Double Identity Interview

Today we're welcoming Sophia Clarkston, the heroine of Double Identity, by Diane Burke, March 2011. Wow, you've just had quite an adventure.

1. Tell us a little about yourself and how you came to be in the midst of such suspense.

I wish I had an easy answer to that question. My dad and I were sitting on the front porch enjoying each other’s company on a warm, spring night. I kissed him on the forehead and went upstairs to bed. When I awoke in the morning, I discovered that my entire life had changed and nothing was ever going to be the same again.

2. So, during the book you met Cain Garrison. Tell us a bit about him. What was your first impression? When did you know it was love?

I suppose I was attracted to Cain the instant I saw him. Let’s face it, he’s a hunk. But because of the problems I was facing, at first, he was literally my last hope and my thoughts were more on finding some answers and less on finding a boyfriend.

Love came gradually. As we spent more and more time together working as a team to uncover the truth, I learned what a compassionate, kind man Cain was. He was a man of faith and integrity and I started to really care about him. When I realized that the answers we had worked so hard to find, might be the very thing that would keep us apart forever, the pain of losing him told me loud and clear that I was in love.

3. What strengths/skills do you have? What is your greatest weakness?

My greatest strength is my independence. Growing up as an only child being raised by a single dad, I had to rely on myself more than maybe the average kid. But that also became my greatest weakness because I found it difficult to make friends and interact with lots of other people because I was so used to being alone.

4. What scares you?

That’s a hard question to answer. At the time this all began, I would have said having someone try to kill me multiple times raised some gooseflesh on my arms. But the thing that scared me the most had to be not knowing who I was. I had grown up believing I was Sophia Clarkston, daughter, artist. It was really hard when that identity was stripped away to come to terms with who I really am.

5. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Thanks to the wonderful people who have come into my life through this terrible time and offered me their help and their love, I wouldn’t want to change a thing. They are helping me become the person I am today and that, to me, is priceless.

6. Where are you in your faith at the start of your story?

I had been raised a Christian since birth.

7. Where are you in your faith at the end of the story?

I believe somewhere along the line faith becomes a personal choice not just a belief we have because we’ve been taught it since childhood. This experience drew me closer to God, challenged my faith, and made me look inside myself to determine what I truly believed.

8. You've got a scripture at the beginning of the story. Tell us why this scripture is significant.

I’ve learned that just because people are Christians that it doesn’t mean they are perfect. They make mistakes. They hurt one another, whether they intend to or not. I’ve learned to make allowances for their faults and my own because of God’s great love for us and my great love for Him.

9. If you could be a dessert what would you be and why?

Chocolate. Everybody loves chocolate, right?