The Button Girl: An Interview with Author Sally Apokedak and Autographed Giveaway Part II

 Last week I reviewed Sally Apokedak's young adult fantasy, The Button Girl. This week, I'm happy to provide an interview with her about the story behind writing this thought-provoking novel for Christians, non-Christians, young women and adults.

INTERVIEW

CAROL: How did you come up with the ideas for this book?  

SALLY: I had a hippy friend who had named her children things like: Glory Ofgod, Selah Praise, Faith Alone, and so on and so forth. And then my pastor told me that Naomi's two sons were named Disease and Famine. And that gave me the idea to set up a society where people are named for what God is doing in the lives of the moms. 

 

My daughter had just become a teenager and I wanted to write a book that would help girls see something I did not know as a girl--there is a big difference between lust and love. Kevin DeYoung said in one of his sermons that men want to see porn and women want to BE porn. But I think that most women don't really want to BE porn. They want to be loved and, when they are young, they don't understand that lust does not equate with love.  

 

So I painted a very bad villain and a very good hero. They are so black and white that they may seem almost cartoonish. But they were painted that way with intent—to show that lust is selfish and love is selfless. 

 

But many things are not as black and white as lust and love are. The world is messy. There are a few gray areas and there is a lot of foggy thinking. 

 

People are complex. So in the book the tutor was rightly opposed to slavery, but for the wrong reasons. The king was not opposed to slavery, but he was a more honorable man than the tutor.  

 

So I set up a book full of contrasts with a mountain and valley, and with slaves and masters, and with fog and sunshine. I wanted to show the difference between not only lust and love but also to examine contentment and apathy and idealism and integrity. Does civil disobedience mean we are complaining against God? I looked at my own life to find places where I struggled to know how to obey God. In the end, Repentance is very much a picture of my sixteen-year-old self.   

 

 

CAROL: How long did it percolate before it became a book?  

SALLY: I started in 2006. Wrote about five chapters and then ran out of story. I didn't write any more on it, because  . . . writing novels is hard work. And I struggle with rough drafts. 

 

Life happened. My husband died of cancer. I took care of my mother and my father after that. My dad died. 

 

I finished the book in 2009, so the book took four years to write from conception to completion. But actual writing time was probably five months.  

 

I burned through three agents and got a few offers from smallish houses, which we turned down. And in the end, I published the book myself in 2017. So eleven years from conception to publication.  

 

CAROL: How much did your faith affect writing it? 
 

SALLY: God was uppermost in my mind as I wrote. 

 

Sober is a type of Christ in his love for Repentance—in the way her sin cost him and in the way he still loved her—and in his substitution of himself for Comfort.  

 

But I have always wanted to write a character who is a type of God the Father. I’ve wanted to show the sacrifice that the Father made when he ordained that his Son would die. God the Father gave up the One he loved most to save a sinful rebellious people who set themselves up as his enemies, so I had a character make that same sacrifice. 

 

But mostly, I wanted to write a book that would make girls think about a few things. Is there a God who created us? Is there a God who allows slavery? If God allows slavery—or any sin—without striking the sinner dead, does it follow that he is in favor of the sinners/slaveholders? Is such a God unfair? 

 

I left up in the air who was saved and who was not. I ended the book with Repentance coming to see Providence was blessing her, whereas in the beginning of the book she felt cursed. But I didn't go farther than that because her world is not our world and people there aren't saved the same way people here are saved. 

 

Providence was not meant to look too much like our God. The god in the book was a simple metaphor that showed one aspect of our God. He was the provider—and he was more than a clockmaker who wound up the clock and ignored it. He was a god who cared about Repentance and was working things together for her good. But he was not a god who sent his son to die for sinners. This book was not meant to lead people to Christ. It was meant to make them ask: Is there a God? Do the unfair circumstances in this world prove there is no loving God watching over us? And if we wait long enough, will we see that everything will, indeed, come out right in the end?  

