Fabulous Friday Feature -Robin Johns Grant

Today we welcome author: 

Robin Johns Grant

To win a copy
of Robin's new release:
Jordan's Shadow

Scroll to the end of the post 
to see how to get your copy.

Mary Vee here. I love meeting new friends through the organizations I belong to. Have you ever gone to someplace new, maybe kinda sat in the back watching everyone chat, then find yourself mysteriously joining in the conversation? Yeah. That is my norm. One of the recent groups I joined was the ACFW Speculative Group. There are a lot of fun people there who create creatures and invent new things...but don't we all love to watch Superman, Spiderman, Iron Man, the Avengers, etc? This is the group of people who think of these fabulous ideas.

Robin recently mentioned her new release in our group. I asked her to join us and share how God has led her on her writing journey to help you see writers of fantasy and science fiction can have great benefits in Christian Fiction. Here is what she said:

The Long and Winding Writing Road

When Mary Vee graciously agreed to help me celebrate the launch of my new book, Jordan’s Shadow, by hosting me on her blog, she suggested I talk about how God has led me on my writing journey.

It’s sort of interesting how all of us writers seem to talk about our “journeys,” even though—let’s be honest here—when we start out planning to be an author, do we really expect it to be a journey? That word seems to suggest something long, maybe more than a little tiring and frustrating.

I decided I wanted to be a writer when I was a child. Being a published and successful author was my guiding ambition through the years, and by the time I was 18, I had my first book-length manuscript (co-authored with my cousin) ready to send off to a publisher.  

When I slapped those pages into an envelope and hauled them down to the post office (see, I told you it was a long time ago), did I realize I was starting a long, LONG journey? That would be a resounding no.

I’ll confess it. Here’s what I expected. That lucky random editor I selected to receive our literary gem would immediately open it, start reading, and know right away he or she simply had to purchase this manuscript. I was absolutely astounded when our literary baby was rejected…in a form letter…a whole year later! The nerve!

So began my journey—and yes, it most certainly has been a journey. I would call my pursuit of becoming a real live author “The Long and Winding Road.” I never stopped writing. There were the years I continued to stuff envelopes and send off proposals to random publishing companies. Years of improving my writing, going to conferences, and learning to pitch my stories to editors and agents face to face. Wandering from genre to genre, trying to find a good fit.

Finally, I drifted away from traditional publishing altogether and struck out on my own as an indie author. Only to find that, guess what, there’s no quick and easy success there, either. If anything, indie publishing has started me on another long road. With indie publishing, all the jobs from writing to formatting and design and marketing are squarely on your shoulders, so there’s another batch of skills to learn.

A wise person pointed out to me the Bible verse, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.” I had always pictured my writing career as a bright sunny day, smooth sailing and clear all the way to the horizon. Instead, according to this verse, God’s guidance can be more like a flashlight in the dark, showing us the next step to take but not a whole lot more.

He has most definitely always shown me the next step. One of my favorite examples? The only time I really considered quitting writing was when I was trying to sell in the secular market. I had a bad experience at a secular writers’ conference and decided that’s it, I quit.

But while driving home, it was as if a little voice was nudging me, saying, “What about the Christian market? At least maybe those folks would be nicer.” I stopped at a Christian bookstore to check out the Christian fiction and wrote down the name “Terri Blackstock” as someone whose writing impressed me.

A couple of weeks later, out of the blue, my husband said, “Have you ever heard of Terri Blackstock?” It turned out a friend of his family knew her and had mentioned me, and she was willing to look at my writing. Which led to my signing with my first agent. One more step. A moment of refreshment by the roadside.

I will confess that  I often still long for some development—like the Terri Blackstock thing—to mean I’ve come to the  end of the hard stuff, the trudging one step at a time without ever feeling I’ve “made it.” But God has given me enough of those Terri Blackstock moments to show me that I’m on track, and that’s how things are supposed to be.

As much as I hate to admit it, maybe my learning to trust him even when the path is dark, to praise and love him even when I’m not getting the fame and fortune I long for, is far more important than my personal success.

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Robin Johns Grant published her first novel, Summer’s Winter, in 2014, and her second suspense novel, Jordan’s Shadow, has just been released. Summer's Winter won a bronze medal in the Romance - Suspense category of the International Readers' Favorite Book Awards, and Robin was named 2014 Author of the Year by the Georgia Association of College Stores.

