Everyone's Story is pleased to welcome soon-to-be debut author Sharon Srock. I became acquainted with Sharon on her lovely blog, The Women Of Valley View, saying that when both of us are published we'll be siting next to each other in a book signing since our last names are almost alike. Well, I may have some catching up to do with Sharon, but I'm happy for her that the first in a series she has sold to Harbourlight Books will be released in 3 months. It's been great getting to know Sharon better; like her own characters, Sharon is indeed a woman who uses her faith to do extraordinary things but truthfully, I should have used the term "extraordinary" to describe Sharon in the title of this segment!
Sharon will be sharing an interview, as well as an excerpt from her first book. If you're an author with an unexpected debut story, or a reader looking for inspiration within a novel, Sharon looks forward to hearing from you. Plus, she has a special treat:
If you don't mind first receiving Book 1 of the WOMEN OF VALLEY VIEW, CALLIE, upon its release in October, Sharon is offering one copy to one viewer who leaves a comment. The randomly chosen winner will be announced on Friday, August 10th. Please leave you email within the body of the comment. Thanks!
Here's a blurb (the excerpt follows):
Three dire circumstances. Three desperate prayers. One miracle to save
them all.
Callie Stillman is drawn to the evasive girl who’s befriended her
granddaughter, but the last time Callie tried to help a child, her efforts
backfired. Memories of the tiny coffin still haunt her.
Samantha and Iris Evans should be worried about homework, not whether
they can pool enough cash to survive another week of caring for an infant while
evading the authorities.
Steve Evans wants a second chance at fatherhood, but his children are
missing. And no one seems to want to help the former addict who deserted
his family.
For Steve to regain the relationship he abandoned, for his girls to
receive the care they deserve, Callie must surrender her fear and rely on God
to work the miracle they all need.
WOMEN OF VALLEY VIEW: CALLIE
By Sharon Srock
1
Callie
Stillman dabbed raindrops from her face with a linen napkin as Benton dodged a
server with a loaded tray and took his place across from her. She smiled into
her husband’s blue eyes and reached across to wipe water from his beard. “We’ll
both have pneumonia if we don’t dry off soon.”
Benton
took the napkin and finished the job. “I’ve been told the food is very good. A
few sniffles should be worth it.”
Callie’s
gaze roamed the room. “It’s…” Recognition slammed into her chest, forcing the
air from her lungs. The man crossing the room behind her husband nodded and
continued to his table. Was that the bailiff? Do you swear to tell the
truth… She gulped for breath and fought the familiar darkness that crowded
the edges of her vision.
Callie ran a finger around her
collar, tugging the neck of the blouse away from skin suddenly dewed with a
fine film of sweat. Too hot. She took a sip of water, dismayed at the
tremor in her hand as she lifted the glass to her lips. Not here, not
tonight. Callie closed her eyes and practiced the breathing techniques
she’d learned over the last six months. In through her nose, hold for a few
seconds, and out through her mouth. Concentrate only on the current step in the
process, the next breath. The tightness in her chest began to fade away. Thank
you, Jesus. She raised her water again and held the cold glass to her
flushed cheek.
“Callie?”
Callie
met Benton’s eyes across the table. The concern etched on her husband’s face
threatened to break her heart. Benton had been so supportive during the last
few months, so protective while she tried to heal. She would beat this. For
him, she would move on.
“You
OK?”
Callie
smiled. “I’m fine. It’s just a little warm in here all of a sudden.”
Benton
cocked his head to the side. “You sure? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
A
ghost? She closed her eyes, the images unbidden but ever present. Sawyer’s
pale, lifeless face. Callie’s hand reaching out to stroke baby-fine hair,
bruises the mortician’s makeup couldn’t hide. That tiny coffin lowered into the
ground. Callie could have lived with a ghost, but her haunted memories and the
never-ending what ifs that traveled with them would drive her crazy.
Two
more breaths, another swallow of cold water. Callie smiled at Benton. “This was
a nice surprise. Thanks for thinking of it.”
Benton
took her hand. “Anything for the woman I love. Have you decided what you’d like
for dinner?”
“I—“
A vicious bolt of lightning lit the dark Oklahoma sky outside the windows of
the restaurant. Thunder exploded across the sky. The lights flickered and went
off, plunging the room into sudden darkness and silence except for the
terrified cries of a frightened child.
Callie jumped to her feet. Her
chair tipped sideways onto the carpeted floor. Oh Jesus, please make the
crying stop. A harsh voice cut across the child’s frantic cries. “Andy, sit
down and stop that noise. It’s just thunder.”
The
lights came back up and Callie’s awareness narrowed to the cries of the child. Is
that how Sawyer sounded? Frightened howls as his eighteen months of life
surrendered to the beating his father dealt him. Oh Jesus, I’m so sorry. So
sorry I let Janette deceive me. So sorry I didn’t ask you before I testified. I
know you’ve forgiven me. Please help me forgive myself. She couldn’t breathe,
couldn’t think. Callie bolted from the restaurant.
“Callie!”
Benton called.
She
was letting him down. Still she ran for the door.
When
Benton found her several minutes later, she stood by the car. Rain cascaded
over her, mixing with her tears. Benton pulled her into his arms, wet and all.
He held her close, his bearded chin rested on her head. “Shh, baby, it’s OK.
I’m sorry. This was a bad idea.”
Callie
clung to him like the lifeline between sanity and madness he was. “Benton, no.
