In my novel, The Crow’s Call, the King family was faced with a serious trial they never expected would happen. It was a time when they had to work closely with each other in order to survive. The emotional and physical support they received from one another was what held the family together. In many ways the trials they faced brought the family closer, despite the discord that sometimes occurred.

Has you family ever been faced with a difficult challenge, and because of it, you were brought closer? Or did the traumatic event seem to pull you apart?

When a family experiences a tragedy, how can they come through it with a stronger bond and greater faith in God?

During the month of February, in which Valentine’s Day occurs, many people’s thought turn to love and romance. A few years ago one of my readers asked me why I include romance in my inspirational novels. This person said they thought that Amish people probably didn’t do romance. So just to be clear, before I answered this question, I spoke to one of our Amish friends and asked him if he thought Amish men were romantic. He laughed and said, “Of course we do romance. How else do you think we could get a woman to marry us?” I just smiled in response, and said, “Thank you, Sir.”

So in thinking about love and romance during the month of February, I’d like to ask you two questions: 1. Out of all my books that you may have read, which one did you feel was the most romantic and why?
2. Do you enjoy reading novels that include a bit of romance sprinkled into the storyline?

When I was a young girl, growing up in a dysfunctional home, I was shy and lacked confidence in myself. However, a very special second grade teacher left a positive imprint on my heart that stayed with me throughout childhood and into my adult life. Mrs. Rueger saw something in a shy second-grader, who thought she was not important, and planted a seed in the young girl’s heart. Based on a poem I had written, the intuitive, kind woman told me that I had a talent for writing. She called me up to her desk one day after class and whispered, “Wanda, someday I believe you will become an author.” Little did I know then that her encouraging words would eventually come true. The one thing I did know was that it felt good to realize that someone cared about me and saw a potential that my parents did not see.

I thank God often for the imprint Mrs. Rueger had on my life, and also for opening the doors many years later for me to take my first writing course. While I didn’t get published immediately after finishing those classes, it wasn’t long before my first fiction story was accepted. After writing and having several hundred stories, articles, devotionals, and puppet scripts published with various magazines and Sunday school take-home papers, I took another writing course that taught me how to write novels. In 1997 I had my first novel published with Barbour Publishing, and now, to date, I’ve had over 100 books published with that same publisher. Barbour Publishing took a chance on a new author over 20 years ago, and they, too, have left a huge positive imprint on my life.

Is there someone special who has left an important imprint on your life? Please share so that others will be encouraged.