Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Lynne Basham Tagawa

 Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Lynne Basham Tagawa

Linda: Congratulations on your latest release, The Heart of Courage. What was your inspiration for this story, and did you know when you wrote The Shenandoah Road there would be a sequel? 

Lynne: Thank you! When I first started writing Shenandoah, there were two things in my mind. First the Great Awakening, a huge revival that shaped our early history profoundly, and second, I wondered how the Christian faith and various ministers influenced the American Revolution. Yes—this was a trilogy in the works, and the third will be set during the Revolution. But the first two books do include tidbits, such as a discussion in Courage about Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. It’s a tiny insight into how Scottish Presbyterians thought about rulers, and this people group would later make up a significant chunk of Washington’s army. 

LM: What sort of research did you have to do for the story, and was there a particularly intriguing tidbit you knew you had to include? 

Lynne: I do wide-ranging research, not just what you’d think. Of course, I researched Shawnee customs and theology for this second book, since I have a Shawnee character (love him). But I also research

tangentially connected stuff like geology. Since my characters live in the Shenandoah Valley, I needed to know the lay of the land—literally. For this reason I was inspired to have one character fall into a limestone cavern. There are some you can go visit today, such as Luray caverns. 

LM: How do you prepare yourself for writing? (E.g., Do you have a specific routine you use, place where you write, or music you listen to?) 

Lynne: I tame my inbox, get a second cup of coffee, and open it up. I know I can’t wait for inspiration. I just sit down and write—and if I write badly, I can edit! I’m old enough to remember typewriters, when you couldn’t. If there’s anything that prepares me, it’s reading—preferably well written fiction. It gets my juices going, and sometimes I end up staring into space, imagining a conversation between my own characters. 

LM: Do you plot out your stories or write “by the seat of your pants?” 

Lynne: I need signposts along the way. So, at the scene level, I’m a pantster. But the storyline must be marked out with plenty of stakes so I don’t get lost. 

LM: Here are some quickies: 

Lynne: 

Favorite childhood book: I loved animal stories like Bambi and The Black Stallion. Even today, you will notice the horses in my stories have personalities. 

Favorite vacation spot: My favorite vacation spot is my reading chair, although my husband takes me to the Texas Hill Country occasionally and that’s always fun. 

Favorite Bible verse: Isaiah 41:10 got me through childbirth. Four times. I didn’t do epidurals, almost no one did in those days. 

LM: What is your next project? 

Lynne: Currently I’m working on a novella starring two of the minor characters in Courage. But I’m also doing research for the third novel in the series. A number of authors have written wonderful books set during the Revolution, and it’s intimidating to even think of trying. But it’s a hugely fascinating time, and I hope in my story I can unfold something a little different while entertaining my reader. 

LM: Where can folks find you on the web? 

Lynne: 

Website: https://www.lynnetagawa.com/

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pg/Lynne-Basham-Tagawa-263573557821364/

About Heart of Courage:

No one would understand. But he had to obey his conscience. 

It’s 1753, and troubling news comes to Russell’s Ridge . . . 

Susanna Russell longs to escape her valley home. When war breaks out, she gets her wish to study in fabulous Williamsburg. But she realizes she’s lost something important along the way. Something—and someone. 

 

James Paxton is studying for the ministry. But when violence threatens the valley, his path becomes clouded. What is God’s will for his life? The answer is alarming—and impossible. 

Red Hawk spies white surveyors near his home, a harbinger of trouble to come. Shawnee chiefs go to Philadelphia to treat for peace, but the unthinkable happens, and Red Hawk loses all he once held dear. Then he has a strange dream. What can it mean? 

 

War, romance, and gospel truth unite in this remarkable sequel to The Shenandoah Road. 

 “The Heart of Courage is a rare blend of history and inspiration, stirring the heart and spirit while it entertains the mind. Truly worth reading.” —Sydney Tooman Betts, author of The People of the Book trilogy

Purchase Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B08CBLQC3G