GIVEAWAY

Leave a comment if you would like to be entered into the giveaway. If you left a comment last week, then you will be entered twice. A winner will be chosen on July 2. Continental U.S. addresses only. PLEASE leave me your email address if you are new to my blog. 

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Sally is an author, agent, and speaker. You can find out more about Apokedak Literary Agency on her website. 

Two years ago I was fortunate to attend a
writer's retreat led by Sally.

The Next to the Last Mistake: Review and ARC Giveaway

For a second week in a row I'm happy to bring you another clean, contemporary YA novel. I requested The Next to Last Mistake by North Carolina author Amalie Jahn from the publisher, Light Messages, because of the racial themes. It was interesting to see how Jahn handled interracial friendships since that is a theme in my WIP, Half-Truths. 

REVIEW

Tess Goodwin's peaceful, uncomplicated life in rural Iowa changes the moment her father announces he has reenlisted in the Army. The family moves to an army base in Fayetteville, NC  and Tess is forced to say goodbye to her not-quite-a-boyfriend, Zander, and her beloved cow, Daisy. 

Conflicts navigating her huge new high school mirrors her conflicts over making new friends. When Leonetta, a black girl, is assigned to be her mentor, Tess is surprised by what they have in common as well as how their friendship develops despite racial differences. 

Tess's eyes are opened when Leonetta receives prejudicial treatment, and when she herself is the recipient of cynical comments because she's Leonetta's friend. Tess is enraged by the way her friend is treated and Leonetta explains the rules about being black. Throughout the book Leonetta guides Tess into a greater awareness of Tess's own hidden biases:

"You said it because you have your own biases you carry around with you. We all do. We can't help it. We're human. But that doesn't give us a free pass. You gotta check your privilege, keep an open mind, and consider other people's feelings before you open your mouth. If you do that you'll be okay." (p. 141)

Jahn based this book on interracial friendships she had when she moved to Fort Bragg and her husband was deployed. Good fiction often comes out of her own life experiences. I appreciate Jahn wanting to honor these relationships by showing what her black co-workers taught her about friendship across racial barriers. But some of the dialogue was heavy with lessons and doesn't sound like teenagers bantering back and forth. 

Despite that concern with the novel, there are scenes that are teen-age authentic. When the girls confront the school bully at the prom; when Tess's father announces that he is being deployed to Syria and he gives a "weary, splintered sort of smile that nearly breaks my heart (p. 227); when Zander and Tess begin to figure out their relationship going forward; and when Tess sees Daisy again and breaks down and sobs. 

The motif of chess threads naturally throughout the book. Tess, who played with her father and Zander, begins a chess club at her new school which does surprisingly well. In one conversation with her father over who will win the war in Syria, we find the reason behind the book's title:

"There's this saying in chess: 'Victory goes to the player who makes the next to last mistake.' It basically means during a game of chess you can make mistakes a long the way and still come out ahead as long as you learn from those missteps and adjust accordingly. You don't need to do things perfectly from the beginning to eventually get it right in the end. I've found over the years the theory applies to life as well. And I'm pretty sure it will be the same for war." (p. 253)

Some readers might find that there is too much backstory in the beginning about Tess's life in Iowa as well as a lot of flashbacks about Zander. But overall, I would recommend this book to teen girls who are interested in exploring interracial relationships. Kudos to Amalie Jahn for sensitively tackling a difficult subject as a white author--and keeping it clean. 

GIVEAWAY

To enter the giveaway, please leave a comment and your email address if you are new to my blog. I'll also be giving this away in conjunction with the summer issue of Talking Story, Celebrate Teens. Please leave a comment by June 14. 

The Perfect Candidate: Audio Book Review and Giveaway

Congratulations to Theresa Jones who won Emily Out of Focus from last week's blog. Remember, when you don't win a book, check it out of your local library. If it's not in their catalog, you can request a purchase. Another way to support authors!

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REVIEW

I am always delighted to find a well-written young adult novel to recommend. The Perfect Candidate by Peter Stone passed my "Is it clean?" standards with a book that is entertaining, suspenseful, and will be enjoyed by both girls and guys.

