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Looking out the Window: Carol Wilson James Talks about Her New Book, No Longer a Captive. Gives away an E-book.



 A Warm Welcome to Carol Wilson James

Carol will give away an e-Book of No Longer a Captive. To enter to win leave a comment and an email address below. 

Hi Carol, first, tell us a little about yourself.

Gail, thanks so much for letting me visit your blog.

It's my pleasure to have you.

I am a wife to one, a mother to two, a grandmother to five, and a doggie-mama to one (Zoe, a Jack Russell terrier––who sometimes seems like a dozen.) I love reading, writing, walking, M&M’s (plain), and soccer (both MLS and Premier League). I enjoy all kinds of music, but especially worship music and hymns. In fact, each of my novels is based upon a song as well as a Bible verse. I play worship music as I write. I find it brings me inspiration and encouragement.

Recently, I allowed Zoe to establish Instagram and Facebook pages with two of her dog friends, Sandy and Brody. Follow them at 3 Dogs and Their Authors to discover the behind the scenes info about being a writer’s dog

Why do you write?

Unlike many authors, I never aspired or desired to write. I was an English education major in college because I liked grammar (and reading), but not writing. After a health crisis in my family, I had to leave my perfect part-time teaching position at a small private school and find a real job in the real world. In the midst of this time of uncertainty, God gave me Isaiah 43:18-19.

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?

I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”

And my new thing, my stream in the wasteland was writing. I write as a ministry to encourage people. 

Tell us about your latest book.

My most recent novel is entitled No Longer a Captive. It’s a story of two people, Daniel and Ethne, struggling to overcome the pain of childhood abuse and learning to trust God, themselves, and other people. And in the middle of their journeys, when neither is looking, they find one another. 

What inspired you to write this particular book?

While I grew up in a loving, Christian family, many people did not. I have friends that have suffered through childhood abuse. Some have been able to forgive and move on with their lives. Others have not. One day when I was listening to a worship song about having nothing to fear if we are children of God, I knew this idea of being adopted into the family of God, the perfect Father, would be the theme of one of my upcoming novels. And here it is.

What do you love about this book? And what do you hope readers will tell others about it?

Of everything I’ve written, this novel is my current favorite. (Who knows what will happen in the future? Maybe something I love even more.) I love the vulnerability of the characters’ hearts as they struggle to move past their childhood hurts and learn to trust each other and their perfect Father. I love the guidance and patience Daniel offers Ethne.

Where do you get ideas for your books?

My ideas come from everywhere. Maybe I’ll see a situation, read a Bible verse, hear a sermon or song, and BAM an idea pushes its way into my heart. The idea for No Longer a Captive came from two specific situations. 

I was camping with my husband and some friends on a rugged beach. While we were walking along the shore, I noticed a brown-haired young man playing with two young boys. I couldn’t tell if he was their father, an uncle, or a friend. But I loved watching their interaction. I could tell the young man really cared for the boys. 

And then during a sermon one Sunday, our pastor made a statement I knew would be a theme for a future novel. Buddy was unlike any preacher I had ever heard. He had a folksy manner, and he absolutely delighted in tripping all over the English language. Once he told us about a recent mission trip to Asia where he saw Kubotas (i.e. pagodas) dotting the landscape. A picture of a hill covered with riding mowers and tractors popped into my mind. 

One Sunday morning, he preached about forgiveness. Ten years later, I don’t remember the major points of the sermon. I remember only one statement he made. “Unforgiveness is a prison.” My English-major self tensed, knowing unforgiveness wasn’t even a word. My husband would have called it a Buddy-ism. But it didn’t matter that unforgiveness wasn’t listed in the dictionary or that spell-check would underline it. That brief statement carried a depth of meaning that entire books might not. Later, in the same service, our worship pastor led us in the song “No Longer Slaves.” And from this service, the idea for No Longer a Captive was born.

What themes do you write about?

When I first started writing, I never intended to have a particular theme in my novels. But as I wrote I realized my central theme was always redemption. So I like to say that I write Redemptive Romance.

Does your faith affect your writing? If so, how?

