Laurie Alice Eakes ~ Interview + Giveaway!

*You can earn up to 4 entries in this giveaway. Read below for details. This giveaway is a little different, so please read the directions at the bottom of the post*

Today author Laurie Alice Eakes is telling us about her new book, Lady in the Mist (The Midwives series #1 -- February 2011). She has offered a LitM mug or tote bag 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 Laurie's author bio:

Award-winning author Laurie Alice Eakes wanted to be a writer since knowing what one was. Her first book won the National Readers Choice Award in 2007, and her third book was a Carol Award finalist in 2010. Between December of 2008 and January of 2010, she sold thirteen books to Barbour Publishing, Avalon Books, and Baker/Revell, making her total sales fifteen. Recently, she added two novella sales to that collection, as well as having her first book with Baker/Revell, Lady in the Mist, picked up by Crossings Book Club, and three of her books chosen for large print editions by Thorndike Press. She has been a public speaker for as long as she can remember; thus, only suffers enough stage fright to keep her sharp. In 2002, while in graduate school for writing fiction, she began to teach fiction in person and online. She lives in Texas with her husband, two dogs, and too many cats even for her.

Welcome, Laurie! Tell us about your salvation experience.
I was eleven-years-old and it was at a church service. Nothing extraordinary. I just knew it was the right time and the right place. A great deal happened to me after that, and I left my faith for some weird stuff for a while, and the Lord brought me back in 2001.

Are you:

A spontaneous writer or a scheduled writer?
I’m a scheduled writer. I have too much work to do to wait for the muse to strike.

Stubborn, or compliant?
That depends on the situation. I’m stubborn about doing certain things and compliant about others. With people like editors, I’m quite compliant and don’t want to come across as a pain.

Organized or completely chaotic?
In writing, I’m rather well organized. Generally I’m well organized as long as I remember to put it on my calendar.

How do you handle disasters/BIG problems? Do you have a funny or interesting story showcasing how you handle them?
If a disaster hits me out of the blue, I tend to have a few minutes of hysterics, then I calm down, take care of it, and even manage to laugh about it. When our car broke down in an itsy town in Louisiana on a Saturday when no mechanics were open and we were on our way to Texas moving from Virginia for my husband’s new job, I decided to make a bit of a rest period out of it, time to relax away from the car I’d been in for 2.5 days. Now I can look back on it with amazement at how people came forward to help us. It was only a dead battery.

In your opinion, what is your best trait? What is your worst?
My best trait is that I’m an encourager and generous with my time if that’s what’s needed. Worst is that I’m not very patient.

Tell us something surprising about yourself that readers may not know.
At this point in time, if they don’t know something about me, it’s probably something they shouldn’t know about me. :)

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?
I’d say I’m probably closest to Marylu Tyndall, though even she says my style is completely unique. As for rating, it’s G by secular standards and maybe PG10 by CBA standards. I have some kissing in it, but nothing detailed. I like to leave things up to the reader’s imagination, be evocative rather than provocative.

What are you working on now or going to write next?
I just finished the second book in the Midwife series, am currently working on my lady lawyer in 1893 story for Avalon Books, and next will work on my second book in my Regency series for Baker/Revell.

How can readers get in contact with you?
At present, my web site http://www.lauriealiceeakes.com/ doesn’t have a contact me page. That will be fixed soon. But I’m on Facebook and anyone can send me a message from there. I also have a blog I’m not very good about keeping up http://www.seizethechance.blogspot.com/. Generally I get something up on Mondays at the least.

Book blurb:

By virtue of her profession as a midwife, Tabitha Eckles is the keeper of many secrets.

Dominick Cherrett is a man with his own secret to keep: namely, what he, a British aristocrat, is doing on American soil working as an indentured servant.

In a time when relations between America and England rest on the edge of a knife, Tabitha and Dominick cross paths, leading them on a journey of intrigue, threats, public disgrace, and . . . love? But can Tabitha trust Dominick? Finding true love seems impossible in a world set against them.

With stirring writing that draws you directly into the story, Lady in the Mist takes you on the thrilling ride of love’s discovery.

Do you have a link to a place to read the first chapter or an excerpt of this book?
On my web site is one excerpt and on the Romantic Times blog is another one. http://www.rtbookreviews.com/rt-daily-blog/laurie-alice-eakes-power-midwives#comments

Is there anything you would like to add, or tell your readers?
Lady in the Mist is a romantic suspense set in Virginia in 1809. That’s the surface story. Beneath is a whole lot more. Each reader takes away something different. I want everyone to be entertained and also want everyone to feel different when she is finished having learned something about love and self-forgiveness.

~~~~~

**USA addresses only, please**

Okay readers, here is your chance to win a LitM mug or tote bag! [Remember to specify which of these you would like to get if you win]

TO ENTER:

*Leave a comment with your name and email address (so I can contact you if you win). ALSO tell which of the two goodies you would like 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 or more of my recent book reviews.
+2 Lady in the Mist

**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 (February 18) until 6:00 CST on Thursday (February 24). 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 25th, 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.