Betsy, describe yourself for our visitors.
My name is Betsy Ann St. Amant, and I was born and raised in north Louisiana. I’ve been married to the answer to my prayers, Brandon, for over two years now. No kids yet, but we have an eighty pound black lab we spoil just the same. Outside of writing, I enjoy devouring books (romances, mysteries, thrillers, suspense, comedies, chick-lits, anything!) and singing. I enjoy Christian contemporary music and a little bit of country. Gotta bring out those Southern roots every now and then! I also sponsor two adorable little girls through World Vision, a fantastic organization that offers education, health, and spiritual assistance through monthly sponsors. I’m so passionate about this cause!
How do you find time to connect with God?
As for my own spiritual journey – finding time to connect with God isn’t always easy. I’m a wife, a housekeeper, work a full time job, and still have to meet my writing deadlines each day. Sometimes it’s simplier to just sit down at the computer and start to type, without first asking for God’s help and guidance. But I’ve learned quickly that in the times when I sit down and pray, and ask God to pour out His words through me, my scenes really flow and I am much more productive. If I can just remember to stay out of the way, then God can truly work through me. Without Him, my words are in vain.
Tell us about your journey to publication.
My journey to publication felt like it took forever but it actually happened rather quickly. I’ve been writing in some form or another since I was seven years old and my father brought home our first computer! I began writing short stories and poems. Some rhymed, some didn’t. Some made sense, some didn’t. I kept typing. Kept creating. And kept dreaming. In high school, my word count per minute on a keyboard reached 110. I was nicknamed “the legend” and as far as I know, no one has touched that record in my teacher’s keyboarding class since!
When I was eighteen years old, I attended a ClasServices conference with my mother, who enjoys writing devotionals and Bible studies for women. We were both nervous, venturing out into the unknown together and feeling incredibly unworthy to be there. But the weekend was wonderful and that was where I met award winning author Gayle Roper. We kept in touch sporadically the next year and she encouraged me to join the ACFW. I did, and my life has never been the same since. Without the love, support, encouragement, and opportunities presented to me through the ACFW, I know for a fact my journey to publication would have taken twice as long. They are a fantastic group of people. I began to read, and learn, and grow.
I joined a critique group, entered contests, and began to contribute monthly articles to Crosswalk.com. I attended two ACFW conferences, particiapted in a paid critique each time, and sold a poem to a Christian magazine (The Christian Communicator, February 2007 issue) and most importantly – never gave up. I had submitted Midnight Angel to several editors and agents and received many rejections before finally putting it aside and moving on. I had completed almost 2 full novels after that before submitting Midnight Angel to the Wild Rose Press, a new publisher of digital and print format. The editor loved it, told me they’d take it, and the rest is history
Tell us about your current book?
My current published book is titled Midnight Angel, and is an inspirational romantic suspense. The digital version of Midnight Angel is available to download now through the Wild Rose Press website (www.thewildrosepress.com) and the print version is being released January 26th, 2007, available to buy through Amazon.com, Borders.com, and various other book distributing websites. The full list is available on the Wild Rose Press website.
How did you come up with ideas for your current release?
I came up with the idea for Midnight Angel because I wanted to write a love story. But no love story is any good without conflict. When I started imagining all the reasons why this couple couldn’t be together, the plot developed in my mind and turned into a suspense. It just grew from there!
What’s next for you?
Currently, I’m working on finding an agent and finishing up my romance work-in-progress. I have a short story under consideration with my editor at the Wild Rose Press, and I also have another suspense story I need to do a bit of rewriting on before submitting. After that – who knows? There’s always ideas percolating. Always ideas.
Where can visitors find you online?
You can find me online in multiple places!
My author site – www.betsystamant.com
My MySpace page – www.myspace.com/betsystamant
My blog site – www.betsy-ann.blogspot.com
My Shoutlife page – www.shoutlife.com/betsystamant
My author page through the Wild Rose Press – http://www.thewildrosepress.com/authors/BetsyAnnStAmant.htm
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