The Mosaic Collection – Interview with Johnnie Alexander!

Posted by abakersp in Spotlights / 1 Comment

Welcome to the Blog Blitz for The Mosaic Collection, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours! Everyday, for the next several days, I’ll be interviewing each author in the collection. So be sure to come back and see what they have to say!!

For His glory…
The Mosaic Collection is an international community of women authors who use faith-based fiction to touch hearts with the good news that Christ’s finished work on the cross has made us one family, and to nurture affection for the people God has placed within our circles of influence, so that the grace and glory of God may become visible and personal to everyone we meet.

…and our good
We are sisters, a beautiful mosaic united by the love of God through the blood of Christ. We have experienced the redemptive, restorative power of God’s grace in our marriages and families, and we believe our God is able to heal, restore and redeem our brokenness. His love fills us with the courage to persevere, and to offer others a Christ-like compassion that is full of His wisdom and grace.

Visit the Mosaic Collection Website to stay posted on each new release & follow the collection blog for meaningful posts from the authors!

Johnnie Alexander creates characters you want to meet and imagines stories you won’t forget. Her award-winning debut novel, Where Treasure Hides (Tyndale), is a CBA bestseller. She writes contemporaries, historicals, and cozy mysteries, serves on the executive boards of Serious Writer, Inc. and the Mid-South Christian Writers Conference, co-hosts an online show called Writers Chat, and interviews inspirational authors for Novelists Unwind. She also teaches at writers conferences and for Serious Writer Academy. Johnnie lives in Oklahoma with Griff, her happy-go-lucky collie, and Rugby, her raccoon-treeing papillon.

CONNECT WITH JOHNNIE: Website | https://linktr.ee/johnniealexndr

Cornerstone message from the collection:

One of the first verses I ever claimed as my own was Proverbs 31:25. The translation I love most reads: Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she smiles at the future.

The first part of the verse is almost a mantra, a phrase I repeat to myself when I need courage. Maybe I’m faced with something as simple as a phone call I don’t want to make. Or maybe the situation is much more serious. An ectopic pregnancy. Family tensions. Divorce. A dying parent.

Life takes courage. And at the heart of courage–true courage–is trust. We can smile at the future, no matter what difficult, frightening, horrible situations we face because of God’s steadfast love and His promise of eternal life with Him.

Hello Johnnie! I am so glad you have a moment to talk to me today 🙂 Can you start by telling us what the inspiration behind this story is?

Though I live in Oklahoma now, I lived most of my adult life in central Florida. Mention the Sunshine State, and most people think of theme parks, beaches, and palm trees. But we lived in an area with a strong pioneering heritage of cattle ranches, rodeos, and citrus groves. Even in the 21st century, ranchers round-up the cattle on horseback and come to town wearing boots, buckles, and Stetsons.

About ten or fifteen years ago, several long-time ranching families moved their operations–cattle, horses, personal belongings–to Texas. Developers needed their land to provide housing for the multitudes moving to Florida, but these families didn’t want to give up their way of life. 

The hero of One Sun-Kissed Summer, Shane Sawyer, is proud to trace his Florida roots back to the mid-1800s in a state populated with people from somewhere else. When other family members moved away, he stayed put. Despite the pressures to sell, Shane seeks to conserve the state’s agricultural history.  

Even though she’s from “up north,” children’s illustrator Chloe Reisser shares Shane’s interest in Florida history. As a part-time wildlife rehabilitation specialist, Chloe wants to protect the state’s native habitats.

Floridians know that wherever there’s water, there’s a gator. An alligator used to sun itself near the retention pond at the end of our street. One evening, we discovered a gator beneath my car. All part of life in the Sunshine State!

I gave Chloe a passion for wildlife so I could share with readers the unique species found in the state along with the “cowboy culture” seldom associated with Florida. 

For the record, if there was a gator beneath my car, I’m pretty sure I would pass out and have to be dragged away!

What’s in your current TBR pile?

I’m currently reading My Mother’s Chamomile by Susie Finkbeiner (which is an amazing story). Next up are Under This Same Sky by Cynthia Roehmer and The White City by Grace Hitchcock.

Three wonderful authors!!

Did you google something as research for this book and find something funny?

Maybe not funny, but fun! I searched for types of owls that are native to Florida and listened to them hoot. I’m still in the “imagining” stage of writing the novel so I still have a lot of research to do.

Oh that does sound fun. I might try that…..

Tell us about your writing routine.

God has blessed me with several projects that are due in the coming months, so I need to stay on track with imagining, researching, writing and editing. Usually I take care of email, social media tasks, and other items on my to-do list in the mornings. Then I write or edit for the rest of the day.

Sounds like you are about to be busy. Lots of prayers needed!

What’s your favorite bible verse?

I have several so I’m not sure I ever answer this question the same way twice. One of my long-time favorites is Proverbs 31:25 which says: Strength and dignity are her clothing and she smiles at the future.

I love that verse. Well actually, I love all the verses pertaining to the Proverbs 31 woman 🙂

You’re on a stranded island and you can only have one book with you. What would you pick and why?

Let’s make it two because of course, I want to take my Bible. My second choice would be the collected works and writings of JRR Tolkien. That should keep me occupied for years!

Good choices! And yes, I would have to make it two – the bible is an automatic for me.

Do your characters ever talk to you at odd times?

I have awakened in the wee morning hours with thoughts in my head. And yes, I get up and make a note. I don’t mind, though. It’s worse when my characters aren’t talking to me. That’s when we have a problem!

I hope you have a notebook by your bed so you don’t have to go too far!

What are you working on next?

The Mosaic Collection authors are planning a Christmas anthology of short stories which will release later this year. As soon as I finish up the revisions and edits on three other projects I have going on right now, I’ll be writing my short story. I only have a vague idea of what it might be about so I’m praying for inspiration! 

I love Christmas stories! I’ll be praying for you too 🙂

Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with me today. I can’t wait to learn more about those projects you are working on.

(1) winner will receive a $50 Amazon eGift Card & an ebook prize pack*!

Winner will receive an ebook of:

  • Where She Belongs
  • Pieces of Granite
  • Lifelines
  • Christmas on a Mission
  • Vigilant
  • Other Side of the River
  • The Third Grace
  • Carolina Grace
  • The Benefit Package (a devotional)
  • Dance of Grace
  • When Love Calls

Full tour schedule linked below. Giveaway will begin at midnight July 10, 2019 and last through 11:59 PM EST on July 24, 2019. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. Open internationally, but international winner will receive a gift card only *(may be substituted for a Book Depository gift card if winner cannot accept from US Amazon)

Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.

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See tour landing page for a complete list of authors & book release dates.
Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!

*NOTE: This post contains affiliate links.

One response to “The Mosaic Collection – Interview with Johnnie Alexander!

  1. Great interview Johnnie. Your books sounds fascinating, although I’m with Jessica. I would not enjoy finding an alligator beneath my car or anywhere else in my vicinity. Happy to read about other people doing so though 🙂