Welcome Deborah Vogts

I had the pleasure of meeting author Deb Vogts last summer at a publishing event. She's a wonderful, down-to-earth gal, one that you feel you've known longer than you actually have known her. We hit it off. I picked up a copy of her first novel, Snow Melts in Spring, and fell in love with her writing.

Her second novel, Seeds of Summer (the second

book in the Seasons of Tallgrass series) has recently released. I'm enjoying reading it very much. Deb has a way with words and I love the way she describes the setting for her novels, the Flint Hills of Kansas. Beautiful.

She's agreed to stop by and visit, and she's answered some questions:

1. Tell us about your latest novel, Seeds of Summer. - Seeds of Summer is the second book in the Seasons of the Tallgrass series. It’s a heart-warming contemporary romance set in the Flint Hills of Kansas where a former rodeo queen abandons her dreams in order to care for her deceased father’s ranch and her two half-siblings, only to realize with the help of a young new pastor that God can turn even the most dire circumstances into seeds of hope.

2. What’s your favorite turn of phrase or word picture, in literature or a movie? This is a quote I’m actually using in my third book, Blades of Autumn, taken from Skimming the Cream by Zula Bennington Green (Peggy of the Flint Hills). I think it describes the setting for the book amazingly well . . .

“The Flint Hills are simple and quiet and timeless. They belong to the people who live there, to men who ride in seasoned boots and weathered hats, to men who farm the little valleys and pasture the big hills, to women who look out their kitchen window every day at a familiar curve of sky. And to any soul attuned to beauty and peace.”

3. What’s your favorite holiday and why? - Christmas. I love all the symbols and family traditions that accompany this most precious holiday.

4. What is the most surprising discovery you’ve made on your journey of publication? “Reader mail.” This is something I never equated into the “author picture.” I LOVE getting letters or emails from my readers. That has been such a huge blessing to me.

5. Which compliment related to your writing has meant the most and why? Right before Seeds of Summer released, my publisher ran a special promotion on Amazon to give away my first book, Snow Melts in Spring, as a free Kindle download. I thought this would be a great thing! Little did I know there might be consequences for doing this—poor reviews by those not expecting a Christian romance. On the very day I received my first 2 star review, I also received an email from a soldier in Bagdad, who had read my book as part of that free promotion—and loved it. The words he wrote in his email served as inspiration to me that God was in control, no matter how many poor reviews I might receive. If you’d like to read the email, I blogged about it here: http://deborahvogts.blogspot.com/2010/05/reader-mail-letter-from-soldier.html

6. What makes you happy? – The scent of a rose or the approach of rain, a newly planted garden, baking bread, playing the piano, spending time with my family, driving into the Flint Hills, hearing from someone who enjoyed reading my books!

Bio: Deborah Vogts and her husband have three daughters and make their home in Southeast Kansas where they raise and train American Quarter Horses. As a student at Emporia State University studying English and journalism, Deborah developed a love for the Flint Hills that has never faded. In writing this series, she hopes to share her passion for one of the last tallgrass prairie regions in the world, showing that God’s great beauty rests on the prairie and in the hearts of those who live there.