Rhonda Gibson answers five questions about
Groom By Arrangement (Love Inspired Historical): Widow Eliza Kelly is mortified when she mistake a stranger for her would-be husband—or maybe she didn’t make a mistake after all…
Q: WHAT WERE YOUR GOALS WRITING GROOM BY ARRANGEMENT?
My goal with all my books is to give the reader a form of escape from “real” life and at the same time allow God to send His message to the reader that needs it. Jackson Hart was the character that I believe God wants to use in this book. Jackson has never felt as if he was loved.
Q: HOW DO YOU CHOOSE WHICH STORY TO WRITE?
I try to write the stories as they come to me. Meaning, when I start thinking about characters and what is going on in their lives, I start writing the story. Usually in the form of a synopsis. Then when the time comes to send my editor the next story, I have it right there. Does God give me these stories? I believe He does. Not all my stories are picked up right away, I submit them and then wait to see what God has in store for them. It may just be that an editor needs to see it. If that’s what God has planned, that’s all right with me.
Q: WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES FROM THE STORY WHERE YOU DREW ELEMENTS FROM REAL LIFE?
Eliza is very chatty as am I. At times I’m sure I am just like her when I’m trying to get my point across, so I used that part of me to allow Eliza to express herself. Also, mail-order-brides are a big part of our history. There are many true stories published about those women and what life had to offer them.
Q: IN GROOM BY ARRANGEMENT, WHICH CHARACTER SURPRISED YOU MOST?
Eve. She started out as a selfish young woman that I believed always got her way. As Eve revealed who she really was and what had happened to her, I was surprised. It just showed me, I can’t judge people on the way I first see them but have to get to know them to know more about them.
Q: WHAT PROJECTS ARE YOU WORKING ON NOW?
At the moment, I am working on the edits for Hannah Young’s story that comes out in October, it is titled, Taming The Texas Rancher. And, I’m also working on the next book after that … tentatively titled, Levi’s Ladies.