It was a great idea. I know you were trying to distract me. Trying to make me
forget Sawyer’s birthday. I thought I could.” She allowed Benton to help her
into the car, only to bend double in the seat as the panicked adrenalin gave
way to nausea. “How could I have been so stupid?”
Benton
started the car and turned the heater up to high. “Callie, you weren’t stupid.
You thought you were doing the right thing.”
Callie
shook her head. “I just wanted to help. I knew Janette wasn’t abusing her kids.
She didn’t deserve to lose them. Testifying to that…being at the hearing to
support her…celebrating when it was over. I just wanted to help,” she repeated.
Her husband navigated
the rain-washed streets while Callie huddled in the seat, head down, arms
wrapped around her middle. The images in her mind took on a life of their own.
Janette, sitting in her office, tearful over charges of alleged child abuse,
frantic because her babies had been taken from her. Callie’s unhesitating
agreement to appear in court as a character witness. The custody hearing, her
nervous testimony, the endless waiting for the judge to make a decision, the
joy of seeing those two babies reunited with their mother. And Sawyer died
because of my interference. Jesus, give me strength. Give me the wisdom
I need to never put myself in that situation again.
Some Questions For Sharon:
You openly admit your age (you brave woman) on your blog site, The Women of Valley View. Unlike actors, models, or just about anyone in a field that is deemed by society as age-controlled, writers have a bit more leeway that publication can begin at any age. Please share with us about your journey to publication. Do you accept the status of “late-bloomer” or do you see it as a misnomer?
I
know that God called me to write 25 years ago. But looking back at the things
I’ve walked through between now and then, and the flood gate that opened in my
heart 3 years ago, I have to think that I’m blooming right where, and when, God
wanted me to. Late in life, maybe. Late in God’s plan, nope.
Your characters are
women who attend church together. They are ordinary women that through faith
accomplish extraordinary things. Did you keep this in mind when writing your
novel to entertain a specific reading audience or did you write the novel you
wanted and hoped to reach the masses?
I
think ordinary women accomplish extraordinary things in their lives every day.
With the three stories I’ve written, Callie and Terri (contracted) and Pam (my
almost completed work in progress) I tried to settle on that one thing.
Callie’s was trust, Terri’s will be obedience, Pam will learn to forgive. I
hope those things speak to all of us.
On your blog you also
admit to following God’s call to writing 25 years ago…yet, it has taken a
while. I say this as a person with a similar history. Now that your novel(s)
has sold, and you have an agent working on your behalf, are you able to look
back in hindsight and take a few guesses as to why God may have taken you on a
detour? Or, do you believe it was all a matter of 25 years of honing your
writing skills, hard work, and being in the right place at the right time?
Any
detours in my life were mine, not God’s. I wonder, often, where I’d be right
now if I’d stuck with writing 25 years ago. That’s a pointless question. Like I
said, I’ve come to accept that I’m right where God wanted me, when He wanted me
there.
How do you manage to
write efficiently around working full-time at an air force base, selling Avon
products, and being a loving wife, mom, and grandmother?
I’ve
given up just about anything that resembles entertainment. I don’t get to read
much anymore. I had to switch from reviewing books on my blog to offering
excerpts because I was having problems reading a book every 2-3 weeks to
review. I write on breaks and lunch periods. An hour here, thirty minutes
there. I had just about developed a system that worked pretty well then the
need for social media involvement raised its ugly head. That’s an hour plus out
of my home time every evening. I’m thankful that my daughters are grown. My
youngest grandchild is almost 12, so they are all to the self involved teenaged
stage, and my husband is understanding enough that if he has to make his own
dinner an extra night a week, he’s good with that.
Would you say Sharon
Srock has finally arrived at the place in life she always dreamed about, or is
she still traveling there?
Still
traveling. Yes, my name on that book is a dream fulfilled, but what happens
when you quit dreaming? We have to keep moving forward in this world or we
stagnate.
Elaine,
here is my little testimony. It might help viewers to understand the
25-year-thing:
I’ve been a reader all my life, but
writing was never my dream. I remember cringing in English classes when a
single page paper was due. One night I went to bed a reader and woke up
determined to write a book. I was very involved in Star Trek fandom, had some
short stories and poetry published in a fanzine here and there. My first full
length project was a Star Trek story. Now, I’m Pentecostal, so you’ll have to
work with me here…One night, about 25 years ago, we were in a revival. The
evangelist, who didn’t know me from Eve spoke a word of prophecy over me. In para
phrase… “I’ve put a pen in your
hand and a light by your side. Use it for me.” Well at that point in my life
the only Christian writing I knew about were lessons or theological works of
non fiction. That didn’t seem like me, so I stopped writing altogether. Three
and a half years ago, a new employee stopped by my desk to introduce herself.
In the course of the conversation, she mentioned that she was a writer. I told
her that that was my dream at one time. She gave me the oddest look and spoke
five words that have changed my life. “You gave up too soon.” That night I
started writing Callie’s story.
Author Bio:
Sharon Srock lives with her husband, Larry, and two
dogs in Rural Oklahoma. She is a mother, grandmother, and Sunday School
teacher. Sharon has one and three-quarters jobs and writes in her spare time.
Her favorite hobby is traveling with her grandchildren. She is a member of the
ACFW and currently serves as treasurer for her local chapter. Sharon’s writing
credits include numerous poems and short stories published in science fiction
fanzines.
You can reach Sharon at:
Connect on
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SharonSrock#!/SharonSrock
Follow on
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/SharonSrock
