Thank you for your questions and letters of encouragement. I appreciate the time you take to write me.
Regarding one frequently asked question: Yes, I am still writing, currently working on a new (long!) novel. The original working title was Floodwaters, until my daughter exclaimed, “Mother, you can’t have that on the cover with Rivers as your last name.” We had a good laugh about it. But “floodwaters” does seem to describe the story of four women from four generations in the same family, trapped in a house on the coast and forced to work through their issues with one another. Mothers and daughters—each looking at faith differently. Their relationships with one another are broken; the theme is reconciliation. This is the longest and most complex story I’ve tackled, and I would appreciate your prayers. I hope to have the manuscript completed by the end of summer or early fall, with a Fall 2009 Tyndale release.
Since the release of The Last Sin Eater movie, I have been frequently asked when other novels will be on screen. Redeeming Love has been optioned by Abba Productions, who are making progress on the project, but it will be some time before it reaches the big screen. I have been approached about making other books into movies, especially the Mark of the Lion trilogy, but have not reached any agreement.
For beginning writers, please check out my Writers Tips. I also encourage you to check into the Christian Writers Guild. They have an excellent mentoring program and wonderful conferences. Another favorite is the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference near Santa Cruz, California. I consider myself an apprentice and attend conferences as a participant whenever I can. I still have much to learn about the craft of writing and feel that conferences are good places to learn, make new friends, and come home energized to work.
For your convenience and to encourage you to use fiction to reach others for Christ, we have been moving toward putting discussion questions and Bible studies in the backs of the books. The studies are not extensive, but will give you a start.
Audios are available for many of my books in stores and online. However, I have received letters from those of you who have had difficulty finding the audio books for the Mark of the Lion series at retail. The good news is they are still available and can be purchased and then downloaded online at www.recordedbooks.com.
