GIVE AWAY - CHRIS FABRY JUNE BUG AUTHOR INTERVIEWED

[Nora St.Laurent]

First off I want to tell you that I loved June Bug and her outlook on life, even after she discovered her face on the wall at Wal-Mart. How did you come up with the idea for June Bug and this book?



I was walking the Walmart parking lot near our old house one night and noticed a bunch of RVs in the back. I wondered, "Who lives in those? Where are they going? What do they do?" After that I saw a little girl go into Walmart and I noticed the "Missing Children" posters, and it all came together. The questions overwhelmed me, and I realized this could be a modern spin on Victor Hugo's Les Miserables.

2. What was your favorite scene to write in this book? What was your hardest? Why?



My favorite was the ending scene with two principal characters and I won't give it away, but it was a very emotional scene. You could feel the love and sacrifice coming through and the difficult choice that was made. That scene tied things together about as well as I could given the nature of the book.

The hardest scene to write was closer to the beginning.

One character was present on the night of the Marshall University plane crash and the memories of that night still haunt him. I remember that night and the days following.

Was this easier or harder to write than your last book Dogwood? The premise is very different all though I have to say you got me in both of the endings to these books.I had no clue how it would end!



Dogwood was harder to write because it was a more complex storyline. This one is told in a linear fashion with some reveals of the past, but nothing like Dogwood.

I wrote it from June to December last year in one of the most tumultuous times in our family's life--losing our home, moving out with the clothes on our backs, we had to put our dogs down.

It was awful, but the story kept bringing me back to that world and I immersed myself in it.

Did you come up with June Bug as the title for this book? If not, what was your working title?


I had some cheesy "Echoes of the Hills" or something like that. Titles are very difficult for me. So I was a writing conference in Colorado, sitting in a seminar about fiction,not really thinking at all about the title, and something pops into my head, "June Bug." I thought, "That's weird, I guess I could use junebugs in the story because they're very West Virginia bugs. I write it down and keep listening. Then I look down and realize this is the girl's name and the title of the book and I nearly shouted. :) It was a wonderful moment.


I've noticed that you've also been the person reading the book to everyone on an audio book, Desperate Marriages by Gary Chapman, how does that work? Do you audition? Do you read the book all at once? If not, how many sessions does it take to record you reading a book for the audio version of the book?



I do several books a year for audio. I love interpreting other writers works. I've done enough of them now that I don't audition as much as publishers come to me and ask if I'm interested in doing another project. I try to get them done quickly so my voice doesn't change with a cold or something like that. I record in my own studio so I try to do the book quickly, in a week or less.

You've written many books for children, devotionals, non-fiction etc. before you wrote your first fiction book targeting adults; was it hard for you to make that leap when you wrote the book Dogwood? How did you come up with the idea for that book?






The hardest part of writing for adults, for me, was that I wasn't published in that genre, so I had to finish the entire book before I could get a contract. Publishers wanted to know if I could do this, I guess. Dogwood had a long gestation period of a number of years. I'd be writing a Left Behind: the Kids book or Red Rock Mysteries book and in between I would work on Dogwood. The idea was with me since the 1980s. A man goes to prison for a heinous crime, then returns for the love of his life. That's the basic story but there's a lot of complication thrown in I won't go into here.

You've written a very successful childrens series with Jerry Jenkins, called Red Rock Mysteries. Is it harder to write books with a co-author? How does that process work?



Jerry has basically given me a personal course on writing and I got paid for the internship. I would come up with the ideas for each book and pass them by him. He would comment, help me shape the plot, and then turn me loose. I'd write the first draft, edit, send to him, and then he would edit and send to me. After I picked myself up off the floor, I would re-edit his edits, then send to the publisher. It was a painful process in a lot of ways, but it helped me get into the rhythm of writing and editing. I wouldn't be published in the adult fiction genre today if it weren't for Jerry.

QUESTIONS I KNOW YOU WANTED TO ASK CHRIS BUT WERE AFRAID TO SO I DID!!!