Family and friends are happy that Robin’s imagination is finally paying off. She’s always had way too much of it. She started making up stories before she could write them down (dictating them to her mother) and always had her head in the clouds. She was obsessed with books and movies like Harry Potter and Star Wars and did a lot of crazy fan stuff, which helped her dream up Jeanine and Jamie’s story for Summer's Winter. 

As a Christian, Robin can’t help but explore spirituality in her writing, but wants to do so in a way that reflects the awe and wonder of God and eternity.

With a degree in English, several non-fulfilling jobs under her belt, and a mid-life crisis coming on, Robin returned to school and earned a master's degree in library and information science. She now has her best day job ever as a college librarian, which keeps her young by allowing her to hang out with students.

With her wonderful husband Dave and formerly feral felines Mini Pearl and Luna, Robin lives in Georgia.  She is also surprised to find herself part owner of a pit bull named Pete, who showed up as a starving stray puppy at her mother's house.

Contact Robin through: 

Website and blog:  http://robinjohnsgrant.com

Facebook: https://facebook.com/robinjohnsgrantauthor

Twitter: https://twitter.com/robinjohnsgrant

She loves to hear from her readers.

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Click here to see or
buy Summer's Winter

Summer's Winter
At age ten, preacher's daughter Jeanine fell in love with young movie star Jamie Newkirk and the character he played--Danny Summer. Jeanine believed God Himself promised Jamie would be part of her life--that he would rescue her from boring rural Georgia. But eleven years later, she's graduating college and about to settle into the dreary nine-to-five life with no word from Jamie or God.

And then Jamie bursts into her life in an amazing way. There are plans to resurrect the Summer series of books and movies, and Jeanine is right in the middle of it all. Jamie seems to be falling for her, just as she'd dreamed. And yet... 
She never expected all the dark undercurrents. Jamie is hiding out in Georgia following the suspicious death of his former girlfriend. And isn't it odd that he found his mother dead of a supposed suicide in that same house two years before, and that both women had the same strangely-shaped burn on their bodies? Who knew there would be so many sinister characters involved in Jamie's life, and in the Summer series? 

Jamie is obviously hiding things--about his family, about the deaths of his mother and girlfriend. The media and the public have declared him guilty. Jeanine longs to prove his innocence. Unless she can, Jamie's dark secrets may shatter her dreams, her faith--and her life.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Click here to see or
 buy Jordan's Shadow

Jordan's Shadow
In 1984, seventeen-year-old Rose and her fiancé discover an injured girl with no memory. The girl, Jordan, is in Rose's life for a brief time but leaves her world shattered. 

Years later, Rose Crosby's fifteen-year-old daughter Ginny can't understand why her relationship with her mother has fallen apart. Ginny could swear that Rose is terrified of her lately. 

Then one awful day, Ginny overhears Rose confessing that she truly is terrified of Ginny--because to her, every day Ginny grows more and more like Jordan, the girl who's been dead many years. In fact, she swears that somehow, Ginny is turning into Jordan. 

Is Rose's past, forcing her to confront what happened on that horrible day in 1984 when Jordan was killed? 

As a new girl in a small town, Ginny doesn't have much of a support system. Her old girlfriends from Atlanta have drifted away, and the only friends she's made are, oddly enough, guys. Alec Matthews is gorgeous, but is he really interested in Ginny's well-being? And then there's Max Ferguson, the recently-born-again science nerd. He's definitely on Ginny's side, but is he a little too strange?

Strengthened by a deepening relationship with one of these two, Ginny undertakes a mind-bending journey of discovery--discovery about faith, eternity, and love beyond the boundaries of space and time. She will put to rest a mystery that has haunted her family for two generations--if she can survive.

To enter the contest for a copy of 

Robin's  new release: 

"Jordan's Shadow"

leave a comment (and email address)

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US only

The winner will be announced on my facebook page.

Thank you, Robin, for Joining us This Weekend!

We love chatting with you and are looking forward to reading your comments and questions. Or at least your hi, hello, hey, or ...

Thanks for stopping by!

Don't forget to comment!