with Gail Sattler

Tell us about your epiphany moment when you decided you were going to seriously pursue writing and eventually publication.
My epiphany moment truly was an epiphany moment. I’d started writing after I decided to stay home with my young children for a while instead of working full time. I’d written a few books, and after a very encouraging rejection from a major publisher, I got an overwhelming feeling, almost like an audible voice, telling me that practice time was over, it was time to write an Inspirational novel. So I wrote one, and submitted it to Heartsong Presents. They bought it, which was my first sale, and I haven’t looked back since.

Which of your books (published or upcoming) has been the most fun for you to write and which character is your favorite?
My favorite book to write was one of my Heartsong Presents books – A Donut A Day. My “research guinea pig” was a retired RCMP police constable, and every time I asked a question, he answered about ten times more than I needed, and it was an incredible insight to the life of a real-life cop, which made the scenes so much more fun to write. But my favorite character is Ted Wiebe in The Narrow Path. He’s so straight and formal, and when he falls in love with his complete opposite he doesn’t know what hit him. Then he had to figure out what to do about it before it’s too late.

What is your most difficult writing obstacle, and how do you overcome it?
Time. Or rather, lack of time. Writing is a very time-consuming process, including the writing-related organizations and relationships and workshops that it takes to get better, and work with others as they strive to publication. The only way I can over come it is to decide what truly is important and either ignore the rest, or delegate it to someone else. I love my husband and kids. I haven’t touched the vacuum cleaner for about eight years. I think I know where it is, but I’m not sure.

What is the quirkiest thing you have ever done?
I’m not sure how to answer that. There are many things I consider normal that raise eyebrows when I tell people about them. When I tell people I play piano, many are impressed, but when I add that I play upright bass for a jazz band many people consider that quirky because it is rare for a woman to play bass. For a while I worked nightshift so I could work all night and write all day when the house was quiet. Only other authors could understand why I would do such a thing. Some consider my pet lizard quirky, but he’s really very cuddly.

Which character in your new release most interested you while you wrote?
Lois Toewes, the woman of the house were Miranda, the heroine, stayed for the year she lived in the Old Order Mennonite town of Piney Meadows, MN. Lois lives in a small town that strives to maintain their old-world values and traditions, but yet that town, and all the people, still must interact with the modern world. Living in the middle between both worlds, Lois is content and always happy with the life she has chosen for herself.


Are there things you put off doing because you dread them?
Diet and exercise. Nuff said.

What would a perfect day for you look like?
Writing all day with a big pot of coffee beside me.

Tell us the range of the kinds of books you enjoy reading.
I like books with a happy ending. I enjoy cozy mysteries but my favorite is romances with a touch of humor. My favorite author is Debbie Macomber, whose writing I enjoyed even from before she switched over to purely inspirational content. It was the thrill of a lifetime when I met her in person at the ACFW writers’ conference in Denver in 2009 and got a picture taken with her. And then when I arrived back home and saw the picture on my computer, my bra showed through really bad, something I didn’t know about this sweater because I’ve never had my photo taken while I wore it before. It spoiled the picture and I was really upset, then my darling husband fixed it for me, gotta love the guy.

Are there spiritual themes you like to write about?
Not really. I hate it when I read a book that ends up being a sermon in novel form. I don’t like being preached at, so I don’t preach at people. Rather than hammer out theme at a reader, I like to write stories about how normal Christian people act and interact in the world around them without compromising their morals or spiritual beliefs or falling into temptation, yet still not be looked at as strange by their community around them.

What lesson is the Lord teaching you right now or recently taught you?
That He has a plan, and most people don’t know what the plan was until they look back and see that it’s happened. Never in a million years could I have forseen being an author like this. I graduated from high school with 51% in English, which was a mercy pass, I’m sure. I excelled in math and physics, not English, yet I’ve got a lot of books with my name on them, some have won awards. But that’s not the plan, I know it’s not. God has more plans for me and I don’t know yet what they are. I have to trust Him and keep going, and He’ll let me know when I’m there.

I understand you made your own book trailer for this book. Can you tell me a little about what makes it so unique?
I didn’t want to use photos that were openly available for anyone and everyone in the world to buy and/or use. I wanted the trailer’s photos to be a perfect match for showing what the book was about. Therefore, I personally took almost all the photos showing things that are specifically in the book. The photos I didn’t personally take were taken by people I know, specifically for the book trailer, and used with permission. I was especially blessed that the photos of “Miranda” and “Ted” are the same people on the cover, sent to me by Abingdon Press (the publishing house). The end result is that every photo used in the book trailer is either in the book, or directly related to something specific in the book – and that includes the surprise special “guest”, complete with soundtrack. Even the last photo, which is an airport, is from the book – it really is a photo of the Minneapolis airport. Likewise, I made the music track myself and put it together with a computer program. And as a bass player, the background music track has a really great bass line. ;-)

When is this book due out and can you tell us about it?
The Narrow Path is out now – it released for May 2010. It’s about two people living with the clash of cultures – a modern Mennonite woman from a big city moves into a small, rural Mennonite town where she comes head-to-head with an Old Order Mennonite man. They are forced to meet somewhere in the middle of their culture clash with the goal being to open Ted’s old world church to new world people without losing its heart. Visit the book trailer on www.mennonitefiction.com, click on “book trailer” in the index bar and let me know what you think. I invite comments and questions on my blog at www.gailsattler.blogspot.com, or leave a comment in my guestbook at www.gailsattler.com.

Gail is giving away a copy of The Narrow Path. To be entered in the book giveaway, leave a comment and check back on Tuesday, May 25th to see if you've won. You can enter twice--once on each post in this spotlight. If you want to guarantee that you're notified if you win, then leave your email address in the comment, otherwise, you can just check back and email me through the button in my sidebar.
**Annoying little disclaimer: This giveaway is open only to U.S. addresses. By clicking on the Amazon link above or in the sidebar, and purchasing, I will receive a very small percentage of the sale.

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