well or more days where you wrestled them onto the page?

SMW: Since this was so much my own story, I really just had to go back to my crazy experiences and tell them in Josey’s voice. I did struggle with how much to put into the story…after all, I had so much material, but only some of it would work in Josey’s life. (so, well, I saved it for book 3!) I have to say, since I plot out a book by chapter, and know what, essentially, is going to happen in each chapter, I don’t struggle with writer’s block as much as frustration that I can’t get the story down on the page fast enough!

AMS: Yes! book 3. I’m already looking forward to it. I’m learning to sketch out the chapters more and not be a complete SOTPster.

What would you say was your greatest challenge in writing this book?

SMW: The biggest challenge was Josey’s newlywed relationship with Chase. I wanted Chase to be a realistic hero, but also not lose the reader’s heart. It was a tight rope between Josey’s perception of reality and Chase’s honor in the eyes of the reader.

AMS: I think you pulled it off well. I can relate to Josey’s perception of reality versus true reality. I struggled with that when my hubby and I were first married. The things we tell ourselves sometimes…

What do you do to help you settle into a writing session?

SMW: Music – especially mood music. And a clear plan of where I’m going. I also start by reading a bit of the previous chapter – that helps me find my character’s voice again.

AMS: A clear plan - I’m learning how important that is when it comes to my writing.

Let’s have a little fun with the questions now.

Do you have any weird or funny writing quirks?

SMW: I have to crunch to be creative. Which often means chewing gum, but sometime just a little bowl of dry cereal will do it. And, I have to write in my big blue writing chair…it’s oversized and allows me to just settle back and close my eyes and write.

Finally, I don’t do any editing while I’m writing a book – I go straight through it and then go back and sculpt it after it’s on the page. Finally, I can’t clean my office during the composing portion of a book (we’re talking 4-6 weeks!) because everything is in a pile where I have to access it. As a result, it’s hard to enforce the whole, “room clean” policy for the kids!

AMS: My husband thinks I’m strange for eating cereal dry. It’s nice to have company lol. I love reading your quirks, but there is a great writing tip mixed in. Thanks for reminding us how it’s important to get that first draft down and then go back and add the finer details and clean it up.

If you were a music CD, what style music would you be and why?

SMW: I’d be a soundtrack to a movie, like Pearl Harbor. Something with ebs and flows, great epic heights, and soft moments that flutter out (which is me collapsing on the sofa).

AMS: LOL - great answer!

What are you currently reading and how is it so far?

SMW: Light of Eidon, by Karen Hancock. Finished it in one day – read from 9am to 2am…Fabulous. That woman knows how to write a great book!!

AMS: Sounds like a page turner. I’ll have to look for it.

The spotlight is turned off now, any parting words?

SMW: Just a thank you for reading my books, and letting my stories into you lives. I’m so grateful for readers!!

AMS: Thanks for writing such terrific books for us to read. I enjoyed having you on the blog.

Susan May Warren has a fun contest going on at her blog: Submit your funniest/craziest/most embarrassing PREGNANCY STORY and be entered to win a Super Fabulous, Ultra Deluxe Chill Out, Mom SPA BASKET! Here is the link to the Contest page on Susan’s website: http://www.susanmaywarren.com/contest.html (**note, this contest is exclusively for her blog tour, chances are there will be another contest going on for her general audience…feel free to enter both contests. By submitting your story, Susan will know which contest you are entering!)

I love Susan May Warren’s books. In fact, I just finished reading her book, Chill Out, Josey! It was a fun read and oh how I could relate to some of the angst women can put themselves through as well as the joys and er not so joyful moments of pregnancy.

In the midst of humor, Susan weaves little nuggets of truth make you think. In fact, one quote from Chill Out, Josey! resonated with me: “I do live with a sorta everyday understanding of God’s love. I don’t let it change my world, not really.” I’ll be pondering that quote for a while.

Here’s a synopsis for Chill Out, Josey!: Russia? Not again. Josey’s finally living the good life - she’s got the man, the (almost-perfect) wedding, the two-story Cape-Cod house of her dreams. That is until her man drags her back to Moscow! Josey knows she has the guts to follow her own dreams across the world, but she’s not so sure she can play the perfect wife while her husband chases after his. Josey’s set on having the perfect life…even in a world without hot water, decent take-out and size-two leather fashion. But can she find the courage to tell her man the secret that will change their lives forever?

Susan’s Bio: I can’t help be amazed at the gifts God has delighted me with - a wonderful husband, four amazing children, and the opportunity to write for Him.

I’ve been writing as long as I can remember - I won my first book writing contest in first grade! Over the years, writing has become, for me, a way to praise God and see Him at work in my life.

Although I have a degree in Mass Communications from the University of MN, my real writing experience started when I penned the The Warren Report - a bi-monthly newsletter that detailed our ministry highlights.

Living in Russia meant I never lacked for great material - and those experiences naturally spilled out first into devotionals and magazine articles and finally into my first published story, “Measure of a Man,” in the Tyndale/HeartQuest, Chance Encounters of the Heart anthology.

I grew up in Wayzata, a suburb of Minneapolis, and became an avid camper from an early age. My favorite fir-lined spot is the north shore of Minnesota - it’s where I met my husband, honeymooned and dreamed of living. The north woods easily became the foundation for my first series, The Deep Haven series. Based on a little tourist town along the shores of Lake Superior. I have to admit - I’m terribly jealous of Mona, the heroine of my first full-length book, Happily Ever After, a Christy Award Finalist published in 2004 with Tyndale/Heartquest.

Our family moved home from the mission field in June 2004 — and now we live in the beautiful town I’d always dreamed of! God has amazed me anew with His provision, and blessings — and allowed me a season when I can write full time for Him.

Want to find out more:
Buy the book
Read the first Chapter
Susan’s website
Susan’s blog
Susan’s other books

Tomorrow’s post will have Susan’s interview plus contest information!

Visit Susan’s website at: www.susanpagedavis.com and enter her monthly drawing for one of her books. The winner gets to choose the title.

I read her first book in the series, Frasier Island, and LOVED it. I can’t wait to read this one - as soon as I wrestle it from my daughter’s hands.