Cameron Carter, a recent graduate of Lagrima High in California, is excited about his Washington, D.C. summer internship with his congressman, Billy Beck. He wants to honor his late mother's memory because she was also an intern on the "Hill." Since he's from a small town and a lower-middle class family, he feels out of place in D.C. but is convinced that this internship will jumpstart his political future and provide an opportunity to "make a difference."

He quickly discovers that there are reasons that D.C. is referred to as the "swamp." His fellow-staffer, Ariel, gives him a mysterious message about contacting a girl named Caitlin if anything should happen to her. When she dies in an apparent drunk driving incident, Cameron is left with a lot of questions--and a dizzyingly fast cover-up by Representative Beck who is accused of having had an inappropriate relationship with Ariel. Who is speaking the truth and who is spinning public opinion? 

When he is contacted by a stranger who turns out to be Memo, an FBI agent, Cameron is both spooked and intrigued. Memo insists that Cameron is in a unique spot as an intern. He has "all the access but no profile" to investigate the apparent suicide of Branson, a pharmaceutical CEO. Cameron reluctantly agrees because of Memo's carrot--Cameron's father will receive a large landscaping bid that will set his business for life.

Cameron's research, interrupted by a romance with the Mexican ambassador's attractive daughter, leads him from one disturbing clue to another. Why did Branson commit suicide? How was his death related to Ariel's? Who was Caitlin and why did Ariel want him to contact her? Why did Ariel's mother (a junior congresswoman who has been assisted by Beck) say, "We all tell the stories we want to believe"? How is this all connected to Congressman Beck, who appears genuinely interested in him and concerned for his constituents? 

Cameron's slightly sarcastic voice is authentic for a rural teen experiencing D.C.'s subterranean train system as well as the inner workings of the political system. The life and death stakes make this a page turner (if you're reading the book) or keep you entertained on a long car trip. And by the way, you'll never guess the surprise ending!

Here is an audio snippet from John Kraft, the able and entertaining narrator: The Perfect Candidate.

GIVEAWAY

To enter to win my copy of this debut YA book by Peter Stone, please leave me a comment by June 10. I'm giving it away in conjunction with the summer issue of Talking Story,  Celebrate Teens. Please leave your email address if you are new to my blog. 

And remember, "When you don't know who's watching you, you don't know what's being watched."

Fresh Voices in the Blogosphere

A young writer friend recently introduced me to a new blog entitled, Rebellious Writing. Organized by a precocious 14-year-old, the movement's mission is to promote clean young adult literature. To encourage these young bloggers and to promote their writing efforts, I decided to feature three Rebellious Writers on my blog along with two other young women with similar passions. Here are the questions I asked each to consider:

If you had the ear of a publisher or editor who is publishing YA literature, what would you say to her about the current state of the publishing industry? What are your concerns with the books that are being published right now?

"I think smut and low expectations for teens rule the YA world because books have begun to lower standards for teens, one reader at a time. Too often, I read books telling us teenagers that it's okay and perfectly normal to be misunderstood, unintelligent, impulsive, and constantly swearing teens, and that it is okay to write this way, because it is "realistic". When it isn't or shouldn't be.

As a rebellious writer, I want to re-write the standards for teen readers and writers. I want to bring light, truth, and good morals back to young adult, but I can't do that alone, no one can. I am with Rebellious Writing, because I believe that I can make a difference despite my age, and I believe others can too. It is time for teens to rise up against swearing, lust, abuse, and general glorified bad behavior in books. We need to take a stand, and with Rebellious Writing, we are doing just that."

Gray Marie Cox is a Christian Texas girl and author. She is a firm believer in good books for all.
Here is her AMAZING POST that began the Rebellious Writers Movement.

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"I believe that part of the reason that the literature industry is accepting this bad literature is because for the past 50-80 years, the youth culture has been steadily breaking down whatever moral limits that were placed on them. A culture developed between 1920-1950 that tolerated such moral abuses such as swearing, abuse and especially lust in the general culture, then a culture developed between 1950-1980 that accepted these abuses as a fact of life – facts of life that are now glorified in YA today.  

