Last Friday my book club had one of our best discussions with our selection of Sharon Hinck’s The Restorer! Not only is it a wonderful tale but it is brimming with spiritual insights, challenges and encouragement. This story really spoke to some of our members in a unique way and I highly recommend it for book clubs looking for something that will spark great discussion.
The Restorer’s amazing author, Sharon Hinck, graciously answered numerous questions from my members via email, the majority of which I am sharing here. Some special insights were just for us!! At the end of our discussion, we read our own questions aloud and shared Sharon’s answers – it is a great way to learn more about your favourite authors and gain further insight into their stories.
A big thanks to my book clubbers who contributed to the questions for Sharon! And all our deepest thanks to Sharon ~ we so appreciate the time and effort you took to answer our questions, Shazza, which made our night fun and inspiring!
Sharon also has a YouTube video on her blog especially for Book Clubs and my DH set his laptop to run through our TV to show to us ~ it was great fun to see Sharon in action!
Check out the interview and others with Sharon here.
I hope you enjoy sharing our “time” with Sharon below:~
Do you have a belief that our God could also be the One in other worlds?
– and women from the bible (like Deborah) stepping out and interacting with her)… so that germ developed into a woman in her attic GOING somewhere (but I didn’t want it to be Biblical times) and BEING a type of Deborah…and it just kept unfolding from there. I began writing it in October of 2002.
Who or what was the inspiration for Susan’s character?
do some twists on the traditional fantasy setting. That winter, Minnesota was grey and overcast – gray snow, gray sky, no sun. I wondered what a world would be like where people never saw the sun, or moon, or stars…and where their technology developed in completely different ways. As far as the names, I tried to play with the environment a little, and also the musical “sound” of various cultures. But I sneaked in Shamgar as nod toward the book of Judges (he was one of the minor Judges mentioned in the Bible).
Many trips to alternate universes.
The challenge to go out of our comfort zone and face our fears is extremely daunting and requires us to put our trust totally in God. Have you found that by writing about Susan and her need to trust God to survive, has given you more confidence to step out and face difficult challenges that may arise in your life?
What was the inspiration for your imagination to come up with the parallel world that was the setting of this series of books?
Do you have a mental picture of the characters as you write?
Mashed Potatoes and gravy. (does that count as a snack?).
Rel:~ Sorry but the whole cereal snack thing doesn’t work for us Aussies but our born and bred American book clubber, Misty, was drooling – LOL!!
Everything blue (forget-me-nots, etc.) and lily-of-the-valley. Oh, and lilacs and pansies.
I thought it was interesting that both the Restorers were people who struggled with their faith or felt it was all but gone. I’d love to know your purpose behind choosing those characters for the roleI’m in awe of how God chooses the weak to confound the strong. He uses broken vessels and even rebellious or disbelieving ones. One character is inspired a bit by Gideon – who when He received God’s call said, “If the Lord is truly with us, why have all these bad things happened to us?” (I was astounded to find those words in the book of Judges – because they felt so contemporary to me, and I hadn’t remembered that aspect of Gideon). As I wrote The Restorer’s Son, I felt overwhelmed by God’s heart of love even for those who are wandering or challenging Him. I saw the way He pursues us because of that love.
Going Deeper With God
The Value of the Arts in the Christian Life
Finding Ministry in the Midst of Motherhood
How to be a Hero
The Writing Journey
Those are a few. J
If you were given carte blanch to speak to a group (let’s say a group of women…like us!), what is the topic that you would most passionately like to deliver to them?
Too many to name. I grew up cherishing classics – Twain, London, the Brontes, Austen, Dickens, Stevenson, Conan Doyle, Kipling. Discovered C.S. Lewis and love everything by him – my favorite book is Perelandra. In the fantasy genre, I was influenced by McCaffrey, Lawhead, Tolkien, Donaldson, and many others. But I also read a wide array of other genres…everything from literary to mystery, sci-fi to romance.
Was The Restorer an easy novel to write?
Did you plan at the start to have a series?
ke Susan’s. I have a loving husband, yet often felt overwhelmed by life and wondered if my life was really making a difference. Parenting is TOUGH and definitely makes us feel like we’re drowning some days. 🙂SO many amazing stories – from a gal who heard from God during her prayer time to get the book – and then He used it to speak to her…. to a woman who at a certain scene in book two, put the book town, cried before God, and said, “I’m tired of fighting you. I give myself back to you.” To a mom in crisis feeling she couldn’t go on, who suddenly remembered the Rhusicans, and recognized the mind poison, and was able to fight it off and get through another day. I’m in awe that God could bring comfort and encouragement to others through this simple story. He is amazing.
