Hometown Visits

Hi. My name is Liz Johnson. And I'm addicted to this season of American Idol. I just can't stop watching it!

In the past, I may have teased my roommate about her affection for the show, but I'm starting to understand it. Maybe, like me, you've made this show one of your weekly rituals. If so, you probably saw this week's episodes--where the top three contestants took trips to their hometowns. They were greeted by mobs of cheering hometown fans and visited areas of interest. Sweet Scotty McCreery visited the grocery store where he once worked. And in a particularly emotional segment, Lauren Alaina visited her hometown in Georgia, which was hit hard by the recent string of tornadoes across Alabama and Georgia.


Watching these clips got me thinking about my hometown. Really all of our hometowns. What is it about the town where we grew up that evokes nostalgia and a sense of belonging? I haven't lived in the smallish city in Arizona where I grew up in 5 years, but it's still home. Still the place where I know my way around and where I belong.

It also got me thinking about how authors--myself included--pay homage to our hometowns. Maybe it's the way we make our fictional towns resemble the real thing. Maybe it's the way we add our favorite restaurant into a story. Maybe it's the way we bring the quirky real characters to life on the page.

For me, it was in my first book, The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn, where my hero Myles reminisced about his high school football days at Yuma High playing the Kofa Kings. Neither school is my alma mater, but definitely a cross-town rivals. And when I shared that book with friends and strangers alike, they loved the Yuma connection.

So here's my question for you: Have you ever read a book set in a city you call home? Or have you written one and included some of your hometown favorites? What did you enjoy most about it?

When you can't make it ...

Hey there, everyone! Liz Johnson here.

You know, last year at this time, I was typing frantically trying to finish sample chapters and synopses. I brought my laptop to work with me every day so that I could write through lunch. I wrote in every spare minute to get ready for appointments with an agent and an editor at the ACFW conference in Denver.

And I can't help but think that I should be doing the same thing this year. Except I can't make it to the ACFW conference in Indy. I'm going to miss out on catching up with friends, learning from some amazing workshop teachers, and connecting with suspense writers who are just as crazy as I am. No where else in the world can you overhear public plotting of murder and mayhem. Or listen to two women gleefully laughing over the near death of a hero ... because they know he's going to make it and win his woman's heart in the process.

I love the camaraderie of writers conferences, and I'm already feeling a little sad that I can't make it this year. So what am I to do with myself as I listen to my friends talk about packing their bags, polishing their proposals, and setting off for Indy?

I have a few ideas:
1. Start working on my proposals for next year. Come next year, I'll be ready to go!
2. Pray for the attendees, leadership, and staff.
3. Watch the Carol Awards Event online at ACFW.com. This is of particular interest to me this year, as I'll be waiting to hear if my first book, The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn, wins in the debut author category. If you're an ACFW member, log in to the website to watch it on September 19 @ 7pm.
4. Sleep in. If I was at conference, I'd have to be up early, so I'll appreciate my weekend even more.

What do you do when you can't make it to a conference, ACFW or otherwise, or something else that you regularly attend?

Confessions of A Carol Finalist

Getting the call:

Getting the call that I'd been selected as a finalist for the Carol Award for The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn was a lot like getting the call that I'd sold the same book. My timing was completely off! When I sold Kenzie Thorn, I received a phone call while I was at a conference, and my editor left me a message asking me to call her back. I had to wait all day before I had a chance. With the call about the Carol Award, I was at my day job, so I missed it and didn't listen to it until hours after it arrived.

And the emotions and my reaction were very similar, too. I believe there was a little bit of shaking, a whole lot of laughing in disbelief, and a good chunk of time on the phone with my mom. I felt light as a feather and scared beyond belief.

It's amazing how the thing that you've prayed for for so long (getting that first contract) can also be incredibly intimidating when it actually comes true. And while I wasn't expecting to final in the debut author category for the award, I suddenly feel a renewed desire to improve my writing with every book. That's a lot of pressure on myself. But it's the good kind.

Really I've just been incredibly humbled by getting both calls. I'm so honored to be recognized as a Carol finalist among some pretty amazing writers. I feel unworthy and just so thankful to be named in this group. And I'm thrilled for all of the other finalists, especially the others from Steeple Hill. Congratulations!

