5-5-5 Day 4: Stephanie Grace Whitson

Welcome to the 5-5-5 event, Stephanie! I’m so honored to be hosting you today. Now, five questions! First of all, could you tell us a little about your most recent book, Messageon the Quilt?

The Message on the Quilt is set in 1890 Beatrice, Nebraska, which hosted a huge event called Chautauqua which brought literally tens of thousands of people to the community to hear famous orators and to participate in other cultural events. The main character is Emilie Rhodes, whose newspaper editor father has always encouraged Emilie to think for herself—until, that is, thinking for herself leads Emilie away from the future her parents have planned for her. When Emilie goes to work for her father’s competition, she meets and falls in love with “The Man of Many Voices,” a noted orator appearing at the Chautauqua. But Noah Shaw’s professional life is only one reason he’s in Nebraska. He’s on a quest to find answers about the past. As Noah discovers the real meaning behind the symbols his mother embroidered on a treasured quilt, he realizes that a future with Emilie is probably impossible.  

What’s something you love about Message on the Quilt?

The line that says something to the effect that God is often doing His best work when we are tempted to think He isn’t paying any attention at all.

If Message on the Quilt was made into a movie…do you have actors/actresses in mind to play the main characters? If not, can you describe a bit of what you’d be looking for?

I often seek character inspiration in my collection of 19^th century photographs. Here are the inspiration for Emilie and Noah (together) and Emilie’s father, the newspaper editor.

You’ve written multiple books. Out of all the covers, which is your favorite? Hard question, I know.

I love different covers for different reasons. Of course cover styles change over the years, so my older book covers would be considered “dated” now. It’s also a fact of the publishing business that different publishers often establish a specific artistic “look” to their covers. Many readers responded positively to the cover art for Sixteen Brides, even mentioning the cover when they contacted me about the book. What I love about this particular cover is that “my” women’s personalities do show up in the way they are posed and in what they’ve chosen to wear.

Finally, what can we expect from you book-wise in the future?

Readers will go back to 1867 St. Louis with me and board the Laura Rose, a steamboat plying the Missouri River. They’ll meet Laura Rose White and Finn MacKnight, who are polar opposites but who are forced to learn to work together. A Captain for Laura Rose releases in the spring of 2014.

Find Stephanie on the following websites: 

 

www.Facebook.com/stephaniegracewhitson

www.stephaniewhitson.com

www.stephaniegracewhitson.blogspot.com

www.footnotesfromhistory.blogspot.com

Thank you so much for coming, Stephanie! I can't wait for that next book. So much fun to get to know you better! 

Next up, links to the other things posted on Austenitis related to Stephanie Grace Whitson and her books.  

• The Quilt Chronicles series (The Key on the Quilt, The Shadow on the Quilt, The Message on the Quilt)
• The Dakota Moons series (Valley of the Shadow, Edge of the Wilderness, Heart of the Sandhills) 
• The Prairie Winds series (Walks the Fire, Soaring Eagle, Red Bird)
• Sixteen Brides
• A Most Unsuitable Match
• A Claim of Her Own
• Unbridled Hope 
• Jacob's List
• Cover Focus (Sixteen Brides, A Most Unsuitable Match)
• Older interview with Stephanie 

Told you she was one of my favorite authors. ;) Now, Stephanie has offered up a copy of Message on the Quilt for one of you lucky people! It was a great book that I really enjoyed, and I think you will too. 

 

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