It’s my pleasure today to introduce novelist Meg Moseley and her debut novel When Sparrows Fall, which released this month from Multnomah. I interviewed Meg, and she’s agreed to give away a copy of her book.

 Tell us a little about your journey to publication.

Even as a little girl, I wanted to be a writer, but it wasn’t until I’d nearly finished my career as a homeschool mom that I could devote much time to writing fiction. I took the scenic route to publication, with many slowdowns and detours along the way, but it was worth the wait. My wonderful editors at Multnomah have given me the freedom to stay a little outside the box when it comes to Christian fiction.
Many authors today write their novels based on a theme or issue that they’re especially passionate about. Do you have a similar theme or issue that you’re passion to write about?

The grace of God is the broad theme that underlies all my stories. It offers infinite possibilities for story-telling. When Sparrows Fall shows grace blowing the lid off of a cult-like fringe group of Christianity that keeps women and children under the thumbs of so-called “patriarchs.” My novels in progress focus more on the grace of God working for and through misfits and the wounded.

Your bio says you’re a Californian at heart, but you’ve lived a lot of places, including the South. How does the setting of a book influence how you write your characters?
A book’s setting is a huge influence. Living near the foothills of the Southern Appalachians, I enjoy writing characters who are influenced by the isolation of the mountains. Another fun element for me is the musicality of Southern speech. In When Sparrows Fall, I wrote Jack as a literature professor who quotes Shakespeare but also loves his country-boy idioms. I’m working on another novel that’s set in the mountains of North Georgia, but my native California keeps begging me to write a story about her back roads, her small towns, and her salt-of-the-earth citizens who’ve never seen Hollywood and don’t care to. I think those characters could practically write themselves because they’re so real to me.

In When Sparrows Fall, one of the themes is a big move to another state. What’s the story behind why you chose this as a plot device?

Years ago, in my single days, I moved across the country with a church group. They were good people, but I know of similar moves that were mandated by a leader’s selfish motives disguised as “God’s will for the church.” That scenario played right into my plans for Miranda, a widowed mother who’ll have to stand alone against the man who intends to keep her under his control.

If and when Hollywood comes calling to make a movie of your book, what actresses and actors do you envision playing the parts of Miranda and Jack?

For Jack, with his dark eyes, bratty attitude, and warm heart, I could see Robert Downey, Jr. I haven’t run across an actress who seems quite like Miranda, but maybe that’s because I don’t get out to the movies often enough.

What are you working on now?

I’m working on another novel set in North Georgia, where a teenager lost her father to a deep mountain lake. His body was never recovered. Now, nine years later, it seems he might have faked his drowning and fled to the wilderness. As she and her closest friends search for answers, they uncover memories of a mysterious event in their childhood that might explain everything but might also break their hearts.
Website: http://www.megmoseley.com/

About the Author: Meg Moseley is still a Californian at heart although she’s lived more than half her life in other states. She formerly wrote human-interest columns for a suburban section of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and home schooled for over twenty years. Meg enjoys books, travel, gardening, her three grown children, and motorcycle rides with her husband Jon. They make their home in northern Georgia.

Here’s the scoop on When Sparrows Fall
 Miranda Hanford, an isolated homeschooling widow, needs to break her ties to a cultic group. Jack Hanford, her estranged brother-in-law, is an outspoken professor who helps in her hour of need but challenges her choices at every turn. Miranda wants safety and security for her children; Jack values freedom above security but doesn’t understand that breaking free may cost Miranda everything, including her children.
Visit Meg’s Blog: http://www.megmoseley.wordpress.com/

To purchase When Sparrows Fall, go to Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/When-Sparrows-Fall-Meg-Moseley/dp/1601423551/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Leave a comment to be in the running for a copy of When Sparrows Fall. I’ll announce the winner on Friday.