Suzanne Woods Fisher

Today I am excited to interview writer Suzanne Woods Fisher.
Suzanne is a contributing editor for Christian Parenting Today magazine. Her work has appeared in Today’s Christian Woman, Worldwide Challenge, ParentLife, Marriage Partnership, among others. She’s also contributed to five non-fiction books, including Chicken Soup for the Soul and Cup of Comfort.

Suzanne’s debut novel, Copper Star, hit a bestseller list within a few weeks of release. It is a World War II love story based on true events. Louisa, a young Resistance Worker is smuggled out of Germany by theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and ends up in a dusty copper mining town in Arizona to wait out the war. Unable to leave her resistance skills behind, Louisa uncovers a mystery that leads right back to Germany.

The sequel to Copper Star has already been contracted and its film rights are under consideration by a major motion picture studio. Copper Star is available through Amazon, B&N.com, any major bookseller, and through Suzanne’s website at: www.suzannewoodsfisher.com.

Married with four children, Suzanne lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and tries to write as much as she can, in between caring for her dad with Alzheimer’s, who lives directly across the street (!) and a steady stream of puppies that she raises for Guide Dogs for the Blind.

Welcome, Suzanne. Thank you for joining me here at Joy in the Journey. Can you tell all of us how you got started? How mapped out is your storyline?
I start with an idea, but try to be open to changes as I research the era or discover new connections…so, I don’t have a story all buttoned up before I start. I used to think that it was necessary to have the entire story planned out before I could start to write fiction…and found that it was paralyzing! I didn’t even try! It’s much easier, at least for me, to just start with an idea, stay with it, be open to new ideas, twists and turns of the plot.

What have you found to be the biggest misconception about being an author?
I have found that promoting my books is half (maybe even more than half) of the work of being an author. Connecting with people is wonderful—I love that part. But I didn’t realize how much marketing belongs to the author—any author! (Well, maybe not J. K. Rowling.)

Do you tend to base your characters on real people or are they totally from your imagination?
A little of both. I start with an idea of a character, and add to him/her some quirks from people I know who resemble him/her.

Out of all the characters that you've written, who is your favorite and why?
I really like my main character in Copper Star, Louisa, the young resistance worker smuggled out of Germany by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. She’s funny, determined, smart… and flawed. And she knows it! She has an ability not to take herself too seriously.

What would you want readers to take away from your books?
What a relationship with God looks like, inside out.

Look for Copper Star at a bookseller near you or online. Learn more about Suzanne and her writing at www.suzannewoodsfisher.com