My guest today is Olivia Newport, another Colorado author. She's here to discuss her newest release, Meek and Mild, and give us a peek into her writing world.
Meek and Mild by Olivia Newport
The leadership in an Old Order Amish community requires
shunning friends and family whose only offense is to embrace the new Protestant
practice of Sunday school among the Mennonites, but teaching Bible stories to
children is one of Clara Kuhns’s great joys. Clara's on the verge of saying yes
to Andrew Raber’s marriage proposal, but now he flagrantly refuses to submit to
the bishop's authority by owning a car. When the lot falls to Moses Beachy to
become the new bishop, the community waits for him to take bold steps toward
change. Clara and Andrew step together into a more progressive Amish faith as
the Beachy Amish take form.
When did you first
discover that you were a writer?
I always loved telling stories. I can remember being four
years old and using flannelgraph pieces in the preschool Sunday school room to
tell a story about a little girl looking for Jesus. In fifth grade, a weekly
assignment was to write a story using all the spelling words. I did really well
at it. I’m thankful that my teacher told me so. But growing into that identity
can take decades. Though I had several jobs where organizational-based writing
was a big chunk of the position, I was 35 before I transitioned from “I like to
write” to “I am a writer.”
What other books have
you written?
Thanks for asking! The Avenue of Dreams series, set in 1890s
Chicago, includes The Pursuit of Lucy
Banning, The Dilemma of Charlotte Farrow, and The Invention of Sarah Cummings. The Valley of Choice series, set
in contemporary Colorado, includes Accidentally
Amish, In Plain View, and Taken for
English. Hidden Falls is a 13-episode digital-only contemporary small-town
series available in e-book and audible formats. Wonderful Lonesome, which came out last year, is the first in the
Amish Turns of Time set of historical Amish novels. Meek and Mild, the new book, is the second in that set.
How do you keep your
sanity in our run, run, run world?
I often think I am not doing a very good job of that! I am a
creature of habit, and that helps. I don’t resist doing what I need to do when
I need to do it, and never have. But in recent years I have become more attuned
to listening to both body and spirit. I try to pay attention both to what is
abundant and what is needful. I believe a healthy life doesn’t come down to
just what I eat or what health condition I might or might not have. It comes
down to a balance of the major dimensions of my life. When I feel them swinging
out of balance, I know it’s time to make some adjustments.
The task I took on with the Amish Turns of Time stories is
exploring some true historical episodes in Amish history and looking at how
Amish history took a turn because of what happened. In Meek and Mild, I look at the circumstances that led to break-off of
the Beachy Amish, who eventually became more progressive than the Old Order.
Because the district that experienced this break spanned the
Pennsylvania-Maryland border, family members on both sides were caught up in
divisive opinions and consequences. My characters are fictional, but they face
the struggles we know real people faced in the historical circumstances.
How can readers find
your book on the Internet?
Meek and Mild is
available at all the major Internet retailers, in print, audio, and e-book
formats. Here are some quick links.
You can find Olivia at www.olivianewport.com,
@OliviaNewport and on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/OliviaNewport?ref=hl
1 comment:
I have read every book this Author has written. I loved the first 3 historical books. I find she creates characters so well that I can relate to them. The Amish books hooked me immediately. I think I have always had questions about the different Orders of the Amish people. Olivia Newport has given me insight into so many. Her writings tell a story but also bring me into so much more.. It was interesting to read the authors comments. She sounds like a very well rounded and yet grounded person. I finish each book and wait for the next one. When I find an author that I like I will follow them and read each book they write. Olivia Newport is an author I will hopefully be reading for years to come.
Post a Comment