Interesting vs ... Interesting?

Hi, there! Liz Johnson here!

A new girl started at work this week. She's a little younger than me. Kind of new to the professional world. And in my position, I work with her mom. So I've tried to make a point to reach out to her. She's brand new to the city, and I thought she might want a friend, as I sure know what it's like to start over in a new city.

So the other day, I invited her to lunch. I said I'd like to hear about how she ended up here. She said, "I'm not that interesting. I hear you wrote a book."

"Yes," I said. "I did write a book, but that doesn't make me any more interesting than anyone else."

She laughed it off. And like the writer I am, I analyzed it to death. I tried to look at it from every angle, but for the sake of this blog, I came up with one question: Are interesting people by nature interesting, or are they interesting because they do interesting things? Am I interesting because I've written a few books ... or would I be interesting even if I'd never written a word?

I personally like to think that the interesting person comes before the book. I have a hard time imagining any writer as not interesting. Introverted? Perhaps. Boring? Never!

And, of course, I wondered how this applies to characters in my books.

That is to say, is it more important what happens to a character or how the character reacts to what happens? I suppose that literature enthusiasts would say that the difference is what editors call character-driven vs. plot-driven. I think it's a debate that will rage on ... But I suppose the real question is: what kind of story do you prefer?

Plan B - how is God going to show up?

Hey there, friends. Liz Johnson here.

I recently joined a small group through a church here in Nashville, and we've begun reading the new book Plan B by Pete Wilson, a local pastor who made national news for the way he recently organized the members of his church in flood relief efforts. I've been enjoying reading the book, and so far my favorite part is the subtitle: What to do When God Doesn't Show Up the Way You Thought He Would. Pete writes about how we should respond when life doesn't go how we planned, how we thought it would.

Lately I've been thinking about how that relates to me in my life, and also the lives of my characters. Afterall, isn't that what all good novels have in common? Books would be awfully boring if every character's life turned out exactly the way he thought it should. If she got everything she ever wanted with no struggle, there's no story.

And I think it's the same with real life. When everything turns out the way we think it should, we miss out on the story. Because the really exciting part of life isn't getting what we want every time, but rather waiting to see just how God is going to show up. Oh, He's promised He won't ever leave or forsake us, so He will show up. We just might not realize it until it's happened.

As I'm working on my new book, I've started asking myself how God will show up to the heroine. She feels like she's on Plan F, and she's not convinced that God will do what He's promised He will. But she's about to be surprised that the biggest pain in her life, is really a gift from above.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I think we have a story. :)

I hope this encourages you, both as you're writing and as you're walking your day-to-day life. Maybe you're on Plan B. Maybe you're on Plan Z. Either way, God is going to show up. Make sure you pay attention so you don't miss the good stuff.

GREETINGS FROM A NEWBIE!

Hello, all! Liz Johnson here, author of The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn. I'm thrilled to be joining the Craftie Ladies of Suspense blog, and was super-honored to be invited to be part of a group with these other amazing authors. I'm a big fan of all of them.

I figured for my first post here, I'd start with a confession: I usually read the last page of a book first.

I know ... I know. I break the most important rule of reading a book. And I've been chided by purist readers for doing so. But for me, it just makes the reading more exciting. It makes me keep my eyes open for clues and hints that point to the ending.

Except for suspense novels.

I don't read the last page. I don't spoil the mystery. And I don't break the rules when it comes to reading suspense. I love the build up and the nail-biting tension. I love the way a good suspense novel keeps me up late into the night, unable to sleep until I know what happens!

That's why I love writing suspense. I know how it's going to end usually before I even begin writing. Of course, there are always surprises in writing, but I generally know where I'm headed, so it's like skipping ahead, without breaking the rules. :)

Are you a rule-breaker or a purist when it comes to reading? Why do you love suspense?

So thanks again for having me. It's such a pleasure joining these Craftie Ladies!

Feel free to stop by and visit me at http://www.lizjohnsonbooks.com/.

Liz Johnson