Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Back, Barbara Britton!

Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Back, Barbara Britton!

Linda:  Welcome back to my blog. I’m a huge fan of your work and am so pleased you are taking time to visit. Congratulations on your upcoming release, Lioness: Mahlah’s Journey. How did you decide to write about this particular biblical character?

Barbara: One of my fellow Bible study leaders mentioned a story about five girls who inherited their father’s land in the book of Numbers. I had just finished a read-through-the-Bible challenge and didn’t remember the story of the daughters of Zelophehad. After reading about the sisters’ historic “ask,” I decided to write their story. One book turned into three.

LM: What is something you learned about Mahlah during your research that really stuck with you?

Barbara: I was amazed how much Scripture in the Bible deals with the daughters of Zelophehad. How had I missed it all these years? Mahlah and her sisters remind Joshua about their inheritance of land eight years after their promise of land from God and Moses (Joshua 17:3-6).

LM: How much, if any, of yourself, goes into your characters?

Barbara: My characters are bolder in most circumstances. Women in ancient times didn’t have the rights or support we do today. They had to fight to gain freedoms and financial stability.

LM: You write about biblical places. Out of all the locations you’ve researched, where is one place you’d like to visit if you had the opportunity and why?

Barbara: I definitely want to travel to Israel and see where Jesus walked, but also see where some of my novels are set. I would like to see the Jezreel Valley, Jordan River, and Jerusalem. Visiting the ruins of ancient cities in Israel would be interesting, and it may give me more story ideas.

LM: What words of advice do you have for fledgling writers?

Barbara: For aspiring authors, I would recommend joining professional writing organizations and getting involved in their local chapters. Going to conferences and meeting other writers builds a network of support. Fledgling authors makes me think of authors who are struggling to find writing time, or who are burned out on writing. Sometimes you have to sit down and write even if you aren’t excited about your project. In other instances, you need to make the time to write like getting up fifteen minutes earlier each day or writing during a lunch hour. It isn’t easy to find time to write and market books with a busy life. In the last years, authors are being asked to do more and more to promote their books. There is more work to be done with the same hours in a day. We love what we do but writing takes a lot of mental and physical energy, plus time. So, hug an author!

LM: Here are some quickies:

Sweet or Salty for a snack: sweet--chocolate

Coffee or tea as your “go-to” drink: iced tea

Walk, bike, or drive as your preferred mode of transportation: I love to walk on level pathways.

LM: What is your next project?

Barbara: A WWI Historical and another Biblical.

LM: Where can folks find you on the web?

Barbara: My website is a one-stop shop http://www.barbarambritton.com or they can find me on Twitter and Facebook or Goodreads.

You can find “Lioness” at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Book blurb for “Lioness: Mahlah’s Journey:”

While the Israelites struggle to occupy the Promised Land of God, Mahlah bat Zelophehad is orphaned and left to care for her four sisters. But daughters of the dead are unable to inherit land, and it will take a miracle for Mahlah to obtain the means to care for her sisters and uphold the vow she made to her dying mother.

Mahlah must seek Moses, the leader of her people, and request something extraordinary—the right for a daughter to inherit her deceased father’s land. A right that will upset the ox-cart of male inheritance and cast her in the role of a rebel.

But, God is the protector of the orphan and the widow, and five orphaned daughters need His help. With God, anything is possible. Even changing man’s tradition.