1. What movie most impacted you as a child? Why?




To Kill A Mockingbird. I can still remember seeing it on the black and white television set in our home. I'm not sure when they would have aired that on TV, but it had to be the late 60s, I think. As a child, I didn't understand much of the big story, but I could understand Scout's feelings and what it was like to be her. WHen I read the book in Junior High, it all came together.

2. You've been given an opportunity to use a time machine and it will take you to TWO places to witness any event in the history of the world? What two events would you witness? Why?




I would choose the creation of the world because then I could tell every scientist how it really happened.





Secondly, I would choose the day Jesus raised the little girl from the dead. Just to see the look on her parent's faces and then the reaction of Jesus to them would be so wonderful. (Ask me tomorrow and I'll give you two other moments in history.)



3. If you could hang out with TWO people alive or dead in this history of the world who would you pick and what would you do?





Obviously the correct answer here is Jesus. Let me exclude him for the purposes of this question. Other than Jesus, I would choose Job and Orson Welles and I would take them to a baseball game and sit in the empty area where we could talk and have a bratwurst or two.

4. What was the last movie you saw in the theatre? Did you like it? What snacks did you eat if any?

I think it was Monsters Vs. ALiens with my little kids (we have 9). It was really fun. I almost NEVER buy snacks because it's just too expensive, but I think we did buy a big tub of popcorn, you know, the Tribe size.
And we went back for a refill!

5. You find ourself in a life threatening situation, you need someone to save you, who would you pick? You can pick anyone from books, T.V. Movies, the sky is the limit.



Atticus Finch. He would find a way to help and he wouldn't kill as many people as Jack Bauer would.
6. You have the opporunity to be a superhero for 48 hours, who would you pick and why? You can mix and match powers and costumes - your the author.









I don't look good in Spandex, so I'll just be the invisible man who can fly like Superman so I could visit as many friends as I could in those 48 hours.
7. IF you had all the money in the world and just as much money what would you do? Why?


(You mean, all the power in the world and just as much money?)
I think I would spend it gathering orphans and widows together and serve them. That's where your faith really meets the road, I think. ANd those are the people who need the most help.

8. What did you want to be when you grew up?



I wanted to be a baseball player and then a baseball announcer (when I realized I didn't have much of an arm and couldn't run). The other day my son asked me that and I told him how glad I never chased that dream of being a baseball announcer. It wouldn't have worked well with a big family.

9. What TV shows were you most passionate as a child? You know the ones that you couldn't miss each week?

I loved Lost in Space and my favorite was The Wild, Wild West. I had an older brother who would only play with me if he got to be Jim West. I always had to be Artemus Gordon and it really ticked me off. To this day he still gets to be Jim West.

10. If money weren't an object what kind of car would you like to drive?


I'd buy back my 1988 Toyota Camry I named Tashina. I loved that car, even though the air conditioner wouldn't work and the windows wouldn't roll up. There was just something about Tashina.


CONGRATULATIONS ON WINNING A CHRISTY AWARD THIS YEAR FOR YOUR BOOK DOGWOOD-Contemporary Stand-Alone category!!









ANY FINAL COMMENTS YOU WANT TO LEAVE MY READERS WITH?
(Fun picture I'd like to share-here's My daughter, Megan, Jackson Browne, and me)


I want to thank any of your readers who have prayed for our family in the past year. We're on a slow incline with our health after a toxic mold exposure. Not what I would have picked for a family adventure, but it has given us great insight into life, the love of God, and the way he uses others to lift us up. Thank you.

Chris

Wow, Chris. I'm sorry to hear about the mold exposure, we'll definately continue to pray that you & your faamilies health is restored and God continues to give you stories to write. I've totally enjoyed Dogwood, June Bug and the Red Rock Mysteries I read with my kids. Remember if you ever get to Atlanta, we'll definately have to do book club!!

Blessings on your writing adventure. Thanks for stopping by and letting us get to know you and your books better.

Sincerely,

Nora :D

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