Rel:~I am really looking forward to reading Sharon newest offering so I asked her about it as well. Who knows it might end up as a book club selection for us in 2009! As you can see below it is garnering some great reviews 🙂
Please share a little about your newest novel, Stepping Into Sunlight
, now available from Bethany House.One tragic event.
Penny, a Navy chaplain’s wife, witnesses a violent crime and struggles with post traumatic stress while her husband is on his first deployment. Far from family and friends, she fights to heal for the sake of her seven-year-old son, even though ordinary tasks take heroic efforts. She’s haunted by flashbacks and is tormented by fear, so she designs a project to speed her recovery: doing one small, kind act for a different person each day. The results are sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking, and often used by God in surprising ways.
PRAISE for Stepping Into Sunlight:
“Hinck, a 2008 Christy finalist for visionary fiction, offers an
especially grounded tale of sudden trauma and slow healing.Narrator Penny Sullivan witnesses a horrific crime shortly before
her navy chaplain husband is deployed, so she is forced to cope alone with the psychological fallout from what she saw. Family issues from her past complicate her struggle and enhance its credibility. Strong Christian themes form a natural part of the narrative. Penny Sullivan’s faith is shaken, and she wonders why God would appear to permit evil and whether her emotional turmoil can be healed.A supporting cast of characters, from a nosy neighbor to the busy
faithful servant to the downtrodden who heads a local mission, adds quirk and richness. Hinck is a mother of four, and it shows in authentic details in her characterization of the narrator’s worried, loving seven-year-old son who gets his first pet in some cute comic relief. Hinck has done her homework on post-traumatic stress syndrome, and is not afraid to show readers that challenges can deepen faith.”
— Publisher’s Weekly
“In this uplifting novel set in Chesapeake, VA, Penny Sullivan is
losing her grip after witnessing a traumatic event. . . Well written and
compelling, this title will appeal to readers of Karen Kingsbury, Ann Tatlock, and Angela Elwell Hunt.”
— Library Journal
“Told with humor and lump-in-the-throat insight, Stepping Into Sunlight
is a compelling story of learning to live again after trauma. This was my first Sharon Hinck novel, but it garnered her a permanent spot on my favorite authors list.”
–Deborah Raney, author of A Vow to Cherish and THE CLAYBURN NOVELS series
“For anyone who has ever been afraid of what life may hold (and who
hasn’t?), Sharon’s novel is a beacon of hope and healing. Kudos!”
–Roxanne Henke, author of After Anne and Learning to Fly
“With a deft hand Hinck ushers the reader into the frustrating, inward
world of the victim, challenging us to gauge the level of our compassion for those who walk a journey we can’t adequately imagine and daring us to wonder if we, too, could flatten our fears and replace them with modest, indiscriminate kindness.”
–Susan Meissner, author of Blue Heart Blessed
“A beautifully woven story of one woman’s desperation, determination .
. . and hope. A cast of oddball, but thoroughly charming, characters, make this book a delightful read from start to finish. Highly recommended.”
–Kathryn Cushman, author of A Promise to Remember and Waiting for
Daybreak
“After finishing it, I wanted to press it into the hands of everyone I meet
and say, ‘THIS! This is what my God is like! This is where you can find hope! This is what it means to live for Christ even when things are horrifically ugly around you. This is healing. This is what it looks like to hurt and to heal.’ No pious platitudes. Reality Faith.”
–Cynthia Ruchti, “Heartbeat of the Home” radio broadcasts
October 24, 2008 at 3:21 am
Oh goody. I wanted to have a longer think about the answers Sharon so generously put so much time into. Now I’ll be able to do that whenever the idea strikes 🙂Thanks Rel….and Sharon.
October 24, 2008 at 2:10 pm
This is FABULOUS!! I adored Restorer’s Journey and am eagerly looking forward to reading the rest of Sharon’s work! Her words are powerful and I truly believe God is using her in a mighty way. She has a servant’s heart that seeks after God, and that is reflected in her writing!Thanks for a terrific and encouraging interview!Kim
October 26, 2008 at 9:11 pm
Rel, I think I am going to have my momma send some Rice chex so I can make the party mix for next book club! You never know until you try! I enjoyed reading the story and laughing again! Thanks
October 27, 2008 at 9:23 am
it was good to re-read the interview, thanks.