Tamera Alexander ~ Interview + Giveaway!

*You can earn up to 4 entries in this giveaway. Read below for details*

Today author Tamera Alexander is telling us about her new book, Within My Heart (September 2010). She has offered an autographed copy of her book to one lucky commenter. She will also be stopping by throughout the week to answer your questions! So if you have anything you want to ask her, you can include it in your comment for entering the contest. If you are only leaving a question in the comment and not entering the giveaway please say so.

Here is Tamera's author bio:

Tamera Alexander is the best-selling author of the critically acclaimed historical series–– Fountain Creek Chronicles (Rekindled, Revealed, and Remembered), and Timber Ridge Reflections (From a Distance, Beyond This Moment, and Within My Heart). Tamera’s The Inheritance, the 2010 Christy Award finalist and winner of the 2010 RITA Award, is the first historical for Women of Faith Fiction. Tamera's deeply drawn characters, thought-provoking plots, and poignant prose have earned her devoted readers—and multiple industry awards.

These awards include the 2008 and 2009 Christy Award for Excellence in Christian Fiction, and the 2007 and 2010 RITA Award for Best Inspirational Romance. Her books have also garnered the 2010 HOLT Medallion, the 2010 Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence, the Bookseller’s Best Award, the International Readers Choice Award, and top praise from the Library Journal, among other accolades.

Welcome, Tamera!
Are you:

A spontaneous writer or a scheduled writer?
I’m far more spontaneous, but I’m working at taking steps toward becoming more of a plotter. But I’ll never be one of those writers who plots the entire book all the way through before writing. It would take the joy out of writing for me. I love the discovery. The freshness of taking the journey with the characters. I want every twist and turn of joy and surprise I can experience along the way. I live for those moments when I literally have to push back from my laptop because one of the characters did something I didn’t expect. A little freaky when that happens, I admit, but I won’t start worrying until I start talking to myself…on a regular basis.

Stubborn, or compliant?
Not sure what that means in relation to writing exactly, but overall I’m a far more stubborn personality than compliant. Which has its strengths and weaknesses, depending on the situation. I guess for the most honest answer, you’d have to ask my editor. But unfortunately she’s out of the country for the next four years. :)

Organized or completely chaotic?
Organized. Very organized. Chaos drives me insane. Completely crazy. Oh, and did I tell you that I like things in their place?

Tell us something surprising about yourself that readers may not know.
I was voted Most Courteous in elementary school. But I could also cry on a dime and would do so whenever it would get me out of trouble and implicate my older brother, Doug, instead. Courtesy has its boundaries, I guess. But I’m a lot nicer now. Just don’t ask my brother.

If you compared your writing style to any other Christian Fiction author, who would it be? Also, how would you rate the romance in your books?
As for writing style, I can tell you that I adore Francine Rivers’ novels and it’s a high compliment when readers tell me they see similarities in our style. My style has also been likened to Lynn Austin’s, Nancy Moser’s, and Jill Marie Landis’. To say I’m honored is an understatement.

I’d rate the overall romance in my books as PG. I write the romance and more intimate scenes in such a way that it gives the reader the general idea of what’s happening and then try to step back and let the imagination “flesh it out,” so to speak. I want to be realistic in writing the intimacy between a man and a woman, but I believe too much detail can become gratuitous and distracting. The imagination is a wonderful thing.

What are you working on now or going to write next?
I’m already working on my next series. Historical, of course, except these next six books will take place in my native South, which I love, being an Atlanta native. These books, post-civil war era, are set in Nashville and are rich with historical detail and with characters who truly step off the page, because many of them are based on people who actually lived during that time. The first book is scheduled for release in 2011.

How can readers get in contact with you?

Tamera’s website: http://www.tameraalexander.com/

Personal blog: http://www.tameraalexander.blogspot.com/

Tamera’s group blog: http://www.writespassage.blogspot.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tamera.alexander

Twitter: http://twitter.com/tameraalexander

Contact Tamera: tameraalexander@ymail.com

Blurb:

Determined to fulfill her late husband's dream, Rachel Boyd struggles to keep her ranch afloat with the help of her two young sons. But some days it feels as though her every effort is sabotaged. When faced with a loss she cannot afford, she's forced to trust Rand Brookston, the one man in Timber Ridge she wishes to avoid. And with good reason. He's a physician, just like her father, which tells her everything she needs to know about him. Or so she thinks....

Dr. Rand Brookston ventured west with the dream of bringing modern medicine to the wilds of the Colorado Rockies, but the townspeople have been slow to trust him. Just as slow in coming is Rand's dream to build the town a proper clinic. When a patient's life is threatened, Rand makes a choice—one that sends ripples through the town of Timber Ridge. And through Rachel Boyd's stubborn heart.

From the beloved, bestselling author of From a Distance and Beyond This Moment comes an unforgettable story about faith in the face of fear, about tarnished hopes and second chances, and ultimately about the resilient courage and tenacity of hearts broken——and mended——by love.

Do you have a link to a place to read the first chapter or an excerpt of this book?
http://tinyurl.com/27fl25a

Here is the series info for Within My Heart--
Within My Heart is the third book and the culmination in the Timber Ridge Reflections series. Here’s a peek at the overall series:

Set in the town of Timber Ridge, in the Colorado Rocky Mountains (1870s), these three stories of faith and romance feature women who break the gender boundaries of their day not only by daring to have careers, but careers traditionally held by men. First, we join photojournalist Elizabeth Westbrook in From a Distance as she defies the odds and learns what it means to follow God’s dream for her life. Then in Beyond This Moment, we meet college professor Dr. Molly Whitcomb who travels the road of second chances and of accepting consequences for decisions she’s made, while also encountering a depth of grace she’s never known. Finally in Within My Heart, Rachel Boyd, a widow raising her two young sons, shows us what it means to take risks, and not only risks with her ranch, but also with something of far greater worth––her heart. These three women seek to fulfill their dreams and hopes in an untamed land where every advancement is hard-fought, every opportunity is cherished, and where love has the transcending power to change lives.

~~~~~
**USA residents only, please**

Okay readers, here is your chance to win an autographed copy of Within My Heart!

TO ENTER:

*Leave a comment with your name and email address (so I can contact you if you win). The comment is mandatory. You will not be entered unless you leave a comment AND your email address.

*If you leave a comment you will be entered unless you specify that you would not like to be entered.

*Here are the ways to get entries:

(First entry) The mandatory comment saying you would like to be entered with your email address.

+1 Become one of my followers OR subscribe to my blog by email.

Read and leave a comment on one of my recent book reviews.
+2 Making Waves

**You can earn a total of 4 entries if you do all of the above entry options. Make sure to tell me in your entry comment on this post which of the things you did to get extra entries.**

*The contest will run from today (September 17) until 6:00 CST on Thursday (September 23). I will announce the winner that night. The winner is always randomly drawn. I will contact the winner either directly after choosing him/her or on Friday the 10th, and then that person will have one week to reply. If the winner doesn't reply within that time period, I will pick a new winner.

Good luck! Thanks for visiting.