Two generations later, these abuses have become a chokehold on society and the trashy YA only strengthens it. Nothing short of an outright rebellion is going to elicit change. I’ve made a conscious decision to “scout out” the books that I plan to read for any pitfalls, and I’m helping others do the same. While the monetary impacts are likely to be small at first, the seeds have been planted. In the meantime, I shall weave my tales of fantasy." 

Catherine Hawthorn is an aspiring young Catholic authoress who wishes to follow the footsteps of J.R.R. Tolkein. When not mending plot holes by the firelight or chasing her rebellious muse, she reads everything from historical fiction to high fantasy literature. She is also the email coordinator for the Rebellious Writers Movement.

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"If I had the ear of a publisher or editor, I would want to tell them that their industry has room for much-needed improvement. It's a pain to find clean Young Adult fiction. I want to ask publishers, 'Are you not receiving much of any clean YA submissions? Tell me, does every one of them have sordid content, or are you just ignoring most of the books with pure content because lewdness seems to be all the rage these days?'

"Both reasons are awful. And this concerns me because even if adolescents - such as myself - want that kind of content, they shouldn't have it. Foul language and sexual immorality in YA poisons young minds.

"What do I want to do about this, you ask? I want to write a deep, but also God-honoring, YA novel. Then I want to publish it traditionally. Then I want to keep writing and publishing smut-free books for Jesus. With my teammates at Rebellious Writing and with everyone else who shares the same goal, we can make a difference. Together we strive to spark a revival in the world of YA lit."

Lila Kims is a young Christian writer who wants to someday publish clean novels that both honor God and appeal to readers all across the vast bookosphere. She loves cheese but dislikes tea, and she considers the sky one of the most beautiful parts of God's creation. Lila's favorite stories to read and write are fairy tale retellings. She is one of ten Rebellious Writers.

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"As a generation, us young adults have turned aside from morals and laws and wish to please ourselves. We don't want to hear about consequences or sin, but prefer to do (and say) whatever we want. Writers, aiming to appeal to the youth of today and make their characters and situations “relatable”, then write like what we have become, which only furthers the downward spiral…until smut happens. Very few writers are willing to risk being unpopular by writing something different, and readers, avoiding cleaner literature for fear of being preached at, continue to reach for books with suggestive content. I believe that it is possible to tell a good story without being explicit, using coarse language, and (at the other end of the spectrum) being preachy, and we need to support and purchase from writers who do so. I write, and encourage others who write, clean YA literature in all genres."

Julian Daventry grew up in a house with books in every room, and acquired a taste for reading at an early age.  After reaching her teen years, the amount of "readable" material lessened greatly, and she began to write the stories she so desperately wanted to read. When not writing or blogging, Julian songwrites, runs long-distance, and rides gigantic horses. 

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"I’m sorry that our world is the way it is, where trash sells and gold doesn’t. I truly believe that most publishers are people who want to produce good literature, but are held at the whims of the market. They settle for sub-par because their readers demand it with pitchforks and torches. 

"It seems there are two extremes writers tend to swing towards: perfect characters, with no flaws, or gross, twisted characters, with no recourse for their actions. The result from either end is a trashy, unhelpful book. We need characters with flaws, but who try hard to fight against their shortcomings. 

"I want to write books with redemption. Characters who fall hard, but are given a second chance. People who, when they learn the difference between right and wrong, strive to make right choices. 

"I also want to support and commend, in whatever way possible, the endeavors of other authors who write these kinds of books. By doing this, I can show the publishing industry that clean books do have a market and that they do sell."

Sarah Rodecker is a Christian twenty-something ailurophile who loves food, books, and making things for others. With seven first-draft novels completed, she is focusing on editing her first book, The Dawn of a Hero.
She also leads her writing group, The Order of the Pen.

I hope these young writers will inspire you as much as they have inspired me! Please check out their blogs as well as the Rebellious Writing blog. 

How would you answer the questions I posed?