Interview with Missy Tippens and giveaway

Interview with Missy Tippens Author of

Her Unlikely Family

Firstly thanks for agreeing to this interview

Thanks for having me, Jenny!

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

Well, I’m a pastor’s wife and mom of 3 children. We live in Georgia in the US. I teach part-time at a local technical college and stay pretty busy with church activities. My dream came true last year when I made my first sale to Steeple Hill Love Inspired, and just this past week sold my second book to them! :)

How did you know you wanted to be a writer, have you always had the desire or did it come later?

I always enjoyed writing during high school and college. Well, let me clarify. I enjoyed creative writing. Not research papers! :) I also liked to read romance novels, and when we got our first computer in 2005, I decided I wanted to try my hand at writing one.

If you were not a writer what would you like to be?

Well, I’m formerly a microbiologist, so I imagine I would be pursuing that again. (I was a stay-at-home mom for 16 years and wrote during 13 of those years.) If I hadn’t ever sold, I guess I would be trying to get re-certified to work in the hospital again.

What was you motivation for writing Her Unlikely Family?

I had a what-if idea: What if a stuffy banker gets thrown together with a flirty waitress? Then I brainstormed it from there. It was a lot of fun to write!

How do you come up with the characters for your books and are they modeled on people you know?

No, they’re not modeled after anyone I know. I always fear people seeing themselves in the book, so am pretty careful. But I do learn by observing people I know and by analyzing them and their actions. (If any friends are reading this, don’t let this worry you!) LOL

What was the Hardest part of writing "Her Unlikely family"?

The hardest part was revising it after critiques to get it in good enough shape to submit it to the editor. I always enjoy writing the first draft, but going through a manuscript again and again… and again… gets tedious. It takes a lot of patience to read something about 20 times! :)

Did you have a favourite scene in this story?I love the last scene before the epilogue. (I won’t give any spoilers.) I had been able to picture that scene from the very beginning, and it was emotional for me to write. I love it when writing makes me cry! I figure that’s a good thing. :)

Can you tell us about any upcoming projects?

As I mentioned earlier, I just sold my second manuscript to Steeple Hill! I have a tentative release date of July 2009. This one takes place in a small fictional town in Georgia. It’s about a hunky but somewhat geeky physics professor who returns home and finds he’s starting to fall in love again with his high school crush.

How can readers find you on the web?

www.missytippens.com and www.lifewithmissy.blogspot.com

Do you have any final thoughts for us?

I would love to give away a copy of my book! Anyone who comments today will have her/his name put in a drawing for a copy of Her Unlikely Family. Thanks for having me today, Jenny!

Thanks Missy for the give away and for giving up your time for us.

remember to leave a comment to win a copy of Her Unlikely Family, this giveaway is open to all readers. Entries close midnight aussie time Monday June 2.