YES! I can’t imagine writing simply to craft stories. All of my novels have both a Bible verse and song upon which they are based. The song for this novel is “No Longer Slaves” by Jonathan David Helser and Melissa Helser from Bethel Music. The Bible verses I used for inspiration were 2 Corinthians 6:18: “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” And John 8:36: “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” 

What are you working on right now?

I just completed a novella entitled A Covert Cowboy Christmas. It will be available December 1. But I’m currently working on a manuscript that’s tentatively entitled Always and Only You. I won’t say any more other than it was inspired by a tweet I read on Twitter. (Yes, ideas are all around us.)

Introduce us to the main character in your new book. (the one we’re featuring this time)

I’d like you to meet Ethne Claire O’Connor. She’s independent and a successful businesswoman who has a decorating company called “Resurrections.” She loves taking old furniture items and accessories that have been cast off by others and giving them new life…resurrecting them.

Her father was a physician and was much loved by their community. But he was a troubled man, not the caring and compassionate person at home that he appeared to be in public. He was unfaithful to his wife and abusive to his children. To avoid repeating what she had seen and experienced in her childhood, Ethne promised herself she would never marry. Never marrying and never having children were the only ways she knew to end the cycle of unfaithfulness and abuse. She’s satisfied with her decision until she meets a handsome stranger at the reading of her father’s will. And then everything she’s believed begins to crumble. 





More about No Longer a Captive

 When Ethne O'Connor's brother, Sean, tells her of their father's unexpected death, he asks her to do something she promised herself she'd never do. Come back home. 

A victim of childhood abuse, Ethne left her father and the small Texas town of Crescent Bluff ten years ago on the night of her high school graduation. She's determined to end the cycle of abuse and believes the only way to do that is remain single. If she has no husband, she'll never have children that can be abused.

Then she meets Daniel Spenser, a handsome doctor with chocolate-kiss eyes. Daniel understands her past in a way no one else does. He's lived it. 

Will Daniel be able to help Ethne break the chains of captivity around her heart? 

And will God release her from her past, to be free to trust the man she comes to love?

Buy No Longer a Captive on

Amazon: No Longer a Captive Amazon

Pelican: No Longer a Captive Pelican

B&N: No Longer a Captive B&N

KOBO: No Longer a Captive KOBO

Bio: As an Air Force brat, the longest Carol James ever lived in one place was a year and a half. Maybe that’s why, when she still lives in the same home she and her husband bought forty-two years ago. She lives in a town outside of Atlanta, GA with her husband, Jim, and a perky Jack Russell Terrier, Zoe.

Loving intriguing stories with happy endings, she writes Redemptive Romance. Her debut novel, Rescuing Faith, was a number one Amazon best-seller. Visit her website to sign up for her newsletter and learn about new releases: www.carol-james.com

When she’s not walking Zoe, Carol enjoys spending time with her husband, children, and grandchildren, as well as traveling. On Sundays, she loves serving in the production department at her church. And most days, in the late hours of the night, you’ll find her bringing her newest novel to life.

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Comments

Carol James said…
Gail, thank you so much for featuring my newest book today.
Carlene said…
Best wishes for your new release! I love the term "redemptive romance"!
Gail Pallotta said…
Hi Carol,

It's my pleasure to have you.
Carol James said…
Carlene, thanks so much. I love it, too LOL
Sonja said…
Enjoyed your post. Your cover is so beautiful.
Carol James said…
Sonja, thanks so much for your comment. I really like the cover, too. I'm glad my editor featured the waterfall, because in some ways, it becomes a very important "character" in the book.
GREAT Interview Ladies!
Good luck and God's blessings with No Longer Captive, Carol.
PamT
Carol James said…
Thanks, Pam. Glad you stopped by.
kaybee said…
Carol, that was a good book and I loved your use of the waterfall as a metaphor. Very skillfully done.
Kathy Bailey
Carol James said…
Kathy Bailey, Thanks for your kind comments. I loved the waterfall, too. But I can't take credit for the idea. It's amazing how God takes an idea places we could have never thought of on our own.

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