Behind the Scenes of a New Series, from author Lee Carver
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| Sunset on the Amazon River, from Pixabay |
“Call to the Jungle”
Three years ago, a well-known publisher asked me to write
short romance novels concerning missionaries in a foreign setting. Two weeks
after my agent turned them in, the publisher was sold and that novel line was
discontinued. Most publishers don’t want to invest in novels with a foreign
setting. And missionary romances? Not a genre they’d bet on. So I’ve made the
novels longer and more complex, and I’m self-publishing them. The first, Katie’s Quest, was released on June 1st,
and others follow at three month intervals.
My husband and I were volunteer missionaries in the
Brazilian Amazon following his early retirement from Citibank’s international branch.
He refreshed his Navy flight training to be a pilot for the Lord’s work instead
of chasing Russian submarines. We lived in Brazil twelve years, though half of
that was in South America’s banking capital, São Paulo. All that language
training, Brazilian permanent visas, technicolor driver’s licenses, and
cultural adaptation came to fruition on the mission field. It’s more than a
setting for my novels; it’s the best part of our lives.
When we returned from Brazil to care for my husband’s
parents at the ends of their lives, so much bubbled in my brain to be shared.
Things like what the Amazon is really like—in contrast to Tarzan movies—and the
in-depth look at missionaries.
Part of the message in my novels is the life of sacrifice,
the acceptance of hardship, and the dedication of missionaries—real, imperfect
people—who serve today. We knew them as married couples at times struggling
with their relationship, as parents searching for the best ways to educate
their children in both languages and cultures, and hard-working, sweaty people
who gave themselves in full commitment to God’s work in hard-to-reach areas of
the jungle. Like the missionaries in my “Call to the Jungle” series, they broke
the bounds of stereotypes, especially those of American movies. They were and
are very real people. Missionaries put on the line every day all that they have
and are.
In Book 2, Piper’s
Purpose, you’ll meet Piper Jordan, an American reared in
Brazil, who had her pilot’s license before she could drive and her aviation
maintenance certificate before her business degree. Pulled between two
countries, two career paths, and separated parents, she strives to determine
what is important and what to do with her life. She could settle into her
father’s choice, working with him and her brother in a private aviation company
in Rio de Janeiro, or blaze her own way.
In Book 3, Rebecca’s
Redemption, Rebecca is a nurse
seeking redemption for past sins who joins a doctor contending against the jungle.
Both healers need healing.
As for our own testimony, whatever God may call you to do,
do it. Go there. Or serve at home. Otherwise, you’ll miss the greatest
adventure and fulfillment possible. Your call may not be to the Amazon, but
every believer is called by God. Listen carefully. The call is there.
About the book: Katie Dennis committed to
serve as a nurse in the Amazon even after her fiancé died on a training flight.
She wouldn’t have lasted through the first mission trip if not for Matt, a
pilot born and reared in the jungle. But she’d never fall for a pilot again.
Matt Gibbs, missionary pilot, finally settled on a good choice for
a wife, someone known to his family all their lives. Why, then, did the new
blonde nurse make him feel like doing barrel rolls in the Amazon sky?
Romance and unforeseen danger flow in the Brazilian Amazon as Katie
searches for a fulfilling and meaningful life—one that quickly becomes more
exciting than her wildest imagination!
Buy the Book:
- Katie’s Quest, Kindle version: http://amzn.to/2qEIGTi
- Bitly code for CreateSpace eStore: http://bit.ly/2srZrlj
- Bitly code for print book on Amazon: http://amzn.to/2qKWpb9
Lee Carver is once again failing at retirement, a hybrid
author in every sense: fiction and nonfiction, traditionally and independently
published. She also does freelance editing, formatting, and print book and
e-book uploads as well as being a Stephen Minister, singing alto in the choir,
crocheting with Prayer Shawl Ministry, and playing piano, among other
activities. Married forty-nine years to a very supportive man, they have two
adult children and five grandchildren.
- www.LeeCarverWriter.com
- http://LeeCarverWriter.blogspot.com
- https://www.facebook.com/lee.carver.507
- https://www.pinterest.com/leecarver2
Lee is offering a free Kindle copy of Katie's Quest to one of my readers. To enter, just leave a comment below and include your contact information so we can notify you should you be the winner. Giveaway ends next Tuesday ... no, make that next Wednesday, July 5, at Midnight, Central time.
AND ... just for fun, in your comment, tell us what your first thoughts are at the mention of 'jungle' ... let's get a conversation going here!
Nice interview. Katie's Quest sounds good. I think the series will sell!
ReplyDeleteI agree, Julie. The setting is interesting, and intrigues me. I'm adding this first book to my TBR list. Thanks for visiting and leaving a comment for Lee. You've been entered in the giveaway, too!
DeleteI certainly hope so, Julie. Publishers say that not enough Americans read books with foreign settings to successfully sell them. I thoroughly enjoyed traveling to and living in foreign countries--and delight in being settled in the US now. But I do read novels with foreign settings.
ReplyDeleteI respectfully disagree with those publishers. I LOVE stories set in foreign countries. My reading taste is eclectic, and if a story line intrigues me, regardless of where it's set, I'll buy and read it. Thanks for being my guest this week! God bless, and wishing you success with this new series.
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