Monday, May 13, 2013

Jocelyn Green ~ Widow Of Gettysburg


Award-winning author Jocelyn Green inspires faith and courage in her readers through both fiction and nonfiction. A former military wife herself, she offers encouragement and hope to military wives worldwide through her Faith Deployed ministry. Her novels, inspired by real heroines on America’s home front, are marked by their historical integrity and gritty inspiration. Jocelyn graduated from Taylor University in Upland, Indiana, with a B.A. in English, concentration in writing. She loves Mexican food, Broadway musicals, Toblerone chocolate bars, the color red, and reading on her patio. Jocelyn lives with her husband Rob and two small children in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Visit her at www.jocelyngreen.com.

Widow of Gettysburg ~ When a horrific battle rips through Gettysburg, the farm of Union widow Liberty Holloway is disfigured into a Confederate field hospital, bringing her face to face with unspeakable suffering-and a Confederate scout who awakens her long dormant heart. While Liberty’s future crumbles as her home is destroyed, the past comes rushing back to Bella, a former slave and Liberty’s hired help, when she finds herself surrounded by Southern soldiers, one of whom knows the secret that would place Liberty in danger if revealed. In the wake of shattered homes and bodies, Liberty and Bella struggle to pick up the pieces the battle has left behind. Will Liberty be defined by the tragedy in her life, or will she find a way to triumph over it? Inspired by first-person accounts from women who lived in Gettysburg during the battle and its aftermath, Widow of Gettysburg is Book 2 in the Heroines Behind the Lines series.

*****

It's a pleasure to welcome Jocelyn back to Ink Dots. This is her second visit, and I'm thrilled to offer my congratulations on the release of the second book in her civil war series. Let's find out a little more about Jocelyn.... 

If I could go anywhere in the world tomorrow, it would be... Lyon, France. I love to travel in general, but Lyon would be extra special because that’s where my brother and sister-in-law live as missionaries with Agape France. They are expecting their first child, and I would just LOVE to be with them and talk baby stuff with my sister-in-law in person. Skype is great, but not the same. Also, they told me they have an idea for a new historical novel set in France, and I want to go hear about it and then do the research on site! What fun!

One thing I enjoyed today is...The day is just begun, but I do love that through my open office window I can hear the rain and the birds singing. Just last week it snowed here, which was really hard to accept. It has been a very long winter here in Iowa and we are ALL ready for spring!

A secret pleasure of mine is... Popcorn way too late at night. With real butter and real salt. 

A moment that changed my life is... choosing to renege on my plan to never date anyone in the military. I did date a Coast Guard officer, which led to our marriage, and of course that changed my life in obvious ways. But my role as a military wife also led me to write my first book, Faith Deployed: Daily Encouragement for Military Wives, and my nonfiction for military families led to an opportunity to write fiction related to war—the Heroines Behind the Lines series.

When I was a child I wanted to... become an author. But I pronounced it “Arthur” at the time. That's hilarious! I always wanted to be an 'arthur' too! 


I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but... I’m a novelist who doesn’t really like making stuff up. Blame it on my training as a fact-driven journalist or my years of writing nonfiction, but what excites me the most about writing historical fiction is when I find diaries, letters, newspaper articles of memoirs from the time period so I can be sure that what I’m writing either jives with the history or reflects what actually happened. My first novel, Wedded to War, was based on the life of real Civil War nurse Georgeanna Woolsey, so the events in the novel closely resembled one woman’s life. In Widow of Gettysburg, my main character is a composite of several townspeople, so I had much more liberty in crafting her storyline. It was more of a challenge, but rewarding.

*****

Have you discovered Jocelyn Green yet? Eager to read book 2 in this fascinating series set during American's Civil War? I have a copy of Widow of Gettysburg for one lucky Ink Dots friend. All you have to do is answer the easiest question you'll hear this week.

What's your favourite colour? (Yes, that's how we spell favourite and colour in Australia.) Jocelyn told us hers is red. And I can see from her headshot and the cover of her book, it really suits her.

How about you? Do you have a signature colour everyone knows is you? Leave your answer in the comment section below and I'll announce the winner this Friday. 

Good luck and happy reading,